Alcohol

I guess my question would be this: Why do you want to drink? Is it simply because you like the taste of alcohol, or is it because you want the feeling it gives? As in everything else, the motivation of our heart is often the deciding factor on whether or not something is a sin, if it is not clearly defined in God's Word.

Originally posted by blynn
I think being drunk is a sin.
I personally do not drink. I am an alcoholic. Alcohol has a different effect on me. I have a complete personality change, can't stop at one, and could end up blacking out for the evening or end up missing for a few days ... Alcohol and I do not get along at all.
I have been sober for 13 years.

God Bless,
Roberta

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God bless you in your fight to remain sober.

I agree in the personality change. Many people call it "to loosen up" or "to unwind". I know from my experiance, I am a very easy going guy almost all the time. But while I was drinking I wasn't In fact, the change started coming over me BEFORE my first drink. and just got worse from there. I would start sizing everyone up for a fight. I didn't (even drunk) try to START a fight, but when I was drunk I never backed down from one either. And if the opportunity was there, I would get involved in someone elses fight.

I congratulate you on not only realizing the problem, but accepting and, by accepting, finding the strength to deny it.

Originally posted by TheBear
Let me bump this up a notch. Many insurance companies, employers and state motor vehicle departments, consider a person technicaly "impaired" after consuming only one drink. Do these standards exceed God's?

John

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Just a curious question. Are you searching for edification to drink? Or scriptural backing to help someone else slow or altogether stop drinking?

Parkplace is a rehab center. For substance abuse drugs/liquor.

Dont ask why i was there I am still trying to figure that one out. At the time i was sent i was clean as a whistle. I just gave teachers a hard time. They said i was useing cocain.

>>Remember Paul prescribing wine for Timothy's stomach problem?

1 Tim. 5:23
Drink no longer water, but use a little wine for thy stomach's sake and thine often infirmities.

Paul told Timothy to use a LITTLE bit of wine. In the Greek, the word really means a small amount. It is used by James to talk about how little our tounge is, but how great of damage it can do. This is the word used to talk about Noah and his family, how few they were, and yet they were the only ones God saved.

In the same letter Paul tells Timothy, that deacons and church leaders are not to be given to drinking wine. I suppose they are to set a example for others. But under the law, the Levi priests were not to drink, so their judgement would not be hindered as to what was holy and what was not holy.

What is the reason for drinking wine? As Christians we sure do not need to drink. We have the Holy Spirit of God, we have all the love, joy, peace, contentment and satisfaction of Heaven. At Pentacost, the world accused the Church of drinking. Peter actually had to defend themselves against the charge.

Acts 2:15-17
For these are not drunk, as you suppose, since it is only the third hour of the day. [16] But this is what was spoken by the prophet Joel:

[17] 'And it shall come to pass in the last days, says God,
That I will pour out of My Spirit on all flesh;
Your sons and your daughters shall prophesy,
Your young men shall see visions,
Your old men shall dream dreams.

If anyone has ever had a Holy Spirit Inspired dream, they are awesome. I have had them every now and then if I go to sleep after reading and studying the Bible for two or three hours. In a moment of time, it is like being in Heaven in tecnocolor. God will show you more in a moment, than you could gain or learn in a whole lifetime of study. They usually last, that is I carry them with me for two or three days.

I remember the last one I had. God showed me that everyone, sinner and saint alike, are going to get the desires of their heart. Everyone is going to end up getting exactly what they want. That is why it is SO important to purify our heart before God, so that we end up only getting good things. Thanks, JohnR7

Originally posted by Droobie


Seeing that our Saviour Himself drank wine, and it is known that He was sinless... Then I would conclude it alright to consume alcohol. As Solo66 says... be master of the drink, not the drink master over you...

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Back then Wine so waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaay different than it is today. In act it had way less alcohol in it, and it was better than the water, the water had waste products and other things in it. So you can't use that as justification.

"Many insurance companies, employers and state motor vehicle departments, consider a person technicaly "impaired" after consuming only one drink. Do these standards exceed God's? "

These are standards imposed by those who would lose money from your impairment.

They're not saying "don't drink" or even "don't get drunk", they're saying, if you do, and it effects us, we're not covering you.

