Audio Files for Audiophiles
Episode 2
Not Under The Law… it’s Meaning and Intent
15 minutes
I have decided to post these transcripts before I do the videos and release the audio as I felt it important enough to get this out to you as soon as possible.
Welcome to episode 2 of the All About Kleck Nerdcast – Audio Files for Audiophiles. I have written these episodes using bits and pieces of articles that have vital facts that substantiate my claims plus lots of personal experiences and commentary. In this episode I would like to discuss what it means to be under the law or under grace. Also I plan to cover what Peter is talking about in reference to being sober minded.
Okay so if you listened to episode one I was discussing smoking weed and the Lord had showed me exactly how destructive that even smoking weed could be. This was not in reference to my smoking habits but someone in my distant family that had come down to stay with us to get her life straight. What I didn’t know at the time was exactly the extent of her substance abuse.
I understand cannabis and especially CBD have their purpose in certain situations. The weed we have now though is nothing like what we had back in the 70’s. It’s like comparing a Ford Pinto to a Lamborghini. The strength and effects are so much more powerful it’s like it’s not even the same herb anymore.
An incident occurred where our family member made some pot butter and didn’t dispose of the strained contents properly and it almost killed our big dog. This was a pivotal moment for me. Between her worship of the drug and what happened to our dog, what I had seen as a helpful herb was no longer so. Our family member went back to her state the next day. I heard the Lord urge me loudly and clearly that I should stop smoking weed and quit drinking. Side note I was drinking maybe a beer a day but I heard very plainly it was time to stop. The Lord had shown me the negative side of intoxicants in the clearest of all ways, so I stopped. He was very clear to me that I should get rid of all of the rest of the weed I had. So I did, most of it. Some of it I kept for Jonny when he came down for his visits because he needed it for his pain. That was a mistake and the Lord had me walk through a little fire later on because of that. I wasn’t obedient and as I stated in episode one my testimony is all about obedience to the Lord God.
When I would go up to Jonathan Kleck’s house to help him with his home security project he would always have weed for me. It was no big deal. He smoked it, he knew I did, so that gave us something in common. A gray area, an ambiguity in what was considered being under the law. He always quoted to me:
1 Corinthians 6:12 All things are lawful unto me, but all things are not expedient: all things are lawful for me, but I will not be brought under the power of any.
which is also found in
1 Corinthians 10:23
23 All things are lawful for me, but all things are not expedient: all things are lawful for me, but all things edify not.
Only he would mix two versions of the Bible and say permissible instead of lawful. Permissible is not found once in the KJV. I now understand why the subtle substitution of the word even though it may be found in other versions.
This is an excellent breakdown from gotquestions.org on 1st Corinthians:
In both places where everything is permissible is found, Paul reminds his readers that, when he speaks of Christian freedom, it is always in relation to freedom from works-based righteousness, i.e., earning salvation by good deeds. When we try to merit salvation through the Mosaic Law, Pharisaic tradition, or any other means, we pervert the gospel. Grace is unmerited and by definition cannot be earned. The Christian is free from the burden of attempting to earn salvation, but the Corinthians had perverted Paul’s message of freedom to justify sinful lifestyles.
Grace is not license to sin. The believer should not live as if “everything is permissible.” Beyond the book of Corinthians, Paul makes it clear that freedom in Christ does not equate to freedom to sin: “What shall we say then? Are we to continue in sin that grace might increase? May it never be! How shall we who died to sin still live in it? . . . What then? Shall we sin because we are not under law but under grace? May it never be!” (Romans 6:1–2, 15); “For you were called to freedom, brethren; only do not turn your freedom into an opportunity for the flesh, but through love serve one another” (Galatians 5:13).
Chapters 6 and 10 in 1 Corinthians also emphasize a restraint of Christian freedom when it comes to other believers. Paul’s primary message on this subject for the Corinthians and all believers in all ages is summarized in 1 Corinthians 10:31: “Whatever you do, do all to the glory of God”.
The Lord had told me to start a ministry in October of 2020 and it was supposed to be for those left behind, after the rapture. It was named the ARC or Angel Refugee Center. As with places of this nature there were certain rules that were formed to ensure mutual respect of fellow residents of the ARC. One of the rules was no intoxicants. Jonny flipped. He was really angry because I had set rules and we were “no longer under the law”. I was called a hypocrite many time over, yelled at and he hung up on me three times until I finally relented and said if, as he stated to me “if someone wanted to go slip off in the woods and smoke some weed for anxiety or pain”, it would be ok. I was bullied into that decision and it never set well because I felt that was contrary to what the Lord had revealed to me, but who was I to argue, this was the Angel of the Church of Philadelphia and if he said people could smoke weed there then they could, but I wouldn’t.
Another great article from Got Questions.org has really covered a lot of what I wanted to bring to every Christian’s mind so I will read some excerpts from it because it says everything I had wanted to point out.
“First, although many states have legalized medical marijuana, its use is still illegal according to federal law. Paul exhorts us to obey the law of the land under our government in this way: “Everyone must submit himself to the governing authorities, for there is no authority except that which God has established. The authorities that exist have been established by God. Consequently, he who rebels against the authority is rebelling against what God has instituted, and those who do so will bring judgment on themselves” (Romans 13:1-2).
