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in Jesus' name we pray, amen. All right, amen. We are in Deuteronomy 32. The title of my sermon this morning is the poison of dragons, the poison of dragons. Deuteronomy 32 and verse 32, it says here, for their vine is of the vine of Sodom and of the fields of Gomorrah. Their grapes are grapes of gall, their clusters are bitter. Their wine is the poison of dragons and the cruel venom of asps. And this morning I'm gonna preach on the subject of alcohol, alcohol consumption and what the Bible has to say about these things. I'm gonna preach on alcohol from a biblical perspective. And you say, well, why are you gonna preach on this? You know, aren't we all Christians here? Don't we all attend a new IFB church? Doesn't everyone know that alcohol is bad? We all know what the Bible says about alcohol. And the answer is no, not everyone does, okay? You know, in a church like ours where we're constantly reaching new people and we have new people coming to our church, new people getting saved and, you know, being assimilated to the church, you know, you're gonna run into people who come into church thinking that it's okay to drink alcohol. They don't even know what the Bible has to say about it. And so it's important that subjects like these, topics like these are covered in church in order to turn God's people to righteousness, in order to help them to understand what are the consequences of alcohol consumption and why it's sinful. But not only that, think about this. You know, there's Christians that know that it's wrong. They know alcohol is wrong. They know what the Bible says about alcohol. You know, they know what the stance is in the church regarding alcohol consumption, but they're still tempted by it, you understand? They may have come from some background where they used to party and drink alcohol and get drunk and smoke weed or, you know, become inebriated or whatever. And, you know, they know that the Bible says it's wrong. They know they shouldn't do it. They know what the Bible says regarding this specific topic, but they're still tempted by it. So preaching like this is important to remind those people that, you know what, it's still wicked, it's still sinful. There are still consequences, you know, severe consequences attached to alcohol consumption. And, you know, preaching like this is necessary because it reproves and rebukes people, keeping them from giving into that temptation of alcohol consumption, which according to the Bible is obviously sinful. Now, let me explain to you Deuteronomy 32 before we move on into the sermon. Here in verse 32, it says, "'For their vine is of the vine of Sodom.'" Now, what is he talking about here? And why am I using this verse to, as a text verse, to preach about alcohol? Well, earlier in verse number, let's see here, verse number 31, it says, "'For their rock is not as our rock.'" So the next couple of verses, we're gonna see this contrasting statements between God and the God of this world, right? You know, the deity of the Bible, which is God, and then everything else. And he says, their rock is not as our rock. Now, we obviously understand based upon the language that the rock that he's referring to is Jesus Christ. Is this capital R, rock, he is the rock of our salvation. Well, the rock or those who people depend on outside of these walls or outside of Christianity is not as our rock. It's a counterfeit rock, okay? It's a fraudulent rock. And he says, for their vine is of the vine of Sodom. So they have a rock just as we have a rock, but our rock is the true rock, is the true God. And then it says, their vine is of the vine of Sodom and the fields of Gomorrah. Now think about this, you know, Sodom and Gomorrah is associated with perversion, sodomy, that which is filthy and disgusting, that which is abhorrent and abominable in the eyes of God. And it comes from this vine. Well, it doesn't take much to understand that what we're looking at here is the counterpart to what God is because Jesus Christ calls himself in John 15, the what? True vine. And my father is the husband man, the Bible says. So the true vine, which is the rock, the true vine that produces the right type of fruit is what we're a part of. But then the world has a separate vine, which is the vine of Sodom and of the fields of Gomorrah. It's a field of perversion and filthiness and uncleanness. It says their grapes are grapes of gall, their clusters are bitter. What is this referring to? It's referring to the fruit that that vine produces. So the vine that stems from Sodom and the fields of Gomorrah produces grapes and clusters that are bitter. They are venomous, they are unpleasant, they are disgusting, right? Whereas, you know, the vine produces the fruit of the spirit, which is love, joy, peace, long suffering, gentleness, meekness, et cetera. These are things that are pleasant in our lives. You know, when we are attached to the vine, when we abide in the vine, which is Jesus Christ, he produces the fruit of the spirit in our life, and we live a pleasant life because of it, okay? We're not living anxiously or afraid or angry. You know, we have peace within ourselves because of it. So we see the vine is the vine of Sodom and the fields of Gomorrah. Their grapes are grapes of gall, they're referring to bitterness, clusters are bitter. And then he says in verse 33, their wine is the poison of dragons and the cruel venom of asps. Now, dragons and asps, which obviously another word for asp is simply a serpent, they're both pictures of who? Satan, right? The Bible calls him the great dragon in the book of Revelation. We see that he appears as a serpent in Genesis chapter three. So this is obviously referring to Satan himself. And he says, the Bible says that the wine that he produces, the juice that he produces, the liquid that he brings forth is poisonous, it's cruel. Whereas the wine that God gives us makes our heart glad, okay? And obviously the wine that God gives us is not alcoholic wine. Wine in the Bible is often used interchangeably with juice and alcohol. But when talking to Christians or believers consuming wine or being given wine, it's often referred to as new wine, okay? Because old wine is that juice that has been sitting and fermenting become old and therefore becomes a strong drink, alcoholic beverage, that which can get you drunk and intoxicated. And so it says their wine is the poison of dragons, whereas the wine of God, you know, the pleasantness of God gives us joy and makes us happy. It helps us to be filled with the spirit. It gives us that satisfaction of knowing that we're doing God's will. That's the wine of God. In contrast to the wine of dragons, which is poison. Now, he said, what does that have to do with alcohol? Well, although that's the spiritual application to this, you know, or excuse me, that's the literal interpretation of this, a spiritual application to this could be alcohol. Because guess what? Alcohol is poison. And in fact, you know, if you've ever been to a bar, or maybe you've seen it in a movie and they talk about alcohol being in a bar, what do they say? Pick your poison. So even the world knows that the shot that you're taking, the beer that you're drinking, is still poisonous in the eyes of God. And from a medical perspective, it's also