To bump it up another notch, if we sign an agreement saying we won't drink on the job, or while driving, and we do, we have sinned against them and God by breaking a contract.

You brought up a really good point; responsibility.

mk

Originally posted by Jaysun



Back then Wine so waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaay different than it is today. In act it had way less alcohol in it, and it was better than the water, the water had waste products and other things in it. So you can't use that as justification.

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Actually Jaysun you are partly correct. They used to add water to wine in 3:1 up to 10:1 parts which made it difficult to get drunk on the wine. They added the wine to the water to purify the water which was, as you said, not fit to drink. When wine was drank 'straight' it was considered, "Strong Drink" and was forbidden as scripture declares.

God Bless

just a little fact i thought i throw in. wine was cleaner than water was considering they gave the animals water and washed clothes and bodies and such in water and there were no purification systems so water wasn't actually all that clean....

>>so water wasn't actually all that clean....

If you boil water for 20 min. it will be save to drink. A lot of people around the world have to boil their water. In asia they have a appliance that you put the water in and it automaticly boils it, and shuts itself off after 20 min. Of course they are for "rich" people. Poor people can not afford things like that to purify the water, but they can boil it in a pan over their fire. Thanks, JohnR7

"Wine is a mocker ,strong drink is raging; whosoevr is decieved therby is not wise." Proverbs says

" if any of you lack wisdom,let him ask of God which giveth to all men liberally and upbraideth not" James says

want to be wise, leave alcohol alone... need to know what God thinks, ask him for his wisdom [leave it alone].

Since God is good, and he tells us to leave it alone, and the scripture tells us God woold not have us to be unwise, then...

"to him that knoweth to do Good and doeth it not to him it is SIN"
again in James


as for the wine in bible days. There is clear understanding from the scripture concerning God's will towards fermented wine and acoholic beverages.

IN the greek there are 3 words for wine besids the hebrew.. one always means fermented, one can mean either or, depending on the conyexy, and one means plain old grape juice, or something simliar. All that the scriptures forbids regarding strong drink,etc. is clearly soeaking of alcoholic beverages, the other referances are either a word that can be taken either way, or as non-acoholic. Considering God's attitude towards the clearly acoholic passages, and that God and his holliness change not, we are foolish to assume that we the "priesthood" of believeers are any less than required to abide by God's stabdard and decalred will... and that to not do that is SIN.

btw - yes they used the water down method, as well as the concetrate/paste method , which was pure grape juice, and they had other methods as well.

As for Jesus drinking wine, serach it in the greek....

as to him turning the water into wine, you can just use commonsense. A jewsih wedding was 7days. They were already well drunk ( not drunken) that is they had druhnk so much they needed more... now... if they were drunk already, not only would Christ have broken his own standard ( drunkness is a work of the flesh, and those that do such shall not inherit the Kingdom ) , not only would he have had pleasure in them that do such things, not only would he sin.... but how in the world would they in a druken stooper/condition be able to affirm that this was the best of all the wine they had drunk. It makes no sense whatsoever to think that Christ would promote drunkness, alcohol consumption, or even do uch himself, and if he wouldn;t do it.. should we who wear the name of Christlike do it? NO

Now, if it takes a certain person 5 beers to be drunk... and they drink one, then just how drunk are they.

Not only are drunkards forbidden inheritance in the Kingdomj, but so also are they that do SUCH LIKE... the occasional,social,etc., drink is such like the drunkard and drunkeness, is it not?

Not only is Christ a High priest, but he is a Nazarite ( as well as a Nazarene - just making sure that you guys know I know the difference ), he therefore would not have drunk alcoholic beverages.... again, neither then should we.

Speaking of wine, Proverbs warns us to look not upon the wine when it moveth itself about- that is when it is fermenting or is fermented.... if we are not to look at ...what makes us think we are to drink it?! That is the real point, God is saying leave alcoholic beverages alone, they are off limits to you!


Paul tells us to be not drunk with wine, but be filled with the spirit... there is one sure way to avoid breaking that command in regards to being drunk... abstain from alcoholic beverages... a little leaven leavens the whole lump... a little alcohol leavens the whole bottle... a little drink defiles the whole heart....

let us not defile the temple of God.... it belongs to him, glorify him with it... do you really think that alcoholic consumption is glorifying to God?


Is it sin? most definitly.


Christopher