The True Gladness of Wine

Key Hebrew Words
(yayin) wine.
The word is used 140 times, 12 of these in combination with sh¢k¹r (KJV "wine and strong drink"; NIV sometimes "wine and beer"). Its intoxicating properties are mentioned at least twenty times. It is mentioned as a common drink, an element in banquets and as the material used in libation offerings. These are called "drink offerings" in KJV, NASB, NIV, etc., but they were not drunk. The related Hebrew verb (n¹sak) means "to pour out." These offerings were poured out on the sacrifices upon the brazen altar (Exo 29:40 and Exo 30:9), but in sarcasm the heathen gods are spoken of as eating the food and drinking the drink offerings given them (Deut 32:38).
Abundance of wine, however, is taken as a symbol of affluence (Gen 49:11-12; 1Chr 12:40; Ezek 27:18). There are places that speak of the lift to the feelings that wine brings (Zech 10:7; 2Sam 13:28; Est 1:10; Ps 104:15; Eccl 9:7-10; Eccl 10:19; Isa 55:1). It may be questioned whether in these verses that wine is commended because of this lift or if the verses use the freedom from inhibition as a symbol of plenty and blessing–cf. Nathan's reference to David's polygamy as a symbol of God's giving him great riches (2 Sam 12:8). Wine is also used in symbolic ways of the Lord's wrath (Jer 25:15; etc.) of Babylon's judgment (Jer 51:7) of violence (Prov 4:17) and of desire (Song 1:2; Song 4:10).
All the wine was light wine, i.e. not fortified with extra alcohol. Concentrated alcohol was only known in the Middle Ages when the Arabs invented distillation ("alcohol" is an Arabic word) so what is now called liquor or strong drink (i.e. whiskey, gin, etc.) and the twenty percent fortified wines were unknown in biblical times. The strength of natural wines is limited by two factors. The percentage of alcohol will be half of the percentage of the sugar in the juice. And if the alcoholic content is much above 10 percent, the yeast cells are killed and fermentation ceases. Probably ancient wines were 7-10 percent alcohol. Drunkenness, therefore, was of course an ancient curse, but alcoholism was not as common or as severe as it is today. And in an agricultural age, its effects were less deadly than now. Still, even then it had its dangers and Proverbs 20:1 and Proverbs 23:29-35 are emphatic in their warnings. To avoid the sin of drunkenness, mingling of wine with water was practiced. This dilution was specified by the Rabbis, for the wine then was customary at Passover. The original Passover did not include wine (Deut 20:6) (W. Dommershausen, “Yayin,” TDOT, vol. 6, ed. G. Johannes Botterweck and Helmer Ringgren [Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1990 ], pp. 64-65).

(shakar) to become drunk
The term means to become drunk, drunken, or be full (BDB, p. 1016). The verb is used nineteen times in the OT, twelve of which are in the prophetic books. In the Qal stem (ten times) the verb is intransitive, "be drunk." In the Piel and Hiphil stems (four times each) it is transitive, "make drunk."
With very few exceptions sh¹kar and its derivatives are used in a highly unfavorable and negative context. But the few passages where the root is used in an acceptable sense should be observed. First, "strong drink" was to be used in the drink offering (Num 28:7) which of course was not drunk, but poured out as a libation. Second, the annual tithe to be paid to the Lord, the owner of the soil, might involve strong drink (Deut 14:26). Third, sh¢k¹r could be used as a medicinal stimulant–Prov 31:6, "Give strong drink unto him that is about to perish" (and cf. Mt 27:34; Mk 15:23 at the cross). Thus, of the nearly sixty uses of the root sh¹kar, only a few refer to something good and acceptable.
Several instances of intoxication, caused by sh¢k¹r, are noted in Scripture: (1) Gen 9:20-27, Noah; (2) 1Sam 25:36, Nabal; (3) 2Sam :28-29, Amnon; (4) 1Kings 16:9, Elah; (5) 1Kings 20:16, Ben-hadad 1. Of special interest are those passages which indicate that God sends drunkenness upon people. Jeremiah 13:13 says, "I am going to fill with drunkenness (kings, prophets, and priests), " or Isaiah 63:6, "I will make them drunk in my fury." The idea is that drunkenness indicates helplessness. Thus, God says to his people (Isa 49:26), "I will make your oppressors eat their flesh and they shall be drunk with their own blood." Here, "to be drunk" means "to be helpless, " "I will reduce your oppressors to a state of total helplessness" (cf. Jer 25:27; Jer 51:39, 57) (TWOT, vol 2, pp. 926-27).

