Subject: making wine.Did Jesus make a mistake. |
Bible Note: "My counter grenade toss would be: Which verse specifically commands us not to be gluttons? :-)" It has been a long day on the old Forum, hasn't it? For those of you taking Tim seriously, please see Proverbs 23:20-21 for starters. It connects gluttony and drunkenness as "twin sins." You also wrote: "I tossed the questions out in both fun and seriousness though. Is .005 blood alcohol not a sin, but .006 is a sin? Is drunkeness a state of being or a process?" I wouldn't be legalistic enough to identify a blood alcohol level any more than to set a calorie ceiling for gluttony. The key in both is moderation (not seeing how close one can get to the line without crossing it); and as you pointed out, it is never a sin NOT to casually drink alcohol. I think that drunkenness is both a state and a habit. Lastly, you wrote: "But, as I said many times before, I count this as a personal conviction which I would never force on anyone else. I simply don't see any good in alcohol. It doesn't make me more Christ-like, nor more intelligent (I can't spare any brain cells), so I see no reason to do it and many possible reasons to avoid it." This is the same way I feel about lima beans! This discussion comes up again at an interesting time for me, as I have been studying Romans 14 in my personal devotions and have recently gone through 1 Corinthians 8-10 with my wife. I consider this issue to be one that falls pretty squarely in the "adiaphora" category, and these four chapters have a lot to say about the proper use of our freedom in Christ, and how love for our brethren actually should act as a self-constraint on our liberty. Concern for Christ's honor and our brother's welfare should always be the governing principle in these gray areas. One thing that we can all agree on, hopefully: "Whether, then, you eat or drink or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God." --1 Corinthians 10:31 --Joe! |