Whereas there are some different views on the topic of
Christians and the consumption of alcohol, I would like to share some biblical
perspective on the matter.
Please consider:
Rom 10:1-3
10:1 Brethren, my heart’s desire and prayer to God for
Israel is, that they might be saved.
2 For I bear them record that they have a zeal of God, but
not according to knowledge.
3 For they being ignorant of God’s righteousness, and going
about to establish their own righteousness, have not submitted themselves unto
the righteousness of God.
– Even though written concerning the Jews, we too need to
know the scriptural viewpoints and to be in agreement with them, not to just
have an opinion or belief based on men’s view of a matter, personal opinion or
a church tradition!
– Our viewpoint needs to be according to knowledge of God’s
righteousness.
First let’s look at some definitions!
Here are some Old Testament definitions from Strong’s
concordance and Vine’s expository dictionary. (The New Testament will follow
latter)
OT:3196
yayin (yah’-yin); from an unused root meaning to effervesce;
wine (as fermented); by implication, intoxication:
KJV – banqueting, wine, wine [-bibber].
(Biblesoft’s New Exhaustive Strong’s Numbers and Concordance
with Expanded Greek-Hebrew Dictionary. Copyright (c) 1994, Biblesoft and
International Bible Translators, Inc.)
WINE (in part)
yayin OT:3196, “wine.” It appears about 141 times
and in all periods of biblical Hebrew.
This is the usual Hebrew word for fermented grape. It is
usually rendered “wine.” Such “wine” was commonly drunk for
refreshment: “And Melchizedek king of Salem brought forth bread and
wine…” Gen 14:18; cf. 27:25.
Second, “wine” was used in rejoicing before the
Lord. Once a year all Israel is to gather in Jerusalem. The money realized from
the sale of a tithe of all their harvest was to be spent “for whatsoever
thy soul lusteth after, for oxen, or for sheep, or for wine, or for strong
drink, or for whatsoever thy soul desireth: and thou shalt eat there before the
Lord thy God, and thou shalt rejoice…” Deut 14:26. “Wine” was
offered to God at His command as part of the prescribed ritual Ex 29:40. Thus
it was part of the temple supplies available for purchase by pilgrims so that
they could offer it to God 1 Chron 9:29. Pagans used “wine” in their
worship, but “their wine is the poison of dragons, and the cruel venom of
asps” Deut 32:33
Yayin clearly represents an intoxicating beverage. This is
evident in its first biblical appearance: “And Noah began to be a
husband-man, and he planted a vineyard: and he drank of the wine, and was
drunken…” Gen 9:20-21. The word is used as a synonym of tirosh,
“new wine,” in Hos 4:11, where it is evident that both can be intoxicating.
Tirosh is distinguished from yayin by referring only to new wine not fully
fermented; yayin includes “wine” at any stage. In Gen 27:28 (the
first biblical occurrence of the word) Jacob’s blessing includes the divine
bestowal of an abundance of new wine. In 1 Sam 1:15 yayin parallels shekar,
“strong drink.” Shekar in early times included wine Num 28:7 but
meant strong drink made from any fruit or grain Num 6:3. People in special
states of holiness were forbidden to drink “wine,” such as the
Nazarites Num 6:3, Samson’s mother Judg 13:4, and priests approaching God Lev
10:9.
In Gen 9:24 yayin means drunkenness: “And Noah awoke
from his wine….”
(from Vine’s Expository Dictionary of Biblical Words,
Copyright (c)1985, Thomas Nelson Publishers)
OT:8492
tiyrowsh (tee-roshe’); or tiyrosh (tee-roshe’); from OT:3423
in the sense of expulsion; must or fresh grape-juice (as just squeezed out); by
implication (rarely) fermented wine:
KJV – (new, sweet) wine.
(Biblesoft’s New Exhaustive Strong’s Numbers and Concordance
with Expanded Greek-Hebrew Dictionary. Copyright (c) 1994, Biblesoft and
International Bible Translators, Inc.)
OT:7941
shekar (shay-kawr’); from OT:7937; an intoxicant, i.e.
intensely alcoholic liquor:
KJV – strong drink, drunkard, strong wine.
shikkor. See OT:7910.
