The Great Alcohol Debate
by: Richard Land - Jul 1, 2006 - comments: 23
While the Bible may be subject to various interpretations concerning alcohol consumption (as well as the nature of the beverage consumed), Southern Baptists’ understanding of the issue has been exceedingly unambiguous. In the convention’s history, SBC messengers have adopted more than 40 resolutions on the issue prior to this year — as recently as 1991 and as early as 1886.
Southern Baptists meeting in session have called their brothers and sisters to live “an exemplary Christian lifestyle of abstinence from beverage alcohol and all other harmful drugs” (1984); to recognize alcohol as “America’s number one drug problem” (1982); to “reaffirm our historic position as opposing alcohol as a beverage” (1978); to view “personal abstinence” as the “Christian way” (1957); to express their “unceasing opposition to the manufacture, sale and use of alcoholic beverages” (1955); to realize alcohol is a “habit-forming and destructive poison” (1940) and the “chief source of vice, crime, poverty and degradation” (1936); and to “reassert our truceless and uncompromising hostility to the manufacture, sale, importation and transportation of alcoholic beverages” (1896).
Resolutions reflect the sense of the convention in session. And while they have no binding authority in and of themselves, they are instructive as to where Southern Baptists have stood on particular issues at particular periods in their history.
What the Bible Says
Though nowhere in Scripture will you find it written that alcohol consumption itself is a sin, you do find clear and dire warnings about its use and abuse.
I agree with my predecessor here at the SBC’s Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission, the late Foy Valentine, who wrote in a commission pamphlet: “Since Noah first grew grapes, made wine, passed out, and brought shame to himself and his family, the human race has been grappling with the moral dimension of the alcohol problem.”
We often abuse the liberty we have in Christ. We mistake it for license to engage, under Christ’s covering, in any behavior. We know the Apostle Paul likewise wrestled, as he wrote, “For I do not do the good that I want to do, but I practice the evil that I do not want to do” (Romans 7:19).
Even those of us who are washed in the blood of Christ still struggle with our sin nature, which pulls us to do, to think and even to say things we know do not honor our Lord. Yet Paul continues in his letter to the believers in Rome, writing, “Those whose lives are according to the flesh think about the things of the flesh, but those whose lives are according to the Spirit, about the things of the Spirit” (Romans 8:5).
Transformed People
Does the Holy Spirit desire for us to engage in behavior — sinful or not — that could draw another away from Christ? Of course not. It is on that scriptural basis — among others — that I contend the Bible does have something to say about the consumption of beverage alcohol and other behaviors not specifically addressed.
“The mind-set of the Spirit is life and peace” (v. 6), the Apostle Paul continues in chapter 8. I don’t believe there is a need for a foreign substance to achieve peace or relaxation, or whatever state some assert the moderate use of alcohol produces. Can a mind, altered by the consumption of alcohol, also be under the control of the Holy Spirit?
We are to be transformed people, offering our “bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God.” This is our “spiritual worship,” Paul writes in Romans 12:1-2.
Alcohol, along with many other things, corrupts our body, and we are not then in control of it to offer it to God — “holy and pleasing.”
While alcohol use can be a stumbling block to the lost, more than that, a mind diminished by alcohol can miss a divinely ordained opportunity to share the hope that is in Christ. Foy Valentine wrote, “Alcohol’s drugging, depressing effect reduces mental capacity and thereby deadens moral sensitivity.”
I have enough things in my life that distract me from my calling. I can’t imagine intentionally ingesting a substance that will impair my judgment and further distract me from God’s will for my life.
It appears it does not take much alcohol to impact a person physiologically. Researchers at the University of Washington in Seattle determined among test subjects that even one “strong drink” can cause a “substantial perceptual deficit.” This “inattentional blindness” in those whose blood alcohol level was less than half the legal limit resulted in these individuals being more likely not to notice an object that appeared unexpectedly in their line of sight (Reuters, “One strong drink can make you ‘blind drunk’,” July 4, 2006).
While I believe abstinence has sufficient biblical underpinnings, there are plenty of sociological indicators to persuade me that its use is unwise.
An adolescent’s view of alcohol is positively associated with his or her parents’ drinking behavior and attitudes, I suppose in much the same way a child’s view of prayer and personal Bible study is impacted by his or her parents’ behavior.
A study done a few years ago found that in homes where the parents were total abstainers from alcohol, 16 percent of the teenagers in the home experimented with alcohol before adulthood. In homes were the parents were social drinkers, 66 percent of the children experimented with alcohol before adulthood.