poison. You're literally consuming poison into your body and destroying your body. But if you're a Christian, you're not only destroying your body, you're destroying your spiritual life as well, okay? And so, yeah, wine is the poison of Satan. And it is the cruel venom of asps, the Bible tells us. And in fact, in Proverbs chapter 23, it says, when talking about alcohol, it says, "'At last it,' referring to alcohol, "'biteth like a serpent and stingeth like an adder.'" Adder referring to a poisonous serpent. So it's saying, you know, you drink alcohol, you consume alcohol, you get intoxicated. Well, the end thereof are the ways of death. It's gonna bite like a serpent, it's gonna sting like an adder. You know, every man's ways are right in his own eyes, but the end thereof are the ways of death. The Bible says, what fruit had he then in those things wherever you're now ashamed? For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord. So what we see is that when someone actually decides to consume alcohol, alcoholic beverage, get intoxicated, get drunk, the effects is like a bite from a serpent or like a stinging of an adder. What does that mean? It's poisonous, it's gonna destroy your life. Wine is a mocker, strong drink is raging. The Bible says in Deuteronomy 32 that the wine is like cruelty. Okay, why? Because strong drink is raging, whosoever is deceived thereby is not wise. Go to 1 Corinthians chapter number six, if you would, 1 Corinthians chapter six. Alcohol has a poisonous effect on your body and your spirit. You know, and obviously there's Christians out there that wanna justify alcohol consumption. They wanna take every time the Bible says wine and say, oh, every time it's referring to wine, it's referring to an alcoholic beverage. Therefore, it's okay to drink wine. Hey, a little wine for the stomach's sake, right? You know, drink no longer water, but it'll take a little wine for the stomach's sake. Therefore, you know, in moderation, it's okay to drink a little bit of alcohol, everything in moderation. You can drink alcohol as long as you don't get what? Drunk is what they say, right? Isn't that what they say? You can drink alcohol. You can smoke a little weed as long as it's not ganja, as long as it's the weak stuff, as long as you take a little bit of stress, right? You know, you don't get that buzz or something. It's not really that bad, you know? And I've even heard Christians and pastors literally say, well, you know, drink a little glass of wine with your friends. It's a holy thing. It's a good fellowship. It's a holy thing. But folks, it's such stupid nonsense that comes out of the mouth of these people. And it's people trying to justify their sin and justify the consumption of alcohol and just completely ignoring the clear teachings of scripture, okay? And let me just say this, is that this isn't a subject up for debate at our church. You can debate this outside of church and you can leave here and say, well, I don't agree with the pastor, but you might as well just say I don't agree with the Bible because I'm going to show you what the Bible actually says today. But this is not up for debate. You're not going to be able to come to me after church and say, well, you know, I get what you're saying, but hear me out. Just hear me out real quick. You know, it's not up for debate. Alcohol consumption is sinful according to the Bible. No matter how much you take of it, it is sinful according to the Bible. Now, what is a poison? Well, poison is a substance with an inherent property that tends to destroy life and impair health. That's exactly what alcohol does to your body. Look at 1 Corinthians chapter six. Why is alcohol poisonous? Point number one. And don't laugh, but this is true because it feminizes the body and mind. This is why it is poisonous folks, because of the fact that it feminizes the body and mind. Don't let the billboards out there try to confuse you and deceive you because some dude's up there with the eight pack. You know, he's got muscles, he's huge, he's muscular, but he has a Bud Light or something like that. First of all, it's Photoshop. Second of all, if it wasn't Photoshopped, I guarantee you that guy does not drink beer, okay? He's being hired to hold a can of beer to get you to think that if you drink beer, you're gonna be happy and look just like him. And if you think that you're gonna look just like him, you got rocks in your head, okay? Why? Because beer and alcohol feminizes the body and mind. Why is that? Well, beer, for example, contains phytoestrogen and prolactin, which are two chemicals that increase estrogen levels in the body. So what is estrogen? It's that hormone that makes ladies ladies. Keeps them being ladylike. Now men produce a certain amount of estrogen, but it should only be a minimal amount because the main hormone that we as men should have is testosterone. But what alcohol does, because of phytoestrogen and prolactin, it lowers testosterone levels and increases estrogen. So when you increase estrogen, what do you have? You have men who become more effeminate, they become feminized, they become emotional, they become weak, they become girly, okay? Which is not God's will. Gynecomastia, okay? It's actually what it's called. Where men, well, and we're talking to men primarily right now, but men will consume alcohol and the byproduct of that is that estrogen will cause tissue in the breast to grow. This is where man boobs comes from, folks, okay? So before you think, oh man, drinking beer is so manly and holding your liquor is so manly and getting drunk is so manly, no, you actually become a man with boobs. When consumed over a long period of time. You say, I can't believe you're saying this in church. Well, I'm trying to, you know, trying to make the men in our church avoid alcohol so they don't get man boobs. You don't want man boobs. Men, you do not want man boobs. I don't want man boobs. Okay, stay away from beer. Stay away from beer! Why, because it feminizes the body, it feminizes the mind and increases estrogen levels in your body, it lowers your testosterone and no man in their right mind will want to have low testosterone levels, folks. That's what makes us men. It's what helps us accomplish things in life. It's what helps us to lead our families, lead the church. It's what helps us to be strong. But if your estrogen levels are high and your testosterone is low, then you're all emotional. You cry yourself to sleep at night. You're more likely to get depressed. You know, drinking alcohol is not a manly thing to do. It's actually the exact opposite. And you know what, you don't even need the Bible. Let me just say this, you don't even need the Bible to prove that. Because if the world is constantly promoting alcohol and showing you that if you drink alcohol, you're manly, just mark it down, it's the exact opposite. So anytime you see the world promoting something like that and they're publishing something like that, just know this, okay, what they're saying is actually the exact opposite of their message. It's probably gonna make me a girly guy, okay? Give me man boobs. It's true. Men produce some estrogen, but you know, it's a very minimal amount, okay? And it shouldn't exceed to the point where tissue begins to grow in the breast and you begin to get emotional. Obviously, that's