Not Given to Much Grape Juice?

I hesitate to write on this subject because there is nothing worse than a drunk. I’ve heard several sermons on this subject and while the conclusions may be correct I believe the arguments are invalid. Shouldn’t we write articles that explore biblical arguments and not just conclusions?

I’ve heard members of the church laugh about Christ turning water into quality grape juice. Does that even make sense that Christ would turn water into quality grape juice? I recently heard a Presbyterian Minister making fun of the Baptist at a huge event being presented live worldwide by videoconference. Should we avoid arguments that create a laugh for large audiences instead of convince young people of the damage to organs, pocketbook, social standing, soul, a horrible life, etc.?

Would people become indignant if they walked into a store and asked for wine [Greek, oinos] and the clerk brought them grape juice? Some in the church make the argument that wine is actually just grape juice as if people can’t tell the difference and are that limited in intelligence or knowledge? Some young children through personal experience can tell the difference. Why would we take something so simple and make it so confusing or complex? There are so many scriptural examples regarding the sin of being a drunkard and dangers associated with too much fermented drink let alone common sense. You don’t have to be religious at all to understand the risks associated with alcohol. We should teach on the dangers of drinking because binge drinking is more than just a common thing in our schools and the peer pressure is very great. I don’t care what you’ve been telling your kids at home and in the church. They may not listen! Some people don’t seem to understand consequences too well (they may feel invincible) and become alcoholics at a very young age. Personal experience is often a great teacher but way too late to undo the consequences of bad decisions. We won’t need to convince a drunk of what a mistake they have made in their life.

In our church assembly we use unleavened bread and grape juice (not wine) in the communion service because we feel grape juice is the proper analogy for the blood of Christ. Why? Because that was the analogy given us by Jesus Christ. He didn’t mention wine in communion. Christ used analogies to describe life, death, the kingdom, and many issues. Leaven was excluded in the Jewish Passover meal and the communion service was established during the observance of that meal. The KJV translators were very cognizant of the difference between fruit of the vine and wine. They translated these words correctly and you can depend on their translation regarding this subject. Perhaps you would prefer the interpretation of preacher so and so instead of the KJV translation? Is he a Greek scholar or does he just use the opinions of some other authority when he tells you the KJV is wrong? “And when they wanted wine, the mother of Jesus saith unto him, They have no wine.” (John 2:3) Note: For those of you stuck on the KJV translation why don’t you believe what you read? Do we mess up our communion grape juice argument by mistakenly mixing wine and grape juice? Our arguments could be much simpler if we would just agree with the text on this subject. Fruit of the vine is grape juice and wine is fermented drink.

Our wine brethren often argue that grape juice has “more leaven than wine” because of the sugar content and natural yeast contained in the skin of the grape combining with the sugar when squeezed. The Catholic Church teaches that when the bread and wine are consecrated in the Eucharist, they cease to be bread and wine, and become, respectively, the body and blood of Christ (transubstantiation). Their proof text is John chapter 6.

Leaven (life changing microorganisms) is the metaphor for sin in our lives even though we all have leaven (sin) in our lives just like grapes and bread have natural yeast in them. (Our bodies have bacteria but they also have an immune system.) Don’t leave out the process in this analogy! The purity of grape juice and unleavened bread is a good metaphor even though it is not an accurate statement of fact and just a figure of speech. “Then Jesus said unto them, Take heed and beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and of the Sadducees.” (Matthew 16:6) Total accuracy wasn’t the objective of this figure of speech. But it is fairly accurate when we look at the process.

 We may consider fruit of the vine (grape juice) as a metaphor for the pure blood of Jesus Christ even though it is not free of leaven. That truth can easily be chemically demonstrated. With little doubt, on the continuum from grape juice to vinegar, we have leaven or natural yeast present in the drink because that’s how God created grapes. When we squeeze the grapes we combine the sugar in the grape with the yeast on the skin of the grapes. Even in the bread there may be leaven and we may not realize it because the bread of the Exodus Passover was eaten in haste (didn’t have time to rise). It probably had some leaven even if the objective was to eliminate all leaven.

“But I say unto you, I will not drink henceforth of this fruit [genema – produce] of the vine, until that day when I drink it new with you in my Father's kingdom.” (Matthew 26:29)

The end of the leavening process (fruit of the vine) is found in Psalm 69:21. We read that conclusion in Matthew 27:34, “They gave him vinegar to drink mingled with gall: and when he had tasted thereof, he would not drink.” (Matthew 27:34) The only time “fruit of the vine” is used in the NT is in the communion service. It is not the fruit of bitterness (acetic acid) or the completion of the fermentation process (vinegar). The unthinkable drink that Christ was given at the cross in his dying hours. Have you ever heard someone argue for the use of vinegar in the cup of the Lord because it has less leaven? Why don’t our wine brethren use the completed unleavened process in the cup of the Lord by using vinegar?

