It is troubling to see how smoking cigarettes and drinking alcohol is such a stumbling block for so many people when they consider Christianity.
　I have friends that think that they are already disqualified from the possibility of ever becoming Christians just because they smoke and drink.
　To have to give up smoking and drinking in order to meet the requirements for becoming a Christian, is for most people, especially men, too difficult to do. I do believe that this presumption is probably one of the strongest reasons why so many people don't even consider Christianity as something they could call as their own faith.
　What is it that makes smoking and drinking to be looked upon with such severity? Does the Bible really say that smoking cigarettes and drinking alcohol is a sin?
　 No, the Bible doesn't say that. There are no scriptures that directly regard the two as sins at all. In fact, drinking wine was recommended by the Apostle Paul to Timothy to calm his nerves and stomach. Even Jesus blessed a wedding reception by miraculously turning large vessels of water into "good tasting" wine when the wine had run out. Drinking wine in the Bible days was just part of everyday life. So, the Bible doesn't say that drinking alcohol is a sin. Yet the scriptures do say that we should not drink it accessively nor get drunk. That is certainly understandable even from a secular perspective.
　As for cigarettes, there is no mention of such a thing in the Bible. Either cigarettes weren't invented yet, or that it was available and smoked but was not considered bad. The Bible does encourage us to take good care of "God's temple", the human body. In other words, we are to maintain good health. So, from that perspective, smoking cigarettes is not good. This is just plain common sense. Yet, the scriptures do not say that it is a sin to not maintain good health.
　I have several close friends that are good, upstanding Christians who smoke cigarettes and drink alcohol. These indulgences do not hinder their faith at all. They are responsible people and sincerely love God.
　 Let's not let erroneous misunderstandings of the smoking cigarettes and drinking alcohol get in the way of knowing God. There are more important issues to deal with than these when it comes to the Christian faith.