the byproduct of it. Look at 1 Corinthians chapter six and verse number nine. It says here, knowing not that the unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom of God, be not deceived, neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor abuses of themselves with mankind, nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners, shall inherit the kingdom of God. So obviously, we understand that the people who are guilty of these particular sins can still get saved, right? You know, someone who is a fornicator can get saved. They don't lose their salvation. No one's able to lose their salvation because it's impossible to lose it because once you have it, it's yours forever. The point of this is referring to the fact that these are sinful things. And when he labels an effeminate person, along with the fornicator, an idolater, an adulterer, an abuser of themselves with mankind, with thieves, covetous, drunkards, and revilers, guess what that means? Being effeminate is a sin. You understand? Being effeminate, what is effeminate? It's when a man has feminine characteristics and traits. Okay? You know, they just kind of look like a girl, they act like a girl, their gestures are like a woman. And this can happen for various reasons. Obviously, sometimes it's because a young man might grow up with only his mom and his sisters, or whatever, you know? And he can potentially become that way. By the way, effeminate doesn't mean homo. Let me just make myself very clear, okay? So don't, you know, sometimes people look at an effeminate person and they're like, oh, that guy must be a homo or something. No, they're not homo, they're just effeminate. There's guys out there who are just really effeminate, but they're not sodomites. Folks, don't just throw that out there, okay? That's a super disrespectful thing to say to someone who's not a homo, is to call them a homo, okay? You know, effeminate is more the term because they could actually change that in their lives. They can take on manly characteristics and renew their minds and be like the men that God wants us to be, amen? So it says here that being effeminate is a sin and a contributor to being effeminate today in 2021 is alcohol, okay? The Bible says, give not thy strength, Proverbs 31, three, give not thy strength unto women, nor thy ways to that which destroyeth kings, referring to alcohol. First Corinthians 16, 13 says, watch ye, stand fast in the faith, quit you like men, be strong. So notice, behaving like a man in God's eyes is synonymous with standing fast in the faith, which is a spiritual thing. So guess what, being a man is a spiritual thing, folks. For a young man or an older man to look like a man, to talk like a man, be a man is just as spiritual as standing fast in the faith, okay? And this is a message that needs to be preached in all churches today in 2021, because of the fact that churches have this stigma now that, oh, it's only for women and children. You know what I mean? Isn't church just for women and children, it's not for men, you know, because they think, because the church, churches have been effeminized. The pastor looks gay and it's just, you know, they sing all soft or all effeminate. They're just, they're just limp rested. And so someone who is a man looks at that and says, I don't want to go there. I don't want to go to church like that. The dude, you know, he's 45, trying to look like he's 15 or something. He has a polo and, you know, his estrogen levels look kind of high. Yeah. Folks, the church should be manly. Not to say, you know, obviously we want women to come to our church. Our wives come to our church and different, you know, sisters who are not married come to church. And let me just say this is that women feel more secure in a church that is run by men. Yeah. It's far more security. The world can be falling apart. Folks, how many times have we had issues here at our old church and us men are like warring and the women are just like whatever about it. They're just talking about like where they did their nails or whatever and why? Because they're secure in a place like this because the man is leading. It's a male oriented church that's leading it. It's not an effeminate church. Being effeminate is a sin. You know, men need to be like, when it says quit you like men, in other words what it's saying is act like a man. And if you have struggles, you know, with displaying attributes of a man, well then let me give you some advice. Don't just act like a man. That's what the Bible says. Bible just literally says act like a man. If you don't know how to be a man, well just look for someone who is a man and act like that person. That's what the Bible says, quit you like men. Alcohol is a depressant which affects your brain's natural level of happiness, chemicals like serotonin and dopamine. This means that although you'll feel initial boost the night before, the next day you will be deficient in these same chemicals which may lead to feeling anxious, down or depressed, okay? And so obviously there's times in our life when we can get down in the dumps, we can become depressed because of, you know, just different circumstances in our life, but we don't need alcohol to foment that. You know, to kind of accelerate that feeling because people who drink are depressed all the time. And look, people who drink get to a point where they can't be happy unless they drink. And then they become an alcoholic. And now it's not even drinking at night, now when do they drink? In the morning. And now the beer doesn't even have to be cold, they can just drink it warm. I mean, folks, it's out there. Go to Leviticus chapter 10, if you would, Leviticus chapter 10. So why is alcohol poisonous? Well, because of the fact that it will make your husband, it will make you, young man, feminized. It'll make you like a woman, it'll destroy your mind and your body, it'll give you feminine characteristics and traits physically and emotionally, okay? You'll be an emotional wreck as a man if you consume alcohol. But not only that, alcohol is a poison because of the fact that it impairs judgment. You cannot behave soberly when you're drinking, okay? When the Bible talks about being sober, it's referring to being in a temperate state of mind where you are able to not only make rational decisions but also discern spiritual truths, okay? And so you're like, well, you know, I just like to take a shot every once in a while, do some social drinking, not a whole lot, not get drunk, just get a little buzzed or something like that. By the way, buzz is just drunk. Buzz is just a weaker way of saying drunk, not sober. Whereas the Bible constantly emphasizes the importance of being sober spiritually, physically, to be able to adhere and make rational judgments and decisions. Alcohol actually reduces the functioning of the prefrontal lobe cortex. So this is where, the frontal lobe cortex is where you make your rational decisions, what you use to make rational decisions is spiritual discernment. But when you drink, you actually reduce that part of your brain's ability to make any rational decisions. That's why people act really stupid when they're drunk. That's why people drink and drive. I can drive, I'm fine. They get in the car, one of two things happens, one of three things, either they get home