Article by Jason Francis
There’s an old joke that goes, “How can you tell the difference between a Baptist and a Presbyterian?” The punchline is, “A Presbyterian will speak to you in the liquor store.” I've always thought this joke was funny, but many do not share my sense of humor so please forgive me if you have read this far and you are one of those people. All joking aside, should Christians drink alcohol? Is it sinful to drink alcohol? The answer to both of these questions is absolutely YES and wait for it………NO! So where might we find these answers? Drum roll, please…The Holy Scriptures.
First, I would like to reference John 2 at the wedding feast, specifically verse 10. This verse records, “And he said to him, 'Every man at the beginning sets out the good wine, and when the guests have well drunk, then the inferior. You have kept the good wine until now!'" The Greek word for wine here is “oinos,” which is not grape juice as many pastors like to translate “wine." Rather, it’s fermented grape juice (A.K.A wine). The Greek word for drunk is “methyo,” which is quite literally drunk and those at the wedding feast had not drunk a bunch of grape juice. They had drunk a bunch of wine to the point of intoxication, hence the reason they had run out of wine. That said, there wouldn't be any doubt Jesus would have known this. Was this activity sinful? Did Jesus aid and abet in sinful behavior by making more wine? Well in the words of the Apostle Paul, “Certainly not!” Did our Lord drink wine? Most likely, as we know He served wine at the last supper.
In Acts 2:13 we see the Jews accusing the Apostles of being drunk after hearing them speak in foreign languages saying, “Some, however, made fun of them and said, 'They have had too much wine.'" Peter responds with, “Then Peter stood up with the Eleven, raised his voice, and addressed the crowd: 'Fellow Jews and all of you who live in Jerusalem, let me explain this to you; listen carefully to what I say. These people are not drunk, as you suppose. It’s only nine in the morning!'" Now drunk here again is “methyo” or “intoxicated.” They were not accused of having too much grape juice. If having wine were a sin Peter’s response would have been “We are Christians and and wine is forbidden,” but he says “It's nine in the morning!” or basically, “It's too early for that!” If drinking alcohol were sinful Peter would have condemned it here.
If we look at 1st Timothy 5:23 we see Paul encouraging Timothy to drink wine. He says “No longer drink only water, but use a little wine for your stomach’s sake and your frequent infirmities.” Most commentators agree that Timothy abstained from drinking wine to not be a stumbling block for others by exercising that liberty and would only drink water. Water at this time was often unsafe to drink and would cause illness. Paul wanted Timothy to safeguard his health by drinking wine, not grape juice, to combat the ill effects of unclean water. I think the wording here is worth noting. It says, “and other infirmities” and not only infirmities related to his stomach issues. These infirmities could be physical or mental. This is pure speculation, but Timothy (being a pastor) would have been a ball of stress and a little wine would help him relax. If alcohol were sinful Paul would have offered another solution for Timothy’s stomach issues and other ailments.
Now let’s consider Ephesians 5:17-18 which reads, “Therefore do not be unwise, but understand what the will of the Lord is. And do not be drunk with wine, in which is dissipation; but be filled with the Spirit” Be wise and don’t be drunk. This is one of the go-to verses to condemn alcohol, but let’s consider the word for drunk here. It changes from “methyo” to "methysko.” Methysko is to be drunk, but it is a prolonged version of methyo. It means prolonged drunkenness or being a drunkard. Being sober-minded is vital for the believer so that our wisdom and discernment is not crippled by the effects of alcohol. Drinking for an extended amount of time is unwise as it leads to unwise decisions and leads to not knowing what the will of the Lord is. The better option is to be filled with the Spirit. In Proverbs 3:23 we see Solomon’s thoughts on drinking too much wine. It reads, “Thine eyes shall behold strange women, and thine heart shall utter perverse things.” In other words, you are going to find a woman attractive that you normally wouldn’t be attracted to and then start talking dirty to her. As the great theologian Mickey Gilley puts it, “All the girls get prettier at closing time, Oh they all begin to look like movie stars.” Solomon with all of his wives and concubines would have surely experienced this firsthand.
So, here the question remains: Can Christians drink alcohol? The answer is yes, in moderation. I saw the members of a church one time outside of a bar protesting said bar. I stopped to listen in and as soon as I could hear what was being said, the “preacher” with Bible in hand said, “Every time I’ve been to jail I was drinkin!” So yeah, that guy definitely should not drink alcohol. If you cannot have it in moderation you should abstain from alcohol. If you have battled alcoholism in the past I would caution against drinking. If you can drink in moderation and have this liberty, but it offends a brother or sister in Christ do not drink around them and do not even speak of it as to not cause them to stumble. Put Romans 14 into practice here as we bear one another's burdens. If you are burdened by your conscience about the consumption of alcohol don't do it so that you won't sin against your own conscience. So the answer is still a yes and a no. Some have this liberty in Christ and some do not. We must use wisdom and discernment in this and all liberties we may or may not have. This is by no means a license to drink alcohol. Don’t do something stupid and say that the pastor said I could drink. Use good judgment!
Jason Francis is an elder at Shepherd's Rock Bible Church in Kingsport, TN. He and his wife, Kelly have two wonderful children and faithfully serve the Lord through their local church and the Northeast TN area.
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