Why I Choose Not To Drink Alcohol

11/10/2015

To me, making the choice to abstain from alcohol is a social justice issue as much as it is a religious issue. We live in a time when there are too many alcoholics. Some of it is because of lack of education on the issue, some of it is because of unresolved trauma in people’s lives, some of it is because of genetic predisposition to alcoholism, and some of it is for other reasons. If we are honest, I think we will realize that often the reason some turn to alcohol abuse is because they are victims of social injustice (whether it be the suppression of culture, physical or sexual abuse, extreme poverty, unequal education, or other injustice).

Regardless of cause, abuse of alcohol has caused much destruction in Alaska, in our region, and even in our own village. Now of course, that destruction may well have happened even if alcohol was not a factor. So abstaining from alcohol simply to lower the amount of social destruction from alcohol abuse may not be a good enough reason (though perhaps it is?).

Let us consider instead another reason to abstain from alcohol. A huge reason why I abstain from alcohol is to stand in solidarity with my brothers and sisters who have found victory in over alcohol addiction (interestingly, often that victory comes with surrender in faith to Jesus Christ). However, no matter what your faith is, science acknowledges the reality of physical addiction to alcohol. Not all become addicted, but to those that do, finding the next drink becomes an all-consuming obsession. For those who are alcoholics, drinking responsibly is simply not an option. In our context, many alcoholics have been victims of social injustice and breaking the bondage of addiction is nothing short of a miracle. I choose not to drink alcohol because I want to stand in solidarity with these miracles. Faith completely aside – I believe abstaining from alcohol is an empowering action in support of those around us who have turned from victim into victory over addiction.

Now when we bring our Christian faith into the mix, I find even further reason to abstain from alcohol. What is our purpose in life as Christians? Jesus taught a radical ideal of putting the needs of others ahead of ourselves. Jesus also charged us to go into the entire world and declare the Gospel message. In putting others ahead of myself and in declaring the Gospel message, I have to ask – does drinking alcohol help my purpose as a Christian? Or is drinking alcohol harmless in my purpose as a Christian? Or does drinking alcohol hurt my purposes as a Christian? Does is help, is it harmless, or does it hurt my purposes?

For many Christians throughout history, perhaps drinking alcohol was harmless in their purposes as a Christian. For others, perhaps drinking alcohol actually did help their purposes as Christians – in fact, many Christian hymns are old bar tunes! However, I believe we are in a time and context where drinking alcohol can often harm our purposes as Christians. Until we can rid our context of the social injustices surrounding alcohol abuse and until my purpose as a Christian can be helped by the drinking of alcohol, I will continue to live a life of abstaining from alcohol. I do not look down on other Christians who choose to drink responsibly, but I do challenge those who read this to really wrestle with the value of teaching (and perhaps even choosing) abstinence from alcohol as a legitimate and valuable option. Thanks for reading this much!

NOTE: This is a repost from a Facebook conversation I had a couple years ago.

Mackenzie link

11/17/2015 03:30:42 pm

Good thoughts. This is definitely a tricky subject, and I applaud you on your moderate tone. I can definitely appreciate someone who abstains while not looking down on those who don't, and you avoid all the straw men that often pop up when this subject is raised. However, I thought I might offer some push-back, if you don't mind.

I guess I just have a question: Do you think that it just might be possible that if there were a few more mature Christians demonstrating what it was like to drink responsibly and in moderation, there would be fewer younger, more immature Christians falling into binge-drinking and abuse?

Another way of phrasing: Given that the Bible teaches that this is a matter of conscience (see Romans 14), is it more helpful simply to forbid something and teach against it, or to demonstrate the proper use and context for it?

Here's where I'm coming from. My wife and I drink occasionally: By that, I mean that two or three times a month, I might buy a tiny single-serving bottle of whiskey or rum and a small bottle of coke, and treat myself to something tasty. Our first son was born about a week ago, and my wife and I have discussed how we would approach this topic with him.

Basically, as he grows up, we're not going to teach him that alcohol is sinful, or evil, or that it should be avoided at all costs. Rather, we're going to teach him that it is a thing that in some contexts is good and God-honoring, and in some contexts is evil and destructive. It can be drunk in moderation and celebrated as a gift of God...and it can be drunk sinfully and irresponsibly, with far-ranging consequences.

I believe that this approach is both more biblical and more effective in preventing abuse than the other approach...but what do you think?

Adam London

11/17/2015 05:54:14 pm

Hi Mackenzie, thanks for your response! I don’t mind push-back at all. Can I ask how you found my blog?

I definitely appreciate your desire to present a Biblical approach to this issue. I purposefully did not make a strong Biblical argument in my post because of a few specific readers who wouldn't have been swayed by such.

I intentionally wrote my post to show that "I choose not to drink alcohol" and close with the appeal that others would see it as "a legitimate and valuable option." I do not propose that abstinence is the only legitimate and valuable option.