safely by the grace of God, or two, they get a DUI, because they get pulled over, or three, they die, because they get in a car accident. Let me add a fourth one, or they get in a car accident and they kill someone else. Brother Ulysses, didn't you post something about that this week, drunk driver killed a woman? You know, it happens. Why, because it impairs your judgment. Alcohol interferes with this process, making it harder for you to work out what you are feeling and also make you less likely to be able to really think about, think through potential consequences. The prefrontal cortex part of the brain is partly responsible for your sense of control over your emotions and behaviors. That's why people cry all the time when they're drunk. That's why they tell you how they really feel when they're drunk. Why, because it loosens up their tongue and they become more bold, they don't think through, maybe I shouldn't say this to this person, maybe I shouldn't really tell them how I feel because it could lead to a fight. I mean, how many times have you heard of people who get drunk and they get beat up? That happens all the time, right? Where people get drunk, they get bold, they think they can fight everyone, and then they get their jaw broken. I've seen it, they get their nose broken, their jaw broken, they wake up with dry blood all over their face. Why, because they were not rational. Alcohol impaired their judgment. Look at Leviticus chapter 10 and verse number nine. Verse number eight, it says, And the Lord spake unto Aaron, saying, Do not drink wine nor strong drink, thou nor thy sons with thee, when ye go into the tabernacle of the congregation, lest ye die. It shall be a statute forever throughout your generations. Look what it says, and that ye may put difference between holy and unholy, and between unclean and clean, and that ye may teach the children of Israel all the statutes which the Lord has spoken unto them by the hand of Moses. So he's telling Moses and his sons, don't drink alcohol, because if you do, you won't have the spiritual discernment to make a difference between the holy and the unholy. You don't have any discernment, you can't make any rational decisions. And if you can't make any rational decisions just out in the world, how much less are you gonna be able to make any sort of spiritual discernment, right? I mean, don't tell me you're reading your Bible when you're drinking a beer or something like that. Folks, it's hard enough to understand the Bible sober sometimes, right? It's hard enough sometimes to even decipher and try to understand the deep things of God when you're sober. How much less when you're actually drunk you impair your judgment. Go with me if you would to Isaiah 28, Isaiah chapter 28. We wanna be able to put a difference between unholy and holy, between unclean and clean. We wanna be sober, that our senses may be sharp, that we can discern when Satan is trying to attack us, that we can discern the truths of God's word, that we make wise decisions outside of these walls, amen? But you can't do that if you're drinking alcohol because alcohol impairs your judgment, not only from a scientific perspective, but even from a biblical perspective. You're in Isaiah 28, I'm gonna read to you from Isaiah chapter five, verse 21, says, woe unto them that are wise in their own eyes. I hope that's not you today. Well, I know the Bible says that, but not me. I can hold down my alcohol, I can function. Well, if you're a functioning alcoholic, then you got bigger problems. You ever heard of a functioning drug addict? I used to work with functioning drug addicts who literally go to work high. And they feel like they cannot operate at their job without being high. And I realized to work with these people, I'm like, how do you work like this? If I was in your position, I'd get fired like the first five minutes. But they've been doing it for so long, they do it for such a long period of time that they're so dependent on it that they're literally functioning addicts. Well, isn't that like good then? No, it's not good. Because in the long term, it's gonna destroy their lives. And by the way, you get a functioning addict and you remove that alcohol, you remove that drug or whatever, see how they react then. See how much pain their body's gonna be in then because of how dependent they are upon that drug. But it says here, Isaiah five, you're in 28. Isaiah chapter five, woe unto them that are wise in their own eyes and prudent in their own sight. Woe unto them that are mighty to drink wine and men of strength to mingle strong drink. The other ones that take the bong hits, right? They drink a lot of alcohol, a ton of beer because they're able to hold it down. Yeah, but let's take a look at your liver though. You know, yeah, you may look like, you may not be able to pass out in the first hour, but why don't we take a microscopic look at your liver and see how far you are from cirrhosis of the liver. Your eyes are looking a little yellow there, which justify the wicked for reward and take away the righteousness of the righteous, excuse me, righteousness of the righteous from him. Again, it's messing with their ability to judge and to make decisions. Look at Isaiah 28 verse five, it says, in that day shall the Lord of hosts be for a crown of glory and for a diadem of beauty unto the residue of his people and for a spirit of judgment to him that sitteth in judgment and for strength to them that turn the battle to the gate. Verse seven, but they also have erred through wine. What does it mean to err? It's like err, right? They're erring through wine, through strong drink are out of the way. The priest and the prophet have erred through strong drink. So does it say that alcohol enhances our ability to stay in the way, enhances our ability to discern and to make judgments? No, it causes them to err out of the way. And by the way, this is a good verse for all the Calvinists to read who like to drink alcohol and have beer at their church. Yeah, you're the priest and the prophet who is erring through strong drink. That's why you're coming up with all these weird teachings is because you're inebriated. They are swallowed up of wine. They are out of the way through strong drink. They err in vision. I'm sure physically and spiritually. They stumble in judgment. He's mocking them. He's like your physical stumbling and your physical inability to view is just picturing what's happening on the inside. Because they're all stumbling. He's like well you're stumbling in judgment too inside. They can't even see because they're so drunk is like well you can't even see spiritually either. For all the tables, look what it says here, are full of vomit and filthiness. Is this like a bar that he's talking about? For all tables are full of vomit and filthiness so that there is no place clean. Whom shall he teach knowledge? Whom shall he make to understand doctrine? Them that are weaned from the milk and drawn from the breast. So he's saying this, look, obviously a person who's drunk, you can't teach them doctrine. Now I believe drunk people can get safe. Like when they're out there and they're inebriated, I think you can, I've led people who are drunk to the Lord. I've led people who are high to the Lord because sometimes they're functioning addicts so they're