Why the 12 Steps? by Scott Miller

As the Pastor of Connect and Recovery, I find that many Christians have questions about the 12 steps of recovery. Some even find the idea offensive. Often they think, “All anyone needs is Jesus. Why don’t those people just quit those behaviors?”

Over the next few months I want to explain why the 12 steps are God’s proven tools for healing. In the case of addiction, they are, in fact, necessary. As such, they are of Jesus.

I begin with a story. I recently attended a convention with over 7000 other Christian pastors and counselors. I found myself in a breakout session with one of the world’s leading experts on recovery from addiction. His presentation was titled New Treatments in the Area of Addiction. Given the title, you can imagine my surprise when he began the session with this statement: “We are doing a very poor job in the area of treating addictions today! The only thing that is working at all, are the 12 steps of recovery….”

How is that possibly true? Let me explain.

The Bible says that Christ’s transformation–no longer being “conformed to the patterns of the world”–begins with the “renewing of our minds” (Romans 12:2). Today, this truth has been proven medically. Advanced brain scans now show that addiction to anything, from sugar to coffee to anger to heroin, is a pathological condition. In other words, the behavior or compulsion is driven by a chemically controlled process in the brain. Sadly, once these chemical processes are established, they have the power through compulsion to simply take over.

Jesus and the Truth alone rarely change these patterns. In fact, taking this Christian expert at his word, change is so rare in the case of drug and alcohol addiction as to not be worth mentioning. It is my experience that the same is true for other addictions (food, sex, anger, gambling, shopping, etc.).

What does work are the 12 steps. These are the tools–the biblical recipe–that combine the miraculous ingredients of Jesus (it is all about and through Him), the Truth, grace based small groups and loving accountability, where we come alongside each other and help each other apply biblical discipline to our lives. This process removes the compulsions through Jesus and the Truth, “transforming our minds” (changing the chemical process and the way we think). Thus, the Truth sets us free (John 8:32).

The 12 steps, practiced together in safe communities, offer everyone the opportunity to be transformed, no matter the hurt, habit or hang up with which they struggle.

If you have repeating patterns of destructive behavior in your life (who doesn’t?), join us on Tuesday Nights at Celebrate Recovery. Begin your journey to life change with the thousands of others who are finding that the 12 steps are “the only thing that is working!”

Next month: How do the 12 steps work?