(Biblesoft’s New Exhaustive Strong’s Numbers and Concordance
with Expanded Greek-Hebrew Dictionary. Copyright (c) 1994, Biblesoft and
International Bible Translators, Inc.)
FOUNDATIONAL SCRIPTURE
Lev 10:8-11
8 And the LORD spake unto Aaron, saying,
9 Do not drink wine nor strong drink, thou, nor thy sons
with thee, when ye go into the tabernacle of the congregation, lest ye die: it
shall be a statute for ever throughout your generations:
10 And that ye may put difference between holy and unholy,
and between unclean and clean;
11 And that ye may teach the children of Israel all the
statutes which the LORD hath spoken unto them by the hand of Moses.
– This establishes God’s view of wine in relation to
holiness and cleanliness. Drinking fermented wine/ strong drink would make them
unholy and unclean.
Ezek 44:21 & 23
21 Neither shall any priest drink wine, when they enter into
the inner court.
23 And they shall teach my people the difference between the
holy and profane, and cause them to discern between the unclean and the clean.
– The inner court signified a place of sacrifice, cleansing,
holiness, prayer and approach to God!
– Teaching others the proper approach to God!
– Today we don’t just approach Him in holiness behind the
veil but we walk in holiness as we walk the Christian walk in fellowship with
him, inpart by abstaining from alcohol!
Isa 28:7
7 But they also have erred through wine, and through strong
drink are out of the way; the priest and the prophet have erred through strong
drink, they are swallowed up of wine, they are out of the way through strong
drink; they err in vision, they stumble in judgment.
– Consumption hinders foresight and judgement!
THE BEST OF THE WINE
Num 18:11-14
11 And this is thine; the heave offering of their gift, with
all the wave offerings of the children of Israel: I have given them unto thee,
and to thy sons and to thy daughters with thee, by a statute for ever: every
one that is clean in thy house shall eat of it.
12 All the best of the oil, and all the best of the wine,
and of the wheat, the firstfruits of them which they shall offer unto the LORD,
them have I given thee.
13 And whatsoever is first ripe in the land, which they
shall bring unto the LORD, shall be thine; every one that is clean in thine
house shall eat of it.
14 Every thing devoted in Israel shall be thine.
– Best of the wine, this was new wine for Aaron!
OFFERINGS RESERVED FROM THE FIRE
Num 18:8-12
8 And the LORD spake unto Aaron, Behold, I also have given
thee the charge of mine heave offerings of all the hallowed things of the
children of Israel; unto thee have I given them by reason of the anointing, and
to thy sons, by an ordinance for ever.
9 This shall be thine of the most holy things, reserved from
the fire: every oblation of theirs, every meat offering of theirs, and every
sin offering of theirs, and every trespass offering of theirs, which they shall
render unto me, shall be most holy for thee and for thy sons.
10 In the most holy place shalt thou eat it; every male
shall eat it: it shall be holy unto thee.
11 And this is thine; the heave offering of their gift, with
all the wave offerings of the children of Israel: I have given them unto thee,
and to thy sons and to thy daughters with thee, by a statute for ever: every
one that is clean in thy house shall eat of it.
12 All the best of the oil, and all the best of the wine,
and of the wheat, the firstfruits of them which they shall offer unto the LORD,
them have I given thee.
– Even though some of these sacrifices were offered with
fermented wine, Aaron’s portion was reserved from the fire, and excluded the
fermented wine in order to be able to eat it in the most holy place! Vs .10
TITHE OF NEW WINE
Deut 12:17-18
17 Thou mayest not eat within thy gates the tithe of thy
corn, or of thy wine, or of thy oil, or the firstlings of thy herds or of thy
flock, nor any of thy vows which thou vowest, nor thy freewill offerings, or
heave offering of thine hand:
18 But thou must eat them before the LORD thy God in the
place which the LORD thy God shall choose, thou, and thy son, and thy daughter,
and thy manservant, and thy maidservant, and the Levite that is within thy
gates: and thou shalt rejoice before the LORD thy God in all that thou puttest
thine hands unto.
– New wine tithe to be shared with Levites!
Negative Aspect of Wine
Prov 20:1
20:1 Wine is a mocker, strong drink is raging: and whosoever
is deceived thereby is not wise.
– Alcoholic drink is deceptive (not a Godly virtue)
Prov 21:17
17 He that loveth pleasure shall be a poor man: he that
loveth wine and oil shall not be rich.