able to focus a little more, you know what I mean, when they're high or something like that. Obviously they got bigger problems. They probably got lung cancer or something like that. Because by the way, smoking weed is not better than cigarettes. No, it is a safer way you're inhaling smoke into your lungs. How is that better? And look folks, people who smoke weed, especially for long periods of time, they become idiots. And the reason for that is because of their memory loss. They're unable, incapable of remembering anything. But this is the same thing that happens to someone who drinks alcohol. And the Bible says this, to whom shall I teach knowledge? Can't teach knowledge, the deep truths of God to someone who's drunk, why? Because they can't receive it. It requires someone who's being weaned from the milk of God's word. As newborn babes desire the sincere milk of the word that ye may grow thereby, it doesn't say the sincere alcohol whiskey. Oh, I want to see like, I want to read the book of Ezekiel and drink some whiskey while I'm at it. I want to read the book of Revelation while I'm drunk or something like that. Yeah, you're gonna see things, but it's not of God. Hold your place in Isaiah and go to Luke chapter 12, if you would, Luke chapter number 12. Why is alcohol poisonous? Well, because of the fact that it impairs your judgment. And folks, in the day and age in which we live, we don't need anything to impair our judgment. Because we as men and women, we need to be able to make sure to make right decisions. So much nonsense going on in this world. Satan, we have the Satan, we have the world, we have the flesh, it's constantly fighting against us. We have a target on our back because we're Christians, we're sowing, we're preaching God's word. You know, we're in a spiritual battle. The last thing you need is to impair your ability to function correctly as a soldier of God. Why are you preaching this on a Sunday morning? Well, because Thanksgiving's coming around. Well, I'm not gonna drink beer during Thanksgiving. Yeah, you might want to get a little more sophisticated and get like a wine or something like that. Just a little bit of wine and cheese. You know, just a little shot, you know, my family and, you know, just have a good time. Folks, we can have a good time without alcohol. And tell me, explain to me how waking up the next day with a hangover, with throw up, blacking out or passing, how is that fun? How is it fun for a Christian to wake up with a guilty conscience? Is that really fun? Do you enjoy waking up knowing that you sinned against God and you defiled your body and you did only the Lord knows what because you can't even remember what you did? Is that really fun? No, it's not fun. Look, the only hangover I want after Thanksgiving is a sugar hangover. It's the only thing I want, right? Am I alone on this or what? I want a sugar hangover from eating apple pie. Oh, you're so boring. That's so boring. Well, you know what, to the bitter soul, wait, not to the bitter soul, to the hungry soul, every bitter thing is sweet. So you know what, when you're not involved in alcohol and marijuana and drugs and all this stuff, the simple things make you happy. Isn't that what you want? Oh, no, no, but you want to chase this party that's out there, this never-ending party where you can never fulfill your desires, you can never fulfill your happiness. My happiness is fulfilled every Sunday. My happiness is fulfilled right now. I just had a pork butt. I'm happy. I'm joyful. And then Thanksgiving, we get some cake, we get some pie, we get some turkey, get some mashed potatoes and macaroni and cheese. We hang out with each other, we give thanks unto the Lord and we wake up the next day with a clear conscience. We drink some sparkling cider. We even put it in those little wine glasses if you want. Let me read to you from Luke chapter 12, or you're in Luke chapter 12, look at verse 45. It says, but and if that servant say in his heart, my Lord delayeth his coming and shall begin to beat the men servants and maidens and to eat and drink and to be drunken, the Lord of that servant will come in a day when he looketh not for him. What is it saying? A person who is drunk will not seek to wait for their Lord. They can't discern the times. He says he's looking out for him. So someone who's drunk is not looking for spiritual things. They're not seeking the kingdom of God and his righteousness. They're not even temporal minded, they're just fleshly minded, okay. He says, and at an hour when he is not aware and will cut him sunder and will point him his portion with the unbelievers. First Thessalonians five verse seven says this, for they that sleep, sleep in the night and they that be drunken are drunken in the night. Proverbs 31 verse four says, it is not for kings Olemuel, it is not for kings to drink wine nor for princes strong drink. Folks, according to the Bible, we're kings and priests unto the Lord. Say, well, that's Olemuel, he's a literal king. Well, God sees me as a king. That's what the Bible says. We're kings and priests unto Christ, Revelation chapter one. And if I'm a king, according to the Bible, then it's not for me to drink wine nor for princes strong drink. Let's say drink and look what it says here, and forget the law and pervert the judgment of any of the afflicted, the Bible says. So you know what actually the result is of drinking alcohol? You forget God's word. You don't use alcohol to enhance your ability to memorize God's word. It actually has the exact opposite effect. You will actually forget the law of the Lord, okay? Go back to Isaiah, if you wouldn't, chapter number five. Why is alcohol poisonous? Well, it will be feminized the mind and the body and impairs your judgment spiritually and physically. Also, number three, alcohol causes inflammation, physically and spiritually. It'll make you a flamer, but it causes inflammation as well. Alcohol disrupts the balance between good and bad bacteria in the gut. This imbalance is called dysbiosis, and it negatively impacts your immune system. Alcohol also promotes the overgrowth of bacteria, which further disrupts gut health and promotes inflammation in the body, okay? So look, folks, if you already have other problems in your body, drinking alcohol is only gonna assist in that area. It's gonna cause inflammation in your body. It's gonna make you more sick and become more unhealthy. But look what it says in Isaiah, chapter five, verse 11. Woe unto them that rise up early in the morning that they may follow strong drink. These are like the alcoholics, the winos. They go to the liquor store in the corner at seven o'clock in the morning to go buy themselves a 40. That they may follow strong drink that continue until night, look what it says here, till wine inflame them. Now that's literal because wine does cause inflammation in the body, but what this is also referring to is the fact that it makes people bold, okay? It makes people bold, it makes them angry, okay? It makes them upset, and it makes them do things that they would not otherwise do if they were sober. Go to Proverbs, chapter 23, Proverbs 23. Things that you would not normally do at all as a sober person, you're very likely to do when you're drunk, very likely. Women that you would not behold or have any interest in as a sober