Divine Wine
- David Fairchild
- Nov 17, 2002
- Series: Gospel of John
Legalism vs. Libertines
“Heresy is truth taken too far…”
Introduction
Tonight we are going to dive into chapter 2 of John’s Gospel. Much as we did last week, we are going to be looking at descriptive text that teaches us how God has interacted with humans, and from that I pray that we can learn something from these descriptions of different events.
As I mentioned last week, the difference between prescriptive texts and descriptive texts are very important.
Prescriptive text commands certain behavior that is clear and without debate.
Descriptive text, as was last weeks message, tells us a story so that we can learn the character of God through that story.
It’s important for us to keep that in mind as we look at tonight’s study so that we don’t assume that this behavior is either prescribed to do or not to do.
Tonight we are going to be considering the relationship between alcohol and the Christian. But before we open up the text and begin to read this great story, I want us to do so with a clear understanding of the filters that we look through when we read scripture.
Unfortunately, we are not beings that are completely objective about anything. .
We can’t look at a situation and have our emotions, experience, opinions and presuppositions, totally and completely removed.
Without understanding God’s Word and His standards, we would make emotionally based decisions that would send us off chasing feelings rather than truth.
But God has set a standard, and truth is attainable, only by God revealing His truth to us by His Holy Word.
The Bible is, and should always be, the final court of arbitration in all matters of faith, beauty, ethics and knowledge.
The more ignorant you are of God’s Word, the more incapable you are at reaching any sort of truth to govern your life.
This is certainly the case tonight. Since we are looking at what is or is not permissible in the Christian life, we need to look at the whole of God’s Word, remove our feelings, and allow the Word of God to speak, and then become obedient to that Word.
This study will probably irritate of few of you that assumed since I was teaching on alcohol, that you now had ammo to shoot at your friends that are Christian and that drink wine or beer.
It will also probably irritate the individual that thinks that he or she has the liberty to do all things before God as long as he has a so-called “clear conscience” about it.
So my job tonight is to bring you to a point of tension in your faith and send you off! I believe this is the only way we can grow in our faith. We need to have tension and frustration, so that the areas we have grown complacent can be dealt with by God’s Word.
If this produces nothing less than a renewed desire to go to God’s Word and study more seriously, praise God. This is my intention.
As we study this text tonight, there are two kinds of people and two kinds of filters that will be used to examine God’s Word.
You will be one that is either more inclined to Legalism, or you will be more inclined as a Libertine.
The definitions of both are fairly simple:
A legalist is someone that has a strict, literal adherence to the law or to a particular code, as of religion or morality.
And a libertine is someone that acts without moral restraint or who defies established religious precepts. So called “freethinkers”.
Legalism
We see that Legalism is a sickness that gnaws away at the core of our faith as well as our relationships. It affects everyone, believer and non-believer alike. If we are not rigid and leglistic about the things of God, we are rigid and legalistic about the crease in our pants or the way we hold our knife and fork and millions of other ways of seeing and doing things. I understand this kind of legalism. As a very sincere Christian, I suffered from the disease for years. We are never completely free from it. It is a nasty form of faith that has its roots in things perfected through the control of the individual. I would confess to you, that this form of faith has been the greatest stumbling block of my walk with Christ over the years, and it only seems as of recent, that my relationship with Christ is now motivated by an outgrowth of love and thankfulness for my freedom from sin and my subjection God in Love.
Libertines
Libertines are those people at the other end of the pendulum that I call "rigid in reverse". They are actively, rigidly opposed to being rigid. The hippies of the 60's fit in this category. They were either do nothings or libertines and often these "rigid in reverse" people were both. And make no mistake. Just as anorexia and obesity are both eating problems stemming from the same root, in the same way this kind of "rigid in reverse" resistance and rebellion to any standards at all, stems from the same root as legalism. Rigidity and "rigidity in reverse" are two sides of the same coin. It is the coin of the realm of sin.
