In John the second chapter, we find the story where Jesus went to a wedding in Cana of Galilee. We know that with any wedding there is going to be planning. For some reason, the master of the event (verse 9) found himself in an awkward situation – they ran out of wine (verse 3). Mary came right out and said “They have no wine.”

Jesus performed a miracle and turned the water into wine. There were six water pots that each held twenty to thirty gallons. It is safe to say that Jesus easily made between 120-160 gallons of wine (verse 6). Did the guests, including our Lord, have even more alcoholic wine to drink now after having already consumed all the alcoholic wine that was available earlier?

I have made the statement on more than one occasion that if anyone thinks Jesus made alcoholic beverages at the wedding feast, they do not know Jesus. By this I mean that they do not know what He taught concerning intoxicating, alcoholic wine. Jesus did not warn people about the abuse of wine, He spoke about drinking it. Christ, speaking through the Holy Spirit to Peter, discussed the three levels of transgression relating to drinking. First was drunkenness, then revelries (i.e. the life of the party) and finally drinking parties (I Pet. 4:3). If there was truly so much alcoholic wine at the wedding feast, would it not fit the description of a drinking party?

Some would argue that the word “wine” in the Bible always refers to fermented grape juice. If this is true, then the Bible is not just permitting us to consume alcohol but encouraging us to consume in moderation. This could not be any further from the truth. The John 2 text should be sufficient to settle that dispute, but we shall consider some other facts.

If all grape juice was fermented, how could the elders in a local church logically be forbidden to drink any wine (I Tim. 3:3)? Would this not mean that they could not partake of the Lord’s Supper (I Cor. 11:23-26)? [Questions about deacons will be dealt with in the second article (I Tim. 3:8)]. The verses regarding elders lead to a logical conclusion that wine in the Bible can be fermented or non-fermented.

A passage that does deal clearly with fermented wine is Proverbs 23. Look what is stated by inspiration of God: “Who has woe? Who has sorrow? Who has contentions? Who has complaints? Who has wounds without cause? Who has redness of eyes? Those who linger long at the wine, those who go in search of mixed wine. Do not look on the wine when it is red, when it sparkles in the cup, when it swirls around smoothly; at last it bits like a serpent, and stings like a viper,” (verses 29-32). This is obviously a warning to those who are interested in alcoholic wine. The message is clear – do not even look at it! If our Savior made close to 150 gallons, it clearly must have been non-alcoholic.

Getting back to the New Testament, some contend that Christians drank fermented wine based upon I Corinthians 11:21. The text speaks about the abuse of the Lord’s Supper and how they turned it into a feast. Some would eat ahead of others while others were hungry and still others were drunk. Then Paul tells them to eat and drink at home (verse 22). The word “drunk” here means “to be filled.” The word can be used to describe one who is intoxicated, but this is not the only use. In context, Paul was contrasting those who had much to eat and drink with those who had little. Lord willing, next week I will devote another article to this subject.

Chuck                                                                                        

Respecting the Holy Spirit

The Bible contains some warnings regarding the Holy Spirit – there are certain things we should never do to Him. Consider these admonitions.

• “Do not quench the Spirit” (I Thess. 5:19)
• “Do not grieve the Holy Spirit,” (Eph. 4:30)
• “Whoever speaks against the Holy Spirit, it will not be forgiven him” (Matt. 12:32)

The Holy Spirit is part of the Godhead (Rom. 1:20) and is to be recognized as God just like the Father and Son (Acts 5:3-4; Heb. 1:8-9). Each part of the Godhead plays a part in the plan of redemption. Therefore, our actions toward Him can help us get to heaven or prevent us.  We must never minimize the Holy Spirit’s role. This is why the statements above were given concerning the Spirit.

What role did the Spirit play in helping man get to heaven? The answer is given in John 16:13: “However, when He, the Spirit of truth, has come, He will guide you into all truth; for He will not speak on His own authority, but whatever He hears He will speak; and He will tell you things to come.”  Without the Holy Spirit coming upon the apostles as promise and in fulfilled in Acts 2:1-4, then we would not know the will of God.  We could not even go into all the world and preach the gospel so people can be saved (Mark 16:15-16).

