Study #6: Health in Five Equal Parts

Romans 7:15-25
^{16171819202122232425}I do not understand my own actions. For I do not do what I want, but I do the very thing I hate. Now if I do what I do not want, I agree that the law is good. But in fact it is no longer I that do it, but sin that dwells within me. For I know that nothing good dwells within me, that is, in my flesh. I can will what is right, but I cannot do it. For I do not do the good I want, but the evil I do not want is what I do. Now if I do what I do not want, it is no longer I that do it, but sin that dwells within me. So I find it to be a law that when I want to do what is good, evil lies close at hand. For I delight in the law of God in my inmost self, but I see in my members another law at war with the law of my mind, making me captive to the law of sin that dwells in my members. Wretched man that I am! Who will rescue me from this body of death? Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord! So then, with my mind I am a slave to the law of God, but with my flesh I am a slave to the law of sin.

3 John 1:2
Beloved, I pray that all may go well with you and that you may be in good health, just as it is well with your soul.

Romans 12:1-2
²I appeal to you therefore, brothers and sisters, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship. Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your minds, so that you may discern what is the will of God—what is good and acceptable and perfect.

John 15:3-10
^4567810You have already been cleansed by the word that I have spoken to you. Abide in me as I abide in you. Just as the branch cannot bear fruit by itself unless it abides in the vine, neither can you unless you abide in me. I am the vine, you are the branches. Those who abide in me and I in them bear much fruit, because apart from me you can do nothing. Whoever does not abide in me is thrown away like a branch and withers; such branches are gathered, thrown into the fire, and burned. If you abide in me, and my words abide in you, ask for whatever you wish, and it will be done for you. My Father is glorified by this, that you bear much fruit and become my disciples. As the Father has loved me, so I have loved you; abide in my love. If you keep my commandments, you will abide in my love, just as I have kept my Father’s commandments and abide in his love.

Daniel 4:33-35
³⁵Immediately the sentence was fulfilled against Nebuchadnezzar. He was driven away from human society, ate grass like oxen, and his body was bathed with the dew of heaven, until his hair grew as long as eagles’ feathers and his nails became like birds’ claws. When that period was over, I, Nebuchadnezzar, lifted my eyes to heaven, and my reason returned to me. I blessed the Most High, and praised and honored the one who lives forever. For his sovereignty is an everlasting sovereignty, and his kingdom endures from generation to generation. All the inhabitants of the earth are accounted as nothing, and he does what he wills with the host of heaven and the inhabitants of the earth. There is no one who can stay his hand or say to him, “What are you doing?”

Acts 3:7
And he took him by the right hand and raised him up; and immediately his feet and ankles were made strong.

2 Corinthians 6:14-18
^15161718Do not be mismatched with unbelievers. For what partnership is there between righteousness and lawlessness? Or what fellowship is there between light and darkness? What agreement does Christ have with Beliar? Or what does a believer share with an unbeliever? What agreement has the temple of God with idols? For we are the temple of the living God; as God said, “I will live in them and walk among them, and I will be their God, and they shall be my people. Therefore come out from them, and be separate from them, says the Lord, and touch nothing unclean; then I will welcome you, and I will be your father, and you shall be my sons and daughters, says the Lord Almighty.”

Galatians 5:22-25
By contrast, the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. There is no law against such things. And those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. If we live by the Spirit, let us also be guided by the Spirit. ²³²⁴²⁵

The disease of addiction, whether it is to drugs, alcohol, food, sex, gambling, shopping, or any other thing done to excess in order to numb unwanted and painful feelings, is a powerful and encompassing issue.
Disease simply means a body not at ease. The disease of addiction affects the whole person. A whole person is made up of equal and distinct parts dependent on each other. These parts are viewed in a circle, much as a wedding ring, which has no beginning or end, made of precious materials and a symbol of something greater. The parts are biological, psychological, social, spiritual, and volitional/ by choice. To achieve wholeness in addiction recovery requires recognition and healing of each of these parts. (Romans 7:15-25)

Biological (3 John 1:2, Romans 12:1-2)
John comments on his concern for his friend’s health. Physical health is often the first part to heal. To neglect one portion of our wholeness will affect our overall health and well being. We know, for instance, that drugs such as cocaine have a huge impact on the heart, liver, and circulatory system.

Psychological (John 15:3-10, Daniel 4:33-35)
John tells us of how God wants us to reclaim the lost parts of ourselves just as the woman searched for the lost coin. This part of wholeness refers to our thinking. In drug addiction, obsession and compulsion run rampant. Obsession is the thought of using and compulsion is the act of using drugs.

Social (Acts 3:7)
We do not live in this world independently of others. The disease of addiction wants to isolate us and keep us for its own. Socially, the disease of addiction affects us through our relationships with others—our family connections, our finances, how we live in our world. “We,” being the first word in the 12 Steps, implies our own inability to get into recovery without the help of another, just as we did not get into addiction on our own.

Spiritual (2 Corinthians 6:14-18)
The fourth portion of wholeness is spiritual. Achievement of spiritual wholeness comes through daily talking with God (prayer) and listening to God (meditation). When an addict is in constant turmoil in his or her addiction, there is no room for a spiritual path. God becomes apparent in recovery through the 12 Steps, and we see just what God wants us to be.

Volitional/By Choice (Galatians 5:22-25)
To complete the circle of wholeness, we have to include choice. When addicts use, they lose the ability to choose to stop their addiction. The drug lives on while the person only exists. Addicts state, “I live to use and use to live.” This is the nature of volition. Getting into recovery, finding peace and serenity, working a recovery program, all give choice back to one’s life.

Questions for Reflection and Discussion

• How does God want us to treat our bodies?
• How does God help to quiet our minds and steer our thinking?
• Who has your addiction affected?
• When you felt at your lowest in active addiction, where was God?
• What choices do you now have?

Dr. Ronsonlyn Clark, USA