Addictions and Idolatry

Yesterday I wrote an opening post on the topic of addictions. I unpacked the broad nature that addictions are and wrote a little about the truth that all addictions have eternal implications. I want to honestly say that to fully cover the topic of addictions would take more than a few post, in fact would take a volume of books. So none of the post of addictions are very deep, I simply want to begin to think through the topic of addictions. Today I want to think through what the Bible says about addictions and also some of the consequences that Bible spells out on the topic.

Did you know the Bible, God's Word, has much to say about addictions? Now, the Bible, that I can find, does not use the word addiction. The Bible uses the word idolatry in place of the word addiction. The truth though is that idolatry is the same thing as addiction. Scriptures essential insight into addictions is that addictions are about a god and in truth, the wrong god. As I wrote yesterday, addictions are when our mind gets into a compulsive habit bent on doing something. Addictions then are when our mind has a god that it is bent on worshiping, and it is so bent on this god in worship that it has become a compulsive behavior we all of a sudden can't seem to control.

The reality is that life is hard and broken. We as humans know in our base core that something is wrong and out of place. So our minds begin to search for ways to fix the brokenness and solve our inside problem. The Bible says that the only answer for this internal brokenness and feeling, is God. But the sad problem is we fill this brokenness with anything we can find. This then is where addictions come into play. Addictions are things that seem to fill and fix the brokenness. Addictions come from our desire to fix the problem but get it wrong by focusing on the wrong god to fix the brokenness.

For example, I know that in the brokenness of this world I lack financial security. At any moment I could lose all my money and become financially broke. In this brokenness I have 2 choices. I can fill this brokenness with trust and security in God. Or I can find a pleasure and place that has a god to fix the problem, a god, like shopping. So when I find the god of shopping to fix the brokenness, the way God has made me, I begin to worship this new god of shopping and all of a sudden it becomes a habit I need to do, that makes me feel secure and happy in the brokenness. My addiction has become my idol. And this is what I mean by the Bible speaking a lot about the topic of addictions.

The Bible teaches that as human creatures, we were created to be addicts. The Bible makes it clear that we as humans were created to be addicted to God by delighting and worshiping Him forever. But becasue of the brokenness and sin in our inner core, that we are born with, we fill the design of addiction to God with idolatry and addictions to other gods. So as we read through the Bible, any thing about idolatry speaks into the topic of addictions.

What is even more sad then is the consequences the Bible speaks about when it comes to idolatry are the same consequences that come from addictions. The first major consequences that the Bible shows about addictions and idolatry is the truth that over time an idol worshiper will become like the idol. The Bible is clear for Christians that the more they worship Christ and remain in Christ, the more they will become like Him and look like Him. The truth is the same in the opposite negative way. The more an idol worshiper worships the idol, the more they will become like the idol. That means the largest and most deadly consequences of addictions is that the addict will be transformed more and more daily by their god addiction.

A second serious consequences the Bible gives for idolatry and addictions is slavery. The English word for addiction comes from the Latin word meaning "to give oneself over to or surrender". The Bible, specifically Paul, speaks much about the metaphor of slavery. Slavery shows that we become mastered by something. The Bible clearly says we are designed to be mastered by someone. But the Bible shows this someone must be God Himself. Because of our slavery to sin, we tend more than not to be mastered by another god or someone. This is the base of addictions. In addictions we become slaves to what we are addicted to. And the sad reality is that once we become slaves or addicts, outside of some serious help from God, we will continue to stay slaves and in fact go deeper into the slavery of the addiction and become more and more mastered with it. So the only way to avoid the consequences of slavery to an idol, is to be rescued by the Divine God who wants you to be mastered by Him.

So the Bible has much to say about addictions when it speaks about idolatry. This has also shown us that the Bible has much to teach about the consequences of addictions. So the questions to ask now are, which idol are we addicted to rather than God? And how can we surrender ourselves to be an addict to the right God, so that the wrong addiction can be removed?