(shekar) strong drink.
This term means intoxicating drink, strong drink, or beer and is usually condemned (Isa 5:22; 28:7; 28:7; 28:7 56:12; Mi 2:11, Pr 20:1; BDB, p. 1016). Most likely it does not mean "liquor" for there is no evidence of distilled liquor in ancient times. It denotes not just barley beer but any alcoholic beverage prepared from either grain or fruit. In all but two of its twenty-three uses in the OT (Num 28:7; Psa 69:12) it appears in connection with yayin "wine," usually following it, once preceding it (Prov 31:6) (TWOT, vol 2, pp. 926-27).
Other Hebrew terms for wine are tirosh (new wine), ‘asis (sweet wine), mimsak/mezeg (mixed wine with herbs), and shemer (aged wine) (A. R. S. Kennedy, “Wine and Strong Drink,” Dictionary of the Bible, rev. ed. [New York: Scribner’s, 1963 ] pp. 1038-39).

Key Greek Words
The key NT words for wine and strong drink are oinos, gleukos, and sikera. Sikera (strong drink) is used only once in the NT (Luke 1:15) for a grain-based alcohol or intoxicating beverage made from other sources of fruit. Oinos is used more than thirty times in the NT and usually refers to fermented drink. Gleukos (new wine or sweet wine) represented wine that was not fully aged or wine that had a higher sugar content (Wayne House, “Wine” in Baker Encyclopedia of the Bible, vol. 1 [Grand Rapids: Baker, 1988 ]). Professor A. C. Schultz points out that “Usually the new wine was left in the vat to undergo the first fermentation which took four to seven days. It was then drawn off. . . . The whole period of fermentation would last from two to four months when the wine would be ready for use (“Wine and Strong Drink,” in Zondervan Pictorial Encyclopedia of the Bible, 5:938).

In general, the OT and NT terms for wine referred to the fruit of the vine usually in some stage of fermentation. Exceptions could be “sweet new wine,” fresh wine from the harvest (Isa 16:10; John 2), and diluted wine.

Why Believers Today Should Abstain From Alcohol as a Beverage

1. Wine in the NT era and wine today are not identical.

As I mentioned in my previous post, Yayin and Oinos usually refer to wine in some state of fermentation beginning with fresh, sweet juice available immediately after grape harvest (Isa 16:10; Jer 48:33) that quickly starts the fermentation process in the absence of refrigeration or pressurized bottling. Fermentation is a natural process that takes place when the grape juice comes into contact with the yeast released from broken grape skins during the treading of grapes.

"New wine" in Hebrew and Greek respectively (tirosh / gleukos) may refer to the juice of the grape that was fresh or in the first year of fermentation. Mixed Wine in the OT was wine flavored with herbs and quite intoxicating (Prov 23:30). Undiluted wine in the NT era was approximately 7%-10% alcohol and usually not taken as a beverage without proper dilution. On account of extra yeast and controlled heating conditions, some standard table wines today by comparison are as much as 14% alcohol. Fermented wine in the Greek and NT eras was regularly diluted with water (“Wine Drinking in New Testament Times” by Robert H. Stein, Christianity Today, June 20, 1975, pp. 9-11). The Talmud (200 B.C—200 A.D.) records the Jewish practice of regularly reducing the effects of wine by a 3/1 or 2/1 ratio of water to wine. In the rabbinic period “Yayin is to be distinguished from Shekar [strong drink ]: the former is diluted with water; the latter is undiluted” (Jewish Encyclopedia, 1901, vol. 12, p. 533). The Jewish Mishnah said, “They do not say the Benediction over the wine until water has been added to it” (The Mishnah, Berakhot 7.5 ed, by Herbert Danby [Oxford Press, 1893 ]). The normal mixture for the Jews was three parts water to one part wine (Shabbath 77a). In the Passover ritual during NT times the four cups every Jew was to drink during the ceremony had to be mixed three parts water to one part wine (Pesahim 108b). This practice is reflected as common during the inter-testament period in 2 Maccabees 15:39: “It is harmful to drink wine alone, or again to drink water alone [bacteria issues ], while wine mixed with water is sweet and delicious and enhances one’s enjoyment” (See “Wine” in The New Encyclopedia of Judaism, ed. Geoffrey Wigoder [New York: New York University Press, 2002 ], pp. 798ff).