Knowing all of this, we can understand why quenching, grieving or blaspheming the Spirit puts our soul in jeopardy. Those who refuse to accept the gospel message are essentially rejecting the Holy Spirit. The inspired writers of the scriptures were moved by the Holy Spirit (II Pet.1:20-21).  This is why Paul told the brethren at Rome to listen to the message – in doing so they were being led by the Holy Spirit (Romans 8:14). They were not led in some mystical, mysterious way. It simply means when we do what the spirit revealed, we are following Him. May we always respect the Holy Spirit.

                                                                                                                                                                                                                          Chuck                                  

Can I host non-believers at home?

Second John 10-11 seems to teach that Christians are only allowed to have other Christians in their home. “If anyone comes to you and does not bring this doctrine, do not receive him into your house nor greet him; for he who greets him, shares in his evil deeds.”  Is the apostle forbidding saints to have non-Christians in their homes?

To understand this text, we must know what “greeting” contextually means. In verse 9, the brethren were admonished to abide in the doctrine of Christ. If they did not follow His doctrine, John said they would not have God. He then proceeded to take about those who bring teachings that are different from the gospel of Jesus. To receive such a teacher by allowing them to share their “doctrine” without speaking up or defend the gospel of Christ say nothing would be to become a partaker of their evil deeds.

If one were to take John’s warning literally, how could a person stay married to a non-Christian spouse? The inspired apostle Paul told children of God who were married to unbelievers to remain in that marriage (I Cor. 7:10-13). Clearly, the context of II John matters if we are to harmonize these scriptures. Can II John apply even within marriages then? Yes! If the unbeliever (whether a spouse or not) teaches things contrary to the word of God and the Christian says nothing, the Christian is sharing in the evil deeds.

Let us not forget about the commission to spread the gospel of Jesus Christ (Mark 16:15). God’s people need to teach the lost. Does this mean that Christians can teach nonbelievers in their driveway but cannot teach them in their home? This is obviously foolish. It would be just as wrong to listen to someone teach error without defending Christ’s gospel in a driveway as it would in a home or anywhere else. Remember, our goal is to teach. Even when the church assembles, non-believers may attend (I Cor. 14:23). Sometimes the church met in homes (Rom. 16:3-5). Are we to forbid visitors then? Clearly not. As you can see, our God simply does not want His children to invite false teachers into their home to be influenced by them.

                                                                                 Chuck

Can I really write that?

Some people will disagree with the first article because they feel that Christians should not do the things listed and, if they do, these people were never Christians in the first place. Such circular thinking is absurd. Read the verses and notice how they were all addressed to Jesus’ followers (during His time on the earth) or Christians (after His death). However, let’s pursue this line a thought some more.

Christians are constantly being warned in the word of God to take heed lest they fall (I Cor. 10:12; Heb. 3:12). Why warn God’s people of something that cannot happen? If Christians are being warned of things, then they are obviously susceptible. We also have passages that tell us that Christian can and have fallen away (I Tim. 4:1; II Pet. 2:20-22). Even Jesus spoke of such with the parable of the sower in Matthew 13.

So what should Christian do to make sure they do not fall away? The apostle Paul told the saints at Corinth to examine themselves regularly to confirm that they are in the faith (II Cor. 13:5). We do that by looking into the perfect law of liberty (James 1:25). The word of the Lord is designed to instruct, correct and chastise (II Tim. 3:16-17).

Then what should a Christian do when he/she sees another Christian fall away? First, remember the words of Jesus in Matthew 7:1-5. If you want to help a brother, make sure you do not have sin in your own life. Next, help them come back (James 5:19-20). This is the wrong time to say “it is not our business”. We are all obligated to look out for the spiritual wellbeing of our brothers and sisters.

The hardest thing about all of this is seeing someone who needs help but thinks they are fine. The first article points out many of those possible scenarios. People can think they are alive spiritually when they are actually dead (I Tim. 5:6).

Each of us should go back over the first article and make sure we have not fallen victim to self-deception. As we stated already – “Take heed lest you fall.”  If we think it cannot happen, it will!

        Chuck