– Alcohol hinders prosperity!
Prov 23:29-32
29 Who hath woe? who hath sorrow? who hath contentions? who
hath babbling? who hath wounds without cause? who hath redness of eyes?
30 They that tarry long at the wine; they that go to seek
mixed wine.
31 Look not thou upon the wine when it is red, when it
giveth his colour in the cup, when it moveth itself aright.
32 At the last it biteth like a serpent, and stingeth like
an adder.
Gen 19:30-36
30 And Lot went up out of Zoar, and dwelt in the mountain,
and his two daughters with him; for he feared to dwell in Zoar: and he dwelt in
a cave, he and his two daughters. 31
And the firstborn said unto the younger, Our father is old and, and there is
not a man in the earth to come in unto us after the manner of all the earth:
32 Come, let us make our father drink wine, and we will lie
with him, that we may preserve seed of our father.
33 And they made their father drink wine that night: and the
firstborn went in, and lay with her father; and he perceived not when she lay
down, nor when she arose.
34 And it came to pass on the morrow, that the firstborn
said unto the younger, Behold, I lay yesternight with my father: let us make
him drink wine this night also; and go thou in, and lie with him, that we may
preserve seed of our Father.
35 And they made their father drink wine that night also:
and the younger arose, and lay with him; and he perceived not when she lay
down, nor when she arose.
36 Thus were both the daughters of Lot with child by their
father.
– Alcohol a contributing factor to incest!
Gen 9:20-23
20 And Noah began to be an husbandman, and he planted a
vineyard:
21 And he drank of the wine, and was drunken; and he was
uncovered within his tent.
22 And Ham, the father of Canaan, saw the nakedness of his
father, and told his two brethren without.
23 And Shem and Japheth took a garment, and laid it upon
both their shoulders, and went backward, and covered the nakedness of their
father; and their faces were backward, and they saw not their father’s
nakedness.
MELCHIZEDEK WAS BEFORE THE LAW
Gen 14:18-20
18 And Melchizedek king of Salem brought forth bread and
wine: and he was the priest of the most high God.
19 And he blessed him, and said, Blessed be Abram of the
most high God, possessor of heaven and earth:
20 And blessed be the most high God, which hath delivered
thine enemies into thy hand. And he gave him tithes of all.
– Even though this is from the Hebrew “yayin” and
Melchizedek was the priest of the most high God, this is long before the
established Aaronic priesthood and the Laws governing wine’s use!
FERMENTED WINE NOT FOR KINGS
Prov 31:1-5
31:1 The words of king Lemuel, the prophecy that his mother
taught him.
2 What, my son? and what, the son of my womb? and what, the
son of my vows?
3 Give not thy strength unto women, nor thy ways to that
which destroyeth kings.
4 It is not for kings, O Lemuel, it is not for kings to
drink wine; nor for princes strong drink:
5 Lest they drink, and forget the law, and pervert the
judgment of any of the afflicted.
– Jesus is King and would not have drunk fermented wine!
– And hast made us unto our God kings and priests: and we
shall reign on the earth. Rev 5:10 therefore we as Christians should not drink
fermented wine either!(see foundational scripture Isa. 28:7)
THE NAZARITE VOW
Num 6:1-21
6:1 And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying,
2 Speak unto the children of Israel, and say unto them, When
either man or woman shall separate
themselves to vow a vow of a Nazarite, to separate
themselves unto the LORD:
3 He shall separate himself from wine and strong drink, and
shall drink no vinegar of wine, or vinegar of strong drink, neither shall he
drink any liquor of grapes, nor eat moist grapes, or dried.
4 All the days of his separation shall he eat nothing that
is made of the vine tree, from the kernels even to the husk.
5 All the days of the vow of his separation there shall no
rasor come upon his head: until the days be fulfilled, in the which he
separateth himself unto the LORD, he shall be holy, and shall let the locks of
the hair of his head grow.
6 All the days that he separateth himself unto the LORD he
7 He shall not make himself unclean for his father, or for
his mother, for his brother, or for his sister, when they die: because the
consecration of his God is upon his head.
8 All the days of his separation he is holy unto the LORD.
9 And if any man die very suddenly by him, and he hath
defiled the head of his consecration; then he shall shave his head in the day
of his cleansing, on the seventh day shall he shave it.
