More on Wine and Christian Living
J.C. Thibodaux
Talked a little bit with Peter Lumpkins after writing my article about the wine debate, he actually put up a post that briefly addressed my comments. I emailed him with a bit of clarification (this is only my writing, I won't publish Peter's correspondence since the things were stated in confidence, but take it as a given that he conducted his writing in a godly manner):
You seemed to think I was insulting you personally ("hyped-up, out-of-control literary cyber-critics who cannot seem to morally discern between posing legitimate questions to propositions and hurling insults toward the person"), this was not my intent. It is true that I leveled quite a few names for the doctrine that you teach; however, if you are going to say that the practice of Moderationism is condemned by God (therefore making Moderationists out to be sinning against God), then refuse to hear the defense of the party you say this of, I fail to see how it is unfair or uncharitable to counter that such a condemning view is legalistic and silly.
Concerning his statements about Spurgeon, I cited several quotes from C.H.S.,
"I neither said nor implied that it was sinful to drink wine; nay, I said that, in and by itself, this might be done without blame. But I remarked that, if I knew that another would be led to take it by my example, and this would lead them on to further drinking, and even to intoxication, then I would not touch it."
"I abstain myself from alcoholic drink in every form, and I think others would be wise to do the same; but of this each one must be a guide unto himself."
Spurgeon's quotes are indexed here.
Far from the Teetotalitarianism that I characterize as 'Redneck theology' (Which for the record, was not a personal jab at Peter -- else I'd be attacking my own Southern heritage!) I find Spurgeon's view on the issue biblically sound. I added,
Spurgeon likewise abstained for social reasons and as an example for others; and like myself he believed that such is a matter of conscience that is to be handled with wisdom, not a licentious thing unclean in and of itself. I therefore have no problem with people who choose not to drink or warn against the evil it can potentially cause, I have a serious problem when someone cannot let a matter of conscience be just that: we can't just have differing convictions, now the one who doesn't share like convictions is one of the bad guys practicing sin. I would find such a sentiment offensive regardless of whether I were a teetotaler or not.
as we corresponded, I further made the case,
But what are the commands of God concerning diet? The ceremonial dietary laws of the old covenant don't apply in the least to Gentiles, the only thing even approaching such prohibitions given was on blood and things sacrificed to idols,
"That ye abstain from meats offered to idols, and from blood, and from things strangled, and from fornication: from which if ye keep yourselves, ye shall do well. Fare ye well." (Acts 15:29, see also 15:20 and 21:25)
Now fermented wine was beyond all doubt well-known at this time and quite prevalent, surely if this were the great defiler of flesh and soul some have painted it to be, it would most surely have been mentioned here along with the other consumables to avoid, yet it is strangely absent from the things we are not to defile ourselves with (and remains so throughout the New Testament, I've been through it a number of times and never seen the first hint of prohibition put upon the church). Instead we are told,
"Therefore no one is to act as your judge in regard to food or drink or in respect to a festival or a new moon or a Sabbath day" (Colossians 2:16)
Now if no one is to judge in what we as believers eat, drink, or celebrate, then how can we in good conscience just up and decide that what some Christians drink to no harm must be a defilement to them? Aside from the clear commands of God (such as not to eat blood), we have no such prerogative. If God has not put such a command on the body of Christ, then who are any of us to manufacture one for Him? Unless such lucid proof can be provided that Christians are forbidden to drink at all (or its equivalent, such as that those who drink wine will not inherit the kingdom of God), then there stands substantial reasonable doubt against the idea that fermented wine is condemned by God, and should therefore be viewed as a matter of one's conscience.
Afterwards, we got a message that we'll address from a thoughtful person of differing opinion who we'll call 'S.' I have no further info than his first name since he left no contact info. S's comments are italicized.
The difficulty with alcohol is that most people I run into end up saying, as you have, "The New Testament speaks plenty against drunkenness, but there are no prohibitions on Christians drinking in moderation." Without a "verse" saying thou shalt not drink ever, we are content to make the assumption that we would be right in recommending christians drink in moderation.
I have studied this topic extensively, and for some time. It seems as students we are always looking for the black and white truth of the matter; we want the words to live by plainly written in stone. One of the difficulties with this is that the Word has never been in the form quite as we would like it. It's not a table of contents listing God's thougths by topic. We have to look at all of the passages that deal with a subject and make our best judgment on how God would have us live.
I'd like to state before we continue, I don't 'recommend' drinking in moderation to anyone specifically, I simply state that it's acceptable as a point of Christian liberty. For someone who has a problem with addiction, it should be avoided just like any other personal stumblingblock.
However, who in good conscience could do so, given the totality of the instances we see alcohol being used in the scripture?
Well, let's look at each of these cases,
-Noah getting drunk and exposing himself
That is indeed a good example of wine being abused with a rather bad result. An example of a thing being abused does not prove that it is inherently sinful. Logically speaking, multiplied trillions of examples of abuse would not prove something is sinful, simply that it can be abused. I'll touch more on 'proof by example' below.
-Lot's incest with his daughters
Another example.
