Recreational marijuana legislation
My state just voted to approve recreational marijuana. I have two questions. One, is it legal for me to use it if my state says, "Yes," but my national law still says, "No"? And two, is it permissible for me to use it as a Christian knowing that God has called me to be "sober minded" and I will lose that when I get a high from it? Or, to ask it another way, is it possible to use this substance "in moderation"?
Since the Bible does not speak directly to your questions, we need to see how some broad scriptural principles apply.
For one thing, there is the matter of governmental authority. We are to obey the authorities whom God has established (Romans 13). We are to obey the laws they enact unless obedience to those laws puts us in conflict with God’s will (Acts 5:29). We recognize that governments may pass ungodly legislation (for example, abortion, no-fault divorce, same-sex marriage), but the governmental freedom to commit sin does not give Christians the green light to sin.
With some states now legally allowing the use of marijuana, Christians will have to ask themselves some questions in this regard: 1) If something is permissible, is it beneficial? (1 Corinthians 10:23.) 2) Is an activity beneficial for me—and others? The 1 Corinthians 10:23 passage occurs in the context of exercising our Christian freedom with a concern for how our actions might impact others—especially emboldening them to act against their conscience, and so to sin against their conscience. 3) Would the “recreational” use of marijuana lead a person to dull his/her senses and lose self-control? (Proverbs 31:4-5; Luke 21:34; Romans 13:13; Galatians 5:21; Ephesians 5:18) 4) Would a “recreational” use of marijuana lead to addiction? The earlier usage of “everything is permissible for me” in 1 Corinthians occurs in chapter 6. There (verse 12) Paul explains that we do not want to “be mastered by anything.” 5) Might we be guilty of sin by acting in doubt? (Romans 14:23) 6) Will I be harming the body that God created, and which belongs to him? (This is a 5th commandment issue.)
No doubt, other questions may need to be addressed, but these are ones that come to mind at this time. Addressing questions like these can be helpful for Christians to understand how they can grow in pleasing, not themselves, but God (2 Corinthians 5:9; 1 Thessalonians 4:1).