10 And on the eighth day he shall bring two turtles, or two
young pigeons, to the priest, to the door of the tabernacle of the
congregation:
11 And the priest shall offer the one for a sin offering,
and the other for a burnt offering, and make an atonement for him, for that he
sinned by the dead, and shall hallow his head that same day.
12 And he shall consecrate unto the LORD the days of his
separation, and shall bring a lamb of the first year for a trespass offering:
but the days that were before shall be lost, because his separation was
defiled.
13 And this is the law of the Nazarite, when the days of his
separation are fulfilled: he shall be brought unto the door of the tabernacle
of the congregation:
14 And he shall offer his offering unto the LORD, one he
lamb of the first year without blemish for a burnt offering, and one ewe lamb
of the first year without blemish for a sin offering, and one ram without
blemish for peace offerings,
15 And a basket of unleavened bread, cakes of fine flour
mingled with oil, and wafers of unleavened bread anointed with oil, and their
meat offering, and their drink offerings.
16 And the priest shall bring them before the LORD, and
shall offer his sin offering, and his burnt offering:
17 And he shall offer the ram for a sacrifice of peace
offerings unto the LORD, with the basket of unleavened bread: the priest shall
offer also his meat offering, and his drink offering.
18 And the Nazarite shall shave the head of his separation
at the door of the tabernacle of the congregation, and shall take the hair of
the head of his separation, and put it in the fire which is under the sacrifice
of the peace offerings.
19 And the priest shall take the sodden shoulder of the ram,
and one unleavened cake out of the basket, and one unleavened wafer, and shall
put them upon the hands of the Nazarite, after the hair of his separation is
shaven:
20 And the priest shall wave them for a wave offering before
the LORD: this is holy for the priest, with the wave breast and heave shoulder:
and after that the Nazarite may drink wine.
21 This is the law of the Nazarite who hath vowed, and of
his offering unto the LORD for his separation, beside that that his hand shall
get: according to the vow which he vowed, so he must do after the law of his
separation.
– The Nazarite vow was a separation unto God and holiness
primarily by abstinence from the fruit of the vine and strong drink.
-This separation was temporary and afterward they could
return to drinking wine.
– There were three sacrifices offered, one of which was a
sin offering!
– By contrast we as Christians today should separate
ourselves unto God and holiness continually as a lifetime commitment!
Rom 12:1-2
12:1 I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of
God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God,
which is your reasonable service.
2 And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed
by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and
acceptable, and perfect, will of God.
– Abstinence would certainly be a part of this!
BURNT OFFERINGS
Num 28:7
7 And the drink offering thereof shall be the fourth part of
an hin for the one lamb: in the holy place shalt thou cause the strong wine to
be poured unto the LORD for a drink offering.
– This strong wine is “shekar” and was offered with a burnt
offering and poured out in the holy place!
Ex 29:38-42
38 Now this is that which thou shalt offer upon the altar;
two lambs of the first year day by day continually.
39 The one lamb thou shalt offer in the morning; and the
other lamb thou shalt offer at even:
40 And with the one lamb a tenth deal of flour mingled with
the fourth part of an hin of beaten oil; and the fourth part of an hin of wine
for a drink offering.
41 And the other lamb thou shalt offer at even, and shalt do
thereto according to the meat offering of the morning, and according to the
drink offering thereof, for a sweet savour, an offering made by fire unto the
LORD.
42 This shall be a continual burnt offering throughout your
generations at the door of the tabernacle of the congregation before the LORD:
where I will meet you, to speak there unto thee.
– This was fermented wine for these burnt offerings!
– Aaron and his sons only partook of that which was reserved
from the fire!
– The alcohol content of the fermented wine may have
assisted in the burning of the sacrifice!
– At least some of the time the fermented wine or the strong
drink in this case was poured out on the ground around the base of the altar!
– The bible is consistent, fermented wine was used at
offerings made by fire!
– New wine was offered only when it would be partaken of by
Aaron and his family!
– Aaron’s and his son’s portion of a burnt offering was
reserved from the fire and would not include the fermented wine!
