[472 words]
Drinking is becoming more accepted in society and in the church. This week within a 24-hour period a deacon in one state and a preacher in another shared their experiences with me. The deacon said they are having trouble reaching young people. Why? His answer: “They want to party.” The preacher related a sad situation in a church he knew about. Some college boys—some of whom take a lead in worship—formed a club where they get together and drink different kinds of alcohol. When their fiasco came to light, one of the elders backed them up and said there is nothing wrong with drinking!
Solomon said, “Do not look on the wine when it is red, when it sparkles in the cup” (Prov. 23:31). To “look upon” doesn’t mean just to see a bottle of alcohol. It means to long for it, to look at it and desire it. How can any Christian say it is not wrong to drink when the Bible says he is not even to want it? And how can a Christian say one drink is okay when this verse says to stay away from the first cup?
When Peter talked about the former lifestyle of some Christians in the first century, he said, “For we have spent enough of our past lifetime in doing the will of the Gentiles—when we walked in lewdness, lusts, drunkenness, revelries, drinking parties, and abominable idolatries” (1 Pet. 4:3). He used three words that describe different types and circumstances of drinking.
One is drunkenness. This is from the word oinophluyia which is from oinos, wine and phluo, to overflow. This is a general word for being intoxicated, inebriated, or in common language stoned or just plain drunk.
The second word is revelries. This from the word komos which refers to “drinking parties that are protracted till late at night and indulge in revelry” (Thayer, Greek-English Lexicon, p. 367). The emphasis is on the partying that goes with drinking.
The third word is “banquetings” in the King James and “drinking parties” in the New King James. The word in Greek is potos which means drinking. It is used in the plural form and means drinkings — drinking for pleasure of any kind. It can include drunkenness but it also includes “social drinking” or “drinking in moderation.”
Christians who defend drinking say, “The Bible says getting drunk is wrong but it doesn’t condemn drinking a beer or two or a glass of wine now and then.” Yes it does. This verse specifically mentions it.
“Wine is a mocker, strong drink is a brawler, and whoever is led astray by it is not wise” (Prov. 20:1). Drinking has caused more misery than we can possibly measure. Why on earth Christians engage in it and then argue for it is beyond my comprehension.
Kerry Duke
West End church of Christ
Livingston, TN