This dilution process reduced the alcoholic content of the wine down to approximately 2.25–2.75%. In contrast to the ancient world, the modern world does not dilute the effects of alcohol. Beer is 3.5% to 4.5% and typically served in 12-16 ounce containers; table wines are as much as 14%; fortified wines are 18-24%; hard liquor is 40% (80 proof). A diluted wine would reduce the risks of drunkenness from that of an undiluted wine.

“In NT times the practice of dilution seems to have been usual” (A. R. S. Kennedy, “Wine and Strong Drink,” Dictionary of the Bible, rev. ed. [New York: Scribner’s, 1963 ] pp. 1038- 39).

"The wine of classical antiquity was very different from modern wine. They . . . always diluted it with water before consumption . . . . Only barbarians drank undiluted wine" (Maynard A. Amerine, Collier’s Encyclopedia, 1994, vol. 23, p. 518).

“In all these countries [Syria, Palestine, Egypt ], wine was always diluted with water, a long-standing custom in Mediterranean regions, where pure potable water is not very common” (R. J .Forbes, Professor of the History of Pure and Applied Sciences in Antiquity, University of Amsterdam, in Encyclopedia American, 1989, 29:44-45).

“At a latter period, however, the Greek use of diluted wines had attained such sway that the writer of 2 Maccabees speaks (15:39) of undiluted wine as ‘distasteful.’ This dilution is so normal in the following centuries that the Mishcan take it for granted and, indeed, Rabbi Eliezer even forbade saying the table-blessing over undiluted wine. The proportion of water was large, only one-third or one-fourth of the total mixture being wine. Note— The wine of the Last Supper, accordingly, may be described in modern terms as a sweet, red, fermented wine, rather highly diluted [emphasis mine ]” (Burton S. Easton, International Standard Bible Encyclopedia, 1984, vol. 5, p. 3087). The reference in Isaiah 1:22 to diluted wine as bad should not be taken as a proof that Jews did not dilute wine, but as a metaphor of spiritual adulteration (cf. Isa 1:21).

“The use of wine at the paschal feast . . . had become an established custom at all events in the post-Babylonian period. The wine was mixed with warm water on these occasions . . . . Hence in the early Christian Church it was usual to mix the sacramental wine with water” (Merrill Unger, “Wine,” Unger’s Bible Dictionary, 3rd ed., [Chicago: Moody Press, 1981 ], p. 1169).

“He, too, will drink of the wine of God’s fury, which has been poured full strength [“akratou” from “akratos” meaning “undiluted” ] into the cup of his wrath” (Rev 14:10a)

The Greeks practiced dilution and it eventually spread throughout the Roman world including Palestine. Pliney's work entitled "Natural History" mentions an 8 to 1 ratio of water to wine. Other Classical Greek writers mention similar ratios: Hesiod--3 to 1, Alexis--4 to 1, Diocles -- 2 to 1. Mnesitheus of Athens said: “The gods have revealed wine to mortals, to be the greatest blessing for those who use it aright, but for those who use it without measure, the reverse. For it gives food to them that take it and strength in mind and body. In medicine it is most beneficial . . . . In daily intercourse, to those who mix and drink it moderately, it gives good cheer; but if you overstep the bounds, it brings violence. Mix it half and half and you get madness; unmixed, bodily collapse" (Stein, “Wine Drinking,” p. 9).