GOD’S BLESSING
Deut 7:12-13
12 Wherefore it shall come to pass, if ye hearken to these
judgments, and keep, and do them, that the LORD thy God shall keep unto thee
the covenant and the mercy which he sware unto thy fathers:
13 And he will love thee, and bless thee, and multiply thee:
he will also bless the fruit of thy womb, and the fruit of thy land, thy corn,
and thy wine, and thine oil, the increase of thy kine, and the flocks of thy
sheep, in the land which he sware unto thy fathers to give thee.
– Look it up, God’s blessing was on the New wine!
Deut 11:13-15
13 And it shall come to pass, if ye shall hearken diligently
unto my commandments which I command you this day, to love the LORD your God,
and to serve him with all your heart and with all your soul,
14 That I will give you the rain of your land in his due
season, the first rain and the latter rain, that thou mayest gather in thy
corn, and thy wine, and thine oil.
15 And I will send grass in thy fields for thy cattle, that
thou mayest eat and be full.
– The wine of God’s blessing was New wine!
GOD IS CHEERED BY THE NEW WINE
Judg 9:12-13
12 Then said the trees unto the vine, Come thou, and reign
over us.
13 And the vine said unto them, Should I leave my wine,
which cheereth God and man, and go to be promoted over the trees?
– It is the unfermented or new that cheereth God!
NEW TESTAMENT DEFINITIONS
WINE (in part)
1. oinos NT:3631 is the general word for “wine.”
The mention of the bursting of the wineskins, Matt 9:17; Mark 2:22; Luke 5:37,
implies fermentation. See also Eph 5:18 (cf. John 2:10; 1 Tim 3:8; Titus 2:3).
In Matt 27:34, the RV has “wine” (KJV, “vinegar,”
translating the inferior reading oxos).
The drinking of “wine” could be a stumbling block
and the apostle enjoins abstinence in this respect, as in others, so as to
avoid giving an occasion of stumbling to a brother, Rom 14:21.
2. gleukos NT:1098 denotes sweet “new wine,” or
must, Acts 2:13, where the accusation shows that it was intoxicant and must
have been undergoing fermentation some time.
Note: In instituting the Lord’s Supper He speaks of the
contents of the cup as the “fruit of the vine.”
(from Vine’s Expository Dictionary of Biblical Words,
Copyright (c)1985, Thomas Nelson Publishers)
JESUS REFUSED WINE ON THE CROSS
Mark 15:22-24
22 And they bring him unto the place Golgotha, which is,
being interpreted, The place of a skull.
23 And they gave him to drink wine mingled with myrrh: but
he received it not.
24 And when they had crucified him, they parted his
garments, casting lots upon them, what every man should take.
– Jesus said he would not drink of the fruit of the vine
until He drank it new with the apostles in the kingdom! (Mat 29:29)
JOHN THE BAPTIST GREAT IN THE SIGHT OF THE LORD
Luke 1:13-16
13 But the angel said unto him, Fear not, Zacharias: for thy
prayer is heard; and thy wife Elisabeth shall bear thee a son, and thou shalt
call his name John.
14 And thou shalt have joy and gladness; and many shall
rejoice at his birth.
15 For he shall be great in the sight of the Lord, and shall
drink neither wine nor strong drink; and he shall be filled with the Holy
Ghost, even from his mother’s womb.
16 And many of the children of Israel shall he turn to the
Lord their God.
– Notice the direct correlation between being great in the
sight of the Lord and his abstinence from wine and strong drink!
JESUS ACCUSED
Luke 7:33-34
33 For John the Baptist came neither eating bread nor
drinking wine; and ye say, He hath a devil.
34 The Son of man is come eating and drinking; and ye say,
Behold a gluttonous man, and a winebibber, a friend of publicans and sinners!
– These were common accusations of the time period as well
as exaggerations and/or distortions of His behaviour! As customary to the time, no grounds were
needed to make such an accusation!
JESUS TURNS WATER INTO WINE
John 2:7-10
7 Jesus saith unto them, Fill the waterpots with water. And
they filled them up to the brim.
8 And he saith unto them, Draw out now, and bear unto the
governor of the feast. And they bare it.
9 When the ruler of the feast had tasted the water that was
made wine, and knew not whence it was: (but the servants which drew the water
knew;) the governor of the feast called the bridegroom,
10 And saith unto him, Every man at the beginning doth set
forth good wine; and when men have well drunk, then that which is worse: but
thou hast kept the good wine until now.
