What Does the Bible Really Say About Alcohol?

Here are your
keys,”
muttered the
secretary
when I
arrived to pick up the keys to
my office at Aberdeen
University, where I would be
studying for my doctorate in
theology. “It looks like you’re
in The Old Brewery.”
Intrigued by the name, I later
found out that it reflected the
building’s original function.
Aberdeen was founded in the
15th century and used to train
monks for ministry. In the
brewery, monks brewed vast
quantities of Scottish ale,
which was served by the liter
at mealtimes. And here I was,
a post-fundamentalist Ph.D.
student studying the
Scriptures in a malted
sanctuary where late medieval
Bible college students once
clapped mugs together in an
act of worship.
Throughout Christian history,
alcohol was rarely a taboo as
it is in some circles today.
John Calvin had a stipend of
250 gallons of wine per year
written into his church
contract. Martin Luther’s wife
was a famed brewer of beer,
which certainly won Martin’s
heart. And the Guinness
family created their renowned
Irish Stout as an act of
worship to Jesus. From
Bordeaux to Berlin, wine and
beer have always been part of
church tradition. But what
was once considered the
nectar of heaven was later
condemned as the devil’s
libation.
A Smart Approach
Even though some Christians
advocate for the total
abstinence of alcohol as a
moral mandate for all
believers, the Bible never
requires all believers to
abstain from alcohol. It
condemns drunkenness and
being enslaved to wine
(Ephesians 5:18; Titus 2:3),
but it never says that tee-
totaling is the better way to
obey God. In fact, the Bible
never says that abstaining
from alcohol is the wisest way
to avoid getting drunk. Think
about it. Alcoholism has been
rampant through every age,
but the Bible never says that
all believers should therefore
refrain from drinking.
If
Christians want to forbid all
alcohol consumption to avoid
drunkenness, then to be
consistent, they should also
avoid making a lot of money
to guard against the crushing
sin of materialism and the
misuse of wealth.
Alcohol as a Witness
I sometimes hear that when
Christians drink, it ruins their
testimony. But quite honestly,
I’ve never understood this
line of thinking. It’s one thing
if you’ve struggled with
alcoholism or are ministering
in a Muslim country, but for
the most part, most non-
Christians I know are turned
off by the arbitrary dos and
don’ts created by modern
Christians. I’m not convinced
that if my unbelieving
neighbor sees me slipping into
a pub, I will lose much
traction to my Gospel witness.
In many cases, the Gospel will
shine brighter when you
break down wrong
assumptions about
Christianity by having a beer
with your neighbor.
When we strip away all the
man-made clutter that dims
the Gospel, the full glory of
Jesus shines much brighter. A
good chunk of the dying
world that’s rejected
Christianity hasn’t said no to
Jesus, but no to a pharisaical
version of Him. Some people
have been turned off by the
Gospel because they’ve
thought that becoming a
Christ-follower meant giving
up having a beer with your
friends after work. If this is
the “good news” we preach,
then the true beauty of a
crucified and risen King will
become covered in the fog of
a man-made, pharisaical
“don’t drink” gospel. AA
didn’t hang on a cross for
your sins and abstaining from
alcohol won’t give you
resurrection life. Any
Christianese, man-made,
unbiblical footnotes to the
gospel are actually a
distraction and offense to the
Gospel.
Lower Alcohol
Content?
Now, some say that wine in
the Bible was nothing more
than grape juice and therefore
neither Jesus nor the Biblical
writers advocated drinking
alcohol. Others say that wine
was so diluted that it hardly
contained any alcohol. But
neither of these views can be
substantiated by what the
Scriptures actually say. If
wine was really unfermented
grape juice, then why did Paul
warn the Ephesians: “Do not
get drunk with grape juice,
which is debauchery, but be
filled by the Spirit?” This
doesn’t make sense. It is true
that wine back then probably
had a lower ABV than today’s
stuff. But whatever the
alcohol content, people were
quite able to get smashed by
drinking too much of it
(Proverbs 20:1; Isaiah 5:11).
Still, the Bible never says not
to drink it.
There’s another alcoholic
beverage mentioned in the
Bible called “strong drink. The
Hebrew word for “strong
drink,” shakar, refers to
fermented barley, which is
why some translations call it
“beer.” Shakar had an ABV of
around 6-12 percent, similar
to a Belgium Trippel Ale or a
Double IPA. Like all alcoholic
beverages, the Bible prohibits
abusing beer (Isaiah 5:11;
28:7; Proverbs 20:1; 31:4). But
in moderation, drinking beer
was encouraged (Proverbs
31:6). In fact, Deuteronomy
14:26 actually commands
Israelites to use some of their
tithe money to buy some
beers and celebrate before the
Lord. (Ever hear that verse
being read as the ushers are
passing the plates?) They
were also commanded to
offer up two liters of beer to
God six days a week and even
more on the Sabbath (see
Numbers 28:7-10). This is why
the absence of beer (and
wine) was an outcome of
God’s judgment on the nation.
Wine as a Blessing
But the Bible goes further
than admitting that drinking
is simply allowed.
Throughout Scripture, the
production and consumption
of beer and wine are often
connected to the covenant
promises of God.
Under the old covenant, wine
is a blessing (Deut 7:13; 11:14)
and the absence of wine a
curse (28:39, 51). When Israel
looked to the future, God
promises to flood them wine
flowing from the
mountaintops (Amos 9:14;
Joel 3:18) and vats brimming
with fresh wine (Joel 2:19,
24).
Jesus signals the beginning of
such blessings by creating an
over-abundance (150 gallons)
of wine at Cana (John 2:1-10).
And on the eve of his death,
He sanctified a cup of wine as
“the new covenant in my
blood” (Luke 22:14-23). When
Christ comes back, He’ll
prepare “well-aged
wine” (Isaiah 25:6)—the stuff
I only notice on the top shelf
but can never afford—and for
theological reasons it will be
served, as at Cana, in
abundance.
Although a good beer and rich
wine are blessings from God,
they should be consumed
with caution. There’s a
growing tendency, however,
among some younger
evangelicals to celebrate their
freedom without discipline.
These young, restless, and
slightly inebriated libertines
are doing some great things
for the Kingdom. They’re
feeding the poor, living in
community and planting
authentic churches—or
missional communities—all to
the glory of God.
Yes, God cares about the
poor; He also cares about
your sobriety. Enjoying
alcohol in moderation takes
discipline, and many beer
drinkers, I hate to say it,
aren’t known for their
discipline. A good glass of
beer can be celebratory; it
doesn’t belong in the hands of
an undisciplined 16-year-old
playing video games in his
mom’s basement. Belgium ale
is strong and complex. Savor
it, sanctify it, and let it
meditate on your palate. Give
glory to God, not just to your
thirst, when enjoying the
blessings that flow from
Eden. Drunkenness may not
be at the top of God’s list of
most heinous sins; neither
should it be tossed aside as a
relic of American
fundamentalism.
Drinking alcohol without
celebrating the Cross and
Kingdom is theologically
anemic. Abusing alcohol
mocks the blood of Christ and
scoffs at God’s holiness. But
moderate, intentional,
celebratory and reflective
drinking of wine and beer,
which contemplates the
crucified and risen King and
anticipates our future glory, is
rooted in the grace that
poured from Christ’s veins on
Calvary.
Culled from
http://www.relevantmagazine.com/life/what-does-bible-really-say-about-alcohol