Vinegar is the product of bacteria eating alcohol. Alcohol is the product of yeast eating sugar. Acetic acid (component in vinegar) is CH3COOH. The chemical formula for alcohol or ethanol is CH3CH2OH or C2H5OH. The chemical makeup has changed during the process. In other words, it is no longer the product of the vine or grape juice chemically.

“For the earth is the Lord's, and the fulness thereof.” (1st Corinthians 10:26) Jesus didn’t do more, by turning water into wine, than he did when he created this process in the first place. Alcohol has been around longer than Noah and Lot when they got drunk. Would we deny “his creation of this process” in the beginning or just his turning water into wine at the marriage celebration? We may argue that wine is just grape juice by using the work of some bible (Greek word) scholars. W.E. Vine says: “Wine [oinos] is the general word for wine.” I’ll go with the common usage theory and the KJV on this subject.

This word wine [oinos (pronounced oy'-nos)] is used 33 times in our King James Version (KJV) so it won’t take too long to review the “context” of these scriptures. Winebibber is used twice in the NT [oinos, and potes, a drinker (pronounced oy-nop-ot'-ace)]. Would you call Christ a wino? [a winebibber, given to wine, a wino]: Matthew 11:19 or Luke 7:34, "a man gluttonous, and a winebibber, a friend of publicans and sinners.” Excess of wine [oinophlugia, drunkenness, debauchery (oinos, wine, phluo, to bubble up, overflow)] is also used: “For the time past of our life may suffice us to have wrought the will of the Gentiles, when we walked in lasciviousness, lusts, ‘excess of wine,’ revellings, banquetings, and abominable idolatries.” (1st Peter 4:3)

The word wine in the NT signifies to us fermentation because of context. Most often we see just the one Greek word [oinos] used in verses like Ephesians 5:18, “And be not drunk with wine [oinos], wherein is excess; but be filled with the Spirit.” There may be other Greek words used for wine (like gleukos for new wine, Acts 2:13: "These men are full of new wine.") but wine [oinos] was the word commonly used in NT scripture and the “context” readily defines the drink element showing fermentation. Study the context and don’t just argue word meaning in the Greek.

Some interpret Ephesians 5:18 as fermented and the 1st miracle of Jesus (turning water into wine) as unfermented grape juice (John 2:3) even though the same Greek word [oinos] is used in both scriptures. Just don’t read the context (wine miracle of Jesus) found in John 2:10 too closely and consider what the governor of the feast is saying. History shows that many in the first century (see Pliny first century AD) were connoisseurs of wine like many today. Without a doubt, some will interpret this verse as a quality grape juice just like some religious scholars do. However, I suspect that anyone who often drinks fermented wine knows exactly what the governor is saying even though there will be opposing scholarly views. I choose to go with the “common usage” and general understanding theory of the KJV.

Many Christians have been raised to believe wine is intrinsically evil and that’s OK (that’s a conscience thing) if we are not judging our brother for drinking a glass of wine. “Let not him that eateth despise him that eateth not; and let not him which eateth not judge him that eateth: for God hath received him. Who art thou that judgest another man's servant? to his own master he standeth or falleth. Yea, he shall be holden up: for God is able to make him stand.” (Romans 14:3-4)

There are real life experiences in applying Romans 14. Some might purposely embarrass someone if they see them in a restaurant having a glass of wine or walking out of a liquor store. Their Dr. may have told them to drink a glass of wine for their heart condition. Do you know their circumstances in life? They are embarrassed not for “their conscience sake” but for “your conscience sake” (1st Corinthians 10:29). Did you go out of your way to embarrass them or did you try to avoid the embarrassing situation? For sure you will pass the gossip along? They may be embarrassed for your sake and your beliefs. They know your beliefs. They are not embarrassed because of their actions but yours.

In my opinion, we need to ask ourselves, where the word wine is used, why fermentation is either used in the “context” (be not drunk) or the text is qualified with words like “given,” “excess,” “much or little” wine (not given to much wine). “Likewise must the deacons be grave, not doubletongued, not given to ‘much’ wine, not greedy of filthy lucre;” (1st Timothy 3:8) Would we mention the qualifier “much” if we were talking about grape juice?

Admittedly, the use of alcohol is often more in your face than other addictive products. We go to an event and some can’t wait to get to the drink bar just like some can’t wait to get to the food bar (going back and forth for additional helpings). Christians may often eat too much (gluttony) and quietly use powerful and addictive pharmaceuticals instead of alcohol.