person will become appealing to you as a drunk person. That's inappropriate, how can you say something like that? That's what the Bible says. Look at Proverbs 23, verse 29. Who hath woe, who hath sorrow, who hath contentions, who hath babbling, who hath wounds without cause, who hath redness of eyes? Oh, this is, yeah, this is so fun. Woe and sorrow is just like who's depressed, who's sad, who's the person who always wants to fight, who's always talking like this, they're just babbling. You know that uncle that always puts his arm around your shoulder during some holiday and just talks about how much they love you? I didn't even know I loved you, right? You smell all the, it's like, oh, man, all right, give me five bucks and get out of here, you know? Who hath wounds without cause? Why, because they fight people? Who hath redness of eyes? They that tarry long at the wine, they that go to seek mixed wine. Look at verse 31. Look not thou upon the wine when it is red, when it giveth his color in the cup, when it moveth itself aright. Now, think about this. You say, well, I don't think alcohol is sinful. Well, drinking alcohol is sinful because here it says you shouldn't even look at it. Well, I mean, I can just, you know. What this is saying is that if you're not supposed to look at it, how much less should you drink it? It's not saying, don't even be near it. When it talks about when it's red, when it giveth its color in the cup, when it moveth itself aright, it's referring to that fermentation process, when it begins to ferment. And you know what? The alcohol at the store, it's already fermented for you. So you shouldn't look upon it. You shouldn't touch it. You should have nothing to do with it. Well, it doesn't say that it's sinful. Folks, the fact that it's telling you, look not thou as a command. And sin is the transgression of the law. We can consider this the law. It's not the law of Moses, but all God's word is the law. So when he tells you to do something, even if it's not under the jurisdiction of Moses in the Old Testament, it's still considered his commandments. Jesus' words are his commandments, even though he didn't quote something verbatim from Moses' law. It's still considered his law. The Bible as a whole is considered his law, his statutes, his precepts. So when we look at the Book of Proverbs and it says don't look at the wine, it's basically telling you to stay away from it completely. Verse 32, at the last it biteth like a serpent and stingeth like an adder. In other words, you're in close proximity to it, to the point where it can hit you. Look at verse 33, thine eyes shall behold strange women. Now, strange women, this isn't saying they're just gonna like, ooh, just appear out of nowhere, although I'm sure people who drink alcohol hallucinate. He says, thine eyes shall behold strange women and thine heart shall utter perverse things. What happens here? Well, when you get drunk, you begin to notice strange women who are around you, okay? And you know the result of that is that your heart will begin to utter perverse things. And this is true not just for men, but this is true for women as well. And this is why women who drink alcohol, you know, and they're out at night at the club, they're at the bar, they're having fun or whatever they're doing, they're drinking, they're likely to be a victim of rape. You know, they're likely to be a victim of rape or to partake in sexual actions that the next day that they would be horrified by. That happens when you're under the influence of alcohol. He says, thine eyes shall behold strange women. What is it telling you? It changes the way you perceive things, okay? I mean, I'm sure there's stories out there where people have woken up in a bed next to a person that they don't even know who they are. Why, because their eyes beheld strange women or strange men when they're under the influence of alcohol. They get into fights. Look what the Bible says. Go to Judges chapter nine, if you would. So they become inflamed, their passions become inflamed. You know, it says to wine inflame them, that could be applied to a man who just gets a little too comfortable around the ladies at a bar or at a club or wherever it may be, at a party. Their passions get inflamed. They would do things that they wouldn't necessarily normally do when they're sober. They become bold, they begin to speak perversely because they're loosening their tongue a little bit. But not just that, people who drink alcohol at parties, bars or whatever, they have a tendency to get into a lot of fights. Because they think they can take on the world, right? Now folks, the Bible says, be strong in the Lord and the power of his might. The Bible says that we should be bold to preach the gospel. Our boldness and our confidence is a result of what? Of being filled with the Spirit, of reading God's word. Our dependency is not upon our own power but on the power of God. Whereas the dependency that alcoholics have for people who drink alcohol is, let me get a couple of these in me first. And then it's on. Look at Judges 9, verse 26. It says, And Gal, the son of Ebed, came with his brethren and went over Shechem, and the men of Shechem put their confidence in him. And they went out into the fields and gathered their vineyards and trolled the grapes and made merry, and went into the house of their God, and did eat and drink and cursed the Bimalek. And Gal the son of Ebed said, who is the Bimalek and who is Shechem that we should serve him? Isn't he the son of Jerubel and Zebul, his officer? Serve men of Hamor, the father of Shechem, for why should we serve him? So what is he doing? He's talking crap. He's like, who's the Bimalek? Why should we serve him? Who's Shechem? Why? Because he's made himself merry drinking alcohol. He's running his mouth. What is he doing? His mouth's calling for strokes. He's calling a Bimalek like, come fight. What's it got that this people were under my hand? Then would I remove a Bimalek? And he said to a Bimalek, increase thine army and come out, man. By the way, a Bimalek is not present. He's like talking to some imaginary Bimalek. He's like fighting the wall. Increase thine army and come out. Look at verse 34, and a Bimalek rose up. All the people that were with him by night, and they laid weight against Shechem and four companies, and Gahal the son of Ebed went out and stood in the entering of the gate of the city, and a Bimalek rose up and the people that were with him from line and weight. And when Gahal saw the people, he said to Zebul, behold, there come people down from the top of the mountains. And Zebul said unto him, see is the shadow of the mountains as if they were men? And Gahal spake again and said, see there come people down by the middle of the land, and another company come along by the plain of Menoneam. Then said Zebul unto him, where is thy mouth? Where is now thy mouth? Wherewith thou sayest, who is a Bimalek that we should serve him? See, you're talking all that crap. Where's your mouth now? Well, yeah, well, I had a little too much to drink last night is what it was. I didn't really mean those things, I was just inflamed. Well, too late. Now you messed up. I like what it says, then says Zebul unto him, where is now thy mouth? He's not saying like, where is it physically? He's like, you