According to Stein, dilution was practiced in the early centuries of the church. Justin Martyr (150 A.D.) described the Lord's Supper as "Bread is brought, wine and water, and the elder sends up prayers and thanksgiving" (Apology, I, 67, 5). Cyprian (250 A.D.) said, "Thus, therefore, in considering the cup of the Lord, water alone cannot be offered, even as wine alone cannot be offered. For if anyone offers wine only, the blood of Christ is dissociated from us; but if the water be alone, the people are dissociated from Christ. . . . Thus the cup of the Lord is not indeed water alone nor wine alone, unless each be mingled with the other" (Epistle, LXII, 2, 11 and 13). Clement of Alexandria (late 2nd century) said, "It is best for the wine to be mixed with as much water as possible. . . . For both are works of God and the mixing of the two, both of water and wine produce health. . . . To the necessary element, the water, which is in the greatest quantity, there is to be mixed in some of the useful element" (Instructor, in James Donaldson, ed., Ante-Nicence Fathers [Grand Rapids: Eerdmans ] vol. 2, 2.2).It appears that Paul sets the standard for the early church in Titus 1 and 1 Timothy 3 of "not beside wine," not "much wine," and not drinking water exclusively but using a little wine for one's stomach. "Strong drink" (sikera) seems to be completely off limits in the NT; it is only mentioned once in the NT in reference to the abstention of John the Baptist.

Thank you, Jim. I'm not dogmatic in my opinion about whether or not God created fermentation, it was only food for thought. I'm also aware of leaven/bread, molds/cheese, etc. All certainly appear "natural." None of us will ever know exactly how God's creation has been impacted by sin and the fall of man until he makes it new again in the future. Will grapes still ferment in the new earth? Will mold and leaven still do their work? I think the answer is yes, but it is still not possible to prove either position. I think the larger questions are what impact, if any, did fermented wine (i.e., alcoholic) have on Adam and Eve prior to the fall (if they drank it), and what impact, if any, will fermented wine (i.e., alcoholic) have on our new, sinless bodies in eternity (if we drink it). Both are unanswerables, but the exercise is good.

JN

Three quick points

1) According to Isaiah 25:6, there will be aged wine (wine on the lees) in the new earth. So fermentation seems to be expected in that regard. Also, since Mike Harding has done some excellent research above, we can see that the Passover wine used in Jesus' day was most likely 2.5% alcoholic (or perhaps more). That is what Jesus promises to drink again with us in the new earth.

2) I do take issue with Pastor Harding for arguing from silence that the NT must not condone the use of strong drink (because it doesn't mention it at all). This is highly suspect reasoning. I do note also that he doesn't give much time to Deut. 14:26 just calling it a tithe of strong drink. Let me just type the verse out in full for its full effect, it was a special sort of tithe meant to be eaten in a feast before the Lord. Almost no one disputes that the word shekar (strong drink) was not alcoholic in nature.

3) I don't have an issue saying wine today is different than wine in Bible times, or that the culture surrounding wine today is different than what it was then. But we are going beyond the page of Scripture to conclude that this difference means that Christians should abstain from wine period. Scripture doesn't go that far. It warns against drunkenness but also lauds the joy-producing qualities of wine (as Mike Harding admits). But it does not forbid drinking alcoholic drinks. In some cases it commends drinking them (see Deut. 14 above). I don't mind if people take the warnings and the teachings on wisdom and what have you, and apply it to their culture and choose not to drink. But usually this is not what happens. They then go beyond that and say that Scripture teaches you shouldn't drink at all - or Scripture forbids drinking. Scripture explicitly calls drinking wine a liberty issue (Rom. 14:21) of the same sort as eating meats. And yes we need to be willing to forego our liberties for the sake of others, I'm not arguing against that. But if it is a liberty, then it is a liberty!! And people have the liberty to enjoy this God-given gift that is alcoholic wine (in moderation, of course).

5. Christians should act responsibly concerning their personal testimony and influence.

a. Alcoholic beverages today are much stronger than those of the biblical era and thereby much more likely to produce impairment of judgment and drunkenness. Today, 5 ounces of wine equals 12 ounces of beer which equals 1.5 ounces of whiskey, approximately three times the alcohol contained in an 8-ounce cup of diluted wine in NT times.

b. Alcoholic beverages today provide no spiritual benefit but have the realistic potential for harm. Paul cites the Corinthian motto, "Everything is permissible," and then counters, "but all things are not beneficial" (1 Cor 10:23-24). Paul is condemning libertarianism and advocating that we do that which is spiritually beneficial, constructive, and good. As a matter of Christian witness we should not do anything that could seriously jeopardize our witness to others. Many lost people expect that Christians should not drink. Others who have been victimized by alcohol-related crimes are extremely sensitive to this issue. They might conclude that social drinking Christians are callous and out of touch with the real world. Our concept of freedom should not allow us to participate in activity that has been so injurious to millions of people in the world. Also, our own lifestyles will influence others both outside our home and particularly inside our home. Children will likely follow the example of their parents in alcohol related matters. People have to eat, but they do not have to drink in modern society. Social-drinking is purely a choice and not a compulsion. It is a choice that is offensive to some and deadly to many.

