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The truth is Jesus himself
drank wine. (no, it was not grape juice) And probably like you, Jesus was
given a hard time by the church and religious folks because he did so. You
are, as they say, in good company!
Has the Church or
"religious" people gotten down on you because you like to have a beer? This
may shock you, but you are still in good company. It was the "Church"
and so called respectable people that called Jesus a "drunkard".
Matthew 11:19 -
"The Son of Man came eating and
drinking, and they say, 'Behold, a gluttonous man and a drunkard, a friend
of tax collectors and sinners!' Yet wisdom is vindicated by her deeds."
(see also Luke 7:34)
I'll point something out
that you might not realize. The very first miracle Jesus performed here on
earth, was to turn water into wine (No, not grape juice) at a wedding
feast. Read this scripture!
John 2:1 - On
the third day there was a wedding in Cana of Galilee, and the mother of
Jesus was there;
John 2:2
-
and both Jesus and His disciples were invited to the wedding.
John 2:3 -
When the wine ran out, the mother of Jesus *said to Him, "They have no
wine."
John 2:4
-
And Jesus *said to her, "Woman, what does that have to do with us? My hour
has not yet come."
John 2:5
-
His mother
*said to the servants, "Whatever He says to you, do it."
(this is still good advice today!)
John 2:6 -
Now there were six stone water pots set there for the Jewish custom of
purification, containing twenty or thirty gallons each.
John 2:7
-
Jesus *said to them, "Fill the water pots
with water."
So they filled them up to the brim.
John 2:8 -
And He *said to them,
"Draw some out now and take it to the headwaiter." So they took it to
him.
John
2:9 - When the headwaiter tasted the water which
had become wine, and did not know where it came from (but the servants who
had drawn the water knew), the headwaiter *called the bridegroom,
John 2:10 - and *said to him, "Every man serves the good
wine first, and when the people have drunk
freely, then he serves the poorer wine; but
you have kept the good wine until now."
The point to the above
story is: They ran out of wine, the guests had drank it all, they were most
likely half lit already! Then Jesus, by his miracle, provides 120 or 180
more gallons of wine for these people who have already been drinking
"Freely".
If the church didn't like
that, I'm sure they really had a problem with Jesus filling the pots used
for
"the Jewish custom of purification",
(Could you imagine going into
the church and filling the dish that holds the "Holy Water" with wine? What
do you think they would do to you?)
Also, it's possible that this
wedding might have taken place in the Temple (church) simply because of the
fact that ordinary people didn't keep 6 stone water pots for the custom of
purification, capable of holding 20 or 30 gallons each, in their homes!
Also, Mary the
mother of Jesus, wasn't concerned about the people drinking, she was
concerned because they had ran out!
I fail to
understand why, if it was the church that beat up on Jesus. Not to mention
responsible for his death, why do most of the modern day churches emulate
them?
Quit being beat up over
these nit picking little things and find someone preaching the "Good News"
that Jesus told us we are to be preaching throughout the world. You will
find that here at Power of Faith Ministries!
Am I telling you to drink?
Nooooo! Absolutely not. But don't let any self
righteous, faith filled, miracle, God, Jesus, Bible thumping Christian's
weigh you down with guilt over it either. (That is not their job and God did
not ordain them to do this)
Use common sense!
If you drink too
much, quit or cut back! The scripture that the
good preachers like to beat you into submission with
1Corinthians
6:19,
does not pertain to drinking or smoking. It pertains to immorality.
Specifically, it pertains to "sleeping with prostitutes".
If you have a problem
believing this, read it for yourself. Go to 1 Corinthians 6:19, then back up
4 verses to 1 Corinthians 6:15 to put it in context. As you will see, Paul
clearly says that "all" other sins are outside of the body. (1 Corinthians
6:18)
"You" are accountable for
you. As a Christian, you shouldn't need extreme laws and policemen to make
you do what God has already told you is the right and wise thing to do.
"Anything you do excessively" drinking, smoking, overeating, etc.. is not
good for you.
