What does the Bible say about alcohol?

All Questions, Other Questions You always wanted to ask

What does the Bible say about alcohol?

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Other Questions, All Questions

Post Date

Aug 14, 2021

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Here’s a quick answer to this question – “Permissible but Not Necessarily Beneficial.”

The Bible does not explicitly condone the consummation of an alcoholic beverage. In some cases it commends it (e.g., Ps. 104:14–15; Prov. 31:6; Jer. 31:12; 1 Tim. 5:23), and in other cases it strongly condemns drunkenness (Gen. 9:20–27; Deut. 21:20–21; Prov. 20:1; 23:29–35; Rom. 13:13; 1 Cor. 5:11; 6:10; Gal. 5:21; Eph. 5:18; 1 Tim. 3:3, 8; Titus 1:7; 2:3; 1 Peter 4:3).

Let’s consider a few biblical principles that we should keep in mind regarding the use of alcohol;

Drunkenness is forbidden by God, and it does not form part of the Christian living in God’s eyes.

Ephesians 5:18 (NKJV)

And do not be drunk with wine, in which is dissipation; but be filled with the Spirit,

Drinking wine in moderation is permissible (for example, having a drink with your family over a meal). However, it is also important to note that in biblical times the wine was typically diluted by a ratio of 20 parts water to one part wine (essentially wine-flavored water). Some hosts would make a strong drink consisting of one part water and one part wine; however, the Greeks looked upon such people who drank this unmixed wine as Scythian (barbarians). The wine was also used as a medicinal aid for curing stomach illness.

1 Timothy 5:23 (NKJV)

No longer drink only water, but use a little wine for your stomach’s sake and your frequent infirmities.

We have to ask ourselves that though drinking may be permissible, is it really beneficial? Especially when we know we don’t have any self control to stop it?

1 Corinthians 6:12 (NKJV)

All things are lawful for me, but all things are not helpful. All things are lawful for me, but I will not be brought under the power of any.

We must be able to do it without causing another person to stumble. If drinking or the actions thereof harm those around us, it may not be something we should be doing.

Romans 14:21 (NKJV)

It is good neither to eat meat nor drink wine nor do anything by which your brother stumbles or is offended or is made weak.

We must ask ourselves, are our actions post-drinking honoring towards God? Is our motive for drinking God honoring?

1 Corinthians 10:31 (NKJV)

Therefore, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God.

If you would like to learn more please use the below link from Pastor Mike Winger who gives a balanced / biblical study on the topic of alcohol.

"Permissible but Not Necessarily Beneficial."

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What does it mean when the Bible calls us priests

All Questions, Other Questions You always wanted to ask

What does it mean when the Bible calls us priests?

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Other Questions, All Questions

Post Date

Nov 12, 2020

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1 Peter 2:9 (NIV)

But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, God’s special possession, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light.

The scripture above calls all believers in Christ as having some sort of priesthood duties.

This could be confusing for those who see priests as a group of people who have been wholly pure and therefore, cannot associate to the scripture that calls them as priests.

In the Old Testament times, people did not approach God directly. A priest acted as an intermediary between God and sinful human beings.

Now with Christ’s victory on the cross, that pattern changed, and we can come directly into God’s presence without fear.

Hebrews 4:16 (NIV)

Let us then approach God’s throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.

In addition, we are also given the responsibility of bringing others to Him.

When we are united with Christ as members of his body, we join in His priestly work of reconciling God and people.

2 Corinthians 5:18-21 (NIV)

18. All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation:

19. that God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ, not counting people’s sins against them. And he has committed to us the message of reconciliation.

20. We are therefore Christ’s ambassadors, as though God were making his appeal through us. We implore you on Christ’s behalf: Be reconciled to God.

21. God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.

In conclusion, there is nothing that one should be afraid or confused in being called as priests; instead, it is something everyone should embrace.

Christ first reconciled us with God, and now we have the opportunity to share the good news with others so that we could usher them into the Grace and Mercy of God.

Let us then approach God’s throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.

Hebrews 4:16 (NIV)

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Are we all God’s?

All Questions, Other Questions You always wanted to ask

Are we all Gods?

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Other Questions, All Questions

Post Date

Nov 12, 2020

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Genesis 1:26 (NIV)

Then God said, “Let us make mankind in our image, in our likeness, so that they may rule over the fish in the sea and the birds in the sky, over the livestock and all the wild animals, and over all the creatures that move along the ground.”

Reading the above verse, some people have questioned that if God has made us in His image then does that mean we are in essence ‘little Gods’? If this were true, it would also imply that humanity was created in the same class as God. The Bible in no means implies this.

What Genesis is teaching here is that we are made in Gods image/likeness in the sense that we have a rational, moral nature and that we have dominion over creation.

