Drinking Alcohol

This is the reply I sent back to the person whose confrontation prompted my previous post. I had to clean it up a bit for this post:

...I wanted to let you know that I've thought, studied and prayed about the drinking issue a lot over the years. I don't believe drinking is wrong. The Bible is VERY clear that being drunk is sinful, but it is also equally clear that A) drinking is not wrong at all in and of itself, B) as Christians, we are to be very sensitive and obedient to the Holy Spirit's prompting and convictions, and C) we are also to strive to live in freedom in Christ through walking by that same Spirit (Paul had a lot to say to the Galatians on this, esp. Gal. 5:1). So from that, because I do not believe that the Bible at all condemns drinking (except when, in excess, it becomes drunkenness), I also don't believe this in anyway damages my testimony for Christ. Having a drink, in my understanding, is no different from having a cup of coffee, a Twinkie, a piece of birthday cake or 12 oz. filet mignon—all of those things in excess would become sinful, showing a greater love for that thing than Christ, or showing an unhealthy reliance on that thing more than Christ.

I'm not at all trying to argue or seem rebellious or anything like that. I just wanted to convey that it IS deeply important to me what people think about God and Jesus based on how I live. And since I don't believe it is scriptural to say drinking is sinful, I also don't want to add that to the gospel. There's a VERY clear difference between having a drink socially and getting drunk (and the myriad of reasons people do that), and people know that! The only people, in my experience, who have been offended by drinking has been Christians. I've had several conversations about Jesus and what it means to be saved by grace through faith with friends who are not saved while having a beer with dinner, etc. I'm far from perfect, but I think everyone who knows me and knows that I am a follower of Christ and trying to walk with God, knows my heart and knows I don't encourage getting drunk or being dependent on alcohol, and that I drink responsibly [again, I've failed in this area before]. But since I also strongly believe it is not a sin to drink alcohol, I don't want to give the impression that to be a Christian means you aren't allowed to drink. Bottom-line, that's legalism. I grew up in a very mean-spirited, legalistic church and God rescued me from that and continues to break my heart with compassion for people whose understanding of God is so distorted by man-made rules and traditions that they want nothing to do with the love of Jesus... So, all that to say, I think, study and pray really hard about what is essential for what it means to follow Jesus and what God is really like, and THOSE are the things that I want to communicate very clearly. If someone, who wasn't a Christian, came up to me and said, "Hey, I thought you were a Christian, and I saw you drinking. I thought Christians aren't allowed to drink?" What an opportunity! "Yes, I am a Christian. And actually, the Bible doesn't say it's wrong to drink at all, it just says that it's wrong to get drunk, because we lose control of ourselves and lose our ability to walk with God by His Spirit that lives inside of those who have placed their faith in Jesus Christ..." That would spark such an open, honest conversation about God, Christianity and what the gospel really is, the Bible, etc.

This has gotten long. It's just because it's important to me that you know I don't take this lightly. I'm not trying to quench the Spirit or dodge my conscience. The Bible is very clear that we are supposed to live with a clear conscience before God and men. To have integrity and listen to the voice of God's Spirit working within us.

The issue of being a "stumbling block" is very important to me. That's something I'm still studying and praying about. This message would get very much longer if I went into my thoughts, understandings and questions about what that means, who our "weaker brothers" are, whose consciences are we supposed to abide by, etc. I'm still sorting that through... and I've found that honesty, gentleness, patience, etc. can go along way. If I had a new Christian friend who struggles with partying or getting drunk, I would be very hesitant to flippantly drink in front of them, but I would also be involved in their life and would be walking with them, encouraging them to stop the destructive, counter-productive behaviors that are keeping them from growing in Christ, with the goal that eventually, unless God gives them a firm conviction against drinking at all like my dad seemed to have for over 10 years after becoming a Christian, I would hope that they would grow in their love for God, that freedom and love, through walking by the Spirit would allow them to see that drinking isn't wrong. The goal of discipleship should not be more and more rules and stricter obedience of the will, but of life-giving freedom in the Spirit, where we can say with Paul, "All things ARE lawful for me, but not everything is beneficial", etc. Paul would eat meat offered to idols or not, depending on who he was with. Is that hypocritical? Or is that wisdom? I'm not sure... But Paul taught the churches this very thing: all things ARE lawful! So if they are lawful, it is immaturity and ignorance that says things are unlawful—and while that might be acceptable and understandable for someone who is new in their faith in Christ, that is not the goal! God wants us to grow in our relationship with Him, so we understand the freedom that exists in loving Christ and so that nothing—not alcohol, not food, not shopping, not caffeine, not exercise, not the praise of men—competes for our love for Christ, and yet can be enjoyed and appreciated as good gifts from a loving God. When we are mature in our faith, we should be able to enjoy these gifts, without being controlled by them, with the freedom to lay them down if it is causing a brother or sister, with a weaker, more sensitive conscience about that issue, to sin. But like I said, I am still learning and praying and studying to understand what it means to avoid being a stumbling block, because that's clearly something Jesus warned against.

What do you think? Was it too wishy-washy? Was any of it under-handed or passive aggressive? I hope not. I don't want to run from confrontation/conflict since that has been a weakness of mine over the years, so speaking what I think is true, in a loving way, in response was necessary for me to do.