Theology of Alcohol

1. Introduction
   
2. Noah and his vineyard
   
3. Melchizedek's priestly provisions
   
4. Lot's daughter's incest
   
5. Jacob's blessing from Isaac
   
6. Strong drink in Leviticus and Deuteronomy
   
7. Alcohol's folly
   
8. The contexts of Numbers
   
9. Alcohol's bad name
   
10. Pastors, wine and addiction
    
11. Drunkenness
    
12. Concluding matters

Theology of Alcohol: concluding matters

Alcohol is in fact in the Bible and alcohol itself is not looked down upon in the Bible. What is looked down upon and commanded against in the Bible is getting drunk. We are not to get drunk as Christians. Likewise, church leaders are not to be drunkards. However, drinking a beer or a glass of wine a night is not a sin, because the Bible makes no mention that it is, though it does affirm its use in Jewish cultic worship, and yet it does indicate that the overuse of alcohol is.

The bottom line: biblically speaking, getting drunk is a sin, though drinking alcohol its self is not.

Theology of Alcohol 10: drunkenness

Drunkenness is really looked down upon in the New Testament. Pastors and deacons are not to be drunkards or addicted to wine or given to drinking too much wine. 1 Thessalonians talks about Christians belonging to the light or day, but the wicked belong to the darkness or night. Interestingly, drunkennes is associated with the night. However, this is not what I want to look at right now; Ephesians 5 will actually serve the purpose of determining whether or not we have the right as Christians to lawfully get drunk.

In Ephesians 5 we see the light and dark language that we see in 1 Thessalonians. Christians are to be characterized by light, not darkness, because "the fruit of light is found in all that is good and right and true" (v. 9). Part of living in the light is discerning what the will of the Lord is (v. 17). The will of the Lord is identified in part, but not limited to, not getting drunk, which is debauchery (v. 18). Debauchery is reckless abandon (BDAG). The first command present here in the Greek is a present middle imperative negated by the Greek word, mê; this use of the imperative prohibits the continuous action of getting drunk. This prohibition is stating a general precept: don't continually get drunk.

Paul continues to say that we ought to be filled--not with wine--but with the Spirit as we sing and give thanks to God (v. 20). This statement is the second command present in the verse. This use of the imperative commands that the readers continually be filled with the Spirit. God desires that we are consumed by Him in such a way that we become entirely saturated with His Spirit. Ultimately, it is the Spirit who helps us to discern what the will of the Lord is, which contrasts the effects of drunkenness--disorientation and memory loss.

What then shall we make of this information? So I can't live a lifestyle of getting drunk, but what about the original question asked at the beginning of this series? Can I drink alcohol at all? Is drinking wine or beer a sin? Let's find out--together.

Theology of Alcohol 9: Pastors, wine and addiction

Recently, a particular denomination has ruled that it is best if the members of the leadership within that denomination did not drink any wine. It did not prohibit it, but it did seem to lean that way. Many churches and denominations do this: no one in leadership may have alcohol. This is true for both churches and universities. However, this isn't exactly a biblical idea.

We don't see anywhere in the Bible that leadership members are required to abstain from wine. Neither do we find that believers are to commanded to not drink of the vine. Yet many people seem to think otherwise. First Timothy 3 is a case-in-point.

1 Tim. 3 gives us the qualifications of bishops (which are now basically pastors) and of deacons (which are now basically lay pastors).

In it we find that a bishop is not to be a drunkard (v. 3, NRSV), addicted to wine (v. 3, NASB), or a heavy drinker (v. 3, NLT). In Greek, the term used here is paironos, and it means "one who is given to drinking too much wine" with the idea of being addicted to it and is therefore a drunkard (BDAG). Bishops--pastors--are biblically required to not be in the habit of getting drunk. Paul does not say, however, that they cannot have any wine. He remains silent about that in this passage.

