Christians and alcohol??? Is it Ok or Not and why do feel that way?

[munchkinaplenty]

This is a discussion that was going on in a Christian debate group I am in.. I was wondering what you ladies think on the subject? lets be nice and respect each other view..

[dloand3kids]

My DH and I very very rarely indulge in alcohol.  We had a bottle of wine given to us at Christmas-it took us 3 days to finish!  We are just not comfortable drinking, and feel that we must try and stay in control of our thoughts and actions, over indulgence of alcohol can lead us to not be in control, and a easy target for Satan to step in.

[dlkht]

 I do not believe that the bible supports the use of alcohol for social purposes.  My husband occasionally uses it for medicinal purposes when he cannot sleep from pain and advil is not enough, but we do not drink in our household.  We feel that its to easy to get out of control, and its not a good influence for the kids to follow. 

[Saira222]

We don't believe moderate drinking is a problem, but considering our family histories and our previous experiences it is not something we take lightly. I had one drink three years ago, but looking back I just wanted the fruity taste and could have ordered a non-alcoholic version. Hubby hadn't had a drink for longer

[AutumnDreamer]

What about the wedding in Canaan?  The scriptures clearly say that they used wine during the festivities, including Jesus turning water into wine and when presented to the people the response was "most people serve the best first and when everyone is drunk they bring out the not so good stuff when no one will notice, but you saved the best wine for last" I am paraphrasing b/c I don't feel like looking it up.

I believe that alcohol in an of itself is not a sin, it is the abuse of that alcohol that is a sin.  I don't even believe the being drunk is a sin, IMO the reason for getting drunk is the sin, and being a drunk (ie alcoholic) is a sin.

Quoting dlkht:

 I do not believe that the bible supports the use of alcohol for social purposes.  My husband occasionally uses it for medicinal purposes when he cannot sleep from pain and advil is not enough, but we do not drink in our household.  We feel that its to easy to get out of control, and its not a good influence for the kids to follow. 

[bekalynne440]

I believe some alcohol in moderation is okay.

My husband and I have chosen not to keep any in the house while our kids are growing up, though.  His parents weren't practicing believers until he was a teenager.  Before then his parents were heavy drinkers.  He and his brother both snuck alcohol on multiple occasions.  My parents didn't have alcohol in the house when I was growing up.  In complete honesty if they did have some when I was a teenager I would have really wanted to sneak some (and I was actually a pretty good kid).  The law is under 21 aren't supposed to drink and scripture says to follow the law.  I think having it in a house with children can become a stubling block for those children, and I don't want to cause a stubling block for my children.

[mnmo3bb]

My husband looked into this over a year ago and came to the conclusion to not drink at all. The alcohol content was much lower in the Biblical wine (about 2%) and the Bible says in 1 Peter 5:8

Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour:

http://www.kingjamesbibleonline.org/search.php?cx=partner-pub-3004108712154911%3Ac4rrh3xku7n&cof=FORID%3A10&ie=ISO-8859-1&safe=on&q=sober&sa=Search

Sober is mentioned quite alot along with drunkard: 1 Corinthians 5:11

But now I have written unto you not to keep company, if any man that is called a brother be a fornicator, or covetous, or an idolater, or a railer, or a drunkard, or an extortioner; with such an one no not to eat.

I think it is safe to say that it isn't okay to get drunk and that when drinking alcohol, we should proceed with caution. My husband, knowing that he in the past has had issues will not have a drink. I personally would like to find an organic, goodtasting low alcohol wine to enjoy on occassion but it isn't a priority at the moment.