And a child who drinks before age 15 is four times more likely to develop alcohol dependence, the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism reports. Furthermore, recent studies have shown the alarming extent to which alcohol decimates an adolescent’s still-developing brain and nervous system — far more harshly than it does those of an adult.
In modern American society, the human toll taken by alcohol abuse is staggering. According to a recent USA Today/HBO poll, 20 percent of Americans indicated they “had an immediate relative who at some point had been addicted to alcohol or drugs.” The article, “In Tim Ryan’s Family, He is the Addict,” in the July 20, 2006, issue of USA Today notes, “That translates into roughly 40 million American adults with a spouse, parent, sibling or child battling addiction.”
When you add the millions of children living with addicted parents, you are talking about a devastating problem that adversely impacts the lives of nearly half the people in our nation. Virtually all users of other drugs start with alcohol; that is why it is called the “gateway” drug. The USA Today article quotes Sis Wenger, executive director of the National Association for Children of Alcoholics, as saying, “For every person who’s alcoholic or dependent on other drugs, there are at least four or five people hurt on a regular basis.”
Honoring God
In truth, alcohol use, like many things in life, is a matter of personal conviction. It is a matter of making wise decisions that honor God. But for me there is no debate; alcohol is more often than not a scourge on our society and disaster waiting to happen for many families.
Just hours before Southern Baptists opened their annual meeting in Greensboro, N.C., and just a few miles east in Durham, J.J. Redick, star basketball player for the Duke Blue Devils and the Associated Press Player of the Year, was arrested on charges of drunken driving after he made an illegal U-turn to avoid a police checkpoint.
The incident probably won’t impact the player’s future. He was drafted 11th by the Orlando Magic in the NBA draft a few weeks later. But what about his witness?
On November 10, 2005, Redick gave an interview to the Charlotte Observer. The basketball standout, who has two tattoos, both Bible verses (Isaiah 40:31 and Joshua 1:9), said the most important person in his life was Jesus Christ. “When I die,” Redick said, “I’d like people to look back on my life and say, ‘He was a man of God.’”
J.J. Redick’s moral lapse is well covered by the atoning work of his Lord and Savior, and his legal transgression will probably be well covered by a well-paid legal defense. But what does his decision to drink signal to a youngster who admires him?
Consider Your Ways
Most of the time we never know about the long-term payout of our actions. Who’s watching? What are they seeing? We constantly are sending messages to those who are watching and listening. And as an ambassador of Christ (2 Corinthians 5:20), it behooves us all to consider carefully our ways.
We often have been reminded of the potent question from Charles Sheldon’s “In His Steps”: “What Would Jesus Do?” Let us ponder that question. Can anyone really imagine Jesus weighing the decision, “My wine or my witness?” — and choosing the wine?
Further Learning
Learn more about: Family, Addictions, Substance Abuse
23 comments (post your own) feed
1 On Sep 7th, 2006, at 5:04am, Judy Kratochvil wrote:
I also understand where you are coming from, but I believe that we can honor God by making a responsible decision about weather we drink and if so how much. The warnings in the Bible, I believe, are warnings against abuse of alcohol.
2 On Sep 26th, 2006, at 8:23am, Jim Hofmann wrote:
Also understanding, but do disagree about abstinence of all alcohol. I believe, with the prominence that abstinence has taken in SB life, it seems more like a requirement for salvation rather then a viable and a possible wise lifestyle choice. A legal burden on those of us who otherwise agree with SB stances on scripture and the reality of the most Holy & Loving God. It would seem that we should promote an anti-gluttony lifestyle as well as I can think of 2 places in scripture where eating and drinking to excess are put in bad light. Proverbs 23:20 & Matthew 11:19 Why does it seem that the most ardent prohibitionist are some of the most over weight people I know? Not all, of course. Again, I don’t disparage your choice not to drink. I just wonder if we do a disservice by the degree which we promote abstinence over moderation and other sober moderate choices in life like the amount we eat and other actions we seem dismissive of like keeping fit.
3 On Oct 7th, 2006, at 8:21pm, Pam Akihiro wrote:
As a nurse, I have seen the tragedy of alcohol ABUSE, but have also seen that the abuse of almost anything (food, money, people, etc,)causes health and relationship problems and is a stumbling block to our witness. I think that God has given us gifts to enjoy, but not to abuse. If we can’t enjoy His gifts in appreciation to the Giver and not in abuse, we should refrain from enjoying them. I think it is a mistake to single out one thing. As I was raised SB, I found that people related my denomination to those who “don’t”. I was always embarrassed by that.