So defining, understanding, and admitting that we are more one that the other will be extremely helpful as we study God’s Word as a group and individually.
So as we take to the task of learning about “Divine Wine”, let’s disengage our emotions and presuppositions, so that God’s Word will be our guide.
Let’s pray…
So that I am not accused of not taking drunkenness or abuse of alcohol seriously, I have some statistics that I would like us to consider.
Statistics Regarding Alcohol
• there are 100,000 alcohol related deaths every year, making it the #3 cause of preventable mortality
• over 7% of people 18 & under, nearly 13.8 million people, have a drinking problem, 8.1 million people
• the highest rates of alcoholism are for those people between the ages of 18-29
• 43% of U.S. adults, 76 million people, have been exposed to alcoholism in their family (i.e. relatives etc.)
• 62% of high school seniors have been drunk
• 31% of high school seniors have had 5+ drinks in a row in the past two weeks
• 37% of rapes & sexual assaults involve alcohol use by the offender
• Fetal Alcohol Syndrome is the #1 cause of mental retardation in the western world
We live in a world that is very sick with sin and don’t know what to do with the things of pleasure that God has given us. This is no different with alcohol.
We abuse permissible pleasures that God gives us to enjoy because we are fallen and don’t know what to do with good things.
What I don’t want us to do is to look at our abuse of something, and immediately think that whatever is being abused is, in and of itself, sinful.
Sex is a good example. God has given sex to us to enjoy between a man and a woman, in the context of marriage, and we have abused sex by perverting and over indulging this pleasure in ways that God has not permitted. We have taken His standard, that is the best and most enjoyable standard, and have degraded it with pre-marital fornication, pornography, homosexuality and many other “forms” of sex, that is not Biblical.
Does that make sex, in and of itself sinful? Not at all.
Our wrong usage of sex is what is sinful. It is an issue of “bad” desires to a “good” thing.
This same principle can be applied to drinking wine or beer.
As we discuss this issue of alcohol let’s not make the mistake of looking at this through a cultural filter, but through a scriptural one.
This unique aspect of American Christianity, which is the doctrine of total abstinence from all alcoholic beverages. Is a cultural doctrine that was never part of the history of the Christian Church in the East or in the West. It was unheard of in Europe, the Middle East, the Orient, and Latin America until American missionaries arrived.
Historically, it arose during the beginning of the twentieth century in sympathy with Carry Nation’s movement to add an 18th Amendment to the Constitution prohibiting alcoholic beverages. Dr. Machen and many other fundamental Christian leaders condemned prohibition and the 18th Amendment on the grounds that such things were in conflict with Scripture and would result in more drunkenness than ever. Their concerns came true and the 18th Amendment was eventually repealed because of all the pain, suffering, alcoholism and crime it produced.
Some of the following Bible facts should be taken into account when dealing with this issue:
• “Wine” is mentioned 260 times in the Bible and “strong drink” is mentioned 21 times. In the Hebrew and in the Greek, “wine” refers to fermented grape juice and “strong drink” refers to the alcohol fermented from fruits and grains and is called “beer” or “hard liquor” today.
• The drinking of alcohol was universal except for certain priests. Abraham, Melchizedek (Gen. 14:18), Isaac (Gen. 27:25), Jacob (Gen. 27:28), Boaz (Ruth 3:7), Paul and Timothy (I Tim. 5:23), and even Jesus (Lk. 7:33-34) drank wine.
• Everything God has made He has given us as a gift to enjoy (I Timothy 4:4-5)
• Both wine and strong drink were used in the worship of God (Gen. 14:18; Exo. 29:39-40; Deut. 14:26; Num. 28:7). If they were “the devil’s brew” or “demon rum,” God would have never commanded them to be part of worship.
• They are viewed as the blessing of God in the Bible (Gen. 27:28; Psa. 104:15; Pro. 3:9-10; Isa. 55:1-2; Ecc. 10:19; Zech. 10:7).
• Jesus not only drank wine but He even made it for others (John 2:1-11 cf. 4:46).
