Last week I read Nathan Rouse’s blog titled: A
Caution for Every Christian That Drinks Alcohol. The question continues: should Christians
drink alcoholic beverages? Some still say, "Christians ought not to drink."
Others reply, "It's not wrong. Jesus drank wine." Others say,
"You shouldn't drink if it offends a weaker brother." Others claim:
"I have liberty to drink, if I choose to do so wisely." The
discussion goes from one end of the table (or bar) to the other.
I have to admit that my thinking has shifted. While I was formed as a Christ-follower in
conservative, evangelical settings where teetotaling was encouraged (and
prided), my experiences among godly Christians in Europe challenged me to study
what the Bible teaches on the subject. I
learned that like several topics, various proponents present one side of the
topic rather than wrestle with the tension in scripture that allows for freedom
but also sounds warning and concern for others. My fear is that as the pendulum
swings toward “life in the spirits,” the evangelical church will encounter new challenges.
So what are we to think regarding Christians and booze?
Drunkenness
As we examine this question of Christians and booze, we begin
with the teaching of Scripture that drunkenness is forbidden. What does
it mean to be drunk? Drunkenness is having one's faculties impaired
by an excess of alcohol. In this state, a person has diminished control
over his or her physical, mental and moral powers. While there are degrees of
drunkenness from "a little tipsy" to "plastered," each
person has a limit (higher or lower than state laws) when he or she yields
control to alcohol, and degrees of judgment are lost.
In the Old Testament, drunkenness is associated with
immorality. Noah become drunk and in his nakedness acted shamefully
(Gen. 9:21). Lot became drunk and his daughter committed incest with him
(Gen. 19:30-36). Nabal became drunk and at a critical time God took his
life (1 Sam. 25:36-37). Elah became drunk and he was murdered by Zimri
(1 Kings 16:9-10). Ben-hadad and all of his allied kings became drunk, and
all were slaughtered except Ben-hadad (1 Kings 20:16-21). Belshazzar became
drunk and lost his kingdom (Dan. 5). Furthermore, the Old Testament warns
against the effects of alcoholic liquor, drunkenness and alcoholism.
Wine is a mocker and beer a
brawler; whoever is led astray by them is not wise. Proverbs 20:1 (NIV)
Listen, my son, and be wise, and
keep your heart on the right path. Do not join those who drink too much wine or
gorge themselves on meat, for drunkards and gluttons become poor, and
drowsiness clothes them in rags. Proverbs 23:19-21 (NIV)
Who has woe? Who has sorrow? Who
has strife? Who has complaints? Who has needless bruises? Who has bloodshot
eyes? Those who linger over wine, who go to sample bowls of mixed wine. Do not
gaze at wine when it is red, when it sparkles in the cup, when it goes down
smoothly! In the end it bites like a snake and poisons like a viper. Your eyes will
see strange sights and your mind imagine confusing things. You will be like one
sleeping on the high seas, lying on top of the rigging. "They hit me"
you will say, "but I'm not hurt! They beat me, but I don't feel it! When
will I wake up so I can find another drink?" Proverbs 23:29-35 (NIV)
Woe to those who rise early in
the morning to run after their drinks, who stay up late at night till they are
inflamed with wine. They have harps and lyres at their banquets, tambourines
and flutes and wine, but they have no regard for the deeds of the LORD, no respect
for the work of his hands. Therefore my people will go into exile for lack of understanding;
their men of rank will die of hunger and their masses will be parched with thirst.
Therefore the grave enlarges its appetite and opens its mouth without limit;
into it will descend their nobles and masses with all their brawlers and
revelers. Isa 5:11-14 (NIV)
And these also stagger from wine
and reel from beer: Priests and prophets stagger from beer and are befuddled
with wine; they reel from beer, they stagger when seeing visions, they stumble
when rendering decisions. All the tables are covered with vomit and there is not
a spot without filth. Isaiah 28:7-8 (NIV)
Woe to him who gives drink to
his neighbors, pouring it from the wineskin till they are drunk, so that he can
gaze on their naked bodies. Hab 2:15 (NIV)
Clearly, God forbids drunkenness. At no point are
Christ-followers to yield control of their faculties to excess alcohol. If they
do, it is sin.
