Alcohol: What Does the Bible Really Say (Part 2)

By Clifton Angel       Concerning Jesus turning water to “wine”, we must not stray from the truth concerning Jesus’ Deity and perfection. He is God; therefore, He cannot lie (Titus 1:2; c.f. Numbers 23:19; 2 Timothy 2:16; Hebrews 6:18). He cannot lie because such would be a contradiction to His very nature. And anything contrary to the commandments in His Word would be contrary to His very nature. Furthermore, if Jesus contradicted His commandments, He sinned, and if He sinned, Christians are of all people, the most miserable. Jesus NEVER sinned (Hebrews 4:15; 1 Peter 2:22; 1 John 3:5). With that said, what commandments can we find within the Word that cannot be contradicted by Jesus?     In the old law that He came to fulfill (Matt. 5:17), we find that the Bible says: “Who hath woe? who hath sorrow? who hath contentions? who hath babbling? who hath wounds without cause? who hath redness of eyes? They that tarry long at the wine; they that go to seek mixed wine. Look not thou upon the wine when it is red, when it giveth his color in the cup, when it moveth itself aright. At the last it biteth like a serpent, and stingeth like an adder” (Proverbs 23:29-32). Notice that this admonition of wisdom commands that we not even “look upon” the wine, nor “seek” it because of its end (final effect).     In the New Testament, for which Jesus shed His blood (Matthew 26:28), we find that the Bible says, “drunkenness, revelings, and such like” will prevent us from going to Heaven (Galatians 5:19-21). Drunkenness is the excess of drinking alcohol, but revelings are the social gatherings where the process of drinking often takes place. Also, let us not overlook the “such like”. Furthermore, we could consider the imperative which forbids beginning the process of intoxication (Ephesians 5:18) and the numerous passages which demand sobriety (1 Thessalonians 5:6, 8; Titus 2:2, 4, 6; 1 Peter 1:13; 5:8). However, the most blatant travesty of suggesting that Jesus converted water to intoxicating wine is the direct contradiction to Peter’s prohibition of “banquetings” (drinking parties; 1 Peter 4:3).     The honest Bible student must conclude that the miraculous beverage Jesus provided at the wedding feast in Cana was fresh, unfermented wine. Even the ruler of the feast was astonished at the great quality of the beverage (John 2:9–10). Jesus never sinned, Jesus never contradicted His holy Word, and Jesus did not turn water into an intoxicating beverage.

- Clifton Angel preaches for the Coldwater Church of Christ in Coldwater, MS. He may be contacted through that congregation's website: http://www.coldwatercofc.com/