ONGING FOR GOD AND YEARNING FOR freedom occupy the very core of our being. In the words of Augustine, bishop of Hippo, "our hearts are restless until we have found our rest in Thee." In the same way, yearning for freedom--of choice and of will--point us back to Creation. "Have dominion . . ." (Gen. 1:28)* and "You may freely . . ." (Gen. 2:16) explain the reason for our natural repulsion toward anyone and anything that tries to determine unduly who we are and what we may or may not do.

Yet this is not the whole story. Something created this longing for God and yearning for freedom at the very core of our being: we sinned against God and against ourselves. We rebelled against God's authority and abused our freedom; thus our very beings became divided. Paul struggled with this in Romans 7:15-19 when he confessed, "I do not understand my own actions. For I do not do what I want, but I do the very thing I hate. . . . For I do not do the good I want, but the evil I do not want is what I do." Why is it so? Must it be so?

What Is Addiction?
We define addiction as a state of being and a way of life in which our desires become "attached" and our energies enslaved to certain specific behaviors, things, or people. These objects of attachments are our idols, substitutes for the God we have rejected. But they are nothing like God. Our idols cannot match His goodness or satisfy our needs. So they become our obsessions, taking away our freedom and ruling our lives.¹ The end result is a destructive pattern of abusing substances, people, or things to which we become adjusted and from which we cannot be liberated without experiencing a state called withdrawal.²

Addiction must not be confused with habit or skill. Habits and skills are learned behaviors, as are addictions. For instance, I have a habit of eating bread and fruit for breakfast. My sons prefer bread and peanut butter. My wife is very skillful at sight-reading piano music, while I think I'm skillful at playing guitar. However, any of the above activities can be discontinued at will without pain or withdrawal symptoms. On the other hand, drinking alcohol, smoking, sexual addictions, narcotic dependencies, and forms of codependencies and the like do not go away by the action of our will alone. Addictions are compulsory and coercive; they tyrannize us, becoming a law unto themselves (Rom. 7:17).

Several steps lead to addiction:

1. Tolerance. A period of adjustment during which we become accustomed to the object of addiction (e.g., tobacco). In time the adverse reactions of body, mind, or spirit subside, making us tolerant-even dependent-on the use of it.

2. Self-deception. Our mind becomes inventive; justifying and perpetuating addictive behavior (e.g., denial, rationalization, the "I'll stop when I want" attitude).

3. Loss of willpower. The conflicting messages between wanting to become free and the craving for more create unbearable tension, which forces us to take the line of lesser resistance: we give in.

4. Distorted attention. The addict becomes so preoccupied with the desired object that the rest of life and people around us suffer. The only way to "fix" the situation is, again, to give in.³

5. Hiding. The feeling of shame and fear of being discovered drain the addict's energies even further.

6. Collusion. Friends who share the same addiction often provide support and a feeling of normalcy.

7. Capitulation. As time passes and we become more skillful at using our crutches, freedom from addiction seems too unrealistic, and we give up.

Biblical Witness
The Bible speaks about addiction in several ways. First, it introduces the concept of temptation. There is no special reason to desire something, no real need. It just appears that "the grass is greener on the other side of the fence," and we are enticed to have it (Gen. 3:1-3). At this point we are still free. We can refuse. We can prevent temptations if we avoid the place, the crowd, the indulgence in thought. Or we can encourage the fascination with it. Nothing has happened yet. All is fine.⁴

If we resist the first assault, we may remain free for a while. If not, we may become curious about the consequences in case we do decide to try it just once. So we examine the issue at a closer range (Eccl. 2:10)-a fatal mistake. The consequences seldom look horrible enough to overshadow the intrigue of doing something out of the ordinary, something bad. But the more we look, the closer we come, the better it looks, and the more we want it (Gen. 3:1-6). "Each person is tempted when he is lured and enticed by his own desire," said the apostle (James 1:14). Short of a direct and radical act of will, empowered by grace, nothing can wrench us away from evil, as the wise man found out (Eccl. 6:7-9). Gerald May comments: "In spite of the variety of views as to the source and purpose of temptation, biblical sources show a clear consistency as to its nature: it is the starting point of addiction. Whether we see it simply as our biological capacity to become attached, or as a seduction by dark external forces, or both, temptation is always the first, the preliminary opportunity, for addiction. Once attachment is fully entrenched, our motivations become so mixed that freedom to choose is seriously compromised. But in the stage of temptation, where only the potential for attachment exists, our yes or no make all the difference."⁵