Likewise, the New Testament warns against drunkenness.
Let us behave decently, as in
the daytime, not in orgies and drunkenness, not in sexual immorality and
debauchery, not in dissension and jealousy. Rom 13:13 (NIV)
Do you not know that the wicked
will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: Neither the sexually
immoral nor idolaters nor adulterers nor male prostitutes nor homosexual
offenders nor thieves nor the greedy nor drunkards nor slanderers nor swindlers
will inherit the kingdom of God. And that is what some of you were. But you were
washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus
Christ and by the Spirit of our God. "Everything is permissible for me
"— but not everything is beneficial. “Everything is permissible for me"—
but I will not be mastered by anything. 1 Cor. 6:9-12 (NIV)
The acts of the sinful nature
are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity and debauchery; idolatry and
witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions,
factions and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the like. I warn you, as l did before,
that those who live like this will not inherit the kingdom of God. Gal 5:19-21 (NIV)
Do not get drunk on wine, which
leads to debauchery. Instead, be filled with the Spirit. Eph. 5:18 (NIV)
So then, let us not be like
others, who are asleep, but let us be alert and self-controlled. For those who
sleep, sleep at night, and those who get drunk, get drunk at night. But since
we belong to the day, let us be self-controlled, putting on faith and love as a
breastplate, and the hope of salvation as a helmet. 1 Thessalonians 5:6-8 (NIV)
For you have spent enough time
in the past doing what pagans choose to do— living in debauchery, lust,
drunkenness, orgies, carousing and detestable idolatry. 1 Pet 4:3 (NIV)
For the Christian, drunkenness is a pattern that belongs to
the former life. It is associated with a pagan lifestyle and the immorality
that accompanies it. In contrast, the Christian is to be Spirit-filled, sober,
alert and self-controlled (Gal. 5:16; Eph. 6:18; 1 Pet. 1:13; 4:7; 5:8).
Therefore, the two options for Christians to practice in
regards to booze are 1) moderation and 2) abstinence.
Moderation
Moderation means restraint, keeping within reasonable or
proper limits. If one chooses to drink alcoholic beverages, he or she must avoid
drinking to excess, namely to intoxication. The dilemma in this matter lies
with degrees of sobriety and drunkenness, and knowing when someone has diminished
control over his or her physical, mental and moral faculties. Obviously, the
effects of alcohol can become apparent rather suddenly in some people.
The content of alcohol in any beverage must be considered.
According to the Alcohol Council Information Center, beer has 4-7% alcohol,
wine has 9-11% alcohol, brandy has 15-20% alcohol, and hard liquor (80-100
proof) has 40-50% alcohol.
When alcoholic beverages are commended in Scripture, they
refer to low level alcoholic content such as wine or beer. In Exodus 29
and Leviticus 23, the people were told to bring drink offerings of wine
to the temple for God. According to 1 Chronicles 29:19 it is likely that a
supply of wine was kept in the Temple for the drink offerings. Judges
9:13 mentions a special wine that cheers and makes one happy. In
Proverbs 31:6-7 it says when somebody gets old and sick and about to
die, to give them beer or wine as a sedative to ease the pain. In Isaiah 24:9 the drinking of wine was
accompanied with singing good songs. In Isaiah 55:1-2, wine is equated with salvation;
the phrase "come, by wine," is an invitation to salvation. In Mark
2:22, Jesus illustrates his teaching on the new age of his coming with
wine and wineskins. In John 2:1-10, Jesus performs his first miracle,
changing water into wine at the wedding at Cana. It was considered by the master
of the banquet to be "the choice wine" and "the best." In
John 13, the Lord Jesus drinks wine, and ordains the Lord's Supper. In
Luke 10:34, when the Good Samaritan found a man on the side of the road, he
poured wine on his wounds.
The psalmist viewed wine as a provision from God, and
expressed its benefit when taken in moderation:
He makes grass grow for the
cattle, and plants for man to cultivate— bringing forth food from the earth:
wine that gladdens the heart of man, oil to make his face shine, and bread that
sustains his heart. Psalm 104:14-15 (NIV)
Moreover, the freedom for Christians to drink alcoholic beverages
in moderation, even for leaders, is observed in the Pastoral Epistles. They
must not be "given to drunkenness", "indulging in much wine
" or "addicted to much wine." What is condemned is not drinking wine, but drunkenness and
alcoholism.