-God's warning against alcohol in His presence - Lev 10:9
Now this is not an instance of alcohol abuse, but rather a warning against the priests drinking any strong drink in the tabernacle. I've heard several rather strained extrapolations about how believers are 'priests,' and should therefore in like manner abstain. Problems arise for this view when we consider that the priesthood of believers differs entirely from that of the sons of Aaron, plus the fact that the restriction was tied to a particular time and place; such ceremonial trappings aren't readily applicable as an all-encompassing prohibition to those under the new covenant.
-Eli's message to Hannah (who he thought was drunk) "Put away thy wine from thee!" (Instead of "drink in moderation!")
Few points:
1. These were the words of Eli, a man of marked moral shortcomings, not God.
2. His statement is fairly standard hyperbole, comparable to Christ telling Peter "put away your sword!" (Matthew 26:52) Christ was not laying down some all-encompassing ban on self-defense (for He had instructed His disciples to carry weapons - Luke 22:36), but expressing to Peter that his reliance on it was harmful -- as Eli was in this instance.
-David's attempt to change Uriah's actions by getting him under the influence
Another example of abuse.
-Ahasuerus's desire to parade his women around while drunk
This amounts to another example of abuse at most.
-"Wine is a mocker... whosoever erreth thereby is not wise."
Again not an example exactly, but it is a warning as to the potential negative effects of alcohol, which I do not deny.
The problem with trying to build a case with examples of abuse is that examples of abuse for almost anything can be easily cited, such methods of demonizing a thing are rather dubious. Take for example, money. Is it unbiblical to have money? Look at all the abuses that money caused in scripture:
Balaam was tempted (and fell) by the wealth of Balak (Numbers 22)
Achan brought trouble on Israel by his coveteous actions (Joshua 7)
The rich young ruler didn't follow Christ because of his great wealth (Matthew 19:16-24, note Jesus' words, "it is hard for a rich man to enter the kingdom of heaven")
Judges taking bribes (Amos 5:12)
Joseph was sold into slavery for money (Genesis 37:28)
Christ was sold to be killed for money (Matthew 26:15)
And let's not forget the admonitions,
Now he who received seed among the thorns is he who hears the word, and the cares of this world and the deceitfulness of riches choke the word, and he becomes unfruitful. (Matthew 13:22)
For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil, for which some have strayed from the faith in their greediness, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows. (1 Timothy 6:10)
Yet despite the potentially disastrous effects of wealth, Christians continue to work for the stuff. Are we simply defying the word of God as the guide to our lives by holding steady jobs? Not at all. The key to understanding the issue is that money does have potential negative effects, some of them utterly catastrophic such as enslavement and coveteousness (which is a form of idolatry).
Those are just a handful of old testament examples where alcohol is used with negative results. What would be a good course of action regarding alcohol? Is there any reason I should be excited about drinking?
A good course would be either moderation or abstinence. I personally see no excitement about drinking wine or beer more than any other drink.
The positive uses of alcohol are mentioned as well. Wine for your stomach's sake, for the depressed and the dying are all mentioned in scripture. We would use those for the same things today, except we have other medicines that are as effective for stomach problems, for pain and the like.
And there are times when wine is mentioned in regular usage such as at Cana (John 2), the Jewish feasts (Deuteronomy 14:26) and when Christ Himself was eating (Luke 7:34).
Given the overall tenor of alcohol in the scripture, the call for Christians to be soberminded, the change of life that occurs when one puts off the old man (1st Peter 4:1-5), its easy for me to not drink at all, and to recommend the same to others.
Fine by me. Have at it.
After all, do we not use the scriptures as a roadmap for making decisions in our everyday lives?
Yes, and in them we see examples of both abuse and proper use of things, including wine.
I havent even mentioned the destruction that alcohol has brought to so many lives, from broken homes to death and abuse... I know of too many instances to list. Do you think any of those people would argue for alcohol in moderation?
Doubtful that they would. Though as I said, one who is weak to alcohol should not drink, cases of people who have a problem with something don't dictate liberty of conscience for others.
The desire to drink alcohol is a fleshy desire, and I am content to walk after the spirit, and seek the things that make for peace. Similar to Paul's warning to "Flee fornication", I want to run from the possibility of sin, and giving Satan an advantage. We should not be ignorant of his devices.
"Fleshly desire?" In that it's something done in the literal flesh, yes; as to whether it's a sinful fleshly desire, drinking in moderation is no more sinful than eating a dish of ice cream. I've heard the saying that no one ever became an alcoholic who never took the first drink, but of course such reasoning could be applied to a great many things:
No one ever became addicted to net porn if they never used a computer.
No one ever committed a hit-and-run if they never drove a motor vehicle.
No one ever became an axe-murderer who never picked up an axe (though chopping wood gets difficult).
And so on. Such caution is fine for those who wish or need to exercise it (some people definitely need to stay out from behind the wheel), this again says nothing concerning the liberty of others. All the biblical data considered, the following conclusions can be drawn:
Is it a wise idea for some to abstain from alcohol use? Definitely.
Is it a good idea for any specific individual to abstain from strong drink? Possibly, though the matter is between that person and God.
Is drinking fermented wine in moderation scripturally condemned? Certainly not.
Thanks again for your comments, and the thoughts they provoke. Thanks as well for allowing me to respond.
You're welcome, and thank-you for your comments as well S. I hope you leave your email address next time so we can chat more.
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