ALCOHOLISM
by Dave Brown
From the Indiana Star (April 5, 1994): "Lipetsk, Russian -- Worn out by the battle for survival,
powerless in the face of overwhelming economic and social upheaval, more and
more Russians are finding solace in the old fashion. ... Here in
We used to hear that anyone who took their first drink had a 1 in 16 chance of
becoming an alcoholic. Later this was increased to 1 in 10, much like playing
Russian roulette with your life. Now we see in some cases its more like flipping
a coin.
This tells us several things. The first is about the fate of a society in which
any reference to the true and living God has been outlawed since about 1917.
The good news is that they are beginning to move in the right direction. (What
direction is the
The second is that alcoholism is not an inherent disease which afflicts a
predefined proportion of the population. As much as our beer commercials
condition us to believe otherwise, alcohol is an addictive drug. True,
some might be more inclined toward addiction than others. But, as with any
other addictive drug, the only safe way to avoid falling under its spell is to
abstain from it altogether.
Mature Christians have no problem with this evil. If for no
other reason, they abstain from all alcoholic beverages in deference to those
who might be negatively influenced by their example (Rom. 14:21). While
the bible mentions that there are times when drugs can be used for medical
reasons (1 Tim. 5:23), the strict restriction of drugs to this use rarely makes
addiction a problem.
Recognize that alcohol use is a symptom as well as a cause. Like many Russians,
users are dissatisfied with their natural God-given state of mind. Alcohol use
is highly correlated with marital problems, child abuse, homicide, traffic
deaths, and all kinds of other socially unacceptable behavior. If people would
not try to relieve their discontent with alcohol, they would not commit such
irrational acts, which they later regret so much (Prov.
23: 29-30).
God gives us a solution to despair: "And be not drunken with wine, wherein
is riot, but be filled with the Spirit; speaking to one another in psalms and
hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody with your hearts to the
Lord ..." (Eph. 5: 18-19). If we are wise, we will accept it.