Alcohol

[General Mung Beans]

What is your opinion of alcohol? Is it okay to drink it in your opinion and if so do you drink it? Because it seems many fundamentalist Christians I've met are opposed to alcohol drinking even though it is mentioned positively in the Bible as Jesus Himself turned water into wine as one of His miracles.

 

[Sketcher]

I will have a drink socially, but I'm of the legal drinking age. And I don't get drunk, nor do I drive after having had more than a beer or the wedding toast.

 

[FreeinChrist]

Not drinking it does not hurt you.

On the other hand, all the problems related to drinking alcohol (drunk driving, alcoholism and all that entails, liver disease, obnoxious behaviors, etc.) can be tremendous and harm yourself and others.

 

[spr]

If you look closer at the text you'll notice Jesus wasn't happy about having to convert water into wine:

John 2:4 Jesus said to her, Woman, what do I have to do with you? My hour has not yet come.

The body should be occupied in the fear of God, knowing that it's misuse will be judged by God on judgement day.

1 Corinthians 6:19-20

Or do you not know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and you are not your own? For you were bought at a price; therefore glorify God in your body and in your spirit, which are God’s.

 

[Sketcher]

If you look closer at the text you'll notice Jesus wasn't happy about having to convert water into wine:

John 2:4 Jesus said to her, Woman, what do I have to do with you? My hour has not yet come.

He said his hour had not come, not that alcohol was bad to drink.

 

[General Mung Beans]

1 Corinthians 6:19-20

Or do you not know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and you are not your own? For you were bought at a price; therefore glorify God in your body and in your spirit, which are God’s.

But that's up to debate. For instance drunkeness is probably not glorifying God but what about drinking in light quanity for say social occasions?

 

[Hentenza]

I personally do not drink but that is my preference. There is nothing wrong with having a drink socially but drunkenness is not. It would be legalistic to judge others for having the occasional drink.

 

[BRISH]

What is your opinion of alcohol? Is it okay to drink it in your opinion and if so do you drink it? Because it seems many fundamentalist Christians I've met are opposed to alcohol drinking even though it is mentioned positively in the Bible as Jesus Himself turned water into wine as one of His miracles.

I don't think there is anything wrong with a glass of wine occasionally.
If it's something that you will lose control over, then it's best to not get near the stuff.

 

[Albion]

What is your opinion of alcohol? Is it okay to drink it in your opinion and if so do you drink it? Because it seems many fundamentalist Christians I've met are opposed to alcohol drinking even though it is mentioned positively in the Bible as Jesus Himself turned water into wine as one of His miracles.

I agree with you completely. Jesus in effect delivered wine to the guests at the wedding feast--made it possible for them to have it--so it's impossible to argue that he opposes the use of it. Abusing drink would be another matter, as we all know.

 

[Faith.Man]

I agree with you completely. Jesus in effect delivered wine to the guests at the wedding feast--made it possible for them to have it--so it's impossible to argue that he opposes the use of it. Abusing drink would be another matter, as we all know.

A minor point of clarification, the wine Jesus made was not the same strength as the wine typically sold today. I remember a radio broadcast by Dr. John MacArthur in which he went into the two types of wine drinks common for Hebrews of that time. The wine Jesus made was new wine that had not fermented as long, so it had a lower alcohol content, weaker than our typical beer. All that aside, I agree with most of the comments here about alcohol. I do not drink and drive, ever, and limit myself to a beer after I mow the lawn. That's about it.

 

[Albion]

A minor point of clarification, the wine Jesus made was not the same strength as the wine typically sold today.

That's generally agreed to, but it doesn't change anything. It certainly does not make it into grape juice, for instance, no matter how much that is hoped for by certain Christian groups. The marriage at Cana can't be understood in any other way but that it was wine and that Jesus created some for the guests to enjoy.

The wine Jesus made was new wine that had not fermented as long, so it had a lower alcohol content, weaker than our typical beer.

That's a theory that is completely unsupported and not very convincing. The Bible wording is to the effect that Jesus created a better wine than the guests had been drinking up to that moment. It wouldn't be such if it were NOT DONE, if it were still in the process of developing/fermenting. It was called, by the host, a BETTER wine than the wine used previously.

And without debating the exact degree of fermentation it might have had at any point, we cannot seriously think that Jesus worked a miracle here, making wine of any sort out of water, but yet he was unable to create wine that was ready for consumption! Some miracle that would have been, huh?

 

[Izdaari Eristikon]

Sermon on Soberness and Moderation against Gluttony and Drunkenness,
1 Peter 4:7-11

Martin Luther
May 18, 1539

God does not forbid you to drink, as do the Turks; he permits you to drink wine and beer: he does not make a law of it. But do not make a pig of yourself; remain a human being. If you are a human being, then keep your human self-control.

I think this pretty much covers it.

Here's the full text of the sermon, if anyone cares to read the whole thing: Wittenberg Hall

.

 

[Faith.Man]

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That's generally agreed to, but it doesn't change anything. It certainly does not make it into grape juice, for instance, no matter how much that is hoped for by certain Christian groups. The marriage at Cana can't be understood in any other way but that it was wine and that Jesus created some for the guests to enjoy.

