Avoid Things Harmful

What warnings does the Bible give about alcoholic beverages?

“Wine is a mocker and beer a brawler; whoever is led astray by them is not wise.”
—Proverbs 20:1.

“Who has woe? Who has sorrow? Who has strife? Who has complaints? Who has needless bruises? Who has bloodshot eyes? Those who linger over wine.”—Proverbs 23:29-30.

“Nor thieves nor the greedy nor DRUNKARDS nor slanderers nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God.”
—1 Corinthians 6:10.

Look Up and Live: A Guide to Health, page 66, has these observations about alcohol: “Just one or two alcoholic drinks decreases the brain’s ability to gather information . . . impairs memory, perception, and judgment. Alcohol affects the following bodily systems:

“1. The immune system—Alcohol decreases the white cells’ ability to fight disease, thus increasing the risk of pneumonia, tuberculosis, hepatitis, and several cancers.

“2. The endocrine system—Only 2 or 3 alcoholic drinks per day increase the risk of miscarriages, stillbirths, and premature births.

“3. The circulatory system—The use of alcohol increases the risk of coronary heart disease, reduces blood sugar, and elevates blood fats and blood pressure, thus increasing hypertension.

“4. The digestive system—Alcohol irritates the stomach, thereby causing gastric bleeding. . . . Habitual use of alcohol raises the risk of fatty liver, hepatitis, and cirrhosis of the liver.”

Alcohol is responsible for 30 percent of all suicides; 55 percent of all auto deaths; 60 percent of all child abuse; and 85 percent of all home violence (Kathleen Whalen Fizgerald, Alcoholism (New York: Doubleday, 1988, p. xii).

In a letter to Christianity Today, Richard Cizik reminds us, “Alcohol is the nation’s number-one drug problem, accounting for $100 billion in economic costs and 105,000 deaths each year. It kills more than three times as many Americans as crack, heroin, and all other drugs combined.”