• A little wine with your meal is viewed as good for your health (I Tim. 5:23).
• Both strong drink and wine were used for mental health (Pro. 31:6-7).
• The wise woman prepares wine for a meal (Pro. 9:1-5).
• The Bible clearly condemns drunkenness and addiction to alcohol (Pro. 20:1; 23:29-35; I Tim. 3:3, 8; Tit. 1:7; 2:3; Eph. 5:18).
• Paul tells believers not to let anyone judge them about what they eat or drink (Col. 2:16). In other words, if a weaker brother tries to lord it over your conscience, don’t let him to do it.
• Turn with me to Romans 14:1-23. In Rom. 14, the “strong brother” is the one whose conscience has been educated by the Word of God so that he may eat and drink what he wants. The “weak brother” has an uneducated conscience so he feels guilty about a lot things which God never condemned in His Word.
• Paul tells the strong in the faith to bear with the foolishness of the weaker brethren. (Rom. 15:1).
• Thus the strong must never force the weak in the faith to violate their conscience. Thus if a weaker brother feels that eating meat, drinking wine, going to the movies, etc., violates his conscience, tell him to follow his conscience. (Rom. 14).
• This does not give the weak the right to lord it over the strong. Paul forbids anyone to judge others on such issues as food and drink (Col. 2:16).
• When in the presence of the weak, the strong should not do those things which would tempt the weak to violate their conscience. (Rom. 14).
• But when the strong are not in the presence of the weak, they are free to do as their conscience dictates. Thus the strong may eat and drink what he wants in his own home or in the presence of the strong.
• “There is no direct or absolute prohibition of the use of wine in the N.T. The moderate and appropriate use of wine is recommended to Timothy by Paul.”
From the facts, we can not consider moderate alcohol consumption a sin, because the Bible doesn’t. And if you are battling with that comment, ask yourself why. What is the reason, after hearing these Biblical facts, that you consider the drinking of alcohol a sin?
Is it because of drunkenness? What about food? Over consumption of food is called gluttony and is a sin. Should we take away food? Sex is abused both in and out of the home. Should it be abstained from?
Do you see my point. We need to understand that the reason we have a difficulty with these things is because of our own difficulties.
Someone that is an alcoholic probably should not drink or put himself in situations where he is going to be tempted to drink. Yet this same individual has not right to judge a Christian that does not have this same struggle.
A Christian that is aware of someone that struggles with alcohol, needs to be sensitive and provide a relationship in which we respect and concern ourselves with others rather than our own liberties.
A Christian that has had difficulty in abstaining from sex outside of marriage, should keep themselves from stumbling by not putting themselves on dates that end up at his or her house giving tours of their apartment or home that happens to end with a lengthy description of the window dressings and matching comforters in their bedroom.
This would simply be foolish behavior.
But could I, or would I say to a married couple that they should not have enjoyable sex with one another because healthy sex can lead to unhealthy sex? Not at all.
Let’s read the scriptures. John 2:1-11
1 On the third day there was a wedding in Cana of Galilee, and the mother of Jesus was there. 2 Now both Jesus and His disciples were invited to the wedding. 3 And when they ran out of wine, the mother of Jesus said to Him, "They have no wine." 4 Jesus said to her, "Woman, what does your concern have to do with Me? My hour has not yet come." 5 His mother said to the servants, "Whatever He says to you, do it." 6 Now there were set there six waterpots of stone, according to the manner of purification of the Jews, containing twenty or thirty gallons apiece. 7 Jesus said to them, "Fill the waterpots with water." And they filled them up to the brim. 8 And He said to them, "Draw some out now, and take it to the master of the feast." And they took it. 9 When the master of the feast had tasted the water that was made wine, and did not know where it came from (but the servants who had drawn the water knew), the master of the feast called the bridegroom. 10 And he said to him, "Every man at the beginning sets out the good wine, and when the guests have well drunk, then the inferior. You have kept the good wine until now!" 11 This beginning of signs Jesus did in Cana of Galilee, and manifested His glory; and His disciples believed in Him.
