Before I move any further on this subject I want to put it out there that, until I did this research, I myself enjoyed a glass of wine or brandy at the end of a long day. However, I do not enjoy the way it feels to be drunk. So, as a habit, I drank conservatively and in moderation. Sometime in January of this year I began to feel a conviction when drinking that I couldn’t quite make sense of. As far as I could tell I wasn’t doing anything wrong. As God would have it, in the midst of this time, I was reading my Fire Bible and came across an article titled “Wine in the Bible”. Oh my gosh did that open my eyes!!! I totally understand why I felt convicted, and now I’d like to share this info with you. With that being said, I am not condemning anyone. I am writing strictly for informational purposes. Pray and follow your own convictions. And please be friendly and civil in the chat. Our goal is to be a community of supporters, encouragers, and leaders, not great debaters! Please share your thoughts and experiences, but do not force your opinions on others!
So, why would a Christian think it’s okay to drink wine? Well, Of course, because Jesus did it. Obviously its fine! He made wine for the people at the wedding in Cana. He drank wine at the Last Supper. He definitely promoted healthy alcohol consumption, right? Even Paul told Timothy to drink a little wine when his stomach bothered him. We’re going to look at all three of these instances today and dig around for some understanding. But first, let’s learn a little bit about what wine was back in Jesus’ day. You may be surprised. I definitely was!
Most commonly, the New Testament word for wine is oinos. This word can refer to fermented or unfermented grape juice. Revelation 6:6 refers to grapes still on the vine as oinos. In Revelation 19:5 Christ is in the winepress making oinos. The juice that comes out of a winepress is fresh and unfermented. Historical figures such as Aristotle (alive in 500 BC), Nicander (alive in the 2nd century BC), and Athenaus (alive in 200 AD) all referred to fresh grape juice as wine. According to various ancient authors, “choice wine” (as in John 2:10) was the sweetest wine. The cheaper wine was the old, fermented juice. In ancient times, wine wasn’t thought to improve with age because it could sour into vinegar or form undesirable sediment. People went out of their way to prevent their wine from going sour by using methods of concentrating the juice (They boiled it down to 1/3 of its volume. This gave it a high sugar concentration that stopped it from spoiling or fermenting) or using underwater storage. Yup, you heard me. They sealed up barrels full of juice and stored them in cool water during the warm seasons. Then in cool seasons they took the barrels out. Doing this, they could keep their juice fresh for up to a year.
Okay, so there’s your crash course in wine culture BC. Now let’s talk about the miracle at the wedding in Cana. There are a few reasons I don’t think the wine served there contained alcohol. 1) The miracle at the wedding was intended to reveal Jesus’ glory (John 2:11) and inspire faith in the hearts of His disciples. Jesus making new, sweet, fresh harvested grape juice from plain old water would have brought Him and His Father much glory. On the other hand, Jesus producing some old fermented juice that was close to vinegar….. not so much. 2) Getting people drunk wouldn’t have glorified Him or His father. After all, Jesus came not to destroy the Law, but to fulfill it, right? (Matthew 5:17). 2) In Leviticus 10: 8-10 the Lord instructs Aaron and his descendants not to drink alcohol while serving in the priesthood. He warns them they will die if they do. He tells Aaron to learn to distinguish what is holy from what is common. Jesus was and still is holy. 3) Also, Jesus also acknowledged the prophets (Matthew 7:12). He would have known the writings of Habakkuk. In Habakkuk 2:15-16 it says, “What sorrow awaits you who make your neighbors drunk! …… Come, drink and be exposed! Drink from the cup of the Lord’s judgement, and all your glory will be turned to shame.” I believe that Jesus encouraging people to get drunk would have opened up doors for Him to receive judgement from His Father.
Okay, let’s talk about the Lord’s Supper. Most of us are familiar with this story, but let’s recap for everyone’s sake. Jesus and his 12 disciples were celebrating Passover with a meal. This is their very last meal together as a group (until after the resurrection anyway). As Jesus is warning His disciples of his coming death he shares somewhat of an analogy with them; ” Eat this bread. It is my body which I have broken for you. Drink this wine. It is my blood which I have spilled for you. Do these things in remembrance of me.” (My summation of Luke 22:19-20). Here’s a little fun fact about Passover week: Consuming anything that has been fermented is forbidden during the entire week of Passover. Is your mind blown? Mine was. For years I’ve been taught that Jesus shared real, fermented wine with His disciples at Passover. It was all a big lie. Passover law is spelled out in Exodus 12:14-20. All the emphasis on “unleavened” and “no leavening within your homes” and “don’t consume anything leavened” speaks of the fermentation process that happens when yeast is introduced to a food. Any idea what we use to make wine? Yup, it’s yeast. Shocked yet? I was floored. Jesus perfectly fulfilled the Law (Matthew 5:17) which means there was only grape juice at the table that evening.
For those of you who enjoy parables and analogies, yeast and fermentation in the Bible often symbolize corruption and sin (like in Matthew 16:6 & 16:12, 1 Corinthians 5: 6-8). The Passover bread had to be unleavened, representing Christ’s pure and sinless body. The Passover wine had to be unfermented, representing the pure and “choice”, precious blood of Jesus. 1 Peter 1:18-19 says, ” Knowing that you were ransomed from the futile ways inherited by your forefathers, not with perishable things like silver or gold, but with the precious blood of Christ, like that of a lamb without blemish or spot.” Do you see the reference? The unleavened bread, the lamb without blemish… they both represent the body of the sinless son of God. The same thing with the wine; unfermented wine represented the pure and holy blood of Jesus. The whole ceremony of Passover is a word picture that points to Christ’s sacrifice. Alcohol consumption support story number two…. DEBUNKED.
Let’s look at one more. Lastly, we have 1 Timothy 5:23, “No longer drink only water, but use a little wine for the sake of your stomach and your frequent ailments” I did some research and many scholars think that Timothy suffered from a stomach ulcer. Grape juice is known to help soothe the pain of an ulcer and promote healing. There are lots of antioxidants in grape juice, as well as other vitamins and minerals that can bring about health benefits. Any health property that fermented wine contains is from the grape juice it contains. With time those properties diminish. (I’m talking about the old way of wine making without preservation, when the juice slowly becomes acidic and turns to vinegar. This is what Timothy would have had access to.) I’m fully convinced Paul told Timothy to drink grape juice. The alternative just doesn’t make sense.
These are the three reasons I thought alcohol consumption was okay and even promoted in the Bible, but all of them were proven wrong thanks to my awesome Fire Bible and a little independent research. I felt so strongly convicted I cleared all the alcohol out of my house and haven’t touched a drink since!! I feel better knowing the truth, and I have peace in my soul now. Praise God for truth and freedom! Hallelujah!