God’s image comprises of the above natures, and we are just a finite/limited reflection of that nature.

This verse has nothing to do with human beings becoming God or being in God’s “class.”

If it were true that human beings are “little gods,” then one would expect them to display qualities that are similar to those known to be true of God.

When the Bible compares the attributes of mankind with that of God, it states that we always ‘fall short of the glory of God’.

Romans 3:23 (NIV)

for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,

In addition, let’s look at the following attributes of God as Compared to man.

we are just a finite/limited reflection of God's nature.

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What is idol worship?

All Questions, Other Questions You always wanted to ask

What is Idol worship?

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Other Questions, All Questions

Post Date

Aug 11, 2021

Reading Time ‘Minutes’

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Exodus 20:4-6 (NKJV)

4. “You shall not make for yourself a carved image—any likeness of anything that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth;

5. you shall not bow down to them nor serve them. For I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children to the third and fourth generations of those who hate Me,

6. but showing mercy to thousands, to those who love Me and keep My commandments.

An idol is a substitute for God – when something or someone becomes more important to us than God.

What are the things in your life that have taken the place of God? What are the things to which we devote our energy, time or for which you make sacrifices?

When there is a distinction in our adoration / desire for God and something else – you can be certain that you have idolized something.

John Calvin said our “heart is an idol factory. In a fallen world, people constantly seek things they can worship, even though the Creator is before us in plain view.”

Physical Idol

Why is the worship of a physical idol wrong?

Jesus explained the rationale behind the second commandment when he said…

John 4:24 (NKJV)

God is Spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth.

Attempting to create a visible representation of the invisible God will always lead to misrepresenting Him. No matter how beautiful the picture we might make, it is no substitute for reality. All they do is arouse God’s jealousy.

Furthermore, people are easily tempted to attribute power to various objects / idols to capture the power and use it. Therefore, it reduces God to something we could manage for our own self-satisfaction.

The essence of idolatry is where we ask the gods (we create) to help us get all we want (for our own personal yet selfish desires); this contrasts with the heart of Christianity, which is to live for God’s glory.

You could be an idol

Paul mentions several sinful desires in Colossians, which he links to idolatry.

Colossians 3:5 (NKJV)

Therefore put to death your members which are on the earth: fornication, uncleanness, passion, evil desire, and covetousness, which is idolatry.

When people engage in either greed or the sexual sins that Paul has mentioned, they follow their desires rather than God’s, in essence worshiping themselves which is idolatry.

Man as an idol.

Paul in the book of Romans reminded us of the danger and futility of trying to make God into our own image:

Romans 1:22-23 (NKJV)

22. Professing to be wise, they became fools,

23. and changed the glory of the incorruptible God into an image made like corruptible man—and birds and four-footed animals and creeping things.

The first warning in Paul’s list is the “corruptible or mortal man.” You have made a person an idol when you start thinking of someone as your primary source of blessings and contentment. This could be your boss, pastor, leader, spouse, children, etc.

The legitimate image we can worship.

There is only one legitimate representation of God and therefore only one legitimate means of accessing him. – Jesus Christ is the image of the invisible God (Col 1:15). So if you want a representation of God – look at Christ, learn Christ, read Christ and think about Christ.

Colossians 1:15 (NKJV)

The Son is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation.

Conclusion

Not everyone is going to live a 100% idol-free life. But this is more for us to remember how easily we can fall victim to it. We should ask ourselves questions like the following to verify if we have created an idol;

Where Do I Spend My Time? Where Do I Spend My Money? Where Do I Get My Joy? What’s Always on My Mind?

We are not saying that you should not have a fun-filled life, but question yourself: Is there a difference in your devotion to the idol and towards God? Do you find yourself more drawn closer towards this idol?

idolatry is self-glory; the aim of Christianity is God's glory

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Is it okay to consult a horoscope?

All Questions, Other Questions You always wanted to ask

Is it okay to consult a Horoscope?

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Other Questions, All Questions

Post Date

Feb 05, 2022

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The use of horoscopes has increased in line with media growth (newspapers, magazines and social media).

Some people are so consumed in consulting their horoscopes that it has become a routine governing their daily plans and motives.

There is even a Christian movement called the “New Age”, which claims that since God has made the stars, we should look at them for guidance.

However, this is an incorrect interpretation of the scriptures and consulting horoscopes is not something God expects or intended for us to do.

God created the stars and everything else in the universe with the intention of it being a witness to His power and glory and not as a means to guide us or to foretell the future. God alone knows and holds the future in His hands.

