Alcohol in the Bible, Wine in the Bible
Categories: Audio Sermons, Sermon Outlines, Topical Sermon OutlinesTHE USE OF ALCOHOL AS A BEVERAGE, PART 1
Guest post by Travis Main, preacher for Cody church of Christ and of That Christian Website.
I. Introduction
A. Preparation for today
1. Scriptural Authority
2. Legalism
B. Series: Living a life of Freedom in Christ
1. Purpose: Determine if we are living free in Christ or Free from Christ?
2. My Job: Present information to make informed decisions about our actions and scripture.
C. Today’s examination will be a two part sermon regarding the Use of Alcohol by Christians.
1. In the English language, the scriptures do not specifically say: “Thou Shalt Not Drink Alcohol”
a. It is assumed by many this is therefore an acceptable practice.
* This is much like stating, the New Testament does not say “Thou shalt not play instruments in worship”. You won’t find this verse.
2. The issue is not whether or not the Bible is silent on the issue.
a. From our past studies, we know the Bible is never silent on an issue.
b. It presents General or specific authorities for all that we do.
c. The issue is: given the commands, examples, and inferences made from them can we find authority to drink alcohol in the Bible?
3. First Part
a. Definitions
b. Usage statistics
c. Scriptural Descriptions of alcohol.
4. Second Part
a. Reasons not to drink alcohol
b. Examine Passages of scripture used to support drinking alcohol
II. Definitions
A. Wine in the Bible
1. yayin, tiyrosh, aciyc, shekar, khamar, mamsak, oinos, gluekos, oinophlugia, paroinos.
a. There are others – Context is important!
2. They are not all alcoholic.
a. When we hear the wine in our culture, we think alcoholic – This is not always correct.
B. Drunk or drunkenness
1. In the scriptures, we will examine drunkenness means intoxication unless otherwise stated.
2. This is from the root word Methuo in the N.T. and Shikkor Shikkor in the O.T.
C. Intoxicatation
1. The American Heritage® Stedman’s Medical Dictionary: The pathological state produced by a drug, serum, alcohol, or any toxic substance; poisoning.
a. Thus, when alcohol begins to produce changes in you, you are intoxicated.
b. Alcohol is absorbed and working in the human body within seconds of being swallowed.
c. AMA has established there is no level of BAC that does not have effect.
2. Indiana University: After one drink a person of 200 pounds will typically have a BAC of .022%.
a. That is one 12 oz can of beer. 1 ½ oz highball. Or 5 oz of wine. That is less than a cup of wine.
b. The lighter the weight or if the person is a female, the higher the BAC.
c. In the range of .02% a loss of shyness is experienced.
3. NCADD (National Council on Alcohol and Drug Dependence)
a. Compared with drivers who have not consumed alcohol, the risk of a single-vehicle fatal crash for drivers with BACs between .02% and .04% is estimated to be 1.4 times higher.
b. .05 meets penalties for impaired driving in some states. 08 is an illegal driving level in all states.
D. Strong Drink
1. T.W.O.T. – Bible Wines feremented before mixing had an average of 7-10% alcohol.
a. (Theological Wordbook of the Old Testament)
b. 1901 Jewish Encyclopedia – This is The Old Testament word for strong drink: shaker.
* Over time came to mean intoxicants other than wine.
* The New Testament equivalent is the Greek word sikera.
2. Alcohol/water mixture – Robert Stein – (“Wine-drinking in New Testament Times”)
a. Bible Expository commentary/Talmud – min. mixture 1 to 3 – Other sources as much as 1 to 20.
* Mixing it at 1 to 3 would result in 2.25% to 2.50%
b. A strong drink was considered a ratio lower than 1 to 3.
* Only a barbarian drank unmixed alcoholic wine in the Greek Culture.
* Today’s wine, 9-11% alcohol content
* Realbeer.com listed had the lowest beer at 3.3% with the majority 5%, some to 10%.
3. In accordance with an ancient times definition, all of our alcohol today is Strong Drink.
III. Usage statistics
A. Personal
1. Growing up everyone in my family drank to my knowledge.
a. The direct and indirect damage went well beyond the family.
2. Friends that drank.
a. This caused some go to go jail.
b. Brought a lot of other tragedy.
3. Why do people drink? Thirsty, sad, happy, experiment, to forget pain or failure, to fit in.
B. USA
1. American Journal of Public Health August 1994 – U.S. Drinking Patterns
a. 1990 – 51.1% of Conservative Christians drank Alcohol
b. 1990 – 19.3% weekly drinkers
c. The Barna Group found in 2002:
* 15% of “born again” group drank enough alcohol to be legally intoxicated in the last week.
2. US Justice Department 66% of the people in the USA drink alcohol.
a. “4 in 10” violent crimes involve the use of alcohol.
b. 14 million people in the USA are addicted or abuse alcohol.
3. US Department of Health and Human Services
a. Alcohol is involved in up to two-third of all sexual assaults and date rapes among adolescents and college students.
4. MADD – Mothers Against Drunk Driving
a. People reporting first use of alcohol before age 15 were more than five times more likely to have past year alcohol dependence or abuse compared with people who first used alcohol at age 21 or older.
b. On average someone is killed by a drunk driver every 45 minutes. In 2008, an estimated 11,773 people died in drunk driving related crashes—a decline of 9.8 percent from the 13,041 drunk driving related fatalities of 2007.
