It’s all right if I have a beer or two in the privacy of my own home, isn’t it? It is not a sin to drink alcohol so long as I don’t get drunk, right? Paul told Timothy to drink a little wine for his stomachs sake, so it must be oaky to drink a little, right? How many times have we all heard statements and questions such as these? How many times have we ourselves asked these things? Well, the answer to all these questions is simple…No.
A Stumbling Block
Romans 14:13, “Let us not therefore judge one another any more: but judge this rather, that no man put a stumblingblock or an occasion to fall in his brother’s way.” If for no other reason but this one, social drinking is a sin. If you were to come into my home and see beer and wine in my refrigerator, what would you think? In verse 21 Paul then said, “It is good neither to eat flesh, nor to drink wine, nor any thing whereby thy brother stumbleth, or is offended, or is made weak.” If we know that we should be setting a good example and we don’t, what is it? “Therefore to him that knoweth to do good, and doeth it not, to him it is sin” (James 4:17).
“Drunk” and “Excess” of Ephesians 5:18
Ephesians 5:18 states, “And be not drunk with wine, wherein is excess; but be filled with the Spirit;” To be “drunk with wine” is derived from the Greek verbiage meaning “to intoxicate” or the process of becoming drunk. When a person takes a drink of alcohol he has become intoxicated. Certainly every one has a different tolerance level and the blood alcohol level will vary. Yet the fact remains that after one drink a person begins to become drunk.
Now as for the word “excess” please read 1 Peter 4:4 and apply the same logic many do to our text. 1 Peter 4:4 states, “Wherein they think it strange that ye run not with them to the same excess of riot, speaking evil of you:” It light of the logic used by some in Ephesians 5:18 it would certainly be okay to “riot” a little as long as we don’t “riot” a lot! 2 Peter 2:13 states that those who “riot” will receive the reward of unrighteousness. Does it matter if it is just a little controlled, social rioting or an excess of such?
1 Timothy 5:23
Paul wrote to Timothy, “Drink no longer water, but use a little wine for thy stomach’s sake and thine often infirmities.” Many have tried to use this verse in an attempt to justify alcohol as a beverage. It does no such thing; in fact it does quite the opposite. Timothy refrained from drinking wine and strong drink all together, even when sick. This was done no doubt, not only in order to set a good example, but as a matter of Christian purity.
We have made great advancements in recent generations in the medical field. If a doctor tells you today to “use a little wine for thy stomach’s sake” I would suggest a second opinion!
Don’t Be A Fool
Strong words indeed, but Proverbs 20:1 states, “Wine IS A MOCKER, STRONG DRINK IS raging: and whosoever is deceived thereby is not wise.” Proverbs 14:16 tells us, “A wise man feareth, and departeth from evil: but the fool rageth, and is confident.” Those who are wise will avoid wine and strong drink. To know what happens to the foolish we need only read what Jesus has to say in Matthew 25:1-13.
Conclusion
Psalms 75:8, “For in the hand of the LORD there is A CUP, AND THE WINE IS RED; IT IS FULL OF MIXTURE; AND HE POURETH OUT OF THE SAME: BUT THE DREGS THEREOF, ALL THE WICKED OF THE EARTH SHALL WRING THEM OUT, AND DRINK THEM.” What shall be of those who partake of that which the Lord himself has discarded?