Historically, the church has gone through waves in its view of alcohol. Sometimes abstinence has been the majority view and the church would dismiss the idea of responsible drinking as poppycock. In other times, the opposite is true. I believe we are living in the latter wave where the idea of abstinence is easily dismissed as foolishness. I simply believe there is both a time and place for both and I am fighting for the minority view to receive attention as well.

So to answer your first question – do I think it might be possible to stem the tide of alcohol abuse by drinking responsibly (to paraphrase)? Yes, I do believe that moderation from those who choose to drink will help in certain circumstances. However, I believe that when and how one drinks requires far greater discernment than most moderate drinkers seek. Drinking is partially a learned behavior, I agree. For those who binge drink for purely social reasons, modeling responsible behavior would be of great help.

However, many people drink to self-medicate. Those who self-medicate often won’t care whether you are drinking responsibly or not. They simply want to join in either out of addiction or to drown deep wounds from their past. For many of those who struggle, to drink around them is insensitive, selfish (often we believe that we are entitled to drink and nobody can tell us otherwise), and I would even go so far as to say sinful.

I love that you bring up Romans 14, because I believe that passage speaks directly to this principle of abstaining for the sake of others. Verse 15 says, “If your brother or sister is distressed because of what you eat, you are no longer acting out of love. Do not by your eating destroy someone for whom Christ died.” Again, later in verse 20-21, “…All food is clean, but it is wrong for a person to eat anything that causes someone else to stumble. It is better not to eat meat or drink wine or to do anything else that will cause your brother or sister to fall.” One main reason I choose not to drink alcohol is because I do not want my brother or sister to stumble or fall.

Alcohol itself is not sinful, or evil: I am in total agreement with you on that one. As you point out, context determines whether drinking alcohol is good and God-honoring, or evil and destructive. What you may not realize is the context in which I minister. I minister in a remote village in Alaska of less than 800 people and the only way in or out is by airplane. While there is great and vast beauty here, there is also a great struggle. The Alaska Native people here consistently have the nation’s highest rates of all sorts of abuse – physical, sexual, drug, and alcohol abuse. The suicide rate amongst Alaska Native people is often 8-12 times higher than the national average. In this context, I believe that abstinence is the correct choice to make for any minister of the Gospel.

Finally, you ask what I think about your approach being more Biblical and effective. In being more Biblical, I would not say either view of solely abstinence or solely drinking by moderation is more Biblical. I think that is a faulty comparison. A simply word study on wine in the Bible will bring strong Biblical arguments for either view. So if there both views are strongly presented, the result is that the main factor should be context and reliance upon the Holy Spirit for discernment.

To the effectiveness comment, honestly, I cannot say which is better. What I do know for sure is that the only real ultimate answer to fighting alcohol abuse comes from a surrendered life to Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior. Thanks again for your thoughts!

Mackenzie link

11/17/2015 07:37:02 pm

I'd have to challenge your assertion that "Historically, the church has gone through waves in its view of alcohol." From everything I've read, teetotalism is a VERY recent innovation in the life of the Church, beginning in the 1800's, and only in America and England, and only in Evangelical/Protestant denominations. Appeals to church history seem to rely on a very short-sighted, very narrow view of history.

Now, this isn't something I've studied, and if you have information to the contrary, I'd love to hear it! But I think that is fairly important...if a movement has no historical precedent and no equivalent in other branches of Christianity, that definitely warrants some skepticism.

However, that is of course not the subject of your post, and your conclusion is valid without it. In your specific context, I'd agree that the loving thing to do would almost always be to abstain. If it would hurt your witness as a Christian in that culture, or if it would cause another to stumble, Christian love requires abstinence.

As to how I found your blog, it's kind of silly. Alcohol is definitely a hot-button topic in US evangelicalism, but in my opinion, the vast majority of proponents of teetotalism border on incoherency. I sometimes search for posts on "alcohol and Christianity" just to find people with whom to dialogue and discuss the issue, and hopefully get new perspectives.

Adam London

11/18/2015 02:28:58 pm

Thanks again for your comments Mackenzie! I agree that teetotalism is a recent historical movement. (I would not consider myself a part of the teetotaler movement, by the way). However, the practice of abstaining from alcohol for the sake of God goes all the way back to Numbers 6 in the vow of the Nazarite. Don't get me wrong; I'm not saying we are called to be Nazarites or that the OT system of Levitical law still applies to us. All I'm saying is there is historical precedence for choosing to abstain from alcohol for the sake of the Gospel.

Hopefully you see that not all of us who choose to abstain are crazy. Though admittedly some are. Likewise, I think you might agree that some who choose moderation are also rather wacky. In either case, the important thing is that we come to the foot of the cross, lay down our lives in surrender, and follow Christ with everything we have.

Blessings on you and your dialogues with fellow brothers and sisters in Christ!

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Why I Choose Not To Drink Alcohol

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