Ten Minute Bible Talks Devotional Bible Study - How Much Alcohol Should Christians Drink? | Questions You're Asking | Romans 14.1-6

Starting point is 00:00:05 Welcome to 10 Minute Bible Talks, where we connect the Bible to your life and the time it takes to get to work. I'm Keith Simon. And I'm Patrick Miller. Right now, we are answering questions you're asking. A lot of these are coming from our Facebook page. So, follow 10-minute Bible Talks on Facebook, vote on your favorite questions, or you can just give your own, and you might hear it right here on the podcast. How much alcohol should Christians drink? Can they get a buzz?

Starting point is 00:00:32 How much of a buzz? Should Christians even drink at all? Okay, so to the mind of 18-year-old me, the answer to this question, should Christians even drink, was obviously, no, Christians can't drink. Now, I didn't think that because I was a Christian. I wasn't a Christian at the time. And it's not because I knew a lot about Christianity. I thought that Christians didn't drink simply because all of the Christians I knew at the time were teetotelers. They didn't drink. And if they weren't teetotelers, they never drank in public. And so it just gave me the idea that that that, that's kind of what Christians do. It probably added to the fact that my parents, they're good people, and my parents didn't really drink. And so I thought, well, if Christians are good people, they must not drink, just like my parents don't really drink. This is how I thought about things back then. Now, I know that there's nothing interesting about what I'm saying right now to anyone except for me, but I'm trying to make a point. Your perspective on Christians in alcohol probably says more about your upbringing in Christian tradition than it does about what the Bible

Starting point is 00:01:33 actually says. Whether you think drinking is great or you think drinking is terrible or you're just somewhere different altogether, it says a lot more about you probably than it does about the Bible. Well, why do I say that? Well, it's because the Bible doesn't say a ton about alcohol. If you are hoping for alcohol to be a major topic of discussion in the Old or New Testament, you are going to be disappointed. Now, that's not to say that it doesn't say anything. I actually think that the Bible gives us some wonderful principles that can guide our use of alcohol responsibly. But I just want to underline the fact this is not a major point in the Bible, even if it's been made into a major point by some Christian tradition. So here's what we need to know. The Bible can

Starting point is 00:02:17 be both remarkably positive about alcohol and its effects, and it can be kind of negative about alcohol and its effects. So let's start with the good stuff, the positive, okay? First, wine is often part of the Bible's picture of the good life, life as it should be, which tells us that alcohol is probably a good thing. Wine was used in ancient offerings and rituals in ritual. It was used in feasts and celebrations. In the Psalms, God's nearness to his people, his presence is actually compared to having an abundant storehouse of wine. Probably the most notable example is the fact that Jesus' first miracle was changing water into wine. And by the way, when people drink Jesus' wine, they're like, wow, this is the good stuff. So apparently he's a good wine maker. Now, John, he uses this miracle of Jesus

Starting point is 00:03:06 turning the water into the wine. He's using it to point forward to a future promise of God's kingdom coming to earth. In a similar fashion, Jesus says that he won't pop another cork until that kingdom comes. So Jesus isn't drinking right now. The point isn't sobriety. The point is that when God's kingdom comes back to earth, it's going to be an amazing party. The party to end all. parties with the best wine. Wine is something that is supposed to point us forward to that future reality, that future celebration, life with God, life as it should be. So it might sound crazy, but in biblical thinking, a good party has alcohol. And so the coming kingdom of God must have alcohol too. Number two, the effects of alcohol are often appreciated and even encouraged by the Bible.

Starting point is 00:03:55 The author of Ecclesiastes endorses wine with exuberance. Ecclesiastes 9-7 says, Go, eat your food with gladness and drink your wine with a joyful heart, for God has already approved of what you do. Similarly, when the psalmist describes how God cares for the entirety of his creation, not just humans, but the animals, all of creation. He says that wine is a gift which God has given to humans, and not just wine, but again, it's effects.

Starting point is 00:04:24 check out Psalm 104, 14 to 15. He makes grass grow for the cattle. See, look, here's God caring for the animals. And plants for people to cultivate, bringing forth food from the earth. Wine that gladdens human hearts, oil to make their faces shine, and bread that sustains their hearts. So you heard that right. God makes plants to feed the animals and plants to feed us.

Starting point is 00:04:49 He makes bread to sustain us and wine to gladden our hearts. Wine and its effects are encouraged. Paul famously recommended alcohol to Timothy as the solution to some stomach problems that he was having. So when we take all of this together, the Bible is hardly against alcohol and its effects. So that's one half of what the Bible says. But on the other hand, the Bible can be very sober about abusing alcohol. For example, drinking too much can bring your life to ruin. Proverbs 2117 says, this. Whoever loves pleasure will become poor. Whoever loves wine and olive oil will never be rich. Or check out Proverbs 31. King Lemuel's mother warns him against drinking too much because she says, look, if you as a king drink too much, you might accidentally pervert justice in your drunkenness. She says, leave the wine to people who are perishing in their sorrows. Now, this is not an endorsement of drowning your sorrows in alcohol. It's a description of what often happens and probably a warning

Starting point is 00:05:57 against doing it because who wants to be counted among the quote-unquote perishing. We shouldn't drown our sorrows and wine. And if we're in a position of responsibility, we should beware of having too much alcohol lest it cause us to abort our job, our mission, what we're supposed to be doing. Here's another example. Isaiah 522, it warns against developing a sense of self and pride and identity even around alcohol. Isaiah 522, woe to those who are heroes at drinking wine and champions at mixing drinks. Here's the deal.

