Drinking wine is something that gradually came to be seen as a sin in certain types of churches.
Jesus and the apostles drank wine. Jesus was even accused of being a winebibber. This was an exaggeration. Because he drank wine with tax collectors-- like the Pharisees did in their dinners-- they wanted to accuse Him, which wasn't true.
Jesus said the scribes and Pharisees sit in Moses seat. Whatsoever they bid you observe, that observe and do. The legal cult, of which the scribes and Pharisees were components, insisted on wine being thoroughly fermented for Passover and the week of unleaven bread. Leaven, or yeast, can live in grape juice. When the wine fully ferments, the dead yeast floats to the top where it could be sloughed off. Once this was done by their procedure, they considered the wine to be kosher for Passover. Jews did not recognize processed grape juice with no alcohol as kosher for Passover until modern times. Jewish authorities allowed for wine to be diluted with several parts water for Passover.
The Old Testament warns against abuse of wine, but does not treat it as an evil substance. Wine and strong drink offerings were poured out before the Lord according to commandments in the OT. There was also an ancient custom of diluting wine. The Greeks did that, mixing wine with water. I hear Italian farmers still put just a little wine in a lot of water. If wine is left in water for 24 hours in certain concentrations, it can kill bacteria also. There is no hint in scripture that I am aware of that killing germs is the motivation for drinking wine, however.
In the 1200's liquor distilling technology developed. This offered beverages much heavier on the alcohol than the ale and wine people were used to. There were many social issues coming from alcoholism and abuse of distilled liquors. Centuries later, John Welsey preached against the abuse of distilled liquors, though he believed in wine as a Biblically recommended medicine and drank moderate amounts regularly when he was in poor health, though he may have abstained when he was doing better. I am not sure if he ever abstained from the Lord's Supper.
The holiness movement came out of Methodism. Methodists and holiness preachers preached against distilled liquor. The Salvation Army, a holiness group, had a truncated reductionist approach to the gospel and left out baptism and the Lord's Supper. They dealt with street people, drunks, and addicts, which might have had something to do with it. In the US, there was the temperance movement, which included women activists and Methodist preachers. There was a move against the abuse of alcohol, which was a serious problem. Wives didn't want drunk husbands beating them up and not working. Methodist and Holiness preachers spoke out against it. This whole approach to alcohol somehow effected the Baptists, but I haven't studied it out.
Baptist deacon Welch's invented the process for preserving unfermented grape juice. If you read newspapers in the US from the era, there is a debate over whether it was acceptable to use grape juice without alcohol in church services.
Somehow, the preaching against gin and distilled liquor evolved into preaching against all drinking of beverages with alcohol in them. This isn't based on scripture, but it has become a word of mouth tradition, carried on by preachers, whom of whom misapply a few prooftexts, in various movements like the Holiness Movement and Pentecostals which were influenced by that movement, Baptists, and other groups.
Jesus and the apostles drank wine. Jesus was even accused of being a winebibber. This was an exaggeration. Because he drank wine with tax collectors-- like the Pharisees did in their dinners-- they wanted to accuse Him, which wasn't true.
Jesus said the scribes and Pharisees sit in Moses seat. Whatsoever they bid you observe, that observe and do. The legal cult, of which the scribes and Pharisees were components, insisted on wine being thoroughly fermented for Passover and the week of unleaven bread. Leaven, or yeast, can live in grape juice. When the wine fully ferments, the dead yeast floats to the top where it could be sloughed off. Once this was done by their procedure, they considered the wine to be kosher for Passover. Jews did not recognize processed grape juice with no alcohol as kosher for Passover until modern times. Jewish authorities allowed for wine to be diluted with several parts water for Passover.
The Old Testament warns against abuse of wine, but does not treat it as an evil substance. Wine and strong drink offerings were poured out before the Lord according to commandments in the OT. There was also an ancient custom of diluting wine. The Greeks did that, mixing wine with water. I hear Italian farmers still put just a little wine in a lot of water. If wine is left in water for 24 hours in certain concentrations, it can kill bacteria also. There is no hint in scripture that I am aware of that killing germs is the motivation for drinking wine, however.
In the 1200's liquor distilling technology developed. This offered beverages much heavier on the alcohol than the ale and wine people were used to. There were many social issues coming from alcoholism and abuse of distilled liquors. Centuries later, John Welsey preached against the abuse of distilled liquors, though he believed in wine as a Biblically recommended medicine and drank moderate amounts regularly when he was in poor health, though he may have abstained when he was doing better. I am not sure if he ever abstained from the Lord's Supper.
The holiness movement came out of Methodism. Methodists and holiness preachers preached against distilled liquor. The Salvation Army, a holiness group, had a truncated reductionist approach to the gospel and left out baptism and the Lord's Supper. They dealt with street people, drunks, and addicts, which might have had something to do with it. In the US, there was the temperance movement, which included women activists and Methodist preachers. There was a move against the abuse of alcohol, which was a serious problem. Wives didn't want drunk husbands beating them up and not working. Methodist and Holiness preachers spoke out against it. This whole approach to alcohol somehow effected the Baptists, but I haven't studied it out.
Baptist deacon Welch's invented the process for preserving unfermented grape juice. If you read newspapers in the US from the era, there is a debate over whether it was acceptable to use grape juice without alcohol in church services.
Somehow, the preaching against gin and distilled liquor evolved into preaching against all drinking of beverages with alcohol in them. This isn't based on scripture, but it has become a word of mouth tradition, carried on by preachers, whom of whom misapply a few prooftexts, in various movements like the Holiness Movement and Pentecostals which were influenced by that movement, Baptists, and other groups.
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