Several verses later, deacons are addressed, and they are required to not indulge in much wine (v. 8, NRSV), to not be addicted to much wine (v. 8, NASB), or be heavy drinkers (v. 8, NLT). However, the word used in Greek is not the same as when Paul was addressing the bishop office. Here the word is prosechõ, which in this context means "to continue in close attention to something," with the idea of actively occupying oneself with or actively devoting oneself to it (BDAG). Deacons are not to be addicted to wine (BDAG).

So, church leadership have specific biblical instructions to not be addicted to wine or habitually get drunk. Beyond this the passage here is silent. But at least we know that this passage is not prohibiting the consumption of alcohol from believers, not even pastors. But what about getting drunk once in a while? Is that okay? Let's find out--together.

Theology of Alcohol 8: Alcohol's bad name

So why does alcohol have such a bad name? It is commonly thought that the Bible is actually against alcohol, but as we have seen thus far, this just isn't always true. However, Isaiah uses wine and strong drink to help depict negative identities of the Israelites.

In Is. 5, alcohol is seen as the focus of the people who have no reverence for God. These people pursue alcohol from the early morning, which means they probably are drunks.

In Is. 28, alcohol is seen as the agent of erroneous paths, and it is used to show that the people have an erroneous mental, physical, and spiritual state.

In Is. 56, alcohol is seen as the life-fulfilling object of the drunkards.

In all three of these cases, alcohol itself is not the negative factor, rather drunkenness is. Isaiah uses drunkenness to show the unspiritual, uncommitted, and ungodly state of the Israelites. By association, then, alcohol got a bad name. So, what are we to make of this? How does drunkenness affect our theology of alcohol? Let's find out--together.

Theology of Alcohol 7: The contexts of Numbers

Numbers 6 and 28 talk about wine and strong drink positively and negatively. Numbers 6 basically says prima facie, "Don't have anything to do with alcohol," and Numbers 28 is summed up prima facie in this: alcohol is to be used in part of the offering offered up to God in worship. What in the world are we supposed to do here? First, we find that we are not supposed to touch alcohol, but then we find that we are supposed to use it specifically in worship? What gives? Well, we need to look at the contexts of these two seemingly contradictory passages.

Numbers 6 is all about a special vow that the Israelites could opt for--the nazirite vow. This vow basically consecrated a child unto the Lord in a particular way. The nazirite was not allowed to partake of the vine. This did not only include alcohol, but also grapes in any form, whether grape juice or regular or dried, or its seeds and skins, and vinegar. Anything produced from the vine was off limits for the nazirite. However, once the nazirite fulfilled his or her vow, he or she was allowed to drink wine (v. 20). So, we see that it is acceptable to drink wine outside of the nazirite vow.

Numbers 28 details several different appointed times to offer up offerings to God. Drink offerings comprised of wine and/or strong drink are part of the offerings that is a pleasant aroma to the Lord (cf. v. 8 and v. 24, for example). In this case, alcohol is not viewed as a bad thing; in fact, it is pleasant to God in aroma.

Numbers 6 and 28 do not contradict each other. Looking at the contexts helps to understand what's going on, and in this case we see that these two chapters are addressing two different things, but in the end they actually permit the drinking of alcohol and the use of alcohol in worship.

"But wait a second," you say, "I thought that the Bible was against alcohol. Is it?" Well, let's find out--together.

Theology of Alcohol 6: Alcohol's folly

Proverbs 20:1 says that those who are led astray by wine or strong drink (beer) are not wise. It says that wine is a mocker. It says that beer is a brawler. The Hebrew word for "brawler" means "noisy" or "tumultuous." Beer is an uproar says this proverb.

We can, in this proverb, reduce alcoholic beverages to being noisy mockers. Surely this in itself is nothing to desire, but this one verse does not say anything against alcohol, rather it shows that anyone who becomes drunk from drinking too much of it is not wise. In this verse, it does not say that getting drunk is a sin, but it does say that getting drunk is not wise.

