Thursday, March 01, 2007

The Deception of Drunkeness: Drinking from the River of Death

Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

I pen this email with great sadness. The Deception of Drunkenness has invaded our churches - its leadership, its cell groups, and its members. It has become a normal occurrence in the church. I am led by the Spirit of God to bring forth this argument in obedience. I would also not ask you to challenge me, for it is not me that seeks to cause offence, but rather it is the Holy Spirit convicting us of sin, and He is looking for repentance from His people who are called to be Holy - separate from the world.

I am a rehabilitated alcoholic. I failed many times in my life to control this demon in my own strength. Going to Alcoholics Anonymous twice a week could not rescue me. It was the saving power of Jesus Christ that set me free. I could not do it without God. To Him are all the Praise and the Glory! I would be nothing without Him!

There are many alcoholics struggling with temptation on a daily basis. They have the victory every day, one day at a time, through the strength of the Holy Spirit. Socially they (like me) should avoid bars, pubs, and parties where alcohol is served. However, it is becoming prevalent in the church today for alcohol to be consumed by Christians at social gatherings. Who has ever heard of praying, and laying of hands, and then going for a drink afterwards? What is this Deception of Drunkenness?

What are we showing those in the world? How holy are we? What about our brothers and sisters successfully battling with the demons of alcohol or drug addiction? What is the message at social gatherings where Christians consume alcohol? Why would you not consider causing someone to stumble, or placing temptation before them?

Romans 14: 21

20 Do not destroy the work of God for the sake of food. All things indeed are pure, but it is evil for the man who eats with offence. 21 It is good neither to eat meat nor drink wine nor do anything by which your brother stumbles or is offended or is made weak.

1 Corinthians 8: 13

9 But beware lest somehow this liberty of yours become a stumbling block to those who are weak. 10 For if anyone sees you who have knowledge eating in an idol's temple, will not the conscience of him who is weak be emboldened to eat those things offered to idols? 11 And because of your knowledge shall the weak brother perish, for whom Christ died? 12 But when you thus sin against the brethren, and wound their weak conscience, you sin against Christ. 13 Therefore, if food makes my brother stumble, I will never again eat meat, lest I make my brother stumble.

Habakkuk 2:15
15 " Woe to him who gives drink to his neighbour, Pressing him to your bottle, Even to make him drunk, That you may look on his nakedness!
I have put forward most of my argument from the New Testament, because I realise that it could be argued that we live under Grace and not under the Law of the Old Testament.

Here are some scriptures that support how God feels about drunkenness and drunkards:
Matthew 24: 49

48 But if that evil servant says in his heart, 'My master is delaying his coming,' 49 and begins to beat his fellow servants, and to eat and drink with the drunkards, 50 the master of that servant will come on a day when he is not looking for him and at an hour that he is not aware of, 51 and will cut him in two and appoint him his portion with the hypocrites. There shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth.

Luke 12: 19

19 And I will say to my soul, "Soul, you have many goods laid up for many years; take your ease; eat, drink, and be merry."' 20 But God said to him, 'Fool! This night your soul will be required of you; then whose will those things be which you have provided?'

Luke 12: 45

45 But if that servant says in his heart, 'My master is delaying his coming,' and begins to beat the male and female servants, and to eat and drink and be drunk, 46 the master of that servant will come on a day when he is not looking for him, and at an hour when he is not aware, and will cut him in two and appoint him his portion with the unbelievers. 47 And that servant who knew his master's will, and did not prepare himself or do according to his will, shall be beaten with many stripes. 48 But he who did not know, yet committed things deserving of stripes, shall be beaten with few. For everyone to whom much is given, from him much will be required; and to whom much has been committed, of him they will ask the more.

1 Corinthians 11: 21

20 Therefore when you come together in one place, it is not to eat the Lord's Supper. 21 For in eating, each one takes his own supper ahead of others; and one is hungry and another is drunk. 22 What! Do you not have houses to eat and drink in? Or do you despise the church of God and shame those who have nothing? What shall I say to you? Shall I praise you in this? I do not praise you.

1 Corinthians 15: 32

32 If, in the manner of men, I have fought with beasts at Ephesus, what advantage is it to me? If the dead do not rise, "Let us eat and drink, for tomorrow we die!"33 Do not be deceived: "Evil company corrupts good habits." 34 Awake to righteousness, and do not sin; for some do not have the knowledge of God. I speak this to your shame.