Now the overseer must be above
reproach, the husband of but one wife% temperate, self-controlled, respectable,
hospitable, able to teach, not given to drunkenness, not violent but gentle,
not quarrelsome, not a lover of money. 1 Tim 3:2-3 (NIV)
Deacons, likewise, are to be men
worthy of respect, sincere, not indulging in much wine, and not pursuing dishonest
gain. 1 Tim 3:8 (NIV)
Stop drinking only water, and
use a little wine because of your stomach and your frequent illnesses. 1 Tim
5:23 (NIV)
Since an overseer is entrusted
with God's work, he must be blameless— not overbearing, not quick-tempered, not
given to drunkenness, not violent, not pursuing dishonest gain. Titus 1:7 (NIV)
Likewise, teach the older women
to be reverent in the way they live, not to be slanderers or addicted to much
wine, but to teach what is good Titus 2:3 (NIV)
In the case of Timothy, mentioned above, wine was used for
medicinal purposes (1 Tim. 5:23). It promoted healing when taken in moderation.
Timothy's practice of total abstinence, in Paul's opinion, was not necessary,
and having a harmful effect on his health. He suggests a little wine as
a remedy against dyspeptic complaints, as a tonic, and as counteracting the
effects of impure water.
Modern studies continue to show the benefits of drinking a
glass of red wine at dinner. Alcohol can decrease the tendency of blood to clot
causing heart attacks and raise good cholesterol levels. Yet, the American Heart
Association's Nutrition Committee cautions against this as the most proven way
to improve heart health and suggests practices of eating healthfully,
exercising regularly and maintain a healthy weight.
An historic application of moderation within the church
stems from Paul's rebuke to the church at Corinth for abuse of the agape feast,
the Lord's Supper. When you come together, it is not the Lord's Supper you
eat, for as you eat, each of you goes ahead without waiting for anybody
else. One remains hungry, another gets drunk Don't you have homes to eat
and drink in? Or do you despise the church of God and humiliate those
who have nothing? What shall I say to you? Shall I praise you for this? Certainly
not! 1 Cor. 11:20-22 (NIV)
The food and wine were divided inequitably. Some
were eating more than others, and some were drinking more, even to the point of
drunkenness. What is condemned in not drinking wine but drinking to drunkenness.
An application of this text by the historic church has been to serve wine as the
cup in minimal quantity or moderation in order to avoid what occurred
at Corinth, namely, drunkenness.
If a Christian chooses to drink alcoholic
beverages, it is wise only to drink those that contain low alcoholic content
such as wine or beer. It is also important to predetermine the limit such
as one serving with dinner, or at a wedding, anniversary
dinner, holiday or special celebration. Regardless of whether a
Christian chooses to drink alcoholic beverages or not, he/she must
define and hold to a predetermined limit. A good rule of
thumb is to be conservative rather than push the limit to the degree of
drunkenness and thereby sin.
In the book Saturate, Jeff Vanderstelt speaks of taking something good from God and making it a god. He says, “We do this with sex, friendships, food, alcohol, work, and even children and spouses.” While alcohol may be good, it can quickly become a god; it can easily become “a master.” After the Apostle Paul warned the Corinthians that “neither the sexually immoral … nor drunkards … will inherit the kingdom of God,” he said, “I will not be mastered by anything,” (1 Cor. 6:9-12). It is easy to take something good—even a gift of God—and misuse or abuse it. When it masters us, it becomes a god. When is becomes twisted or misused, it can become ruinous and destructive.
Continued
Clearly, the Bible commends drinking alcoholic
beverages in moderation and for medicinal purposes. One can conclude that among other gifts,
alcohol is a gift from God. While alcoholic beverages are manufactured by
humans—part of human culture (cultura),
alcohol is also found in nature (natura).
Research published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences
shows that at least a few creatures in the wilds of the Malaysian rainforest
like to drink the naturally occurring alcohol in fermenting fruit. As a part of
God’s creation, alcohol is good.
Continued
No comments:
Post a Comment