Up until this point, the Bible has been silent in claiming alcoholic beverages as sin or the consumption of alcoholic beverages as a sin. In fact, alcohol has been part of some key parts of the Bible, including worship to God and Jacob's birthright. But is this all that the Bible says about alcohol and drinking? Or is the Bible quiet regarding this issue from here on out? Will it tell us if we can drink alcohol at all, at any time, or at no time? Let's find out--together.

Theology of Alcohol 5: Strong drink in Leviticus and Deuteronomy

Strong drink is different than wine in the Bible. Wine, or new wine, is a newly fermented beverage, whereas strong drink is highly fermented. It certainly has the idea of being more potent in affect than wine. Leviticus and Deuteronomy both talk about it a little bit.

By looking at a concordance, one would quickly look at Lev. 10:9 and see the command to not drink strong drink (let's just call it "beer" from now on) and think, "Well, that's it, I can't have beer because the Bible says so." Well, if that were true, then why does Deuteronomy say in 14:26, "spend the money on whatever you wish--oxen, sheep, wine, strong drink, or whatever you desire. And you shall eat there in the presence of the Lord your God, you and your household rejoicing together" (NRSV)? Then you would probably say, "Uh oh, it looks like the Bible contradicts itself! First it says I can't touch beer, but now it is saying that I can? What gives!?!

The truth is that many of us fall into this sort of prima facie methodology; however, it is bad theology and it is bad hermeneutics, much less bad stewardship of God's Word. We obviously need to address the contexts of these two passages!

The former passage deals directly between Aaron and the Lord. God is specifically giving Aaron and the priests instructions about how they ought to enter into the Tent of Meeting in the Tabernacle. This is the context for which we must read the command to not have strong drink.

The latter passage deals with ceremonial acts for tithing to the Lord. Check this out, it's pretty interesting!

God laid out some rules for tithing. The Israelites were to eat their tithe unto the Lord in the designated place that God would indicate to eat at! How cool is that?! I could eat and call it worship! Sweet! But wait, there is more.

God provided for the time that the distance between where some Israelite families might be and where the designated place might be was too far apart for the family to make the journey. So, here is what God says.

"Turn your tithe into money, and use that money to buy whatever you wish, even if it is wine or beer, and eat and drink it together as a family and rejoice as you eat and drink it unto me in the same manner that all else gather in the designated place and eat unto me."

So, here we see that beer or strong drink, and even wine is acceptable in some cases--even worship rituals or ceremonies--to God. Although God prohibits Aaron from drinking beer, it is for a specific purpose, but at other times he condones the consumption of alcoholic beverages. Does this mean that at any time we can drink wine or beer? Let's find out--together.

Theology of Alcohol 4: Jacob's blessing from Isaac

Jacob steals Esau's blessing from Isaac in Genesis 27. Have you ever noticed what was entailed in that blessing? Wine! Check it out for yourself (Gen 27:5ff.). Part of the blessing required Jacob to bring food and drink to Isaac. What did he bring him? He brought him a savory stew of some sort and wine! Isaac ate the food and drank the wine. What is more important is what comes next.

Isaac gives Jacob the blessing. In the blessing he says this, "May God give you...plenty of grain and wine" (v. 28, NRSV). However, the term in Hebrew for wine means should be rendered something like, "new wine." This is not to say that it is unfermented grape juice, but rather new wine. This is different than "beer" or "strong drink" as some translations have it. This new wine is alcoholic, but not very high in alcohol.

Now we see that wine, even though it would not contain large percentages of alcohol, it is looked upon at least in the blessing as something desirable. We actually have a small amount of positive light shed on wine in this case. But this is only on wine that is not very high in alcoholic content. What of strong drink? Let's find out--together.