When we do not say no, the desire will most certainly demand nurture until it gives birth to sin, which, when fully grown, brings forth death (James 1:15); death of our freedom and death of who we were until then. An act of sin never remains just an act, an incident of a moment. When sin enters our life it clings to us and usurps the control of our soul (Heb. 12:1). Our being has become changed by our doing, so much so that our actions become increasingly attached to the new lifestyle. In Romans 7 Paul describes two selves in competition-at war; one acting in harmony with what he knew to be good, and the other driving his will in the other direction.

Soon addictions invade our being. By ourselves we are impotent to resist the power of addiction and become free again. "Can the Ethiopian change his skin or the leopard his spots?" asked the prophet. "Then also you can do good who are accustomed to do evil" (Jer. 13:23). We need help from outside of us-the help of God's grace and the support of our friends and caring professionals.

Addiction and Sin
Before we take a brief look at the uniquely effective role of grace in offering hope to those of us who struggle with addiction, we must first examine the relationship between addiction and sin. The Bible does not use the word "addiction."

Can we use these terms interchangeably? Are they synonymous?

In the first place, there are no good addictions.⁶ Alcohol and nicotine are dangerous substances; they hurt us. Work or healthy foods are good in and of themselves, yet we can become addicted to them, and then they will hurt us too, and become an abuse of God's creation. Paul put it nicely: "'All things are lawful for me,' but not all things are helpful. 'All things are lawful for me,' but I will not be enslaved by anything" (1 Cor. 6:12). Addiction is always a moral evil, and moral evil yields to sin. But sin does not need addiction in order to thrive. Sinful acts can be totally unrelated to any particular attachment and yet be equally hurtful to us and to our neighbors. Addiction is one of many manifestations of sin.

Psychiatrist Karl Menninger published a book in which he warned against a trend leading away from personal moral responsibility for our actions and considering addictions as some type of illness. He observed that to call an alcoholic a sinner is considered judgmental, self-righteous, and lacking in compassion. According to some, more weight must be put on genetics, brain chemistry, and conditioning, and less on character, moral responsibility, will, or relationship with God.⁷ Menninger deplored such developments, and since then, several others have joined in.

Linda A. Mercadante brought out several points in support of Menninger's concerns: 1. If calling addiction sin "creates undue guilt and blame on someone trapped and powerless," minimizing personal responsibility for our choices may go too far in the direction of irresponsibility, thus weakening the willpower needed for winning the battle with addiction.⁸

2. Because addiction is a very complex condition, many experts call for an integrated approach, in which several disciplines would be involved in restoring the addict to complete recovery. Ignoring genetics, brain chemistry, or conditioning would be irresponsible. In the same way, ignoring the spiritual dimension leads to partial solutions. Mercadante warned against the danger of providing only diagnosis, with skills for management, without paying attention to spiritual needs.⁹ It is not enough, she said, to "replace the destructive addiction with a nonchemical substitute dependency."¹⁰ Bill Wilson, founder of Alcoholics Anonymous, once said that many alcoholics are "seeking God in the bottle," and, not finding Him there, the bottle becomes an idol.

Anything can become an object of attachment, and that anything can displace God. Overwork, careerism, upward mobility, excessive worry, pornography, overeating, and "messiah syndrome" (a feeling that no one could replace me) can be as dangerous as alcohol, tobacco, or drugs. The words "You shall have no other gods before me" applies to all of us--even church members.

