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 According to bible scripture, 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 in good company, and didn't even know it!
Has the Church or
"religious" people gotten down on you because you like to have a beer?
Don't despair, 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)
Something commonly and
intentionally omitted from most Sunday morning sermons is that 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, It's a safe bet
that a good deal of those people would not have been able to pass a modern
day breathalyzer test. 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 certain that they surely 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?)
Also, it's very 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!
Another interesting point is that, Mary the
mother of Jesus, wasn't concerned about the people drinking, but she "was"
concerned because they had ran out of wine!
If it was the
church that condemned and accused Jesus concerning drinking wine, not
to mention responsible for his death, why do most of the modern day
church denominations emulate the Church of that period?
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. If someone, out of
concern talks to you about the health risks involved with smoking, you would
do well to listen, but don't let any self
righteous, self appointed modern day scribes and Pharisee's
weigh you down with guilt over it, claiming that God will condemn you for it. That is not their job and God does
not ordain or appoint anyone to do that.
Use common sense!
If you drink too
much, quit or cut back! The scripture that is
most commonly used to condemn smoking or drinking is: 1Corinthians
6:19,
but this scripture
does not pertain to drinking or smoking. It pertains to immorality.
Specifically, it pertains to "sleeping with prostitutes".
If you have any question as to the
validity of this scripture, please read it for yourself, in context. Go to 1 Corinthians 6:19, then back up
4 verses to 1 Corinthians 6:15, which "will" put it in context. As you can
see, Paul clearly says that "all" other sins
(aside from sleeping with prostitutes) 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 adhere 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 Now". Though the bible may not
condemn smoking or drinking, it does condemn these things!
THE B.O.D. MODE
I was in my car listening to a sermon on
the radio the other day. The speaker 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" (of Christ) and then 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 by this speaker, 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 told 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
wondering to myself why he would tell people that.
THE MYTH THAT WINE WAS WATERED
DOWN IN JESUS` TIME
What this gentleman conveniently left out of the
sermon was: "It was not the "wine" that was diluted with two parts water, -
It was the "water" that had "wine mixed into it". Confused? I'll
explain. In those days, people kept their water in covered pots.
(clay pots with lids on them) The reason they did this was to keep
bacteria out of the water. (No sunlight, no bacteria)
Another method of keeping bacteria out of the
drinking water was to "mix it with wine". (this is where the 2 parts
water to 1 part wine comes from) So, the truth is, 2,000 years ago or
more, when people drank wine, they drank 100% wine! And when they drank
water, they were still drinking , one third wine! (That would have
included the children also)
So, when the self proclaimed, self ordained holy
men preach that wine was weaker or diluted with water in Jesus` time, they
are not doing you a service, and they are not doing God a service.
P.S. ~ If the wine was not
fermented, it couldn't fight bacteria ~
LET'S ALL GET THE SINNER!
Judging by the applause on the radio, it seemed that no one was
curious about it. Are we to simply 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 to dilute it?
Luke 5:39 -
"And no one, after drinking old
wine wishes for new; for he says, 'The old is good enough.'"
But then, it doesn't matter, as long as we get to
really "give it to the sinners", thus displaying how righteous "we" are by
doing so. Beware of the many sermons on subjects like this one, and beware
applauding too loudly. God has not ordained anyone to point out peoples
sins, or what "we" perceive them to be.
Talk to God often!
Pray! That's what talking
to God is! I'm sure you, like most of us, you 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. So, try just talking
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)
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.
God Bless You
Dan Douglass
If this ministry has blessed
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