Re: Jesus and Wine: What do you want to force the scriptures to mean.
OK, ya'll. What did Jesus say about meats, understanding "meats" must include fruit of the vine in any sense since He changed water into wine? Drinks were considered part of the diet. The law prohibited spirit drinks, like those distilled from grain.
Mark 7:14-23 (KJV)
[SUP]14 [/SUP] And when he had called all the people unto him, he said unto them, Hearken unto me every one of you, and understand:
[SUP]15 [/SUP] There is nothing from without a man, that entering into him can defile him: but the things which come out of him, those are they that defile the man.
[SUP]16 [/SUP] If any man have ears to hear, let him hear.
[SUP]17 [/SUP] And when he was entered into the house from the people, his disciples asked him concerning the parable.
[SUP]18 [/SUP] And he saith unto them, Are ye so without understanding also? Do ye not perceive, that whatsoever thing from without entereth into the man, it cannot defile him;
[SUP]19 [/SUP] Because it entereth not into his heart, but into the belly, and goeth out into the draught, purging all meats?
[SUP]20 [/SUP] And he said, That which cometh out of the man, that defileth the man.
[SUP]21 [/SUP] For from within, out of the heart of men, proceed evil thoughts, adulteries, fornications, murders,
[SUP]22 [/SUP] Thefts, covetousness, wickedness, deceit, lasciviousness, an evil eye, blasphemy, pride, foolishness:
[SUP]23 [/SUP] All these evil things come from within, and defile the man.
It isn't factual that all people who occasionally drink alcohol moderately defile themselves by it. Many do, but that can't be a reason to say alcohol itself is evil. We could lump food into the discussion. We could add in pain pills, sodas, candy. Lots of stuff people stuff into their mouths can cause destruction of health and death. I've dealt with men that turned to alcoholism watching their wives eat themselves to go from 125 pounds to 400 in a few years, and vice versa. A person can get off alcohol a lot easier than abuse of food, seeing there's a large array of fattening foods bought cheaply with food stamps.