c. Alcoholic beverages today could lead to sinful slavery. 1 Corinthians 6:12 says, "but I will not be mastered by anything." Modern alcoholic beverages are extremely addictive. The easiest way for believers to obey this verse is to abstain unless medical necessity compels it.

d. Alcoholic beverages today will more than likely cause others to spiritually stumble (Phil 2:4; Rom 14:19-21). "It is better not to ... drink wine or to do anything else that will cause your brother to fall."

e. Alcoholic beverages today have greater potential of drunkenness and thus are more closely associated with the unsaved life (1 Cor 6:9ff; Gal 5:19ff). The mind is to be controlled by the Holy Spirit, not alcohol (Eph 5:18).

f. We should appropriately treat the human body as the temple of God (1 Cor 6:19-20). Our bodies our God’s workmanship. Alcohol consumption subjects God’s temple to unnecessary risks which far outweigh the benefits (Centers for Disease Control, http://www.ede.gov/alcohol/faqs.htm). One can receive the benefits of grapes by grape juice today or special vitamins which capture in concentrated form the benefits of large amounts of wine (20/20 ABC News, April 2008, Barbara Walters, “Long Life”).

g. Alcoholic beverages today are easily and regularly abused and lead to other forms of wickedness. "And these also reel with wine and stagger from strong drink . . . They are confused by wine . . . They totter when rendering judgment" (Isa 28:7). Alcohol abuse is a causal factor in 70% of drownings/chokings, 50% of “freak accidents,” 27,000 deaths per year via liver disease, 30% of suicides, 20% of airplane crashes, 50% of fire deaths, and alcohol contributes to 500,000 injuries per year. Alcoholics outnumber all other addicts. Approximately 77% of all high schoolers use alcohol and nearly 30% drink heavily. Amazingly, over 40% of 8th graders drink. About one in ten of all drinkers will become alcoholics. In addition, 45% of all homeless people in America are alcoholics (National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism).

According to national surveys, alcohol is a contributing factor in 65% of all murders in the USA, 40% of assaults, 35% of rapes, 55% of domestic violence, 60% of child abuse, 60% of traffic fatalities (Scott Williquette, “The Christian and Alcohol,” Sola). Interestingly, during Prohibition (1920-1933) many social ills in America decreased such as cirrhosis (66% drop), disorderly conduct (50% drop), and the rate of increase in homicide was actually higher before Prohibition than during it (US Government “Wickersham Commision Report” at www.druglibrary.org.). In addition to all of this, regular consumption of alcohol increases one’s chance of heart attacks, cancer, birth defects, insanity, impotence and sterility. In light of the above I don't believe drinking modern alcoholic beverages as a beverage is an option for Christians except when in circumstances similar to those encountered by NT Christians in the early church era. Even then the same precautions should be taken now as were taken then.

6. Abstention from using alcohol as a beverage is not legalism.

The Apostle Paul refuted legalism when he said, “Unless you are circumcised according to the custom of Moses, you cannot be saved” (Acts 15:1; cf. 15:5, 24). He also said, “Did you receive the Spirit by the works of the Law . . . ?” (Gal 3:2). Legalism is the belief that one can gain God’s favor by keeping divine or human laws, whether for justification or sanctification–the belief that grace can be merited by good works (see Rom 4:5; Titus 3:5-7). In general God forbids “strong drink,” and modern alcoholic beverages today qualify as strong drink. Applying Scriptural principles to our culture which is significantly different than ancient cultures is not legalistic either. We do so out of our love for God and our fellow man.

