Whosoever Is Deceived Is Not Wise

I don't have a wine glass, so this parfait glass will have to do.

Yesterday, two of my sons went to an adult Bible study where the young adult pastor condemned and mocked any Christian who refuses to drink alcohol because of a personal conviction against it. My sons said he didn't just encourage the young adults to be free to drink without guilt, but rather pressured them to drink alcohol by using misinterpretation of Scripture, irrational thinking, and verbal abuse. (He even said that Jesus Himself was a drunk.) Moreover, the pastor was very proud to display his vast collection of alcoholic beverages all over his home, upstairs, downstairs, and in the fridge. He even offered to bring these valued beverages to future Bible studies at other locations.

I am not ashamed or embarrassed to say that my husband, each one of my four sons, and I do not drink alcohol. This was never a question that each of us had to ponder. We have never been interested in alcohol because we know in our hearts that it isn't what God would want. However, we have never publicized this. We just politely say, "No thank you," when offered an alcoholic beverage. To actually be condemned and mocked for not drinking alcohol by a pastor, let alone a Christian, is evil because it is bullying.

Like many Greek and Hebrew words, the Greek and Hebrew words commonly translated "wine" have two meanings: unfermented juice or intoxicating wine. When God warns against alcohol in the Old and New Testament, He is referring to intoxicating wine. In the other few instances in the Bible where wine is looked favourably upon, God is referring to unfermented juice. One of these instances was when Jesus turned water into wine at a wedding. Here the word translated "wine" refers to fruit juice, not an alcoholic drink! Why would Jesus give alcohol to the bride who might conceive that night or to other women at the wedding who might be pregnant, knowing that doing so would hurt an unborn child! To think otherwise, is preposterous.

The dangers of alcohol abuse are readily apparent: crime; physical, emotional, and sexual abuse; death; disease; brain damage to babies in the womb; children separated from alcoholic parents; and divorce. Would God ever lead a person into temptation by saying, "It's okay, just drink a little bit. It won't hurt you?" Does this line of reasoning sound familiar?

Here is a verse in the Bible — one of many — that speaks against the dangers of alcohol.

"Wine is a mocker,

strong drink is raging;

and whosoever is deceived thereby is not wise."

Proverbs 20:1 (NIV)