Bible Verses About Addiction

1 Corinthians 10:13 – There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man: but God [is] faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear [it].

1 Peter 5:8 – Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour:

James 1:12-15 – Blessed [is] the man that endureth temptation: for when he is tried, he shall receive the crown of life, which the Lord hath promised to them that love him.

1 John 2:16 – For all that [is] in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world.

1 Corinthians 15:33 – Be not deceived: evil communications corrupt good manners.

James 4:7 – Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.

Galatians 5:19-21 – 19 Now the works of the flesh are manifest, which are [these]; Adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness, 20 Idolatry, witchcraft, hatred, variance, emulations, wrath, strife, seditions, heresies, 21 Envyings, murders, drunkenness, revellings, and such like: of the which I tell you before, as I have also told [you] in time past, that they which do such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God.

1 Corinthians 6:9-11 9 Know ye not that the unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom of God? Be not deceived: neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor abusers of themselves with mankind,

10 Nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners, shall inherit the kingdom of God.

11 And such were some of you: but ye are washed, but ye are sanctified, but ye are justified in the name of the Lord Jesus, and by the Spirit of our God.

1 Peter 2:11 – Dearly beloved, I beseech [you] as strangers and pilgrims, abstain from fleshly lusts, which war against the soul;

1 Peter 5:10 – But the God of all grace, who hath called us unto his eternal glory by Christ Jesus, after that ye have suffered a while, make you perfect, stablish, strengthen, settle [you].

Proverbs 20:1 – Wine [is] a mocker, strong drink [is] raging: and whosoever is deceived thereby is not wise.

Romans 13:14 – But put ye on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make not provision for the flesh, to [fulfil] the lusts [thereof].

Psalms 50:15 – And call upon me in the day of trouble: I will deliver thee, and thou shalt glorify me.

Matthew 6:13 – And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil: For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, for ever. Amen.

John 8:36 – If the Son therefore shall make you free, ye shall be free indeed.

Romans 5:3-5 – And not only [so], but we glory in tribulations also: knowing that tribulation worketh patience;

Isaiah 5:11 11Woe unto them that rise up early in the morning, that they may follow strong drink; that continue until night, till wine inflame them!

Romans 6:16 Know ye not, that to whom ye yield yourselves servants to obey, his servants ye are to whom ye obey; whether of sin unto death, or of obedience unto righteousness?

2 Corinthians 5:17 Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.

Ephesians 5:18-20 And be not drunk with wine, wherein is excess; but be filled with the Spirit;19 Speaking to yourselves in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord;20 Giving thanks always for all things unto God and the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ;

Titus 2:11-14 11 For the grace of God that bringeth salvation hath appeared to all men, 12 Teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly, in this present world; 13 Looking for that blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ; 14 Who gave himself for us, that he might redeem us from all iniquity, and purify unto himself a peculiar people, zealous of good works.

James 4:7 7 Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.

John MacArthur with selected scripture about alcohol and its use.

Those were some King James Bible verses about addiction. Some are directly about alcohol abuse, others are geared more towards recovery. Scripture mainly addresses drinking, but this can be applied to any intoxicant.

Of course, recovery is recovery, it applies equally to nearly all addictions.

Remember, the Bible condemns drunkards, not drinking. It is not if you drink, it is how you drink that the Bible is concerned with.

When people I am close to ask me how I got sober, I tell them “I prayed everyday, sometimes all day.” When they ask me if it was hard, I answer, “no, it is very natural to talk to God.” When they press me harder, about how difficult it was to quit drinking. I tell them to “ask the Holy Spirit. I was just along for the ride.” The most important thing I did to stay sober was ask God to help and to pray everyday as a matter of routine and to pray the other portions of the day as needed. Paul talks about constant prayer, it sounds intimidating, but nothing could be easier.

By The Way

The Bible verse about addiction that got me to stop was 1 Corinthians 6:9-11. It took it two years or so to work, but it all began with Paul’s letters to the Corinthians. Looks like the Holy Spirit can even convict Raging Alcoholics, but I should have known that from the beginning. The Spirit does not miss, it gets whatever it goes after.

Also, I was a believer in God (through General Revelation) but did not consider myself a Christian when I first quit drinking, it probably took another year before I was sure what I was doing with God was permanent. I always was a little slow on the up-take.

My first prayer was based on 1 Corinthians 6:9-11. I rightly guessed that God hates sin, my brand of drinking was clearly a sin, therefore God should help me stop. Like I said, I am a little slow.

My point is, don’t let whatever you think your status with God is stop you. Reach out. If you know God exists, if you don’t think the things of God are foolishness (1 Corinthians 2:14) than he has already reached out to you. Reach back.

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