4 On Oct 24th, 2006, at 11:43am, Melanie Glinski wrote:
Being raised a Southern Baptist, it always made me laugh when my mother preached the evils of alcohol, even in moderation, while consuming enough food, at one sitting, to feed an army. To the gentleman who penned the above article, have you ever approched a brother or sister at a Baptist luncheon who overate and reminded them that they are an “ambassador of Christ” and to carefully consider their ways as Non-believers could be watching? I doubt it...overeating is so much more socially acceptable in the church. As a matter of fact, I think the Baptists are the reason for the advent of the industrial size disposable plate.
All things in moderation. Noah’s shame came not in growing the grapes, making the wine or drinking it, but in drinking to excess and passing out.
5 On Oct 24th, 2006, at 1:59pm, Christina Talley wrote:
I don’t think any of us could be classified as a “responsible drinker”, as alcohol is a tool that Satan uses regularly to bring people down. If any of us feel that we can drink responsibly, then Satan already has a hold on us with this lie.
Alcohol can’t be compared to food, as food can be good for us in the right manner and bad and for us when eating too much or things that’s aren’t good for our body. Alcohol is never good.
Anything that can alter the mind or body is never good, as it wouldn’t allow us to present our bodies as holy. When we truly seek to be in the presence of a Holy God, then we’ll begin to understand why we can’t stand on middle ground.
6 On Oct 25th, 2006, at 9:10am, LandonSandy wrote:
As a licensed minister (SBC), I have seen goods and bads of rooting ourselves in traditional faith, but this seems more ceremonial and by my reading of the scriptures contradictory to the lifestyle and messages of Jesus (They called him a drunk you know, and he didn’t stop to see if that was a stumbling block for them), and also the other new testament writings on “freedom in consumption”. I respect personal decisions I just think we should have a little more grace with people. In dubiis libertas you know…
7 On Oct 26th, 2006, at 6:08pm, Keith Miller wrote:
If a beliver is going to make a case and take a stand on any issue they should back it up with scripture instead of making a personal decision based on upon their own personal experience and that of others. I do not believe that Christ is more honored or glorified by a child of His who does not drink anymore than than He would be by a believer who does. It grieves me to see how dogmatic leaders of denominations can be on issues like this because control is difficult to let go. Yes there are warnings the Bible says concerning the drinking of alcohol and we are wise to obey them all. In the end I prefer the grace of God to man’s legalism any day.
“He makes grass grow for the cattle and plants for a man to cultivate--bringing forth food from the earth: wine that gladdens the heart of man, oil to make his face shine, and bread that sustains his heart.”
8 On Nov 9th, 2006, at 12:41pm, Melanie Glinski wrote:
Bravo, Keith Miller....you could not have said it better.
9 On Nov 9th, 2006, at 3:35pm, terry wrote:
Are we showing God’s grace to others by trying to create a law to live by? Isnt this the realm of the Pharisees? Wasn’t Jesus’ first miracle turning water to wine?
I agree wholeheartedly with not drinking in excess. But wine has proven to be very good (health-wise) in many ways & yes, I can drink responsibly. Never more than one beer with a meal ( probably an average of one a month) and a small glass of wine average 2 or 3 a month).
As stated earlier, obesity is the accepted “drug of choice” to most churches. The related health & social issues of obesity have to be similar if not worse than alcohol. We “Christians” do love to point out the specks in someone elses eye.
10 On Nov 13th, 2006, at 5:56pm, Clayton Shankle wrote:
Yes the bible has the words wine and fruit of the vine, but my understanding is that these words refer to unfermented grape juice.
11 On Nov 16th, 2006, at 2:01pm, Benjamin Weaver wrote:
Most of the responses so far have been in favor of a lifestyle where one drinks “responsibly.” These arguments miss Dr. Land’s already stated concession that consumption alone is not a sin. So what is it that Dr. Land is trying to point out?
It is that we have freedom - freedom to choose our actions - actions which others will be watching. Yes, I am free to drink, but what precident does that set for my son, or my friend, or my neighbors? Will they be able to rightly judge where to stop? Or, is it better not to lay a stumbling stone in front of them?
Alcohol is not a necessity. It is an option. For most men, it proves to be a distraction to doing what the Lord has called us to do.
