Was Jesus A Social Drinker?

Bible Study

Was Jesus A Social Drinker?

INTRO: Always hear from lost sinners to justify their drinking that Jesus turned the water into wine so it must be ok to drink. Before we look closer at this one reference in the Bible let’s examine the effects of alcohol and see what place in the Bible it actually has, not what place we want it to have.
Alcohol Stats
9,000,000 alcoholics or problem drinkers.
200,000 new cases of alcoholism each year.
28,400 of the 50,000 killed in traffic accidents each year had alcohol in their blood at the time of the accident.
500,000 disabling injuries are suffered in crashes involving problem drinkers.
34,800 or more than half of the 60,000 non-highway accidental deaths are alcohol involved.
11,000 death certificates annually list alcoholism or alcohol psychoses as the cause.
2,000,000 (approximate) arrests each year for public drunkenness = 40% of all non-traffic arrests.
$21,700,000,000 latest annual expenditure by Americans for alcoholic beverages according to the Distilled Spirits Institute.
$15 BILLION annual economic drain because of alcoholism – in lost work time, health and welfare costs, property damages etc.
15% (approximate) of the 400,000 patients in state mental hospitals are under treatment for the problem of alcoholism.
OVER HALF the states report alcoholism the most frequent diagnosis for first admissions to state hospitals.
1/3 of all suicides are alcohol-related.
1/2 of all homicides are alcohol-related.
IMPOSSIBLE to estimate human suffering related to alcoholism, from broken homes, deserted families and problems of children of alcoholic parents.
(Statistics used above are based on material in a statement by Vernon E. Wilson, M.D., before the Senate Subcommittee on Alcoholism and Narcotics, March 18, 1971. Dr. Wilson was the Administrator of Health Services and Mental Health Administration, U.S. Department of Health Education and Welfare.)
— From The American Issue
NOTE: These statistics are over 35 years old – imagine what the current figures might be.

Also, according to statistics from Washington, two-thirds of homicides and serious assaults involve alcohol, as well as the fact that drink is responsible for one-third of all failed marriages and one in four family problems. Alcohol claims 25,000 lives each year on U.S. Highways.
Collegians drink to loosen up sexually, according to a sociology report from Duke University. They want to live up to the popular ideal of “recreational sex,” which they are really not comfortable with– so they drink to lose their inhibitions.
About 40 percent of college students admit they drink or take drugs.

NOTE* – In Bible terms, “wine” can refer to anything that comes from the grape. It can refer freshly prepared grape juice (Num. 18:12) or even to fermented juice (alcohol).

First mention Connected with sin and a curse

Genesis 9:20-25 (King James Bible)
20 And Noah began to be an husbandman, and he planted a vineyard:
21 And he drank of the wine, and was drunken; and he was uncovered within his tent.
22 And Ham, the father of Canaan, saw the nakedness of his father, and told his two brethren without.
23 And Shem and Japheth took a garment, and laid it upon both their shoulders, and went backward, and covered the nakedness of their father; and their faces were backward, and they saw not their father’s nakedness.
24 And Noah awoke from his wine, and knew what his younger son had done unto him.
25 And he said, Cursed be Canaan; a servant of servants shall he be unto his brethren.

New Wine Connected with a Blessing

Isaiah 65:8 (King James Bible)
8 Thus saith the LORD, As the new wine is found in the cluster, and one saith, Destroy it not; for a blessing is in it: so will I do for my servants’ sakes, that I may not destroy them all.
Context will determine whether blessing or a curse
Words —-> Wine, new wine, strong drink, fruit of the vine, mixed wine

New wine is found in the cluster

Isaiah 65:8 (King James Bible)
8 Thus saith the LORD, As the new wine is found in the cluster, and one saith, Destroy it not; for a blessing is in it: so will I do for my servants’ sakes, that I may not destroy them all.
Cluster pressed into cup
Genesis 40:9-12 (King James Version)
9 And the chief butler told his dream to Joseph, and said to him, In my dream, behold, a vine was before me
10 And in the vine were three branches: and it was as though it budded, and her blossoms shot forth; and the clusters thereof brought forth ripe grapes:
11 And Pharaoh’s cup was in my hand: and I took the grapes, and pressed them into Pharaoh’s cup, and I gave the cup into Pharaoh’s hand.
12 And Joseph said unto him, This is the interpretation of it: The three branches are three days:

Contrast to:
Deuteronomy 29:5-6 (King James Bible)
5 And I have led you forty years in the wilderness: your clothes are not waxen old upon you, and thy shoe is not waxen old upon thy foot.
6 Ye have not eaten bread, neither have ye drunk wine or strong drink: that ye might know that I am the LORD your God.
Pure Blood of the Grape
Deuteronomy 32:14 (King James Bible)
14 Butter of kine, and milk of sheep, with fat of lambs, and rams of the breed of Bashan, and goats, with the fat of kidneys of wheat; and thou didst drink the pure blood of the grape.

