Drunkenness

Even most liberals agree that it is a sin to be drunk. For example, consider these plain Scriptures that denounce drunkenness:
Romans 13:13 “Let us walk honestly, as in the day; not in rioting and drunkenness, not in chambering and wantonness, not in strife and envying.”
1 Cor 5:11 “But now I have written unto you not to keep company, if any man that is called a brother be a fornicator, or covetous, or an idolater, or a railer, or a drunkard, or an extortioner; with such an one no not to eat.”
Gal 5:21 “Envyings, murders, drunkenness, revellings, and such like: of the which I tell you before, as I have also told you in time past, that they which do such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God.”
Eph 5:18 “And be not drunk with wine, wherein is excess; but be filled with the Spirit;”

Consider these questions: What is the definition of drunk? Is there such a thing as “responsible drinking?”

Alcohol - “intoxicating drinks containing alcohol” “a colourless, volatile, intoxicating, inflammable liquid” (New Webster’s Dictionary)
Drunk - “intoxicated by alcohol” (New Webster’s Dictionary) - Greek - methuo - “intoxicated, tipsy, drunk”
Intoxicated - “to cause to lose mental or physical control” (New Webster’s Dictionary)

The definition of drunkenness would then be “to lose mental or physical control due to the effects of alcohol.” How does the drinker know when they are “under the influence?” Can science tell us when a person is influenced or not? Is there a certain blood-alcohol level under which a person is not intoxicated? Let us consider the dilemma of authorities trying to determine the safe blood-alcohol level for someone driving a motor vehicle. Is there a standard limit around the world, or at least around the country? NO! Blood-alcohol limits range from 0% to 0.1% depending upon the state and national laws. In some places license holders are not allowed to have any trace of alcohol in their blood stream when driving. Why? Because no one can determine the “safe” level of alcohol use.

Note the following article:
“In recent years the offence of driving under the influence of alcohol or illegal drugs has been taken increasingly seriously, as the number of accidents caused by drunken driving have emerged. The difficulty of proving that a driver was appreciably affected by drink led in the 1960s and 1970s to the introduction of tests using breath-testing machines to determine the level of alcohol in the blood. An offence arises if the level exceeds a certain limit. In certain countries, it is an offence to drive with any amount of alcohol in the bloodstream. …”

It is not possible for someone to know if they are affected by alcohol or not, or for them to decide a “moderate” level of drinking. They cannot really know if they are intoxicated, or drunken, by the true definition of the word. Therefore, the only safe and spiritual position for a Christian to take is one of complete abstinence from the use of alcohol. If drunkenness is such a serious sin, and the Bible says it is, then the only way to be sure of staying free of the sin of intoxication is to remain free of alcohol.