The question is not whether alcohol is bad or good. The question is whether or not you can put aside something which CAN be a distraction - whether it currently is or not.
The article above is not a new version of legalism, it is a call to be free of yet one more distraction.
12 On Nov 28th, 2006, at 5:58am, LandonSandy wrote:
So consumption alone in your closet is ok, but moderate social drinking is out, well maybe that is why we have alcoholics in the church and a culture of people afraid of alcohol.
And Clayton from my understanding a lack of preservatives in the first century gave grape juice about 7 minutes until alcohol was present, I’m not saying it was instant jager or anything but the whole grape juice thing is most likely just eisegesis, may I suggest a good home vinification kit to confirm this.
13 On Nov 29th, 2006, at 10:20pm, Samuel Grant Terry wrote:
Where we drink, what we drink, and when we drink all play the most important part to the, “Is it wrong or is it a non-issue?”. I don’t, but I can, and am close to those that don’t, and can’t. I know many that do, and can’t.
First of all we never want to tempt our brother or sister. Secondly...What if you have that one alcoholic beverage, and then drive home. Is it worth it if you were stopped for just a tail light being out. If you would feel any tension or fear, then you might want to reconsider that drink. Thirdly...If you were to slam down a “little shooter” w/ lime and salt, Well...It might be difficult to justify that for medicinal purposes. If you feel drinking is an issue...Pray for wisdom, If a friend tells you, your drinking is an issue...Pray for thanksgiving, because they were strong enough to tell you. Personally I would perfer a trip to Starbuck’s, over any alcoholic beverage, but then you have that whole caffine thing to deal with.
14 On Nov 30th, 2006, at 9:38pm, Melanie Glinski wrote:
“Yes, I am free to drink, but what precident does that set for my son, or my friend, or my neighbors?” I would say an excellent precedent or example you might be settting is to how to consume (drink, food, TV, etc) in moderation-self control.In a society that takes many things to excess, it would speak volumes.
15 On Nov 30th, 2006, at 9:50pm, Melanie Glinski wrote:
Respectfully, to Christina Talley, to say that Satan uses alcohol as a tool to bring us down is true. He also uses sex, food,& prescription drugs, among other things. Doesn’t make sex, food and prescription drugs bad...when used in the manner in which God intended them. I choose to believe a Fruit of the Spirit is self control and in claiming that, I can most certainly, do most certainly, drink responsibly and have done so for many years. To say alchohol is never good is a fallacy; my doctor touts the heart-healthy benefits of ONE glass of red wine daily (of which I partake).
16 On Dec 8th, 2006, at 7:59am, JOHN P (Jack) WINTER wrote:
I see two arguments against abstinence. Drunkenness, not alcohol use, is condemned in scripture and (2)-preaching abstinence is legalism, making laws not based on scripture. Both arguments ignore the reality of alcohol and sin.
I have never met a “responsible drinker” who won’t admit to at least one episode of intoxication. If we love Christ, we should be so horrified at even one foray into sin that we’d never touch the stuff. Why mess with something God calls a curse? (Prov 20:1)
If you love Christ, then do not be conformed to this world, flirting with sin through “social” drinking. It will lead you to sin, has probably done so already, and may very well lead a weaker brother to ruin. Is your “beer at the ball game” worth that? Where are your priorities, with Christ or with this world?
The Southern Baptists do well to exhort, (not command), their members to personal piety, including total abstinence from using alcohol as a beverage.
17 On Dec 27th, 2006, at 5:42pm, Kathy Dreiling wrote:
You folks can debate all you want, but the fact remains that alcohol destroys family, I am married to an alcoholic who has many alcoholic associations. It is a horrible dibilitating disease that I have watched tear a spiritual prayerful man down, and something that I don’t believe for one minute the Lord ever intended. It boils down to choice, and when a person drinks to excess they’ve give up the right to choose because they are no longer in control of their own will. Satan is. Anything that results in the destruction of the home has to have come from Satan.
18 On Jan 5th, 2007, at 2:07pm, Alex Forbin wrote:
Most of the responses here have been along the lines of “drink in moderation, don’t be drunk”. If you feel that you must drink then why insist on
being a Southern Baptist? After all there are other
religions that have no problem with drinking, why
not join one of them? It’s simple, satan knows what a problem abstainers have been in the past and he needs to eliminate us as a force against his most useful tool for prying apart families and destroying lives.
