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Some Thoughts on Consuming Alcohol in Moderation
Though drunkenness is condemned in the bible (Gal 5:21; 1 Cor 6:10), many Christians wonder if consumption of modern day alcoholic beverages in moderation is acceptable. Honest Christians who are trying to please God have been trying to answer this question for ages and it certainly deserves an honest and thorough evaluation. The following are some thoughts to consider from a former drinker:
First, drunkenness is not merely a state; it is a process. Eph 5:18 says, “And do not get drunk with wine, for that is dissipation, but be filled with the Spirit”. According to Young’s Analytical Concordance to the Bible, the verb translated “drunk” means “do not begin to be softened” with wine. Vine’s Expository Dictionary of New Testament Words defines this verb “drunk” as “to make drunk, or to grow drunk (an inceptive verb, marking the process of the state expressed in μεθύω), to become intoxicated…” In other words, Paul is stating that we should not even begin the process of becoming drunk. A person does not continuously drink unaffected and then at the next sip become drunk; the alcohol takes effect in stages due to the accumulation of alcohol in one’s body. Since the alcohol begins taking effect in our body the moment we begin imbibing, it would logically follow that we should abstain from it altogether.
Second, alcohol absorption in the human body is determined by a variety of factors. These factors are gender, weight, body fat %, mood, medications, health, rate of consumption, etc. Several of these factors vary from day to day making it impossible to accurately and consistently determine what I deem to be “moderate” consumption. This means that the only way I can know if I’ve consumed too much alcohol on any particular day is to put it to the test. Consider too that alcohol takes time to fully absorb in the blood stream. Even if there is a definitive line where drunkenness is crossed, I may incorrectly assume that I have stopped before that line only to realize later that I have passed it because additional alcohol absorption had not yet taken place. This means that I may never know my limit on any given day until I have exceeded that limit. Christians must honestly ask themselves if this is truly being “careful how you walk” (Eph 5:15).
Third, consider the irony of claiming we can use sound judgment about when to stop drinking while we are in the process of consuming a beverage that hinders our judgment the moment we begin consuming it. “The higher nerve functions of the forebrain, such as reasoning, judgment, and social restraint are impaired by very low concentrations of alcohol in the blood.” (Encyclopedia Britannica, 1959 ed., “Drunkenness”, by Clarence Weinert Muelberger, p. 683). Alcohol is a depressant that dulls the senses and weakens a person’s power of self-criticism. The fact that there is no definitive amount of ethyl alcohol that we can be sure will keep our judgments sound is evidence of the danger in experimenting with it in the first place.
Finally, even experts throughout our world are divided over how much is too much. In Alabama, the blood/alcohol standard used to determine DUI is 0.08% for drivers over 21 years of age. But in countries such as Australia, Saudi Arabia, Hungary, Israel, the Czech Republic, and others, the standard is 0%. In Sweden, it is 0.02%. In Germany, it is 0.05%. Therefore, even people with greater expertise than us and whose job it is to try and define a line between sobriety and drunkenness to prevent as many highway deaths as possible, cannot agree on a line.
With so many unknowns regarding what is truly moderate and temperate alcohol consumption, I strongly encourage my fellow Christians to abstain. Heaven is just too high a price to be gambled away aiming for subjective lines of “moderation”.