Conclusion

Philippians 2:4 tells us, “Do not merely look out for your own interests but also for the interests of others.” 1 Corinthians 10:31 also reminds us, “Whether, therefore, you eat or drink or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God.” There is no glory to God in the willful pursuit of pleasure that has no regard for one’s influence or effect upon others. “Let no one seek his own good, but the good of his neighbor” (1 Cor 10:34). How many of you would fly is you knew that there was a 1 in 10 chance the plane would crash? The chances that the moderate drinker will become an alcoholic is 1 in 10; the chance that the moderate drinker will become a problem drinker is 1 in 3 (“A Plea for Total Abstinence,” The Evangelical Beacon, Nov. 13, 1979. p. 2).

Furthermore, if you abstain from alcohol as a social beverage, you can encourage others to forsake illegal stimulants such as marijuana, heroin, or cocaine without fear of inconsistency. Our joy need not come from a alcoholic stimulant. On the contrary, “in Thy presence is fulness of joy; in Thy right hand there are pleasures forever” (Ps 16:11). God wants His children to have peace without unnecessarily risking that we go to pieces. The liberated mind-set of the Corinthians did not help their church, nor will it help ours.

“Certain neighbors of mine laugh at me for being a teetotaler, and I might well laugh at them for being drunk, only I feel more inclined to cry that they should be such fools” (Charles H. Spurgeon, John Ploughman’s Pictures, p. 42, [Pasadena, Texas: Pilgrim Publications, rep. 1974 ]; also see C. H. Spurgeon by Arnold Dallimore (Moody Press, 1984), pp. 181-83, which details the turning of young Spurgeon from alcohol to total abstinence).

You've lost me here. This is an extremely subjective argument. I haven't met a single unbeliever that holds to this. And this comes from my 20 years of experience of inner-city ministry with relationships with hundreds and hundreds and hundreds of lost people, many of whom are alcoholics or related to those who are alcoholics. Its not even on their radar screen if a Christian (even a Baptist pastor) has a little wine or a beer every so often. They don't care and it isn't an issue unless the person gets drunk. Then it becomes an issue.

Joel,

Thank you for your comment. I don't question your personal experience in inner-city ministry. I personally came to Christ while living on the south side of Chicago. Afterwards, I had ministered for years at the Pacific Garden Mission with thousands of addicts. This is the most famous rescue mission in the US. I am sure you have heard of the famous radio program, "Unshackled," which broadcasts amazing stories of conversions at the mission. There was a firm policy of abstinence at the mission for all workers and residents. It was unthinkable that those preaching and counseling would imbibe. It was equally impossible for us to teach the new believers to embrace a policy of moderate social drinking. So my experience has been radically different than yours.

As a young boy I spent my life in the bars with my father on 51st street in Chicago. I understand the drinking-scene better than most. I made a promise to my mother that I would never drink. My dad is dead. Most of his five brothers died, lost in their sins, of alcoholism in their twenties, thirties, and forties. As I have witnessed and preached to many of my relatives in Boston, it would be inconceivable to them for me to drink.

Am I missing something?

Consider what the Bible says:
People in the Bible, including Jesus, drank wine yet it labels drunkenness a sin
Consider history:
The Reformers and the Pilgrims drank alcohol (George Washington even made whiskey)
Abstinence didn't rise to the status of a stated position until Prohibition
Consider personal observation:
Most of us have seen the damage caused by alcohol consumption

Maybe it's a personal decision.

The reference to the earth being the Lord's is making the statement you say. There will be no spiritual harm for the believer. But the emphasis in this passage is how to love one's neighbor. "Let no one seek his own good, but the good of his neighbor." Paul then immediately talks about what kind of neighbor one should watch out for. He's going to an unbeliever's house, and he's to watch out for the unbeliever's conscience. So I don't think the emphasis is on the believer's conscience here ("I do not mean your conscience, but his.")

You're right, it's all non-verbal. The entire passage is about how to communicate non-verbally what you also believe and speak verbally. We can be easily misunderstood. In fact, this would be one argument for public abstinence of alcohol in areas in which you'd be likely to find people who believe, even if falsely, that Christians are forbidden to drink. In the passage I think the host's intension for saying "this has been offered to idols" (or anyone else at the meal) is to trap the Christian into worshiping false gods along with him in a sort of "gotcha." By refusing to eat the meat, you're refusing to participate in what your hosts/audience thinks is part of idol worship, but you're also being a bad guest. Paul is saying to always choose to be a bad guest over appearing to participate in idol worship. The focus is always on how to clearly portray in word and deed what the truth is. I think that's the goal for all of us here, but how things come across to different audiences in different situations is really touchy.