Fruit of the Vine

Matthew 26:28-30 (King James Bible)

28 For this is my blood of the new testament, which is shed for many for the remission of sins.
29 But I say unto you, I will not drink henceforth of this fruit of the vine, until that day when I drink it new with you in my Father’s kingdom.
30 And when they had sung an hymn, they went out into the mount of Olives.

Wine is said to be Poison and Venom
Deuteronomy 32:31-33 (King James Bible)
31 For their rock is not as our Rock, even our enemies themselves being judges.
32 For their vine is of the vine of Sodom, and of the fields of Gomorrah: their grapes are grapes of gall, their clusters are bitter:
33 Their wine is the poison of dragons, and the cruel venom of asps.

Wine of Violence
Proverbs 4:14-17 (King James Bible)
14 Enter not into the path of the wicked, and go not in the way of evil men.
15 Avoid it, pass not by it, turn from it, and pass away.
16 For they sleep not, except they have done mischief; and their sleep is taken away, unless they cause some to fall.
17For they eat the bread of wickedness, and drink the wine of violence.

Wine Will Deceive You
Proverbs 20:1
1 Wine is a mocker, strong drink is raging: and whosoever is deceived thereby is not wise.
Creates immorality, violence and addiction
Proverbs 23:29-35 (King James Version)
29 Who hath woe? who hath sorrow? who hath contentions? who hath babbling? who hath wounds without cause? who hath redness of eyes?
30 They that tarry long at the wine; they that go to seek mixed wine.
31 Look not thou upon the wine when it is red, when it giveth his colour in the cup, when it moveth itself aright.
32 At the last it biteth like a serpent, and stingeth like an adder.
33 Thine eyes shall behold strange women, and thine heart shall utter perverse things.
34 Yea, thou shalt be as he that lieth down in the midst of the sea, or as he that lieth upon the top of a mast.
35They have stricken me, shalt thou say, and I was not sick; they have beaten me, and I felt it not: when shall I awake? I will seek it yet again.

Isaiah 5:11-14
11 Woe unto them that rise up early in the morning, that they may follow strong drink; that continue until night, till wine inflame them!
12 And the harp, and the viol, the tabret, and pipe, and wine, are in their feasts: but they regard not the work of the LORD, neither consider the operation of his hands.
13 Therefore my people are gone into captivity, because they have no knowledge: and their honourable men are famished, and their multitude dried up with thirst.
14 Therefore hell hath enlarged herself, and opened her mouth without measure: and their glory, and their multitude, and their pomp, and he that rejoiceth, shall descend into it.

Wine is Excess
Eph. 5:18
18 And be not drunk with wine, wherein is excess, but be filled with the Spirit;

Wine Will Overcome You
Jer. 23:9 Making a comparison. Not equal to Not to be desired.

Jeremiah 23:9
9 Mine heart within me is broken because of the prophets; all my bones shake; I am like a drunken man, and like a man whom wine hath overcome, because of the LORD, and because of the words of his holiness.
Romans 12:21
Be not overcome of evil, but OVERCOME EVIL with good.

Japanese Proverb- man take drink drink take drink drink take man

Medicinal Use Of Wine
I Timothy. 5:23
23 Drink no longer water, but use a little wine for thy stomach’s sake and thine often infirmities.

GRAPE JUICE GOOD FOR STOMACH
“Brush your teeth in the morning and drink a good cup of cold water to avoid stomach disorder throughout the day. Grape juice is good for you : Some fruits, such as grapes,
raspberries and strawberries, possess naturally occurring phenols and tannins that will inactivate viruses. The latest investigations demonstrate that the grape is also able to kill a variety of viruses, including those which cause stomach upsets and polio. Plain unfermented grape-juice was found to have higher quantities of the active phenols and tannins than wine, making it an even more effective anti-viral agent.” (INFOPEDIA)

GRAPE JUICE STOPS STOMACH FLU VIRUSES
“When the first person in your family comes down with the stomach flu, have everyone else in the family start drinking grape juice three times a day. Apparently, this changes the level of acidity in your digestive tract into one that is not conducive to the stomach flu viruses. Since a mother of ten taught me this many years ago, I have never had a stomach bug spread through my family. Not once! (Remember, you have to keep drinking the grape juice three times a day for a couple of days.)”
http://grannysuesnews.blogspot.com/2009/01/how-to-stop-stomach-flu-dead-in-its.html

BENEFITS OF GRAPE JUICE
Grabbing a glass of grape juice will do you no harm. Instead, it will prove beneficial for your body. Grape juice provides various health benefits to a person and this article will throw light on such benefits.
We all have heard of the numerous benefits of antioxidants. Grape juices contain important antioxidants in them which in turn help in lowering the levels of bad cholesterol in our bodies, lower blood pressure, and thus help in attaining optimum cardiovascular health. Additionally, it has been found that purple grape juice can help in fighting atherosclerosis and thus prevent heart related problems.
The antioxidants present in grape juices also help in boosting up your immune system, thereby enhancing your overall energy and providing your body with higher resistance to infections and ailments.
If you are scared of aging and aging related problems like Alzheimer’s, then the antioxidants of grape juice can ward off your fears as having a glass of grape juice can help in preventing aging related problems.
If you constantly feel low on energy and fatigued, then grape juice can help you out as it is high in iron content and is specifically beneficial for women who get worn out easily due to low iron levels in the body.
However, you should have juice of only light colored grapes if you want to increase iron level in your body. Grape juice also helps in lowering the stress level of the body.
Grape juices have also been found beneficial for natural treatment of gout, constipation and even liver disorders. Along with your body, grape juice is also beneficial for your skin.
While there is no questioning of the benefits of grape juice, one should not indulge in its over consumption as it is high in sugar. Thus, think wisely and eat and drink wisely to lead a healthy life. (SPICE DIVA – WOMANS MAGAZINE