“For John the Baptist came neither eating bread nor drinking wine [oinos]; and ye say, He hath a devil. The Son of man is come eating and drinking; and ye say, Behold a gluttonous man, and a winebibber [oinos, and potes, a drinker], a friend of publicans and sinners!” (Luke 7:33-34)

Certainly we don’t think Christ was a glutton [gaster, denotes a belly] or a drunkard (wino) as he was accused. Obviously, by context they weren’t accusing him of drinking too much grape juice by using the wino word because that wouldn’t make good sense. We believe Christ was temperate [self-controlled] in all things and didn’t even have a belly from eating too much. Temperance [self-control] is a fruit of the Spirit.

“In his rankings of the best Roman wines, Pliny concludes that the place has more influence on the resulting quality of wine than the particular grape vine. The early sections of Book 23 deals with some of the medicinal properties of wine.” Wikipedia, Pliny the Elder, 1st century AD “Drink no longer water, but use a ‘little’ wine [oinos] for thy stomach's sake and thine often infirmities.” (1st Timothy 5:23) Don’t think there has not been a lot of research on the benefits of wine for stomach or medical issues.

Have you had a “good” coke lately? The bible is silent on drinking Coca-Cola (introduced in 1886) so you probably won’t find much in the bible about drinking a coke. Is the scripture really silent about coke and a lot of “new” issues? No. You will find principles of temperance and moderation when it comes to drinking soft drinks. “Researchers at Harvard's School of Public Health tracked more than 91,000 women and found those who drank about a soda a day piled on 19 pounds over eight years. They also increased their risk of developing type 2 diabetes by 83 percent.” Source: Kay Lazar, Boston Herald, August 25, 2004.

After God’s judgment in response to the “strange fire” offered up by Nadab and Abihu we see what the Lord commanded the Priests of the OT: “And the LORD spake unto Aaron, saying, Do not drink wine nor strong drink, thou, nor thy sons with thee, when ye go into the tabernacle of the congregation, lest ye die: it shall be a statute for ever throughout your generations:” (Leviticus 10:8-9) Why didn’t the Lord tell Aaron: “never drink wine nor strong drink” instead of the qualifier, “when ye go into the tabernacle of the congregation?” Were his two oldest sons drinking on the job when they offered up strange fire? “Neither shall any priest drink wine, when they enter into the inner court.” (Ezekiel 44:21)

I feel first century Christians were just as familiar with wine and grape juice as we are today. I recently watched a documentary of winemaking skills being lost in the country of Georgia (Black Sea area) due to competition by modern distillation (without adding more sulfites to arrest fermentation at a certain time for preservation, and keeping the grape juice from turning to vinegar). Their knowledge of making wine has been handed down for centuries. Transference of knowledge can go both ways in history and much information on winemaking has been lost.

Wine is a staple (part of the common meal) in many countries just as it was in the time of Christ. Even the uneducated fisherman, the Apostle Peter, didn’t miss what they were saying. “For these are not drunken, as ye suppose, seeing it is but the third hour of the day.” (Acts 2:15) Do you understand what Peter is saying and why he is saying it?

“First you take a drink, then the drink takes a drink, then the drink takes you.” (Francis Scott Key Fitzgerald) Don’t one-liners just make you want to confess? They sound so good in a sermon. How many of you have actually had a drink, smoked a cigarette or cigar, and chewed some tobacco? I’ll just fess up, I’ve done all four things and can still honestly say I don’t drink or smoke or chew. How can that be?

I can think of little worse than being a slave to alcohol. Hopefully, our arguments will be effective and not just judgmental when it comes to sermons on drinking alcohol. There are always good scriptural arguments for not drinking (not given to “much” wine) as well as common sense.

In my opinion, people are not often changed because of some intricate argument some preacher gives them in a sermon. Especially when they are young and feel great. What does he know and what can harm me in my youthful body? However, they will change their opinion in time because of principles of the scriptures like temperance and moderation. The scriptures are not written for our harassment or for us to become a pious display to others. Scriptures are written for our benefit. We may stop drinking, smoking, over eating, etc. because of our health deteriorating or the pressure of family and friends to break the bonds of addiction. The bible supports us in a balanced and beneficial life. As we age, perhaps struggling daily between feeling good and bad, we may appreciate the fact that we haven’t saddled our bodies with the excesses of life (drugs, alcohol, obesity, etc.). Hopefully, we can focus on living life and not the illnesses of excessive behavior. Any person predisposed to food or drink (addiction) understands why they should avoid certain consumable products.