You can't have your pastor be a drunk. He can't linger on the bottle and sit long at the bar. The verse prohibits the man from being one who has an uncontrollable appetite for drinking. This verse does not demand that a pastor be a teetotaler. It may not be wise for a pastor to drink wine. It might not be helpful and might be a hindrance to minister in the context in which a pastor lives and serves. This verse doesn't say whether or not there is wisdom in drinking wine, nor does it say whether it is good to drink wine, it just says the line is that a man cannot be addicted to it. My personal feelings about it and my convictions about it really don't matter here. All that matters is what God says.
In order to make wine sinful you have to redefine words
and removed the plain meaning of the English language. You can’t say that when Jesus
turned the water into wine, it was actually grape juice and then say when Paul
said not to be given to wine, he meant alcohol. I guess you can do that, but
you can’t do that without twisting words like a nervous girl does her pigtails.
The Lord Jesus himself drank wine and was called a winebibber, unless you think
men insulted Jesus by accusing him of drinking too much grape juice.
If I am to bow the knee to Jesus, then I have to bow the
knee to His Word, whether I like it or not. Whether or not I am in agreement
with other men or not. I cannot presuppose my doctrine is true and go to the book to prove it. Many in the USA grow
up with the idea that wine and strong drink are the Devil’s brew and even for
some to submit to the Lord’s Supper requires faith and the breaking of our will
and some of our preconceived notions. I grew up in a context that any strong
drink whatsoever, was considered great evil.
The problem comes from the presuppositions and the
starting point. If you say “wine is evil” and start from that point and work
your way out, you will find a way to justify your notion. If you start from the
point “what does the Bible say about wine and what was the Biblical position of
those men in the Bible” you’ll come to another conclusion entirely.
Mark 7:9 And he
said unto them, Full well ye reject the commandment of God, that ye may keep
your own tradition.
Alcohol is not evil. This can be a shocking statement for
people, but it is a Biblical one. Alcohol
is an inanimate object, it is God’s creation and is neither good nor evil of
itself. The Bible does not forbid the use of alcohol, but the Word of God forbids
drunkenness. The Bible, nowhere, prohibits the use of wine. Something is only sinful if God says it is
sinful. I will not be put under any person’s laws.
What does the Bible say about wine?
Wine is a good gift.
Psalms 104:14-15
He causeth the grass to grow for the cattle, and herb for the service of
man: that he may bring forth food out of
the earth; (15) And wine that maketh glad the heart of man,
and oil to make his face to shine, and bread which strengtheneth man's heart.
Deuteronomy 14:24-26
And if the way be too long for thee, so that thou art not able to carry
it; or if the place be too far from thee, which the LORD thy God shall choose
to set his name there, when the LORD thy God hath blessed thee: (25)
Then shalt thou turn it into money, and bind up the money in thine hand, and shalt go unto the place which the
LORD thy God shall choose: (26) And thou shalt bestow that money for whatsoever
thy soul lusteth after, for oxen, or for sheep, or for wine, or for strong
drink, or for whatsoever thy soul desireth: and thou shalt eat there before the
LORD thy God, and thou shalt rejoice, thou, and thine household,
Judges 9:13 And the vine said unto them, Should I leave
my wine, which cheereth God and man, and go to be promoted over the trees?
Wine is and was used in the worship of God, so it cannot
be evil.
The Churches Used Wine in the New Testament (I Cor
11:20-22) and it is the cup of blessing (1 Corinthians 10:16).
Numbers 15:7 And
for a drink offering thou shalt offer the third part of an hin of wine, for a
sweet savour unto the LORD.
Exodus 29:40 And
with the one lamb a tenth deal of flour mingled with the fourth part of an hin
of beaten oil; and the fourth part of an hin of wine for a drink offering.
Leviticus 23:13
And the meat offering thereof shall be two tenth deals of fine flour
mingled with oil, an offering made by fire unto the LORD for a sweet savour:
and the drink offering thereof shall be of wine, the fourth part of an hin.
So. Long story short, a pastor can't be a drunk and has the freedom to drink wine and has the freedom to go without.
So. Long story short, a pastor can't be a drunk and has the freedom to drink wine and has the freedom to go without.
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