Like many of you, I’m “plugged in” to a number of Pages and Groups on Facebook. One group that I’m quite fond of is called Dad Tired. It’s somewhat of a rendezvous point where fathers go to seek advice from other fathers — a sounding board for the struggles that men face. From time to time, the question comes up, “is it okay for a Christian to have a drink?”
Before I dive into the question, I want to address why it’s being asked in the first place. Somewhere along the way, the Baptist Church became known as the church that prohibited “drinking, smoking, and dancing”. This stereotype is not without merit and many Baptist would be surprised to know that there are SBC resolutions which categorically oppose alcohol. With about 16 million Baptists in the United States, it’s easy to see how a Christian might be led to think drinking is sinful.
So what does the Bible actually say about alcohol consumption? Let’s start with the simple facts.
First, excessive drinking is wrong. Drunkenness is sinful (Galatians 5:21, Ephesians 5:18). In the latter verse, we are told that it is the opposite of being filled with the Spirit.
Second, being enslaved to alcohol (or anything) is a sin (1 Corinthians 6:12).
Third, there is noting inherently wrong with alcohol. In Psalms 104:15, we read that God provides “wine which makes man’s heart glad”. While few in words, it tells us that God created wine for the purpose of having a good time. Furthermore, we find in Deuteronomy 14:26 that the Lord prescribed wine and strong drink as a manner of worship.
Deuteronomy 14:26: You may spend the money for whatever your heart desires: for oxen, or sheep, or wine, or strong drink, or whatever your heart desires; and there you shall eat in the presence of the Lord your God and rejoice, you and your household.
Let that sink in for a minute. Under certain circumstances, the Lord prescribed rejoicing with strong drink as a means of honoring Him. It’s completely illogical to think that God would prescribe it as part of ritualistic worship if alcohol consumption were inherently sinful. To argue otherwise would be the Mt. Everest of uphill battles.
Finally, Proverbs 31 says that strong drink are to be given to the downtrodden and impoverished so that he “remembers his trouble no more”.
Now to end the discussion there would be missing a broader perspective that I believe the Bible teaches on the subject. Let me first say that what follows is my understanding on the matter as I have studied it. When you take the entirety of what the Scriptures have to say about the matter, a certain principle seems to emerge.
The amount of alcohol that a Christian can consume is directly proportional to their station of responsibility in life. What does that mean? What I mean is that the more leadership you are entrusted with, the less you should drink… and here’s why I believe that to be true:
Proverbs 31:4 – Strong drink is not for rulers or kings otherwise injustice ensues and bad decisions are made.
Proverbs 31:6 – Strong drink is prescribed for the weak, perishing, and afflicted so that they “remember their troubles no more“.
1 Timothy 3:4 – Elders (Pastors) are overseers of the church. They are the entrusted guardians of the flock. As part of the qualifications for the role, they are not to be given (enslaved) to wine.
1 Timothy 3:8 – Deacons, who serve under a Pastor with less responsibility, have similar qualifications. However, when it comes to wine there is a subtle distinction. They must not be given to much wine.
Titus 2:1 – Older women are charged with the responsibility of being good mentors to younger women. They are also instructed to not be given to much wine.
Taking these verses as a whole, it appears to me that there is a correlation between how much a Christian can drink and their entrusted responsibilities. Therefore, the short answer for the Dad Tired audience would necessarily be, “it depends”.
At this point you might be thinking to yourself “how much drinking is too much?” or “how many drinks before I’m drunk?” I’m not going to draw wooden lines nor do I think it’s reasonable to do so. That kind of judgment is not mine to make. It remains a matter between you and the Savior (Romans 14). I can offer no more of a guide than what the Scriptures provides. So in a closing thought, I offer my own perspective.
Ephesians 5:18 makes it clear that being filled with the Spirit and being drunk are mutually exclusive—we’re either one or the other. A similar thought is conveyed in Galatians 5 where Paul contrasts walking in the Spirit with catering to the flesh (notice being drunk is a “symptom” in verse 21). He broadly characterizes it as the distinction between fulling the command to “Love your neighbor as yourself” (verse 14) and “biting and devouring one another” (verse 15). It is this which strikes at the heart of the matter. We must take into our account our responsibilities. The more alcohol we consume, the more likely we are to abandon our walk with the Spirit. In doing so, we neglect the Law of Love. For those in power, the results are injurious (Proverbs 31:4, 8-9).
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