Overcoming Bad Habits and Addictions — Part 4
In a time of corrupt governmental and religious leaders, a baby was born to a woman named Hannah. This baby boy had been greatly desired, and yet, before he was born, his mother gave him back to God and dedicated his life to the Lord with the vow of a Nazarite.
“She made a special promise to God and said, ‘Lord All-Powerful, you can see how sad I am. Remember me. Don’t forget me. If you will give me a son, I will give him to you. He will be yours his whole life, and as a Nazirite, he will not drink wine or strong drink, and no one will ever cut his hair.’”—1 Samuel 1:11 (ERV)
God established the Nazarite vow in the time of Moses and made it available for anyone who wanted to separate themselves from the enticements of the world and the flesh in order to go beyond the ordinary and set themselves apart for the extraordinary higher purposes of God.
God offered the higher calling of a Nazarite to anyone who was willing to consecrate himself or herself to it. The requirements for this higher level of separation are described in Numbers chapter 6:
Again the Lord spoke to Moses, saying,*** ***“Say to the sons of Israel, ‘When a man or a woman makes a special vow, the vow of a Nazirite, that is, one separated and dedicated to the Lord, he shall abstain from wine and strong drink; he shall drink no vinegar, whether made from wine or strong drink, nor shall he drink any grape juice nor eat fresh or dried grapes. All the time of his separation he shall not eat anything produced from the grapevine, from the seeds even to the skins.
‘All the time of the vow of his separation no razor shall be used on his head. Until the time of his separation to the Lord is completed, he shall be holy, and shall let the hair of his head grow long.
‘All the time that he separates himself to the Lord he shall not go near a dead body.*** ***He shall not make himself [ceremonially] unclean for his father, mother, brother, or sister, when they die, because [the responsibility for] his separation to God is on his head. All the time of his separation he is holy to the Lord.
*… *
“This is the law for the Nazirite who vows his offering to the Lord for his separation, besides what else he is able to afford, according to the vow which he has vowed; so shall he do according to the law for his separation and abstinence [as a Nazirite].” (AMP)
The Nazarite vow focused on keeping the body undefiled. The end result of this separation from the indulgences of the body and the world was to produce someone who was prepared to be chosen for the higher purposes of God. Joseph was spoken of in this way in Deuteronomy 33:16.
“May blessing rest on Joseph’s head, and on the crown of the head of the one set apart from his brothers.” (ISV)
The phrase “set apart” in this verse is the same word that is translated “Nazarite” in Numbers 6. And of course, Joseph accomplished a much higher purpose in life than his brothers. He rose from his ordinary station in life to become the second greatest man in the world at that time, ruling over the nation of Egypt, and holding the lives of thousands in his hands as he oversaw the storage and distribution of food during a time of extraordinary crisis in the world.
The vow of a Nazarite was all about abstinence from anything that would defile a person’s body and interfere with his dedication to the higher purposes of God for his life. Like fasting, it was also about overcoming fleshly appetites in order to achieve something greater in life. The vow of a Nazarite showed the importance of separation and abstinence from anything that would defile the body if we are going to be able to be successful in fulfilling the higher purposes of God for our lives.
While a person was observing the vow of a Nazarite, he was not permitted to drink wine. Is that because there is something inherently wrong with drinking wine? No, because the Bible clearly tells us in Numbers 6:20 that after the vow was fulfilled, the person was allowed to drink wine. Wine was not the issue. The issue was the appetites. It was about the cravings of the body. What is going to drive your life? Will it be the cravings of your body or the higher purposes of your spirit?
A Nazarite was a person who was consecrated, dedicated to the Lord, separated and set apart for His purposes. A person who took upon himself the vow of a Nazarite was required to abstain from certain things that would affect his body. To fully enter into God’s high calling there is always an emphasis on abstaining from anything that defiles the body. Peter tells us why.
“Beloved, I implore you as aliens and strangers and exiles [in this world] to abstain from the sensual urges (the evil desires, the passions of the flesh, your lower nature) that wage war against the soul.”—1 Peter 2:11 (AMPC)
Bad habits and addictions fight against you, causing an inward war and conflicting purposes so that you are pulled away from God’s higher purposes for your life. Your spirit cannot prevail because the cravings of your body are fighting against your soul for control of your life. If you allow these bad habits and addictions to reign over you and control your life, they will prevent you from maintaining a single-minded purpose to fulfill God’s calling on your life. You will be forced into a double-minded existence where on one hand you want to fully enter into all that God has for your life, but at the same time, you are pulled away from a focus on higher purposes and driven to satisfy the cravings of these bad habits. As James told us, “Such a person should not expect to receive anything from the Lord.” (James 1:7 ISV)
Before you can fully enter into all that God has for you, you must engage this war against the bad habits and addictions that seek to control your life, and you must overcome them. You must completely eliminate them from your life, along with the cravings that drive them.
You must have a single-minded, unshakable resolve to completely overcome every bad habit and addiction.
“and when the Lord your God has delivered them over to you and you have defeated them, then you must destroy them totally. Make no treaty with them, and show them no mercy… . For you are a people holy to the Lord your God. The Lord your God has chosen you out of all the peoples on the face of the earth to be his people, his treasured possession.”—Deuteronomy 7:2,6 (NIV)
When your eye is single, your focus is single-minded, and your body and your soul are submitted to the leading of your spirit in obedience to the Lord, then the cravings of those bad habits will lose their power.
“But I say, walk and live [habitually] in the [Holy] Spirit [responsive to and controlled and guided by the Spirit]; then you will certainly not gratify the cravings and desires of the flesh (of human nature without God).
“For the desires of the flesh are opposed to the [Holy] Spirit, and the [desires of the] Spirit are opposed to the flesh (godless human nature); for these are antagonistic to each other [continually withstanding and in conflict with each other], so that you are not free but are prevented from doing what you desire to do.
But if you are guided (led) by the [Holy] Spirit, you are not subject to the Law.”—Galatians 5:16-18 (AMPC)
Hannah’s boy, Samuel, grew up to be an extraordinary man of God. He cleaned up the corruption of his nation’s priesthood and judiciary. At the end of his life, he was able to address the people of his nation with a clear conscience and declare that he had guided his nation with absolute integrity.
“I am old and gray, and my sons are here with you. I have been your leader since I was young. Here I am. If I have done anything wrong, you must testify against me. Do this before the Lord and his appointed king. Did I steal anyone’s ox or donkey? Did I hurt or cheat anyone? Did I ever secretly take money to pretend not to see something wrong? If I did any of these things, I will make it right.”
The Israelites answered, “You have not cheated us. You have not hurt us. You have not taken anything unfairly from anyone.”
Samuel said to them, “The Lord is a witness to what you have said. His appointed king is also a witness today. They are both witnesses that you did not find anything wrong in me.”
“He is our witness,” they said.—1 Samuel 12:2-5 (ICB)
God so honored the life and the words of this man that it is written that God did not let any of his words fall to the ground unfulfilled (1 Samuel 3:19). The life and work of Samuel ushered in the most glorious age in the history of the nation of Israel as he turned over leadership of the nation first to King Saul, and later to David, the greatest king in the nation’s history.
And it all started with his mother’s vow that separated Samuel and helped protect him from developing any bad habits or indulging in cravings that would defile his body.
You can’t imagine how much better your life will be and the wonderful things that await you after you overcome the bad habits and addictions that have plagued you and kept you from becoming all that you can be!