I never said it wasn't. I'm not sure what I said to push your buttons on this.

[/color][/b]

That's a theory that is completely unsupported and not very convincing. The Bible wording is to the effect that Jesus created a better wine than the guests had been drinking up to that moment. It wouldn't be such if it were NOT DONE, if it were still in the process of developing/fermenting. It was called, by the host, a BETTER wine than the wine used previously.

The wines of Biblical times are different than the wines of today, and that's a fact whether you accept it or not.

[/color][/b]

And without debating the exact degree of fermentation it might have had at any point, we cannot seriously think that Jesus worked a miracle here, making wine of any sort out of water, but yet he was unable to create wine that was ready for consumption! Some miracle that would have been, huh?

"Hence, in the early Christian Church, it was usual to mix the sacramental wine with water. (The simple wines of antiquity were incomparably less deadly than the stupefying and ardent beverages of our western nations. The wines of antiquity were more like sirups; many of them were not intoxicant; many more intoxicant in a small degree; and all of them, as a rule, taken only when largely diluted with water. They contained, even undiluted, but 4 or 5 percent of alcohol. -- Cannon Farrar)." From Smith's Bible Dictionary.

Sheesh. I need a drink.

 

[nChrist]

I personally don't drink and view things like this as part of my example and living testimony. It isn't a legalistic argument because we aren't under the law.

If we look at the misery that alcohol causes so many families, it could be seen as a scourge used by the devil. It's also well-known that alcohol is a very addictive substance. Apart from example and testimony, one might or might not be a responsible drinker. Alcoholism and drunkenness has the same effect and consequences on Christians as they do on the lost.

 

[ChristianMama84]

I enjoy an occasional drink, but never more than two. I believe drunkenness is a sin, not drinking.

 

[earthen_vessel]

1 Corinthians 6:12
"All things are lawful unto me, but all things are not expedient: all things are lawful for me, but I will not be brought under the power of any."

I do not judge those whose conscience allows them to drink. however, I have determined that it is best for me to abstain completely. for me, it is a large risk with little benefit.

 

[Aibrean]

The fact of the wine Jesus made had less alcohol content is irrelevant. Alcohol is still alcohol. If you ingest enough, you'll get drunk.

Personally I don't think there is anything wrong with drinking. You need to know your limits and don't go past them. I drink occasionally. If I do, it's usually a glass. I've had a couple Mike's in a sitting before. I've never been drunk. I have no intention of getting drunk. Having an occasional drink is more for my health than anything else. It also makes social situations less awkward (like if you got invited to a dinner party you don't want to be rude to the host).

We were told to not be drunk with wine. Were not told to not drink.

 

[nChrist]

I'd like to ask a couple of questions on this issue, but not in a judgmental or legalistic way.

1 - How much weight, in any, should be given to your example set and your living testimony as a Christian?

2 - What does drinking alcoholic beverages do for you or to you?

3 - Other than as prescribed by a doctor, is there anything good associated with alcoholic beverages? See number 4.

4 - How much bad and misery is associated with alcoholic beverages?

5 - Does anyone have the mistaken presumption that they are immune from the abuse or addiction of alcoholic beverages?

I ask these things in light of:

1 Corinthians 6:12 (KJV) 12 All things are lawful unto me, but all things are not expedient: all things are lawful for me, but I will not be brought under the power of any.

1 Corinthians 10:23 (KJV) 23 All things are lawful for me, but all things are not expedient: all things are lawful for me, but all things edify not.

Please remember that I did not ask these questions in a legalistic or judgmental manner.


Good News! -- The Holy Bible is the WORD OF GOD! -- God The Father, God The Son, God The Holy Spirit - The Creator Of All Things! -- "GOD'S GRACE" and "OUR WORKS" -- Thanksgiving Proclamations ( 1623 to 1863 ) -- Thanksgiving Proclamations ( 1961 to 2001 ) -- JESUS CHRIST - VERY GOD - LORD - SAVIOUR - MESSIAH - KING

 

[Aibrean]

I lost a brother-in-law to alcoholism. He literally drank himself to death (liver failure before age 30). My father was drunk every week growing up. Let me tell you, I know firsthand of its evils. That said, that doesn't mean I want to be like them. Drinking a little alcohol is not "setting a bad example", if anything it opens the door to witness. It is not inherently bad. It's just like a gun. Guns aren't bad. Bad people who use them for bad are bad.

Too much ingested of anything is bad. You can die from drinking too much water.

 

[Faith.Man]

My story is both strange and unique. I was raised in a Irish-Catholic household and started drinking in grade school with my parents approval. In fact, my pediatrician said it would probably be good for me. Having that freedom, I never had the desire to have more than one beer or one mixed drink. I got drunk for the first time when I was 20 at a picnic my college was sponsoring. My professor provided the alcohol which the school paid for unknowingly. Flash forward to today, I am now a Fundamentalist Christian and rarely drink. I think I bought three Sam Adams 6-packs at the start of summer and still have 8 beers or so left. I will occasionally have a drink if the mood strikes me but never, ever drink and drive.