– In light of the whole of scripture, this should not be
taken as Jesus’ endorsement or promotion of the consumption of alcohol!
– Even if fermented we should not assume either Jesus or his
disciples had any to drink!
– If Jesus drank of it he would have made Himself an unholy
sacrifice, an unworthy lamb!
UNDERSTANDING GOD’S WILL
Eph 5:13-20
13 But all things that are reproved are made manifest by the
light: for whatsoever doth make manifest is light.
14 Wherefore he saith, Awake thou that sleepest, and arise
from the dead, and Christ shall give thee light.
15 See then that ye walk circumspectly, not as fools, but as
wise,
16 Redeeming the time, because the days are evil.
17 Wherefore be ye not unwise, but understanding what the
will of the Lord is.
18 And be not drunk with wine, wherein is excess; but be
filled with the Spirit;
19 Speaking to yourselves in psalms and hymns and spiritual
songs, singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord;
20 Giving thanks always for all things unto God and the
Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ;
– Consider the contrast here, the comparative!
– When we look at the word of God as a whole it is clear
what the will of the Lord is!
WHAT IS GOD’S WILL IN REGARDS
TO OTHER DRUGS?
What about Marijuana?
What about Cocaine?
What about Heroin?
What about sniffing gas and other chemicals?
What about nicotine?
What about popping pills for “recreation”?
What is considered unholy in God’s eyes?
BISHOPS AND DEACONS
1 Tim 3:1-9
3:1 This is a true saying, If a man desire the office of a
bishop, he desireth a good work.
2 A bishop then must be blameless, the husband of one wife,
vigilant, sober, of good behaviour, given to hospitality, apt to teach;
3 Not given to wine, no striker, not greedy of filthy lucre;
but patient, not a brawler, not covetous;
4 One that ruleth well his own house, having his children in
subjection with all gravity;
5(For if a man know not how to rule his own house, how shall
he take care of the church of God?)
6 Not a novice, lest being lifted up with pride he fall into
the condemnation of the devil.
7 Moreover he must have a good report of them which are
without; lest he fall into reproach and the snare of the devil.
8 Likewise must the deacons be grave, not doubletongued, not
given to much wine, not greedy of filthy lucre;
9 Holding the mystery of the faith in a pure conscience.
– This is not a licence to drink as long as you are not an
alcoholic any more than it is a licence to be greedy as long as you are not too
greedy!
Titus 1:5-9
5 For this cause left I thee in Crete, that thou shouldest
set in order the things that are wanting, and ordain elders in every city, as I
had appointed thee:
6 If any be blameless, the husband of one wife, having
faithful children not accused of riot or unruly.
7 For a bishop must be blameless, as the steward of God; not
selfwilled, not soon angry, not given to wine, no striker, not given to filthy
lucre;
8 But a lover of hospitality, a lover of good men, sober,
just, holy, temperate;
9 Holding fast the faithful word as he hath been taught,
that he may be able by sound doctrine both to exhort and to convince the
gainsayers.
– These are examples of excesses of character that are not
acceptable, not necessarily minimum requirements!
AS BECOMETH HOLINESS
Titus 2:1-3
2:1 But speak thou the things which become sound doctrine:
2 That the aged men be sober, grave, temperate, sound in
faith, in charity, in patience.
3 The aged women likewise, that they be in behaviour as
becometh holiness, not false accusers, not given to much wine, teachers of good
things;
– In behaviour as becometh holiness according to Lev 10:8-11
would include not drinking fermented wine, not given to much wine (not an alcoholic)
isn’t given as a minimum requirement any more than not being a false accuser
is! This again is stating excesses of character!
PAUL’S ADMONITION TO TIMOTHY
1 Tim 5:22-23
22 Lay hands suddenly on no man, neither be partaker of
other men’s sins: keep thyself pure.
23 Drink no longer water, but use a little wine for thy
stomach’s sake and thine often infirmities.
– The key to verse 23 is verse 22, keep thyself pure! (in
other words, unfermented is implied)
THE COMMUNION DEBATE
Should we use real wine or grape juice?
Matt 26:27-29
27 And he took the cup, and gave thanks, and gave it to
them, saying, Drink ye all of it;
28 For this is my blood of the new testament, which is shed
for many for the remission of sins.