Not to mention, if you have had a
couple of drinks, don't drive! If for no other reason, because
if you get pulled over and are given a breathalyzer test, you'll go to
jail!! (common sense) We are commanded in the bible to adhire to the laws of
the land.
It is not the drink that
is a sin, It is the things you say and do when you've been drinking a little
to freely. If you can't control your language or behavior after a few
drinks, It is definitely time to quit or cut down.
Now, if you sin, gossip or
use foul language, my personal advice to you is "Stop it". Though the bible
may not condemn smoking or drinking, it does condemn these things! However,
That is between you & God.
Tell Children the truth about drinking
By: Stanton Peele Ph.D.
This is an article I ran
across that you might find interesting. The article was written by an
expert: Stanton Peele, Ph.D. (just click to access)
Stanton Peele is a leading
figure in the field of alcoholism and addiction. He is the author of, among
other works, "Love and Addiction," "The Meaning of Addiction," "Diseasing of
America," and "The Truth About Addiction and Recovery." Dr. Peele has
received the Mark Keller Award from the Rutgers Center of Alcohol Studies
and many other prestigious accolades.
Overview: Teaching
children to drink in moderation appears to inoculate them against alcohol
abuse later in life. However, in the United States, we use the method of
alcohol education found least successful in scientific research which
teaches that abstinence is the only way, asserts Dr. Stanton Peele.
THE B.O.D. MODE
I was in my car listening to a sermon on
the radio the other day. The guy was doing pretty good talking about Jesus`
first miracle at Cana, where he turned water into wine. He offered a
slightly different and interesting perspective on it and I enjoyed the
sermon. Then, like turning off a light switch, he went into what I call the
"BOD" mode!
B.O.D. mode is when the preacher suddenly
stops preaching to the "body" and starts trying to please the BOD! (Board
of Directors) It is typically the Board of Directors who hire and
fire the pastor, not to mention decide on the amount of his salary. So, the
sermon instantly turns to excuses and non - biblical teaching to appease a
small group in control.
Suddenly I was informed that wine in
Jesus` day, was much weaker than it is today. I was told that people only
drank it because the water was not safe to drink. Then I was taught that
wine back then was 2 parts water and 1 part wine! I heard thunderous
applause over the car radio. So, there I sat in my car scratching my head
asking myself:
Does this guy just make this stuff up as
he goes along, or is he getting this from someone else who is making it up
as they go along? Judging by the applause, it seems that no one was
curious about it. Are we to believe that the laws of physics were different
in the time of Jesus? That grapes fermented differently?
Does it make sense to anyone, that if the
water was unsafe to drink, why would anyone mix 2 parts of this unsafe water
to 1 part of their good wine?
Luke 5:39 -
"And no one, after drinking old
wine wishes for new; for he says, 'The old is good enough.'"
Talk to God often!
Pray! That's what talking
to God is! I'm sure you, like most of us, probably thought praying was this
ceremoniously elegant thing you do on your knee's, throwing in allot of "thee's
and thou's and thou arts.
Neither God or Jesus were
impressed when the pharisee's did their elegant, lengthy prayers. Just talk
to him! And talk to him often. It will change your life for the better.
Don't try to be fancy, try to be sincere.
Prayer
Why don't you pray this
prayer with me. Right here, right now. What do you have to lose? It doesn't
hurt a bit, and it doesn't cost anything.
Father, I want to know you
more and I want to know your son Jesus the Christ. Open my eyes lord so that
the truth of your word will be revealed in me.
I want to accept Jesus as
my Lord and savior and I want to acknowledge that your son Jesus died on the
cross for my sins and that he rose again. Help my unbelief and make your
word real to me. Let hidden things be revealed to me.
Psalms 119:18 - Open my eyes,
that I may behold Wonderful things from Your law. -amen
Read this short
Psalm (119:18) every
day before you pick up your bible. Make it a very short prayer and God
will open your eyes. Though you may have read the same scriptures numerous
times, you will start seeing new and wonderful things emerge from them.
(try it)
God Bless You
Dan Douglass
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