Theology of Alcohol 3: Lot's daughters' incest

In Genesis 19, Lot's daughters decide to get their father drunk so that they can have sex with him and get pregnant by the seed of their own father, thus giving them to gain the honor in their cultural setting for having children, even if it was by their own father. In their culture, women were looked down upon for the inability for having children or for not having any children. Lot had failed to match his daughters up with suitors to provide them what they rightly deserved--the opportunity to bear children. So, they take matters into their own hands--they take turns getting daddy drunk so that they can get from him what he should have given them.

In this case, wine became the tool for a seemingly bad deed, though nothing is actually said against wine itself. However, as weird as it may sound, some scholars would say that the daughter's act was righteous, since they were seeking to preserve their father's name, which was a huge thing in that cultural setting. So, if this is true, that means that the wine is not a tool for a bad deed, but rather for good. Is this actually the case? I don't know, and I don't think so.

I think that this story reflects the degeneration of Lot and his family for having been polluted by the city of Sodom. However, how is it then that the author of 2 Peter can call Lot righteous? Strange, I know. But this is the case, so how do we make sense of it?

It seems that although the situation is not good, the act boils down to a perverted carying out of God's command to multiply. At least that is the best that I can make sense of it, if we are to look at Lot (and his daughters who are represented by Lot) as righteous.

Wine, then, is not looked at in positive or negative light here. Again, the Bible is silent about the consumption of alcohol at this point. Does this mean that we can go ahead and drink merrily? Let's find out--together.

Theology of Alcohol 2: Melchizedek's priestly provisions

In Genesis 14:18-20, Melchizedek enters the scene. He is designated as the Priest of God Most High (18). Melchizedek brings bread and wine to Abram to partake in. Here we see wine as a gift, and dare I say a part of an act of worship! The text doesn't actually say that either of them drank the wine, but it implies it. Again, here wine is not necessarily spoken of positively or negatively; all we know is that wine was part of whatever interaction Melchizedek had with Abram in this instance.

Wine thus far doesn't necessarily have a bad wrap in the Bible. In Noah's case he abused the substance, but in Melchizedek's case he used it for social obligations in a gift offering (perhaps). So, in one instance it is associated with something bad, and in another it is associated with something good. At this point it appears that the Bible is neutral on this issue. But will this neutrality remain? Let's find out--together.

Theology of Alcohol 1: Noah and his vineyard

After Noah went off the ark and God made a covenant with him and blessed him Noah planted a vineyard and drank from the vines that he toiled over. The text says that he became drunk and lay naken in his tent (Gen. 9:21). The text does not actually show Noah as sinning for being drunk, rather it shows the shame he had for lying naked in his tent, which was exploited by his son, Ham. This is an issue of shame versus honor, for the society that this text was written in was an honor and shame society. When we look at this text, then, we must look at it in light of this cultural setting.

Obviously the text doesn't shed any good light on Noah's being drunk, but it doesn't shed any bad on it either. What it does is highlight the shame of being exploited in his position of being exposed in his own tent.

So, at the beginning of the Bible, we do not see anything specifically saying that alcohol and specifically drunkenness is good or bad. At this point the Scriptures are silent regarding the spiritual quality of the consumption of alcohol. Will this always be true? Let's find out--together.

Theology of Alcohol: what's ahead?

I am going to do a series on this blog entitled "Theology of Alcohol."
Agree or disagree with what I have to say, but know that at least I will be coming at the issue of alcohol from a biblical perspective, as opposed to one that doesn't look at the Bible and uses only personal conviction.
This may or may not be helpful to you, and if it isn't, then just discard it in your mind and leave it alone.

Since this will be a biblical theology of alcohol--not systematic--I am going to trace through key passages of the biblical texts to see what the Scriptures have to say about the use of this vastly consumed beverage for the Christian. Will it confirm the perspective that it is a sin, that it is wrong and "unchristian," or will it confirm the perspective of those few Christians who argue that drinking in moderation is perfectly acceptable behavior of a Christian? Let's find out--together.