Addiction, Grace, and the Journey Homeward
We all swim in an ocean of grace. The church cannot afford to call sin by its true name without calling grace by its true name. In the experience of Israel, exodus was the "name" for grace, the move out of slavery into freedom. And it is in the context of this most gracious event that the law was given. Mercante wrote: "The best reason to preach on sin is to highlight the power and joy of grace."¹¹ Scripture teaches us that sin is an expensive commodity. Consequently, God's grace is not cheap (Rom. 6:1); it is free, but not cheap. Grace flows freely into the heart that is willing to risk it without addiction. Gerald May pointed out that "living into grace requires taking risks of faith."¹² And the risks are many.

God's grace asks us to give up our addictions. Augustine once said that God is always trying to give good things to us, but our hands are too full to receive them. May observed, "Our addictions fill up the spaces within us, spaces where grace may flow."¹³ But a call simply to give up our addictions will not work, no matter who does the bidding. We will fail again and again. But the Word of God teaches that failure must not discourage us: "For a righteous man falls seven times, and rises again; but the wicked are overthrown by calamity" (Prov. 24:16). Notice, the righteous fall just as the wicked do. The difference, the blessed difference, is that the righteous rise again, instead of wallowing in their misery (Micah 7:8).

On our journey to freedom God jealously guards our dignity. He knows well that addicts are crippled by fear and shame. He lets us make our own decisions, even when He would much rather do it for us. But if we hurt ourselves again, He will be there for us. "This does not mean God is like a permissive human parent," wrote May, "who makes excuses and ignores the consequences of a child's behavior. Such permissiveness is more cowardly than loving, because it devalues the child's capacity for dignity and responsibility. In God's constantly respectful love, the consequences of our actions are very real, and they can be horrible, and we are responsible. . . . But . . . God's love remains unwavering. Thus . . . God is constantly open and vulnerable to us."¹⁴

The church is the perfect place where growth in grace can be nurtured, where sinners can experience victories on their journey home. It is the place where we all can meet the supreme Specialist who can heal our addiction and help us throw away our crutches. Wrote Ellen White, "There are those who have known the pardoning love of Christ and who really desire to be children of God, yet they realize that their character is imperfect, their life faulty, and they are ready to doubt whether their hearts have been renewed by the Holy Spirit. To such I would say, Do not draw back in despair. We shall often have to bow down and weep at the feet of Jesus because of our shortcomings and mistakes, but we are not to be discouraged. Even if we are overcome by the enemy, we are not cast off, not forsaken and rejected of God. No; Christ is at the right hand of God, who also maketh intercession for us."¹⁵

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* Bible texts in this article are from the Revised Standard Version.

¹ Gerald G. May, Addiction and Grace (San Francisco: Harper and Row, 1988), p. 3.
² Thomas Bien and Beverly Bien, Mindful Recovery (New York: John Wiley, 2002), p. 8.
³ May, pp. 26-31.
⁴ Ellen G. White, Testimonies (Mountain View, Calif.: Pacific Press Pub. Assn., 1948), vol. 4, p. 358.
⁵ May, pp. 115, 116.
⁶ Ibid., pp. 37-41.
⁷ Karl Menninger, Whatever Became of Sin? (New York: Hawthorn, 1973), pp. 13-37, 68-70.
⁸ Linda A. Mercandante, "Sin, Addiction and Freedom," in Reconstructing Christian Theology, eds. Rebecca S. Chopp and Mark Lewis Taylor (Minneapolis: Fortress Press 1994), p. 223.
⁹ Ibid., p. 229.
¹⁰ Ibid., p. 237.
¹¹ Ibid., p. 240.
¹² May, p. 127.
¹³ Ibid., p. 17
¹⁴ Ibid., p. 123
¹⁵ Ellen G. White, Steps to Christ (Washington, D.C.: Ellen G. White Pubs., 1956), p. 64.

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Miroslav Kis is professor of ethics and chair of the Theology and Christian Philosophy Department at the Seventh-day Adventist Theological Seminary in Berrien Springs, Michigan.