know, all that trash that you were talking, all that boldness and confidence, where's that confidence now? Wherewith thou sayest, who is a Bimalek that we should serve him, is not this the people that thou hast despised? Go out, I pray not, and fight with them. He's like, dude, do what you say you were gonna do. Didn't you say you were gonna take over, you're better than a Bimalek? What happened here? He was inflamed. Too much boldness, okay? Go to Genesis chapter nine. Genesis chapter nine. Let me say this, if you're a Christian, and you begin to drink alcohol, you will get into a situation like this. And you know what's gonna happen? God will allow you to get beat up. He's gonna allow you to suffer the consequences of your actions. Why, because you're God's child. God is gracious with his children, but you know what, if you turn out of the way, you get involved in sin, you get involved in these things, he will allow evil and mischief to come upon you in order to chastise you. He said, well, I've been in a situation like that, nothing ever happened. Well, by God's grace and his mercy, you wanna try it again though? You think it's gonna happen the second time? You think he's gonna be merciful and gracious to you the second time? Alcohol is poisonous because it causes inflammation not only in the body literally, but also spiritually as well. It causes you to be inflamed, have passions that you should not have, but also become angry and think you can take on the world and then you suffer the consequences because of it. Why is alcohol poisonous? Well, number four, it can place you in a precarious situation, okay? And what do I mean by that? Well, there's this concept that when you drink alcohol, you could potentially black out or pass out. Right, yeah. And they're not necessarily the same. Passing out is when you drink so much alcohol, you just fall asleep. Blacking out, you're actually still functioning. You're actually still talking, you're hanging out, you're drinking, you're eating, but you're actually blacked out. What does that mean? It means the next day, you're not gonna remember anything that happened. Okay? That woman you fell in love with, she took your money, the drugs that you tried, you won't remember anything because there's always the danger of blacking out when you're drunk. The hippocampus is found deep within the brain. It's critical to forming memories. The hippocampus can't develop long-term alcohol toleration. This means it can't create memories when a blackout occurs. It's important to remember that a blackout isn't the same as passing out. Someone who passes out has either fallen asleep or become unconscious because they have consumed too much alcohol, whereas blacking out, you can still function, you just don't remember what you did. So you add the elements of being inflamed, having those passions, becoming angry, and you add to that the element of blacking out, I mean, it's a mixture for a really bad result for you. You could die. Someone can kill you, someone can rob you, someone can rape you. Rape, I don't think that, God won't let me, look at Genesis 9, verse 20, this is the first time alcohol is actually mentioned in the Bible. And there's a principle called the law of first mention. How many of you have ever heard of the law of first mention? In other words, if you wanna know what God thinks about something, look at the first time it's mentioned in the Bible, and it'll basically give you God's take on that particular action, doctrine, whatever it may be. Well, this is the first time alcohol is mentioned in the Bible, look at verse 20. And Noah began to be a husbandman, and he planted a vineyard, and he drank of the wine and was drunken, and look what it says, and he was uncovered within his tent. So do you think he was drinking like grape juice or something like that? How do we know that? Well, because he's uncovered. And you know, when a person gets drunk, often the clothes start coming off. Now you know what the problem is, is that when women take off their clothes, and they're not even drunk. Like summertime or something. Isn't that weird? At least these people, they have an excuse, they're drunk. Well, when someone's completely sober, and they wear less, and modest clothing, but they're not even drunk, oh, there's a problem. I was getting kinda quiet in here. Maybe I should change this point to what I just said. I don't like this church. And he drank of the wine and was drunken, and was uncovered within his tent, and look what it says here, and Ham, the father of Canaan, saw the nakedness of his father, and told his two brethren without. And Shem and Japheth took a garment, laid it upon both of their shoulders, and went backward and uncovered the nakedness of their father, and their faces went backward, and they saw not their father's nakedness. Actually, my verse is cut out here, so let me pull it up here real quick. Verse 23, he says in verse 24, And Noah awoke from his wine, and knew what his younger son had done unto him. Now, this is actually not only the first case of blacking out and alcohol consumption, it's also the first case of sodomy and incest, because his son raped him. Like, would God actually put that in the Bible? Yeah, it's a real book, folks. These people are not, it's not a fairy tale. When he says what his son had done unto him, it's referring to there's a perverse action that was committed against him, okay? You say, well, I don't know about that. Well, go to Genesis 19, Genesis chapter 19. Now, this happened thousands of years ago, but isn't it still happening today? Where people drink, they black out, they pass out, and they're taken advantage of? And by the way, notice that this isn't happening between a man and a woman. This is happening between two men in the Bible. Look at Genesis 19, verse 30. And Lot went up out of Zoar and dwelt in the mountain, and his two daughters with him, for he feared to dwell in Zoar, and he dwelt in a cave, he and his two daughters. And the firstborn sent unto the younger, our father is old, and there is not a man in the earth to come in unto us after the manner of all the earth. In other words, we don't have anybody to marry, to have children by. Come, let us make our father drink wine, and we will lie with him, that we may preserve seed of our father. This is disgusting. They're conspiring to have an incestuous relationship with their father. But obviously they know their dad would not be down with that. So in order to make it happen, what do they do? They make him drunk, so that he can't perceive what's taking place, and they can carry out their perversions. You know, when did they learn such a thing? Well, they just came out of Sodom and Gomorrah, which is the epicenter of perversion. That's where they learned it from. He says in verse 33, and they made their father drink wine that night, and the firstborn went in and lay with her father, and he perceived not when she lay down, nor when she arose. What does that mean? He either blacked out or passed out. He didn't even know that happened. He didn't even know that it took place. Look what it goes on to say, and it came to pass on the morrow that the firstborn said unto the younger, behold, I lay yesterday night with my father. Let us make him drink wine this night also, and go thou in and lie with him, that