I just don't interact with many people who think like that where I am in my daily activity. In my very first comment on this issue here, I said this issue has geographic dimensions. The culture where I am is such that people are more shocked at the idea that Christians think drinking in moderation is wrong, than if they see a Christian drinking. As if to illustrate the point, I'm sitting feet away from my company's large and diverse corporate beer fridge, where after 5:30 PM you may have a free beer on the house. The only other Christian I know at work in our office of 100 just grabbed one. This is the culture. Nobody cares. Different people's contexts will be different, and I wonder how many Christians for fear of being tainted with the difficulties of sin, haven't been to their non-Christian friend's house for dinner. . . or don't really have non-Christian friends.

I'm just curious...for those of you that have said alcohol is "toxic", what do you think about this article?

http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-18560_162-57407128/is-sugar-toxic/

Chip,
I would simply say morphine, coumadin, aspirin are drugs that should be used medically as drugs and not for recreational purposes. Neither should the drug of alcohol be used as a beverage for recreational purposes.

As for alcohol and sugar:
Suppose you are driving at night down a dark two lane road with steep ditches on each side. A car is coming to meet you. Would you rather the oncoming driver be driving fat or driving drunk?
David R. Brumbelow

Ditto for me.

What I mean is:

• "drink socially" is almost always used in pejorative way. But is that the opposite of:
  • Drinking "anti-socially"? OR
  • Drinking "lonely"?
• "Recreationally" has the same problem (in terms of definition)
  • Does it mean "as a pastime"? OR
  • "occasionally" ?

I mean:

• If someone has a glass of wine with dinner and his spouse is there ... well that's socially
• If someone only drinks with a meal (say a beer with pizza) that would be occasionally / recreationally.

If 64 percent of Protestants and / or 60 percent of the USA population drank like this it would seem innocuous

Suppose the surveys said (and there is some kind of a survey out there I'm sure):

• a staggering 64 percent of Protestant lay persons socially eat ice cream OR
• 60 percent of the USA population plays billiards recreationally

(The above (ice cream and pool) are true of me)

I raise this point - perhaps some think I am being silly - because in my long tradition as a fundamentalist Baptist I've heard this phrase AND used this phrase often: "I'm against social drinking".

The 2006 alcohol resolution can be found at:

2006 SBC Resolution on Alcohol Use in America
http://gulfcoastpastor.blogspot.com/2011/04/2006-sbc-resolution-on-alcoh...

David R. Brumbelow

Thanks for getting back to me

Piano man .... that goes way back

Question for you then:

Would they case of the couple having wine with dinner in the privacy of their own home be social drinking? Sounds like not but would appreciate your comment

I always thought of 'social drinking' as a catch-all phrase for those who don't reserve alcohol for medicinal purposes only.

a catch-all doesn't really attempt to define anything.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=se9rfWucgeY

A straw man argument is setting up an easily defeatable argument for the other side, then defeating it. No one in this forum is arguing for a Piano-man kind of lifestyle. Yet you're using the images contained in it as if they stand for all kinds of drinking. That's what I mean by a straw man. You can disagree, but that's how it comes across.

Mike, I think its interesting that abstinence has not been a consistent position in the (broadly speaking) evangelical church until the last few centuries (and only in America). I have friends in Germany; they told me how a deacon in their Baptist church would have a beer every night before bed. The Greek Orthodox Church (who speaks the language of the NT) uses alcoholic wine at the Lord's table. It seems to me that 19th and 20th century American Christianity realized so many important things about the Christian faith that had not occurred to Christians prior (hair length/alcohol/smoking/music). I would ask, "Why the sudden change?"

On a lighter note, I wonder why Peter and the apostles did not respond "We don't drink because we're Christians" when questioned at Pentecost.

I understand, Aaron...I was not suggesting that that was an argument for abstinence. My point was that Christians have wrestled with this for 2000 years without landing on abstinence. Alcohol has always been...for the lack of a better word...alcoholic. Its not as if the 20th Century came along and alcohol became stronger or man became any more sinful.

I think abstinence is a noble position to take. But I think its based more on personal circumstances than society or culture. I just don't feel comfortable being dogmatic when the Bible is not...even if it is in a passive-aggressive way...