The Bible also explicitly commands us not to look to the stars for guidance. In the ancient world, people would often attempt to discern the future by using all kinds of mediums, not just through astrology but also magic, omens, idol worship, sorcery, communion with the dead, and so forth.

In Deuteronomy, God warns the Israelites not to participate in any of these.

Deuteronomy 18:9-13 (NKJV)

9. “When you come into the land which the Lord your God is giving you, you shall not learn to follow the abominations of those nations.

10. There shall not be found among you anyone who makes his son or his daughter pass through the fire, or one who practices witchcraft, or a soothsayer, or one who interprets omens, or a sorcerer,

11. or one who conjures spells, or a medium, or a spiritist, or one who calls up the dead.

12. For all who do these things are an abomination to the Lord, and because of these abominations the Lord your God drives them out from before you.

13. You shall be blameless before the Lord your God.

But why did God warn against this?

Because such things are not only deceptive and unreliable, they can also easily influence someone under the control of the occult spiritual powers that are hostile to God.

In addition, astrology has other problems besides these biblical warnings:

Different astrologers give various interpretations of the same horoscope chart.
Astrologers disagree on the number of signs of the zodiac. Suggestions include twelve, eight, ten, fourteen, twenty-four. The number of signs influences the interpretation of the data.
What is the basis of astrological authority? Who determines how many signs of the zodiac there are? How do we know the meanings of the various planets? All this seems arbitrary.
How do we explain the different experiences of twins?
How do we explain disasters where many people of different zodiac signs experience the same fate, such as a plane crash?
Studies show a prediction failure rate of 90 percent or worse for astrologers.

Christians should have no business in be fooling around with horoscopes. The danger of doing so just opens our minds to demonic suggestions. It isn’t that horoscopes can tell you what you are like, but their suggestions can make you into something the system wants you to be. People who often listen / read up on their horoscopes end up patterning their lives in such a manner until they are fully transformed into their horoscopes.

Act 7:43 speaks of how Israel rebelled against god by worshipping “the star of your god Remphan”, which was the worship of the stars (something completely forbidden by God). The reason is because the stars cannot tell your future, neither can they describe your present. Like the horoscopes today, such idolatry was just a means to capture people’s fancy so that the demons could persuade them towards a specific behaviours.

In conclusion, anyone using such mediums should turn to the God of truth. And even when our future is unclear, we can have hope in the promise that God would guide us through it all.

God created the stars and everything else in the universe with the intention of it being a witness to His power and glory, and not as a means to guide us or to foretell the future. God alone knows and holds the future in His hands.

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What does the Bible say about alcohol?

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Are we all God’s?

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Is it okay to consult a horoscope?

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Is anger good or bad?

All Questions, Other Questions You always wanted to ask

Is Anger good or Bad?

Category

Other Questions, All Questions

Post Date

Feb 19, 2022

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Much of the conflict behind this question is raised because God is often represented in the Bible as being angry. But at the same time, the Bible urges believers not to get angry because it is a sin.

So if ‘anger’ as an emotion is a sin, how could a Holy God do it? And what should Christian believers do when we get angry?

Before we answer this question, we must understand that God’s anger over sin is not the same as how we would get angry on some days.

God is angry all the time – “at sin.”

He is angry every hour of the day at sin because all of God’s attributes are fully operational at all times. Likewise, all His other attributes (love/mercy/grace etc.) work simultaneously.

We shouldn’t be thinking of God as a person who gets ticked off on certain mornings and decides to drown an entire nation; in fact, there is a steady reality to the wrath of God.

It is also important to understand that God’s anger is not sinful anger; instead, it is a manifestation of His holiness and righteousness.

God’s anger is over everything that violates His holiness and pollutes the universe He created.

So anger as such is not sinful; it depends on the purpose, nature, and/or object of anger. Even Jesus, our perfect moral example, was angry at sin, unbelief, and hypocrisy, and God is angry at unrighteousness and apostasy.

The problem with human anger is that even in the proper sense (for example, at sin), it is easy to carry it too far that we sin in our anger and unlike God, who is “slow to anger,” we are often quick to anger.

Here is a breakdown of the types of good and bad anger to help you better discern where you stand when your emotions take over.

We should be angry at sin, but we should not sin in being angry.

SEE SIMILAR QUESTIONS

Next Entries »

"Permissible but Not Necessarily Beneficial."

Let us then approach God’s throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.

we are just a finite/limited reflection of God's nature.

Physical Idol

You could be an idol

Man as an idol.

The legitimate image we can worship.

idolatry is self-glory; the aim of Christianity is God's glory

God created the stars and everything else in the universe with the intention of it being a witness to His power and glory, and not as a means to guide us or to foretell the future. God alone knows and holds the future in His hands.

We should be angry at sin, but we should not sin in being angry.

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