Researchers found that the smoking of three to four cannabis cigarettes a day is associated with the same degree of damage to bronchial mucus membranes as twenty or more tobacco cigarettes a day. In truth, marijuana causes short-term memory loss, distorted perception, trouble with thinking and problem solving, loss of motor skills, decrease in muscle strength, increased heart rate and anxiety—and that’s just for starters. According to the Mayo Clinic, marijuana smoke contains 50 to 70 percent more carcinogenic hydrocarbons than tobacco smoke and has the potential to cause cancer of the lungs and respiratory tract. Clearly, this is contradictory to the biblical mandate to keep our bodies pure. “Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own; you were bought at a price. Therefore honor God with your body” (1 Corinthians 6:19-20).
The Bible teaches Christians to be sound of mind. “Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour” (1 Peter 5:8). The Greek word translated as “sober” is nepho, which literally means “drink no wine.” From this it derived a broader meaning of being self-controlled, free of confusion, clear headed, sound of mind, or keeping your head. From this verse, we can see that Christians are to avoid intoxicants that impair clear thinking. Marijuana certainly seems to cloud thinking and reaction time.
I truly believe that when the Lord told me to stop it was so that I might be closer to Him. Being clear minded and talking to the Lord with a sober mind enables us to have a closer and unobstructed relationship with the Lord and our Saviour Jesus Christ. Jesus and the Holy Spirit live within us so by being sober and not under any influence of any intoxicants you are not dishonoring God with your body and you have a unadulterated, clear mind to speak with the Lord.
Additionally, clouded thinking can lead to questionable moral choices. Habakkuk warns, “Woe to you who make your neighbors drink, who mix in your venom even to make them drunk so as to look on their nakedness!” (Habakkuk 2:15). The reference to “mix in your venom” is the ancient practice of adding herbs (or drugs) to wine to make its intoxicating effects more potent. Christians have a hard enough time battling temptations without making Satan’s job easier by taking drugs that alter one’s judgment and self-control. Use of intoxicants has also been closely associated with witchcraft and sorcery in the Bible. The Greek word pharmakeia, translated “sorcery,” literally means “to administer drugs.” As with our English word “drugs,” the context must be considered to determine the meaning. In biblical times, pagans incorporated the use of drugs to induce altered states of consciousness, during which they supposedly communed with their gods. This would be similar to the modern-day practice of voodoo. The apostles strongly condemned the use of such drugs to produce altered mind states because the drugs lowered inhibitions and self-control. (Galatians 5:19-21; Revelation 9:20-21; 21:8; 22:15). The Christian disciplines his body and keeps it under control (1 Corinthians 9:27), so that he is able to set his mind on things above (Colossians 3:2).
We must also consider the impact that the use of marijuana could have on others. A person smoking marijuana may be encouraging someone else, who may not have a medical justification, to use marijuana as well.
For example a brother I knew who had vowed never to use cannabis again, who promised God he wouldn’t, Jonathan Kleck told him it was ok so he broke his vow to the Lord. This is not hearsay, I was told this by the brother himself who was seriously conflicted about the usage.
Now back to the fact when the Lord told me to get rid of all of the cannabis and I didn’t. Another brother who knew I had some set aside for Jonny said he had a headache that wouldn’t go away and he asked me for some of it. I said no and he persisted following me around where ever I went in the building and trying to justify why he needed it. I said no three times and then I got angry. I hadn’t raised my voice that loud in years. I got into a screaming match with his wife about the issue and realized why I was so convicted to not give him any weed. It was because I had not done what the Lord had told me to do. Having that cannabis around was a trigger and a stumbling block. The Lord had told me to get rid of it, The insistence for access to the weed was a reminder that I had not done as the Lord had commanded me to do and the resulting conflict was a fire walk the Lord had me go through to ensure I heard and did as I was told. I did the very next day as it is now somewhere at the bottom of a bayou or in the bay by now. A perfect example of the impact it has on others and we are called to not be a stumbling block for our brothers. As Christians, we are called to avoid not only sin, but also any activity that may cause our brothers and sisters in Christ to sin (1 Corinthians 8:9-13). For me it was a reminder to be obedient to the Lord in all things.
Finally, Satan is the great justifier. He always wants to help us rationalize and justify sinning against God, almost making it seem like the right thing to do. The same games people play in using the Bible to try to justify many other sinful activities can used to justify smoking pot. Taking verses out of context, stating a verse means one thing when it clearly means another, and making assumptions the Word does not support are all tricks the enemy will use to try to justify smoking marijuana.
This is a tactic that Jonathan Kleck employs all of the time. He bends scripture to justify his actions, taking others down with him into sin in the process. Taking 1 Corinthians 10:23 and weaponizing it to use it to justify his usage of an intoxicant is clearly deception considering the intention of Paul’s message to the Corinthians. When you take scriptures to justify a sinful nature it perverts the Gospel and dishonors Christ.
We must never forget that Satan is a liar. We must guard against these tactics in our own lives. God is not deceived. He will not be mocked (Galatians 6:7).