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Transcript 282C — Is it Sinful to Drink Alcohol?
CALLER: Is it a sin to drink alcohol, but not get drunk? Can a person have wine for dinner, or an occasional beer – not to get drunk, but just to have an occasional drink?
HC: The question is raised concerning alcohol. Is it Biblical for a believer to drink alcohol in moderation?
Now I must admit that for many years in my life I believed that the Bible taught this, that as long as we did not get drunk, that wine was a blessing. The Bible does say that. And therefore, it is my Christian liberty to drink alcohol in moderation.
But the more I have studied the Bible, the more I have become convinced that this so-called Christian liberty is nothing more than Christian license. Now I say this from two vantage points. First of all, the Bible teaches that we are not to be a stumbling block. And on today's scene, with millions, literally millions, of men and women and children being alcoholics, under no circumstance do we want to encourage anyone in the slightest degree to walk this dread path.
Now if I thought it was my Christian liberty to drink alcohol, and so I have beer in my refrigerator, or Scotch in my closet, and maybe I only drink that Scotch once a year for a New Year's celebration, or maybe I only drink that beer twice a year on a real hot summer afternoon, or I drink that wine only once a month for a very special dinner time, yet anyone else who looks at me is going to say, "You see? He's supposed to be a leader in the Christian church, and look at him. He drinks. And if he drinks, then I can drink."
And so my so-called Christian liberty has become a stumbling block to someone else. They're not going to think it through that I only take that beer twice a year, or thereabouts, or that I drink that wine only on the most special occasion. All they know is that I drink alcohol, and that's plenty excuse for someone who is very weak to drink. And in his drinking he may indeed become a drunkard, because the potential to become a drunkard is very very great.
From that vantage point alone I want to be a teetotaler. I want no part with alcoholic beverages.
Secondly, the Bible does teach that God has given wine and strong drink for the unsaved of the world. In Proverbs 31:6 God says, "Give wine to those who are perishing and strong drink to those who are about to die." For them wine and strong drink are a blessing. They refuse to go to God. They refuse to find an answer in Him, and so in order to help them to face life just a little bit, they take their glass of wine. And this makes life a little bit more rosy. Everything looks a little better.
Unfortunately, in too many cases they won't stop with that first glass, and that which began as some kind of a blessing in their life ended up as a curse, when they became a drunkard. But this is why God has created wine. And it is a blessing to unsaved man. But it's not a blessing that leads to salvation. It's a blessing that simply helps them to exist in their sins, as long as they're on this earth.
But in the case of saved people God has something different to say. In the fourth verse of Proverbs 31, He says, "It is not for kings to drink wine, or for rulers to desire strong drink." Now believers are kings. We are of royal blood. We reign with Christ. We are seated with Him in heavenly places. And our task, of course, is to represent Christ on this sin-cursed earth, as His ambassadors.
Now we are not to drink wine or strong drink. While this may be a blessing to the unsaved of the world, it's not a blessing to us. We have everything that we need in the Lord Jesus Christ. When things go bad with us, when it's difficult for us, we don't have to reach for that bottle. We don't need that glass of wine for dinner, to make it an attractive dinner. We don't have to have that bottle of beer in order to take the edge off of life. We can trust in the Lord. We can pray to Him, come boldly to the throne of grace, come to Him with a broken heart, beseeching Him for help in time of need, and so on. We have everything we need in the Lord Jesus Christ. And so we are to walk differently.
I know there are churches and denominations that do teach that it's the Christian's prerogative and liberty to use alcohol in moderation. And I know the verses that can be used to try to prove this. But I really believe, the more I study the Bible, and read these verses in the light of everything the Bible teaches, that this is not God's program for the believer.
True, we can use wine for medicine, as Paul, under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, prescribed for Timothy's stomach's sake. We can use wine, perhaps, as a sacrament in the Communion service. That's a different matter altogether. But insofar as drinking that glass of wine, or that bottle of beer, or that highball, in order to help us face life just a little bit (that's the purpose of it in the life of the unsaved), no, no, no! You have the Lord Jesus Christ, and He is everything; He is all that is necessary.
Why live like the world, when you can live like Christ? Why live like the world when you can live like Christ? Did Christ drink? "Oh, yes. He was called a drunkard and a wine-bibber." No, He did not drink. Jesus did not drink. He was called a drunkard and a wine-bibber by the Pharisees, because this was a figure of speech taken from the Old Testament, to indicate someone who was under the curse of God, a son of a father who was under the curse of God, and who was taken by the elders of the city to be stoned. He was called by his father, "My son is a glutton and a wine-bibber," which is the language that was used.
It was as if to say, he is subject to eternal damnation. And they called Jesus that because they were convinced that He was of Satan. But Jesus did not drink wine because He came as the King. And the King would not violate His own rules: "It is not for kings to drink wine or desire strong drink." Jesus would not drink wine or strong drink because He was the high priest. And in the Old Testament, when the High Priest went about his priestly duties, he was admonished by God not to drink any wine or strong drink of any kind. There's no possibility that Jesus drank wine or strong drink.
Look, if you're saved, you're a priest. You're a king. Why do you think it's your Christian liberty to drink alcoholic beverages? Nonsense. Don't live like the world. Live like Christ. Don't be mistaken as being with the world. Make sure that in this area of your life, too, they can see the fragrance of the Lord Jesus Christ. Don't be a stumbling block to someone else that is weak and going to be tempted into something because of your so-called Christian liberty. Live a life so that in every aspect there's not the slightest appearance of evil.