Starting point is 00:06:31 When you start bragging about your drinking prowess, it's probably a sign that you have a problem that you need to deal with. The Bible warns us against drunkenness in other places. For example, there's stories that show the consequences of using alcohol in irresponsible ways. The worst one is when Lott's daughters get him drunk so that they can sleep him and then get impregnated by him.

Starting point is 00:06:54 That's messed up. But there's also explicit commands that warn us against drunkenness. On four different occasions, Paul and on one occasion, Peter, they include drunkenness in these long laundry lists of behaviors that are unbecoming for Christians. They shouldn't characterize God's people in his kingdom. Likewise, one of Paul's biggest critiques against the Corinthian Church was that rich church were hoarding the communion wine and getting drunk off of it. Now, I mean, the whole picture there is wrong on that one. Okay, so here's what I want to do. I want to take everything we've talked about.

Starting point is 00:07:26 We've put together all these Bible verses, and I want to draw a few principles that we can walk away with today. The first one is this. Alcohol is a gift. Really? Alcohol is a gift. Let it point you to God. Wine is a sign not only of Jesus's sacrificial death, but also of God's coming kingdom where we're going to feast and celebrate with God. When you're with friends and you're drinking and enjoying each other's presence, you need to stop and remind yourself that you're experiencing in that moment an appetizer of God's future promises. One day we're going to do that with Jesus. We'll be at a great feast with great wine with him. So thank God for the gift of alcohol. Okay, number two, drink in moderation. People love to ask me, and this is where I started, how much can I drink? It's getting a buzz

Starting point is 00:08:16 wrong. And I like the Bible's answer. It just says, don't get drunk. When alcohol impairs your ability to walk, speak clearly, and make godly decisions, you're probably in a bad spot. But on the flip side, why makes the heart glad? I don't know that having a buzz is really much of a problem, but it's not my job to draw the line between this is too far and this much is okay. That's something you have to do in your conscience by God's guidance with his spirit on your own. Okay, number three, drink responsibly. A king shouldn't drink when he's presiding over a court case. You shouldn't drink when you're being paid to do a job you can't do on alcohol. When you're trying to drive a vehicle, when you're in a mentally or emotionally demanding

Starting point is 00:08:59 situation that requires wisdom, there are times to drink and there are times not to drink and we should know the difference in drink responsibly. Okay. Number four, take addiction seriously. Now, I just have to say this. The Bible doesn't have the category of addiction. That's a modern category. that it's not real or that it's not valid. But that said, the Bible is very aware of the fact that there

Starting point is 00:09:23 are people who build their entire identities around drinking, and there are people who solve their internal problems with drinking. In both instances, the Bible actually warns us to stop. If you're someone who can't go a day without three or four or five beers, it might be time to seek out a sobriety group like AA. Why? Well, it's not just because you're drunk is a sin, and it is a sin. But it's also because a habit of using alcohol can take you off the field for God's mission. It can take you away from the things that God is calling you to, and so it needs to be dealt with. Okay, number five, this is my last one. Love your neighbor. Okay, so Romans 14, Paul warns against causing a brother or a sister in Christ to stumble because of what you eat.

Starting point is 00:10:08 And I think that he'd say the exact same thing about drinking. If someone's conviction is that they shouldn't drink. Look, I don't want to drink. You shouldn't pressure them into drinking, and you should probably respect them by not drinking around them, okay? Don't drink to make a point against them. On the flip side, if your personal conviction is that drinking is a sin, don't judge someone who thinks it's not a sin. I've already made the clear case that the Bible is okay with drinking. Don't judge that person. Paul warns against judging others in Romans 14, that exact same passage. Maybe I could add a number six here. Maybe it's not an official number six. The Bible tells us to follow the laws of the land. So if you're listening to this and you were under the age of 21, whether or not you think that's the right age or the wrong age or something else, it doesn't matter. You need to obey the authorities by not drinking until you're 21. It's just that simple. It's part of how we love others, love our country, and live as good representatives of God to our world. Wait until you are the proper age. Okay, a final thought for the podcast. Jesus is the true wine. Okay? I'm kind of going back to that John passage where Jesus

Starting point is 00:11:17 transforms the water into the wine. The point of his miracle in Cana when he does that is that Jesus really is the true wine, that whatever joys wine may bring in our lives, alcohol may bring in our lives, the joy that Jesus brings and promises is far, far, far greater. So if your love for alcohol is in any way jeopardizing your love for Jesus, set alcohol aside. Jesus is a lot better. On the flip side, if you love wine and drink it responsibly and do it in a way that honors Jesus, that's a good thing. Do it with a thankful heart. Let it point you forward to God's future kingdom when he's going to come back and throw the feast to end all feasts. That's exciting stuff. Thanks for listening. If you've enjoyed this content, please subscribe and give us a rating. That helps other people

Starting point is 00:12:08 find this podcast more easily. Also, ask yourself, who could you share this podcast with? Texting an episode to a friend or a family member is a great way to help them grow spiritually. If you want to go deeper, check out our show notes for book recommendations.

Ten Minute Bible Talks Devotional Bible Study - How Much Alcohol Should Christians Drink? | Questions You're Asking | Romans 14.1-6

There aren't comments yet for this episode. Click on any sentence in the transcript to leave a comment.