Monday, May 6, 2019

From Pastor's Desk | Sunday, May 5th, 2019

I have had many people, over my short time in ministry, ask how I felt and what the bible said about drinking alcohol and wine. I lost an uncle, who I was very close to, due to a person who had decided to drive drunk. I lost a dear friend, who was a recovering alcoholic that relapsed and drowned in a pool due to her severe inebriation. So, personally, I can’t stand the stuff. Yet, I don’t preach or teach from feelings; I preach from truth, inspiration and empowerment from the Holy Spirit, and the word of God. The bible is very clear about judging others and this is not my aim here nor will I ever do that; I am going to simply state facts and truth on this and let you work out your own salvation before the Lord with fear and trembling. (Philippians 2:12-13) So, what does the word of God have to say about drinking alcohol and wine. Let us take a look. 

The Bible says is strong against being drunk and strong drink. We find that in these verses.
            Old Testament
Leviticus 10:9-11          Proverbs 20:1; 23:25     Isaiah 5:11-12; 29:7

New Testament
1 Thessalonians 3:3      1 Timothy 3:3; 8            2 Timothy 4:5    Titus 1:7
1 Peter 1:15; 4:7

We also find in the Bible those who drank heavily caused sin upon not only themselves but their kin.
-      Noah drank strong drink, got drunk and laid uncovered in a tent. His youngest son thus bringing a curse upon him and his lineage.
-      Lot was given strong drink by his daughters and (I know this is disgusting)through incest with his daughters, two rebellious nations were born. 
-      The nation of Israel got drunk from strong drink and demanded a golden calf to be built. 3,000 men died that day.
As you read, nothing good ever came from those drinking strong drink. There are those who teach and preach that in moderation, alcohol is not bad for you. They use the scriptures where Jesus turned the water into wine & Paul stated, “a little wine is good for the stomach”. They also use the play on such words as “drunkenness” or being “drunk” and how the Bible states it is AGAINST THAT. So, they teach that since the Bible doesn’t say anything against moderation, it is ok. I did a little research from watching a video from Perry Stone and reading some articles from French Arrington and this is what I found. I encourage all of you to do the same. 

The wine in Jesus’ day was mixed like this, 3-parts water to 1-part wine. Harvard and Yale University placed out a study that stated you would have to drink 21 glasses of wine to match the alcohol content of ONE glass of wine in present day. So, the Bible is not against the grape the wine comes from or the wine used for medicine purposes (as Paul stated in 1 Timothy 5:23)but the alcohol, or strong drink, that is in it. 


I want to close with this, though I honestly could fill this entire bulletin with this subject. Most people drink or say they drink to calm their nerves and relieve stress. If that is the case, then those who proclaim to be Christians and drink alcohol to calm nerves are telling the world; Jesus is not enough for you. I know that may seem harsh, but it is truth and reality. So instead of us trying to use the word of God to say our sin or addiction is okay, let’s place it under the blood and let God break that chain of addiction and habit off of your life.

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