Is Drunkenness a Sin?
Alcohol intoxication is expressly forbidden in the Bible. Scripture contains several prohibitions against certain activities, including lying, intoxication, and sexual immorality. However, the Bible is much more than a comprehensive catalog of “sins.” We are missing the mark when we tackle it that way. God does not want us to think that everything is okay if we cross something off a list. That is what the Pharisees did, and Jesus was not happy with them. Obedience from a loving heart that aspires to be like Him is what God wants.
While it’s wrong to get wasted, what about drinking in moderation? For ages, the church has debated the issue of alcohol consumption. Most Christians believed that using alcohol in any form was wicked many years ago. Today there is a much greater acceptance for moderate consumption of alcohol among Christians. In Bible times, anyone set apart for God was to totally abstain from any fruit of the vine during the time of his consecration. Wine was sometimes symbolic of worldly contamination, and those called into priestly service were to abstain from it when ministering in the tabernacle. Such warnings have led many followers of Christ to forgo alcohol altogether, deeming any use of it unwise. Although drinking in moderation is not condemned in Scripture, losing self-control is, and there are many warnings about alcohol’s destructive nature.
“Do not get drunk on wine, which leads to debauchery,” advises Ephesians 5:18. Be filled with the Spirit instead. We are comparing two things: the Holy Spirit and alcohol. Each has the capacity to take control of a person’s thoughts and actions, but with radically differing outcomes. Self-control is lost when one is intoxicated; self-control is increased when one is filled with the Spirit. The Holy Spirit cannot rule over us simultaneously with drunken spirits. We essentially opt to submit to the authority of something other than the Holy Spirit when we decide to consume mind-altering drugs. Anything that seizes command of our thoughts, desires, or feelings is a fake deity. Any master we obey other than the Lord is an idol, and idolatry is sin.
It is wrong to get wasted. Jesus said, “You cannot serve two masters,” whether it is with regard to drugs, alcohol, or any other addictive activity. When we overindulge in drink or get stoned, we are not serving the Lord as our master. Making the decision to follow Jesus requires rejecting our previous, wicked habits and way of life. We cannot follow Jesus and indulge in immorality, intoxication, or worldly wisdom at the same time. Their directions are diametrically opposed. Drunks are included among those who “will not inherit the kingdom of God” in First Corinthians 6:10. We cannot be followers of Christ if we choose to live our lives according to our sin. When we choose drunkenness in spite of God’s command against it, we are choosing disobedience and cannot, in that state, be in fellowship with a holy God who condemns it.
📌FOR FURTHER STUDY
📖 Christians and Alcohol: A Scriptural Case for Abstinence