Bible Studies

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There is much debate about drinking and whether it is alright to drink in moderation or not at all. This article makes no judgments, but only reveals my own convictions, as well as what I found while researching the Bible. For me, there is no half-way. When I made the choice to change my life, I stopped drinking and smoking for several reasons. The foremost reason being that I wanted to completely belong to God. When I am committed to something, I am wholly committed. There is no half-way with me, so that is why I stopped doing things that might interfere with my relationship with God.

In my research, I read the book of Ephesians. If you have not read it, you need to. It is an awesome book. It is a wonderful letter to the Church. It is the Christian's handbook; a manual or guide of how we should live. Paul begins the letter, "To the saints..., the faithful in Christ Jesus" (Eph. 1:1). So he is writing this to those of us who call ourselves Christians.

In chapter 5, Paul tells us to be imitators of Christ, to offer ourselves as a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God, and to avoid even the smallest hint of immorality or impurity. He further says, "No immoral, impure, or greedy person...has any inheritance in the Kingdom of Christ and of God". (Eph 5:5).

There are many instances in the Bible where drinking led to immorality. Both Noah and Lot acted immorally after drinking (Gen. 9:20-26; Gen 19:30-38). God told the priests not to drink so they could tell the difference between the holy and the unholy (Lev. 10:9-11). Proverbs 23 (beginning in verse 20) tells not to join with those who drink, and that a wise person will not drink alcohol. That Chapter further states:

vs. 21: Drunkards become poor;
vs. 29-30: Alcohol causes woe, sorrow, strife, complaints, pain and bloodshot eyes;
vs. 32: It bites like a snake and poisons like a viper;
vs. 33-34: It cause strange thoughts and makes the drinker unstable;
It is also addictive; vs. 35 says, "When will I wake up so I can have another drink?".

Alcohol impairs judgment and causes the believer to be caught unaware when Satan attacks. Proverbs 20:1 says, "Wine is a mocker, and beer is a brawler; whoever is led astray by them is not wise." The Bible gives specific examples of what can happen when alcohol is involved. For example:

Nabal died after a drunken spree (I Sam. 25:32-38);
Amnon was drunk when he was killed (II Sam. 13:28-29);
The king (Elah) was getting drunk when he was killed (I Kings 16:8-10);
Ben-Hadad and 32 other kings were defeated because they were drunk (I Kings 20:12-21).
The Bible would not give us all of these warnings unless God wanted us to stay vigilant and sober.

Luke 12:45-46 and 21:34 warn us that drinking can cause us to miss Christ's return. (This is also found in Matthew 24:48-51). It can hurt our testimony as believers and cause others to stumble (Romans 14:21). The Bible also tells us that if you cause others to stumble, "woe to that person. It would be better for him to be thrown into the sea with a millstone tied around his neck than to cause (someone to stumble)" (Luke 17:1-2). I Corinthians 6:10 and Galatians 5:21 both tell us that drinkers will NOT inherit the Kingdom of God.

Ephesians 5:14 says, "Wake up, O Sleeper rise from the dead, and Christ will SHINE ON YOU."!! That makes me want to be WIDE awake, alert and sober so Christ can shine on me!! Oh, how amazing is His love and presence. I would rather be filled with His Spirit, than to be drunk (Eph 5:8). When He fills us and lives in us, we are new creations. I Peter 4:3-4 tells us the past life (of drunkenness) has no place in the Christian's life. In fact, God blessed Daniel and his friends for abstaining (Daniel 1:5-17).

The most important thing to know is that God loves us with an unconditional, everlasting love. He says, "Come back to me ...come back and I will restore you." He is waiting for you just as He waited for me. And remember that there is no condemnation for those in Christ Jesus - only love, forgiveness and acceptance. I hope that you will think on these things and ask God to show you His will.

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