I can't believe I went through all of 2013 without a single blog entry. It was a crazy year with a lot of transition but one that God blessed beyond measure. He clearly reveals so much wisdom to me through the power of the Holy Spirit but I confess that I keep most of it to myself because I don't want to put my thoughts "out there" and possibly offend someone. However, through conversations with other believers, I realize the benefit in being transparent and trust the prodding at my heart is from God. So I took the time to put into words which I know so many of us struggle with in Christian living.
At the heart of the issue is the ways in which we, as Christians, create boundaries for others in an attempt to keep sin at bay but in doing so, we may be stifling the potential for Holy Spirit to convict and move and lead as He sees fit. In particular I see this evident when it comes to the sensitive topic of Christians who drink . . . yes alcohol (hold your gasp). This is a subject that I have prayed about, researched, and consulted with people seasoned in their walk with the Lord and I wanted to share what I've learned. Before I go any further, I am not talking about getting drunk. It clearly states that being drunk is wrong (Ephesians 5:18 "do not be drunk with wine, in which is dissipation; but be filled with the Spirit"). I am talking about an occasional glass of wine with friends or a beer with dinner which I believe we cannot approach with a "one size fits all" mentality.
The easiest way to break it down is to respond to the arguments I have heard used to support why Christians shouldn't drink alcohol. One of the most common things I hear is that "you don't know what someone struggles with and you wouldn't want to cause a brother to sin." The verse often quoted is Matthew 18:8 "whoever causes one of these little ones who believe in Me to sin, it would be better for him if a millstone were hung around his neck, and he were drowned in the depth of the sea." I agree that consciously leading someone to sin is absolutely wrong and encouraging any kind of sinful behavior is an offense against God. However to interpret this verse to mean we have to avoid something due to the POSSIBILITY that someone MIGHT sin, we are walking into very restrictive territory. If this is our logic than we must also avoid inviting someone to a buffet or offering someone seconds at a meal because that person MIGHT struggle with gluttony. It would mean not wearing anything that reveals skin between the ankle and the neck at the POSSIBILITY that someone struggles with lust. Oh and don't talk about your recent purchases or shopping trips at the risk of tempting someone into greed or jealousy. Do you see where I'm going? There is no end to this way of thinking. I will say that if you know someone struggles with a certain area of temptation or their painful past is revealed, then it is your responsibility to respond out of respect and love accordingly to the issue they share. But this is not isolated to alcohol but any area including sex, food, idolatry, etc and that is when we rely on the wisdom of the Holy Spirit to give us discernment to handle these situations.
Another common point made is that "drinking can damage your witness." There may be some truth to this, especially in the context of church leadership. I do feel that there are those that God calls to be set a part and this could include the area of consuming alcohol. But we must be careful to establish policies and platforms that seem to encourage a superficial change for the sake of "what others think." This is the very thing that Jesus told the proud to avoid, "Do not judge according to appearance, but judge with righteous judgment" (John 7:24).
I was recently reminded of the story in Matthew 15 when the scribes and Pharisees tried to call out the disciples of Jesus for not washing their hands before eating. There was a tradition passed down from first-century Jews by their elders to wash their hands in a very specific manner before, during and after eating. However this ritual was not a part of Old Testament law. Jesus responds to the scribes and Pharisees by pointing out the ways they put tradition over Scripture and in verse 11 Jesus says "Hear and understand: Not what goes into the mouth defiles a man; but what comes out of the mouth, this defiles a man." Christ came to free us from the law by the power of the Holy Spirit to convict and lead where He pleases. But yet we continue to live in fear of what others think which in turn paralyzes our walk with the Lord.
I just heard a statistic this past Sunday that after four years of becoming a Christian, the majority of Christians do not have friends outside of church. Does this surprise anyone? It doesn't surprise me because most Christians are too afraid of what their Christian friends think to associate with non-Christians. What would people think if they saw a pastor coming out of a bar? Well I don't know what other people would think but I would think "there's someone who knows how to reach the lost." Not in a state of drunkenness or sin, but confident in their faith and walking in the fruit of the Spirit to exercise self-control. I've also heard that Christians avoid situations where alcohol may be present because of the risk of it being posted on social media and the judgements that may follow. For me, that is a risk I'm willing to take and if judgements are passed about me based on assumptions then they will be passed regardless of the subject. It could be on what I was wearing or who I was with or the expression on my face and if I buy into that fear, then I wouldn't go anywhere.
I absolutely believe that God calls some of us to live a life free of alcohol for the sake of His bigger purpose, the same way he calls some people to homeschool or to adopt or to have a large family or to the mission field. These are all personal convictions between the individual and the Lord and not meant to be blanket directions for all Christians. We can encourage others who might feel the same way or reveal the ways in which God directed us down a certain path but there should be no condemnation for those who don't make the same choice. I know that there have been times when I have shared a glass of wine with friends that lead to great conversation and an open dialogue about faith and eternal issues. I can think of several examples of when having a beer with friends ended with some eye-opening theological discussions. I recently heard of a chaplain sharing cigars with men who sought his counsel in an effort to foster relationships. It was his ability to step down into their world for a moment with the love of Jesus that those men shared their heart and felt a genuine connection. People might call it "compromising" or "being of the world" but I see it as great confidence in the face of temptation or ridicule for the sake of building trusting relationships. Maybe those conversations could have happened in a different manner but they didn't and God used those encounters in that setting at that time to fulfill a divine appointment.
I have repeatedly asked the Lord if I need to remove alcohol from my life and so far, the answer has been no. I reflect on the fact that there would be no communion without wine. It was the wine that was blessed at the passover feast that is referred to His blood shed for us. It is the wine that came from water at the wedding celebration in Cana which Jesus first revealed His capability to do the impossible . . . and it wasn't just any wine, it was GOOD wine. And yet so many Christians would rather He have turned wine into water to fit their personal platform.
This is our family's truth because struggles with alcohol are not part of our past or our present situation. Therefore we are able to make those decisions with discipline and control. If this is you, then do so accordingly and if the Holy Spirit convicts otherwise, then obey. But my prayer is that regardless of what you are convicted of, that you exercise caution and restraint before you pass judgement on others because it is in that prideful air of self-righteousness that we will ultimately fail to walk rightly with the Lord.