CNN.COM
Alcoholic drinks don’t seem to improve the function of cells in blood vessel linings the way grape juice does. And alcohol generates free radicals — unstable oxygen molecules that can actually cause damage to blood vessel tissues — dampening any of the benefits that red wine’s antioxidants may offer. Even better news, for Sanford and other teetotalers, is that the antioxidants in grape juice appear to linger in the body longer than do those in wine.

The Body Is God’s – Therefore
I Cor. 6:19,20
19 What? know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own?
20 For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God’s.

Eat and drink to His glory
I Cor. 10:31
31 Whether therefore ye eat, or drink, or whatsoever ye do, do all to the glory of God.

As Christians How Should Our Walk Be?
Rom 13: 12-14
12 The night is far spent, the day is at hand: let us therefore cast off the works of darkness, and let us put on the armour of light.
13 Let us walk honestly, as in the day; not in rioting and drunkenness, not in chambering and wantonness, not in strife and envying.
14 But put ye on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make not provision for the flesh, to fulfil the lusts thereof.
Don’t drink So Another Will Not Fall
Rom. 14:13
13 Let us not therefore judge one another any more: but judge this rather, that no man put a stumblingblock or an occasion to fall in his brother’s way.

Jesus Turns The Water Into Wine (Was it fermented or Fruit of the Vine?)
Jn. 2:3-10 Hab. 2:15 Jesus would have sinned
3 And when they wanted wine, the mother of Jesus saith unto him, They have no wine.
4 Jesus saith unto her, Woman, what have I to do with thee? mine hour is not yet come.
5 His mother saith unto the servants, Whatsoever he saith unto you, do it.
6 And there were set there six waterpots of stone, after the manner of the purifying of the Jews, containing two or three firkins apiece.
7 Jesus saith unto them, Fill the waterpots with water. And they filled them up to the brim.
8 And he saith unto them, Draw out now, and bear unto the governor of the feast. And they bare it.
9 When the ruler of the feast had tasted the water that was made wine, and knew not whence it was: (but the servants which drew the water knew;) the governor of the feast called the bridegroom,
10 And saith unto him, Every man at the beginning doth set forth good wine; and when men have well drunk, then that which is worse: but thou hast kept the good wine until now.

(1) the people had already been drinking freely of what had been provided(John 2:10)
(2) Jesus then turned about 108 gallons of water into “wine” (2:5-9). Do you think Jesus would approve of a full blown keg party? Did Jesus create 96 gallons of alcohol? (A firkin is about 9 gallons. So if a firkin is 9 gallons and each pot contained at least two firkins, this would make 18 gallons to the pot. There were six pots. Now, multiply the 18 gallons by 6, and we have 108 gallons.)
(3) In Bible times they had no means of extracting the alcohol OR the vinegar that occurred during fermentation. You couldn’t go into the grocery store like we can today and get just Welches Grape Juice. Thus, the older the “wine”, the more alcoholic it was AND the more SOUR! The”sweetest” wine was the new, unfermented, fresh grape juice.

If it was fermented wine then Jesus would have sinned!
Habakkuk 2:15
15 Woe unto him that giveth his neighbour drink, that puttest thy bottle to him, and makest him drunken also, that thou mayest look on their nakedness!

Proverbs 23:29-35 (King James Bible)
29 Who hath woe? who hath sorrow? who hath contentions? who hath babbling? who hath wounds without cause? who hath redness of eyes?
30 They that tarry long at the wine; they that go to seek mixed wine.
31 Look not thou upon the wine when it is red, when it giveth his colour in the cup, when it moveth itself aright.
32 At the last it biteth like a serpent, and stingeth like an adder.
33 Thine eyes shall behold strange women, and thine heart shall utter perverse things.
34 Yea, thou shalt be as he that lieth down in the midst of the sea, or as he that lieth upon the top of a mast.
35 They have stricken me, shalt thou say, and I was not sick; they have beaten me, and I felt it not: when shall I awake? I will seek it yet again.

Jesus Said To Be A Winebibber

Matthew 11:19
19 The Son of man came eating and drinking, and they say, Behold a man gluttonous, and a winebibber, a friend of publicans and sinners. But wisdom is justified of her children.

They Also Said He Was Gluttonous and had a Devil

John 8:48
48 Then answered the Jews, and said unto him, Say we not well that thou art a Samaritan, and hast a devil?