Gateway Drugs?

I've been hearing a lot about the supposed dangers of "gateway drugs" recently.  Actually, gateway everything...gateway animals like chickens, gateway plants such as tomatoes, etc.  Huh.

Recently we had some friends over and there was a discussion on this topic (drugs, not chickens). And they were saying that marijuana, or cannabis, is one of (several?) initial "gateway drugs" that would inevitably lead to worse things.  I disagree, though that's not the major point here.

So, I got to thinking about it...what would qualify as a gateway drug?  And which of these supposed drugs, if any, pushes us down the slipper slope to harder stuff like heroin, cocaine, or meth?

If we were to look at this question objectively, we'd see that cannabis wouldn't be the first "drug" we're exposed to.  How far back do we really want to go?  Back to the beginning?

For example, marijuana couldn't be the foremost gateway drug out there.  Many people try alcohol and liquor before they try smoking weed.  So, do we want to say that vodka or beer or wine inevitably leads to "worse" stuff?  Objectively, we need to go back further.

Let's stereotype caffeine as the first gateway drug out there -- that is, the first inherently addictive substance that many people get into.  Coffee?  Is coffee the problem?  Probably not, as kids typically spend years drinking soda before they get hooked on coffee.  So, is caffeine the problem?  Or is it the HFCS or artificial colors in soda?  We might be led to suspect that soda is the problem.  No, actually, it's probably the sugar.  Actually, it's probably the MSG that's in all your kid's favorite snacks.  

We could take this whole line of thinking way back.  Maybe the pleasure babies get as they drink their Mother's breast milk is the problem.  Maybe that initial endorphin trigger sets up these babies to be dependent on mind altering "drugs" for the rest of their life.  Is that really how it works?

Can you see where the projection of this faulty mindset of criminalizing natural substances like beer or cannabis leads us?  It's an attack both on the gifts of God and the way He intentionally programmed humanity.  Many Christians are stuck in a Greek-oriented philosophy that stemmed from guys like Plato and Aristotle -- not from Messiah or the Scriptures.  Many Christians are under the enslaving illusion that the spiritual world is good and the natural world is bad.  That's Gnosticism, not Christianity.

The point I'm trying to make is that there are "gateway drugs" everywhere.  We're exposed to them at virtually all ages at virtually all points in our life.  Cannabis is not the problem; it's no more at fault in creating heroin addictions than Cheetos or red wine.

Maybe, just maybe, people were designed for pleasure!  Maybe pleasure is a good thing.  Maybe the Creator of all these wonderful substances, whatever they are (with the exception of synthetic chemicals and drugs), created them to be a blessing to us and not a snare or perceived temptation. Maybe it's not the food or drink or herb or tincture that that goes into a person's body that's the problem (Matthew 15:11).

I like wine.  I like hard root beer.  I like these cute little tropical drinks Vanessa makes me with sparkling soda and mango vodka.  But I'm not addicted  to them (1 Cor. 6:12).  They don't distract me from God. They actually inspire me to give thanks to God (1 Tim. 4:4)!

The thing that safeguards us is not the avoidance of this or that potentially addictive substance (Colossians 1:21). Messiah set you free from those kinds of rules, if you'll believe it.

The thing that keeps us away from any sort of addiction is an addiction and fixation with God.  You were made for pleasure, emotional highs, ecstatic experiences and bliss (Hebrews 9:11).  And all of these things flow out from Him.  You can't really get bored with the Creator.  And if you think you can, you're putting unscriptural limitations on Him!

"You make known to me the path of life; in your Presence there is fullness of joy; at your right hand are pleasures forevermore."                    ~Psalm 16:11

To have God is to know He has you (Song of Songs 6:3). To have a love for God is to have true pleasure.  He is your only authentic gateway drug and the realm you must enter into (Matthew 7:13-14); once you taste Jesus, you can't go back (Psalm 34:8)(Ephesians 1:13)!  You're free to love Him and let everything else flow out from that.  To paraphrase St. Augustine:

"Love God and do whatever you please: for the soul trained in love to God will do nothing to offend the One who is Beloved."