we may preserve seed of our father. And they made their father to drink wine that night also, and the younger arose and lay with him, and he perceived not when she lay down, nor when she arose. Go to 1 Corinthians chapter five. 1 Corinthians chapter five. So you know what alcohol can do to you? It can place you in a precarious situation where you didn't mean to commit fornication, you didn't mean to commit adultery, you didn't mean to do something filthy or perverse, such as incest or even sodomy, believe it or not, but because you're drunk and you black out, you pass out, you place yourself in a situation where those things can happen to you. Do you really want to roll the dice on that? Like, well, you know, I drink with people that I know. I mean, first of all, the fact that they drink should be red flag number one, right? So if they drink, you know what? The same principles that apply to you, that I'm preaching to you from, applies to them as well. That means they can potentially do things that they wouldn't typically do if they were sober. Let me read to you from Habakkuk 2 in verse 15, just to add more credence to the story in Genesis with Noah, it says in Habakkuk 2 15, Woe unto him that giveth his neighbor drink, that putteth thy bottle to him, and makest him drunk also, that thou mayest look on their nakedness. So he's like, woe unto that person who gives his neighbor to drink? For what purpose? To see their nakedness. To take advantage of them is what it's talking about. Why is alcohol poisonous? Because of the fact that it can place you in a precarious situation that you can definitely regret later on. Last point, and it's only one verse. Number five, why is alcohol poisonous? Well, I'll tell you why, because it can get you kicked out of church. That's why it's poisonous. So you may disagree with me if you want. Everyone's always at liberty to disagree with the pastor, disagree with the church, but here's the thing, you can't be in this church and continuously drink alcohol. You can't be in this church and be a pot smoker. You can't be in this church and you know what, and by the way, if you drank last night, it's not like you're gonna get kicked out today, but if after this sermon you say, I get what you're saying, but I disagree and I'm gonna keep drinking, but I like to keep coming, that's not an option. It's not like, okay, I get what you're saying. All right, will you let me know when you're ready to get rid of the alcohol and all that? Yeah, I'll let you know. Maybe after the holidays or something. Still trying to use this bottle still. You know, my grandfather gave me or something like that. Yeah, I'll connect with you in January and then we'll revisit this whole conversation. Doesn't work that way, folks. Now you know that it's wrong. If you didn't know that it was wrong before, now you know it's wrong. What right do you have to kick people out of church for drinking alcohol? Look at 1 Corinthians 5.11. But now I've written unto you not to keep company if any man that is called a brother, this is referring to Christians, because this isn't saying we should just stay away from all alcoholics because of the fact that when you go out and work in the world, you know, maybe you live in a home where your mom and dad drink or people drink in your household or whatever it may be, you know, and you can't necessarily control that environment. I mean, there's nothing you can do about that. Okay? It's saying if any man that is called a brother, so if someone comes to you and says, I'm a Christian, I like whiskey. Let me just put it as bluntly as that, all right? I don't know if anybody would ever do that, but let's just use that for illustration. 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 would such a one know not to eat? So what is it saying there? It's saying the drunkard is not permitted to fellowship with the believer, the drunkard who's called a brother. And this is being written to the Corinthian church, because later on he says, put away from yourselves that wicked person. And earlier in the chapter, it talks about purging out the leaven that ye may be a new lump. In other words, what is he saying? You need to get rid of people who are drunkards in the church if they're not willing to get that right. That's the rule. No casual drinking, like man, can't you just give people a chance? Well, this is the chance. This is the chance. And if you're so attached to alcohol, if that's such your thing, then you should go to Calvinist Baptist Church where they permit a bar in there as long as you have your ID. But you know what? In God's house, that's not supposed to be permitted. Smoking pot, drinking alcohol, shooting heroin, doing coke, or getting drunk any other way is not permissible in the house of God. Why? Because God considers it as leaven in the church. And a little leavened leavened the whole lump, the Bible says. So you know what? If I make a, if I compromise and permit you to stay in church knowing full well that you're drinking alcohol, people are gonna find out about that. And you know what? They're gonna partake in their particular sin because they see that this is being permitted. Well, if so-and-so can be in the church as a drunker, then I can fornicate with my girlfriend. I can fornicate with my boyfriend. I can do all these things because they're allowing so-and-so to stay in here. And then what happens is the church becomes a cesspool of sin. So therefore, it's a zero tolerance policy when it comes to this. So it's poisonous for many reasons, but one of the main reasons that I've learned that will motivate people to repent of this sin of drunkenness is that it might get you kicked out of church which is a shameful thing. And if you love this church, you know, you're like, I love this church. I love being here. I love the preaching. I love the people. I'm not willing to lose that just because I wanna get drunk every once in a while or something. And that's a good attitude to have. You get it right, you repent of that sin, and you clean up your life. You go in the way of righteousness. Clean up your life and learn how to have fun a different way. Because at the end of the day, that's not fun, folks. You're destroying yourself, okay? Get rid of the poison of dragons because it'll kill you. Let's pray. Father, we thank you so much for your word. We're thankful for the relevance that it has today in 2021, Lord. And I pray, God, that you'd help us to continue to turn in the way of righteousness. We're thankful for new people to come to our church. And I'm sure this is a hard truth for them. I'm sure I said a lot of things that potentially might've been offensive, Lord, but they can't necessarily argue against it. It's in the Bible. And I pray that they would be moved to get rid of that particular sin in their life, Lord, because it's not pleasing unto you. They can't function at 100% as a Christian if they are permitting alcohol into their lives and placing themselves in precarious situations, Lord. They're destroying their bodies, the temple of the Holy Ghost, which we have of God, and we are not our own. And I pray, God, that you'd help us, Lord, as a church to continue to reach new people and teach them in the way of righteousness and turn them unto you. We love you, we thank you. Pray these things in Jesus' name.