Christians and Alcohol (3/3)
We’ve come a long way in three weeks here, at least I think. We looked first at the clear Biblical statement that drunkenness is a sin. Next, we took at look at what drunkenness is and why it’s a sin. For all intents and purposes, we could call it quits right now.
However, it’s been my experience that alcohol is never so black and white. Certain situations call us to lots of discernment, and I think it will be good to address some of the issues that surround alcohol.
The Stumbling Block
Romans 14:21
It is good not to eat meat or drink wine or do anything that causes your brother to stumble.
Christians have an effect on other Christians. Perhaps you can go to a party and be responsible. I don’t know, but I do know that a Christian who looks up to you in faith could see you there and make wrong conclusions and be affected by it. We have a responsibility to our brothers to be careful to keep them from falling into sin. If you’re friends with someone who gave up alcohol, don’t just start drinking a cold one right next to him or her!
Protecting Your Witness
If I’m at a frat party drinking a beer because I appreciate a fine brew, I’m not sinning against God in that sense. God knows that it’s only one beer and that my motives are pure. However, if someone snaps a picture with that beer and me and the photo ends up on Facebook, I don’t have the luxury of explaining to everyone who sees that picture that I only had one. My witness as a Christian could therefore suffer. I’ve made it a personal policy not to drink if I find myself at a house party, but I’m certainly not opposed to a nice wine or a craft beer at a decent restaurant. Why? Because that doesn’t carry the stigma that frat parties do.
Galatians 5:13
For you were called to freedom, brothers. Only do not use your freedom as an opportunity for the flesh, but through love serve one another.
This verse took me awhile to accept. Humans want to be free, and I spent a lot of time justifying the fact that I drank alcohol after I turned 21. My arguments were good, but they missed the point. If I make even one brother trip up, if even one person doesn’t come to know God because of a silly beverage, then it’s not worth it.
Abstinence?
Should we quit drinking altogether? As I’ve shown by the Scriptures, we can’t mandate it. However, I do believe that abstinence is the best option for some and in different situations. If you used to drink a lot, it might be best to cut it out altogether. My struggles in the past had much to do with lust, and as a part of that, I can’t go to Yahoo! Games anymore because of the kind of chatting that went on there. I can’t lay down the law and condemn the site; there’s no basis for it. However, for me, it’s better if I cut it out rather than trying to flirt with the line. Same way with alcohol.
Check Your Motives!
Why are you putting that alcohol in your mouth? Are you in a foreign country where the wine is safer than the water? Then have some! Are you interested in the taste of a new cabernet sauvignon? That’s okay! Upset stomach? Sure! Do you want to use it to feel better or forget problems? That’s no good. Is drinking a beer going to make you too much like the world, or is it going to help you reach them with the good news of Jesus Christ? Paul says that he became like the Jew to win the Jew, like those under the law to win people under the law (1 Corinthians 9:20). Obviously, he’s not going to sin to do so, but the man was certainly on to a good principle.
See, it all comes down to motives. You can look at a naked person without lusting; you can drink without committing a sin as well. But it comes down to your heart, your motives, your strengths, and your weaknesses.
Final Recommendation
One of my favorite verses, Romans 12:2, tells us not to be conformed to the pattern of this world. That basically means that we shouldn’t just do stuff because that’s what people do. We need to have our minds transformed by God so that we can look at alcohol objectively.
I’d love to be able to just say, “never drink” and be done with it. We as Christians can have a tendency to try and make the rules more black and white so that they’re easier to follow, but in doing so we often miss out on Biblical truth and the freedoms that we enjoy from following God. I acknowledge the gray areas that come with the topic of alcohol, but I think there can be no mistake in saying that drunkenness is not allowed by God.
Guys, alcohol can be dangerous. I’ve seen it and the culture around it tear people away from God, and I don’t ever want that to happen. So I want you to know alcohol for that attribute. But I also want you to know that God’s not condemning the outright act of putting alcohol down your throat. The thing that I just want to stress as much as possible is that you have to have pure motives and you have to make sure that you won’t negatively affect others - either the weak Christian or the unbeliever’s perception of you. I think that it can all be summed up in Paul’s words to the Corinthians:
1 Corinthians 10:30-31
30 If I partake with thankfulness, why am I denounced because of that for which I give thanks?
31 So, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God.
Amen.
Grace and peace,
Brendan