1 Thessalonians 5: 7

5 You are all sons of light and sons of the day. We are not of the night nor of darkness. 6 Therefore let us not sleep, as others do, but let us watch and be sober. 7 For those who sleep, sleep at night, and those who get drunk are drunk at night. 8 But let us who are of the day be sober, putting on the breastplate of faith and love, and as a helmet the hope of salvation. 9 For God did not appoint us to wrath, but to obtain salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ, 10 who died for us, that whether we wake or sleep, we should live together with Him.11 Therefore comfort each other and edify one another, just as you also are doing.


Listen to what the Lord says about leadership:


1 Timothy 3 : 1-13

1 This is a faithful saying: If a man desires the position of a bishop, he desires a good work. 2 A bishop then must be blameless, the husband of one wife, temperate, sober-minded, of good behaviour, hospitable, able to teach; 3 not given to wine, not violent, not greedy for money, but gentle, not quarrelsome, not covetous; 4 one who rules his own house well, having his children in submission with all reverence 5 (for if a man does not know how to rule his own house, how will he take care of the church of God?); 6 not a novice, lest being puffed up with pride he fall into the same condemnation as the devil. 7 Moreover he must have a good testimony among those who are outside, lest he fall into reproach and the snare of the devil.

8 Likewise deacons must be reverent, not double-tongued, not given to much wine, not greedy for money, 9 holding the mystery of the faith with a pure conscience. 10 But let these also first be tested; then let them serve as deacons, being found blameless. 11 Likewise, their wives must be reverent, not slanderers, temperate, faithful in all things. 12 Let deacons be the husbands of one wife, ruling their children and their own houses well. 13 For those who have served well as deacons obtain for themselves a good standing and great boldness in the faith which is in Christ Jesus.

Herewith direct references to the sin of drunkenness:

Luke 21:34

34 "But take heed to yourselves, lest your hearts be weighed down with carousing, drunkenness, and cares of this life, and that Day come on you unexpectedly. 35 For it will come as a snare on all those who dwell on the face of the whole earth. 36 Watch therefore, and pray always that you may be counted worthy to escape all these things that will come to pass, and to stand before the Son of Man."

Romans 13: 13

12 The night is far spent, the day is at hand. Therefore let us cast off the works of darkness, and let us put on the armour of light. 13 Let us walk properly, as in the day, not in revelry and drunkenness, not in lewdness and lust, not in strife and envy. 14 But put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh, to fulfil its lusts.

1 Corinthians 5: 11

11 But now I have written to you not to keep company with anyone named a brother, who is sexually immoral, or covetous, or an idolater, or a reviler, or a drunkard, or an extortioner-not even to eat with such a person.

1 Corinthians 6: 10

9 Do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived. Neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor homosexuals, nor sodomites, 10 nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners will inherit the kingdom of God. 11 And such were some of you. But you were washed, but you were sanctified, but you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus and by the Spirit of our God.

Galatians 5: 21

19 Now the works of the flesh are evident, which are: adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lewdness, 20 idolatry, sorcery, hatred, contentions, jealousies, outbursts of wrath, selfish ambitions, dissensions, heresies, 21 envy, murders, drunkenness, revelries, and the like; of which I tell you beforehand, just as I also told you in time past, that those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.

Ephesians 5: 18

17 Therefore do not be unwise, but understand what the will of the Lord is. 18 And do not be drunk with wine, in which is dissipation; but be filled with the Spirit, 19 speaking to one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord, 20 giving thanks always for all things to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, 21 submitting to one another in the fear of God.

1 Peter 4: 3

3 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. 4 In regard to these, they think it strange that you do not run with them in the same flood of dissipation, speaking evil of you.


Some thoughts to consider:

Nowhere does it say that drinking a beer, or having a glass of wine is a sin. DRUNKENNESS is a sin!
Where is the line between sobriety and drunkenness? Once you are tipsy it's already too late! You have sinned! If you know that you may get tipsy, then in my mind that is premeditated sin!
Why have an alcoholic beverage, unless you want to feel "better". That is, an altered state of being - under the influence of alcohol - sinning. Why drink at all! What is one drink going to do for you? Is it pride? If you have to drink, so you don't feel like an outcast - is it fear? How about shame? These are not exactly godly emotions.
Alcohol changes personalities. Most people drink to relax, to become more outgoing, to be more sociable. They drink to feel better, or to escape their problems. This is opening oneself up to the influence of demonic forces.
Drinking socially at Christian get-togethers, to make oneself more socially acceptable is Liquid Idolatry!
Why be filled with the spirit from a bottle, when one can be filled with the Holy Spirit. After all there is "no high, like the Most High!".

Finally...

One has to ask oneself is it worth it? Is it wise, or honourable to Drink from the River of Death?

2 Comments:

Blogger Doreen Hardie said...

We all need to heed the Word of God!

4:50 am  
Blogger Doreen Hardie said...

This comment has been removed by the author.

6:55 am  

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