5. National Council on Alcoholism and Drug Dependance
a. More than half of all adults have a family history of alcoholism or problem drinking.
b. One-quarter of all emergency room admissions, one-third of all suicides, and more than half of all homicides and incidents of domestic violence are alcohol-related.
c. NCADD – Between 48% and 64% of people who die in fires have blood alcohol levels indicating intoxication.
6. A host of studies show that:
a. Whether or not you drink is directly tied to your religious commitment.
b. Folks that attend more are far more likely to be abstinent.
c. Fundamentalist/conservative congregations have higher abstinence.
d. A greater interest in Christ is shown when the Christian abstains.
* The interest decreases with the higher level of alcohol usage.
e. Alcohol Usage decreases with age.
* Why? It’s a sign of common sense and maturity!
7. Statistics are fine, but they do not answer the question in regard to whether or not a Christian has the freedom to drink alcohol.
IV. What is the Biblical View of alcohol? Remember, scripture does not contradict itself.
A. Proverbs 20:1 – “Wine is a mocker, strong drink is raging: and whosoever is deceived thereby is not wise.”
1. Alcohol is not looked upon favorably in this verse.
2. It is mentioned one is not wise if he is deceived by it. Deceived how?
a. Suggestion: Deceived into thinking he can enjoy this worldly pleasure without consequence.
B. Proverbs 23:29-35
1. Vs. 30 – speaks of mixed wine, this is wine mixed with spices to increase potency, according to Coffman, not wine mixed with water that we have discussed.
a. The entire scripture does not speak favorably of alcohol.
b. It clearly identifies the addictive nature of alcohol.
* One out of ten people trying alcohol becomes an alcoholic.
C. Micah 2:11 – “If a man walking in the spirit and falsehood do lie, saying, I will prophesy unto thee of wine and of strong drink; he shall even be the prophet of this people.”
1. The thrust of this verse is that men will always desire a false prophet who will praise wine and strong drink.
a. The implication is a true man of God will not promote use of them.
b. Remember: Strong drink in that day and time was weaker than the weakest of our alcohols today.
D. Habakkuk 2:15 – “Woe unto him that giveth his neighbor drink, that puttest thy bottle to him, and makest him drunken also, that thou mayest look on their nakedness!”
1. Alcohol’s deserved reputation is that it causes folks to drop their inhibitions.
a. As stated a .02% BAC, which requires very little alcohol causes individuals to drop shyness.
b. A loss of shyness is really a loss of self control and false bravado.
c. This is a danger to purity in Christ.
E. The Old Testament Identifies Alcohol as:
1. A mocker and deceiver.
2. An addictive substance
3. Something a false teacher would encourage
4. A destroyer of purity.
F. Romans 13:13–“Let us walk honestly, as in the day; not in reveling and drunkenness.”
1. What is drunkenness by definition? Intoxication.
2. The AMA establishes intoxication occurs the moment you intake alcohol.
3. The identification here is social drinking and it is discouraged.
G. Galatians 5:19-21 -“The works of the flesh are manifest, which are these: adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness, idolatry, sorcery, hatred, strife, jealousy, wrath, factions, seditions, heresies, envyings, murders, drunkenness, revelings, and the like; of which I tell you before, as I have also told you in past time, that they who do such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God.”
1. Intoxication by alcohol is again spoken of in this verse and it is identified as something which keeps you from the kingdom of God.
H. 1 Corinthians 6:9-10 -“Know ye not that the unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom of God? Be not deceived: neither fornicators, nor idolators, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor abusers of themselves with mankind, nor thieves, not covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners, shall inherit the kingdom of God.”
1. Again Intoxication by alcohol keeps one from the kingdom of God.
I. 1 Pe 1:13 – Wherefore girding up the loins of your mind, be sober and set your hope perfectly on the grace that is to be brought unto you at the revelation of Jesus Christ;
1. The word sober here is “Nepho”
a. Strongs Greek Dictionary means to abstain from wine
b. Vine’s Expository Dictionary “to be free from the influence of intoxicants”
2. The message to Christians here is to abstain from alcohol.
a. It doesn’t state “Thou shalt not”, but it is the same.
J. I Pet. 5:8 – Be sober, be watchful: your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour,
1. Again, the word is “Nepho” and the message to Christians is don’t drink alcohol.
K. 1 Thessalonians 5:6-7 – “Let us not sleep, as do others, but let us watch and be sober-minded. For they that sleep sleep in the night; and they that are drunk are drunk in the night.”
1. Again, in a more obvious context of drinking…. “Nepho” – stay away from alcohol.
L. The New Testament identifies alcohol as:
1. Intoxication which we should abstain from using.
2. Intoxication which keeps us from the His Kingdom.
V. Closing of Part 1
A. Purpose: Determine if we are living free in Christ or Free from Christ?
1. Statistics identify alcohol as an addictive substance, a narcotic.
a. Addiction is bondage.
b. Ah, but I am the one in ten that is addicted!
c. I am not one of the 14 million addicted or abusers of alcohol.
2. Statistics identify alcohol as a worldly pleasure which is one of the leading destructors of life.
a. That destruction can take the form of giving away your first kiss, losing your virginity, cheating on a spouse, saying something you will regret, killing someone with your car., or a host of other out of control behaviors.
b. When you are out of control, you are in bondage to the world.
* Alcohol takes away control immediately.
3. The Bible establishes that alcohol is a mocker and deceiver, an addictive substance, something a false teacher would encourage, a destroyer of purity, something which we should not use, and something that will keep us from the Kingdom of God.
4. Answer to our question: We are free from Christ if we drink alcohol as a beverage.
Don’t miss part 2