Drinking With Discernment

“For everything created by God is good, and nothing is to be rejected if it is received with thanksgiving” (1 Tim. 4:4). With those words the Apostle Paul sums up his teaching on the relationship between believers and creation. Christians are not aliens on a dangerous and threatening planet. We are surrounded by creations of God that are good and given to us for our enjoyment. Such being the case, we need to undergo a pretty serious makeover in the way we face the created world. This is nowhere more apparent than in the relationship many believers hold toward alcohol.

Drunkenness is universally condemned in the Scriptures. Let that point be firmly established at the start. However, moderate consumption of wine and beer is not only tolerated in the Bible; it is at times positively commanded. We must not seek to be holier than God. It was one of the Pharisees’ and Scribes’ great sins that they sought to enlarge the fence around the prohibitions of God’s law, adding commandments of men as if they were the requirements of God’s law.

American Christians, since the time of Prohibition, have worked hard to prevent the abuse of drink by prohibiting its use. Our modern society is currently on the same warpath against all tobacco consumption. Yet it is sobering to observe that if the same “prevent the abuse by abolishing all use” approach were applied to sexual sin there would be no more babies. Were it applied to the sin of gluttony we’d all have starved long ago. The abuse must not be allowed to abolish the right use. So it is with wine, beer, and even tobacco consumption in the church. Christians ought to set the way toward restoring a sane and wise application of these good gifts of God.

Wisdom is required in making this move. In some cases, it may well take a generation or more to undo the mess that has been made. In the meanwhile, the rule is: Moderation in everything! It is our hope that the resources we’ve provided below might give a nudge toward a recovery of the wisdom we need. May it be that Christians once again might be renowned for the creation we love rather than for the creatures we refuse to taste, touch, or handle (Col. 2:20-23).

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Drinking With Discernment
Related Links
Concerning Wine & Beer Part 1
An article by Jeffrey Meyers
Concerning Wine & Beer Part 2
An article by Jeffrey Meyers
FAQ: What's your stance on alcohol?
Pastor Mark Driscoll lists some historical, biblical & personal considerations on alcohol.
8 Items found Print
Art of Making Wine
by Stanley F. Anderson with Raymond Hull
from E.P. Dutton & Co.
for Adult
in Cooking Methods and Science of Food (Location: COOK-SCI)
$4.00 (1 in stock)
Discovering Wine
by Joanna Simon
from Simon and Schuster
for Adult
in Culture of Food (Location: COOK-CUL)
$17.95
God Gave Wine
by Kenneth Gentry
from Oakdown Books
for 11th-Adult
in Drinking With Discernment (Location: XCU-WIN)
$11.86 $4.20 (1 in stock)
Guide to Wine
by Fiona Sims
from Parragon Publishing
for Adult
in Drinking With Discernment (Location: XCU-WIN)
$5.00 (1 in stock)
History of the World in 6 Glasses
by Tom Standage
from Bloomsbury Publishing
for 10th-Adult
in History for Adults (Location: ADU-HIS)
$18.00
New Wine Rules
by Jon Bonne
from Ten Speed Press
for Adult
in Drinking With Discernment (Location: XCU-WIN)
$4.50 (1 in stock)
Rachael Ray: My Year in Meals / John Cusimano: My Year in Cocktails
by Rachael Ray and John Cusimano
from Atria Books
for Adult
in Miscellaneous Cookbooks (Location: COOK-MIS)
$5.00 (1 in stock)
Search for God and Guinness
by Stephen Mansfield
from Thomas Nelson Publishers
for 10th-Adult
in Drinking With Discernment (Location: XCU-WIN)