I have NEVER seen recreational alcohol use do anyone any good. Watching “Cops” should show the damage it does to even a good home.I have never tried drinking, but never felt that I “missed out” on anything good. To argue for the use of something with so much potential for damage should make a Christian stop and ask himself why he’s doing so. It’s distressing that so many people in the church suddenly feel duty-bound to argue for it’s acceptance. Satan is the great deceiver and this is his most sucessfull lie so far.
19 On Jan 11th, 2007, at 8:21pm, Melanie Glinski wrote:
Please be sure that I do not lie awake at night thinking of ways that I can argue for the “acceptance” of alchohol. In fact, it’s something I rarely think about at all. My gripe is with Christians who tout that any alcohol use at all is a sin (which is not Scriptural) and those who think that one can not be a responsible drinker. I also do not see the logic in the above statement “If you feel that you must drink then why insist on
being a Southern Baptist?”. I insist on being a Southern Baptist because one, I was raised Southern Baptist, two, my church home happens to be Southern Baptist, three, my Southern Baptist church home is a Bible-believing, Jesus-loving, people-loving church devoted to spreading the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Alcohol has and does destroy many homes, no argument there. My arguement here again, is for moderation and the absence of legalism.
20 On Apr 4th, 2007, at 3:58pm, Todd wrote:
As a Christian who has partaken of alcoholic beverages for more than a decade, I can tell you it IS possible to exercise self-control and avoid drunkenness. Not once have I become intoxicated, though I have 1 or 2 drinks almost daily. I understand that I could never convince the wife of an alcoholic that drinking in any amount could be glorifying to God, but we must look to Scripture for guidance in this matter. It seems clear that the Bible allows for moderate consumption of alcohol, while condemning it’s abuse.
As far as our witness is concerned, wouldn’t it be better for Christians to model before the world the virtue of self-control (moderation), rather than impose a legalistic demand that God Himself has not placed upon us? Even the unbeliever can detect this hypocrisy as we add to what God already said in His word.
The bottom line is for us to respect each other’s decision to drink or abstain. Let’s allow grace to flow freely toward each other.
Blessings.
Todd
21 On Oct 22nd, 2007, at 3:38pm, Rebekah Akers wrote:
I Respect Everyone’s Opinion on The Issue Of Alcohol. What I have recently learned and discovered about alcohol I would have to say that alcohol should not be consumed. I agree that yes Satan does use this addiction and weakness to detroy our lives and that is what truly makes me want to stay away from it. Yes, There are many other things to to be addicted to as well. It’s not just a matter of whether the Lord see’s it as sin, becouse he will forgive any sin, but just take a look at what it does to our youth that are not so strong yet in the Lord. I choose not to drink, but I also know that I too have a weak side that could turn to it any day depending on my circumstances. The blessing in recognizing this, is that I know the Lord and I choose to turn to him. Some people don’t know Jesus and the damage is costly. Alcohol is not worth the price some pay.
22 On Dec 28th, 2007, at 7:21pm, Thomas E. Doyle wrote:
I respond to a comment by Judy Kratochvil back on 9/7/2006. While I do not profess to know the Bible as a scholar, I immediately thought of Luke when she spoke of the use of alcohol. If we study first the Gospel of Luke in 1:15 we see that when the angel spoke to John the Baptist’s father Zacharias- he mentioned that John would be great in the sight of the LORD. Also that he would not drink wine or strong drink and - here is the catch- he will be filled with the Holy Spirit. This to my understanding, tells us “if we are filled with the Holy Spirit” we should not drink alcohol. If one will also look at how Sampson “was to live” without alcohol. Remember during the LORD’s walk here on earth, few were filled with the Holy Spirit. Thank you.
PS I write because we are working to keep our county free of alcohol on Sundays and we are looking everyplace on earth for good support. tom doyle in western Maryland
23 On Jan 14th, 2008, at 9:58am, Kimberly Loomis wrote:
John P (Jack) Winter, my name is Kimberly Loomis. Nice to meet you. Now you can say that you have met a drinker of alcohol who has NEVER gotten drunk. God Bless!
Tom Doyle: really? you’re working to keep our country free of alcohol on Sundays? Like Mormons have done in Utah? I guess you’d have to actually know the American culture to know that all your idea is going to do is further confirm in people’s minds that the church is a rule-ridden hypocrisy driven institution that they need to avoid. I wish people would stop trying to legislate Christianity. It’s Christ and the Holy Spirit that makes all things new, not laws.