29 But I say unto you, I will not drink henceforth of this
fruit of the vine, until that day when I drink it new with you in my Father’s
kingdom.
– Communion is an allegory of His bodily sacrifice and shed
blood as our sacrificial lamb which is represented by the bread and the wine.
– The Passover lamb was roasted and consumed and thereby
would have been accompanied with new wine, if any at all!
– Jesus does not call it wine in this instance so we do not
have a Greek word to reference, however
considering all that we have learned I believe it is clear
we should use a pure grape juice!
– This fruit of the vine represents His Blood which is Holy
and it is the New Wine that is Holy!
– Why would we commemorate His act of making us holy
(vs.28), with an act that makes us unholy?!
– Whereas fermentation is a spoiling process, to use
fermented wine would be representing the Blood of Christ as spoiled!
– As well we should not use reconstituted from concentrate
or mixed with other juices!
– We will be drinking it new in the Kingdom!
Jesus Suffered for our Excess of Wine!
1 Peter 4:1-5
4:1 Forasmuch then as Christ hath suffered for us in the
flesh, arm yourselves likewise with the same mind: for he that hath suffered in
the flesh hath ceased from sin;
2 That he no longer should live the rest of his time in the
flesh to the lusts of men, but to the will of God.
3 For the time past of our life may suffice us to have
wrought the will of the Gentiles, when we walked in lasciviousness, lusts,
excess of wine, revellings, banquetings, and abominable idolatries:
4 Wherein they think it strange that ye run not with them to
the same excess of riot, speaking evil of you:
5 Who shall give account to him that is ready to judge the
quick and the dead.
– Jesus suffered for our excess of wine!
– Excess of wine categorized with abominable idolatries!
As Christians we should live the separated life of holiness
and sanctification, we need to proclaim to the world the difference between
holy and unholy and between unclean and clean! Our abstinence from alcoholic
drink is a primary way that the Lord has chosen for us to do this, not as a
temporary Nazarite vow of separation unto the Lord but a lifetime decision of
choice for a holy lifestyle that not only pleases Him but represents Him!
As our High Priest Jesus could not have possibly consumed
fermented wine!
IN CONCLUSION
After reviewing these scriptures on the topic of Christians
and Alcohol we come to not only a knowledge but an understanding of the will of
God and with that foundation of knowledge and understanding we have an insight
which gives us power to stand for the truth we hold as well as a zeal to share
it with others!
We could I’m sure argue different views and opinions but we
certainly cannot argue against the Word of God. There is the view within
Christianity today that drinking is okay, some have the view that as long as
you don’t get drunk it is fine, but is this what the bible tells us? The word
sin means to miss the mark, in other words in our effort to please God, we
miss; this could be because we don’t know where to shoot or understand what we
are shooting at! When we know the Lord wants us to refrain from alcohol and
that He considers it unholy and unclean we then identify the bull’s eye and can
easily hit the target once we submit ourselves to the acknowledging of the
truth.
We find in this study paper that there are different kinds
of wine; new wine, fermented wine and strong drink, it should be noted that
even the new wine gradually ferments until it is classed with fermented wine!
In the Old Testament there was a distinction that set the
priesthood apart and they were held to a higher standard when fulfilling their
office! We certainly do not want to present the case for abstinence without
disclosing that the children of Israel did consume alcohol and in fact were
instructed to do so by the Lord as a means of celebration of tithing (Deut.
14:26). Knowledge of this adds to our understanding and perspective but it does
not cancel out all the scripture presented for the case of abstinence and
holiness!
Even though some scriptures may use the Hebrew or Greek word
which denotes fermented wine, these words are not exclusive to the fermented
wine only and context needs to be consulted such as is the case with 1 Tim
5:22-23 for example!
OUR SOCIETY TODAY
The adverse effects of alcohol in our society today are
evident in family problems, health problems, crime related incidents, motor
vehicle accidents causing injury and death, and we see a direct correlation to
sin and sinful lifestyles! If the church fails to stand for the light of truth
on that matter it not only misguides the world, it jeopardizes itself to the
same predicament!
There are many scripture references to wine in the Bible;
these are a select few which give a clear indication of God’s will in regards
to our consumption of alcoholic drink in particularly as pertaining to our
holiness as Christians!
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