In verse 2 we notice that Jesus and His disciples were invited to the wedding. Some Theologians will say that the reason someone would be invited to a wedding that was not family or friend, was because they were prominent. From our study last week, was Jesus a prominent figure yet? Not at all, he has Andrew, John, Phillip, Nathanael and Peter with Him. And his ministry is 3 days old. This is not a great prominent man that should be invited because of his cultural impact. Not yet.
And after a few days of celebration something terrible happens. The party goes dry. They run completely out of wine and the social humiliation would have been tremendous. So, Jesus mother Mary grabbed her son and asked Him to do something about the dilemma. The Scripture does not tell us why she feels responsible (she may be a friend of the family, or appointed to help organize things), or what she expected Jesus to do (maybe use His power to fix things, or maybe give some money to make a run to the liquor store and get some more), but nonetheless Jesus comes to the rescue and makes wine to keep the party moving along. And not just wine, but good wine. And not just a little wine, but as many as 180 gallons.
And, with tremendous irony Jesus makes the wine in ceremonial cleansing jars that would house up to 30 gallons of water each for the purpose of guaranteeing that each guest was ritually clean (i.e. cleaning feet and hands) according to the Pharisees strict religious regulations. And, according to their teachings, any other use for the large stone jars would have defiled them, making them unclean. But, Jesus concern for the young couples reputation and the partygoers enjoyment seem to be His priorities as he has the jars filled with water that He turns into fine wine.
John then tells us that this was Jesus first miraculous sign and the way in which God revealed His glory so that others would put their faith in Him.
And so with great irony, God begins His ministry in a simple way at a home in a humble village with a young couple who ran out of money to pay for their wedding.
Jesus’ ministry included thirty-five additional miracles, which were all signs pointing to Jesus so that people would put their faith in Him and experience His gift of salvation (John 20:30-31).
We see in the beginning, at creation. That God is with this couple at the first human party, as He gives Eve to Adam. And God is with this young couple at the start of His ministry, and chooses a celebration to perform His first miracle. And we see at the end of the age the Jesus will host a wedding supper for His bride the Church.
Will you be at this Wedding Supper?
Will you accept this invitation and be counted as those that will sit with the Groom ,who is Jesus, as his bride which is His Church?
Or will you ignore this invitation and fall into eternal judgment with the King because you didn’t consider this invitation worth accepting.
Do you have on the right apparel for this celebration? Or will you insult the King by showing a lack of respect and appreciation.
Only acceptance of this invitation, which means turning from your sin towards God, and being clothed with the righteousness of Jesus Christ, by placing your faith in His saving work on the Cross, will secure your seat at this great feast.
Well I pray this study gives us some Biblical Theology, by which we can learn about our freedom in Christ so that we can live out practically that freedom in the context of what the scriptures allow.
Communion
Communion should not be treated as a simple religious ceremony, without any thought to it’s purpose.
The scriptures give us instruction to the Lord’s Supper and we should heed it’s teaching.
Turn with me to 1 Corinthians 11:23 For I received from the Lord that which I also delivered to you: that the Lord Jesus on the same night in which He was betrayed took bread;
24 and when He had given thanks, He broke it and said, "Take, eat; this is My body which is broken for you; do this in remembrance of Me."
25 In the same manner He also took the cup after supper, saying, "This cup is the new covenant in My blood. This do, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of Me."
26 For as often as you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord's death till He comes.
27 Therefore whoever eats this bread or drinks this cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner will be guilty of the body and blood of the Lord.
28 But let a man examine himself, and so let him eat of the bread and drink of the cup.
29 For he who eats and drinks in an unworthy manner eats and drinks judgment to himself, not discerning the Lord's body.
Examine your heart in prayer before you take communion. If there is anything that needs to be confessed to God, now is the time to do it.
If you are not a believer in Christ, please do not take communion. I say this as a warning that you will only heap judgment to yourself.
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