This transcript was generated automatically and may contain errors.

Bibleline Bibleline, here God’s word on Bibleline, here God’s truth on Bibleline. Welcome to Bibleline with Dr. Ralph Yankee Arnold, pastor of Calvary Community Church in Tampa, Florida, clearly declaring the Gospel of Jesus Christ through the radio and the internet. Your regular prayers and monthly support make it possible for Bibleline to continue on the air. You can reach us toll free at 1-800-576-3771. Online donations may be made by clicking on the donations link on the BibleLineMinistries.org homepage. We pray that you will enjoy our commitment to the clear gospel of Jesus Christ and that today’s concluding message of this teaching will be a blessing to you and your family.

Now look into book of Luke chapter 1, the gospel of Luke chapter 1. chapter 1, we’re talking about John the Baptist going to be born. And it says here in verse 15. Verse 15, he says, for he, talking about John the Baptist, shall be great in the sight of the Lord and shall be a drunkard. Now I didn’t say that. And shall drink neither wine nor strong drink. He shall be filled with the Holy Ghost even from his mother’s womb.

And God’s going to use him to turn a lot of people’s hearts to the Lord. Jesus says there’s not a man born of woman greater than John the Baptist. And John the Baptist never touched the stuff. He never touched the stuff. The Word of God tells us that. So people who want to do something can justify anything you want to do. anything you want to do. If you want to have sex outside of marriage, you’ll find a good reason to do it.

Well, we love each other. Find that in the Bible. Well, because you love each other, it’s okay. You know it’s not. You go by what the book says. Now, I’m so glad that regardless of what the people do or don’t, it doesn’t affect salvation. It doesn’t mean I can’t get to go to heaven. Christ died on the cross to pay for the sins of people. Everybody is a sinner. Everybody’s done things wrong. But when Christ died, He paid for all of it.

Now, once you trust Christ to save Him, your God’s job. Now, God tells us in His word how to live. So there’s things that God doesn’t want us to do because it’s not good for us. It’s not good for the children to learn. I’ve never wanted my children to learn some of the things of the world. Now, if they learn it, they didn’t learn it from me. But I’ve never touched the drop in my life. Strongest thing I’ve ever had was formerly 44 cough syrup And one swig of that deer like the do me in.

And when I find out that’s alcohol, I won’t touch it anymore. That’s the strongest thing I’ve ever had in my life. Besides strong coffee, I love coffee. But the Word of God gives us an idea what we’re supposed to believe. Now, turning your Bible to the book of Ephesians chapter 5, the book of Ephesians chapter 5. A lot of people love this verse Because it says in verse 18, be not drunk with wine, where in the next says, it’s okay to drink a little wine, just don’t drink too much.

Okay. You can take that if you want to, but it means you don’t drink it if it gives an influence, but cause the rest of the verse, but be filled with the Holy Spirit. To be filled with the the Holy Spirit means to be controlled by the Holy Spirit, influenced by the Holy Spirit, but you don’t drink strong drink that you might be influenced by it. It doesn’t bother me. It doesn’t bother me. It doesn’t bother me. It doesn’t bother me.

And it does bother them. It’s just that they don’t know how much. Well, listen, if getting drunk is so bad, why run the risk? Why see how close you can come to the edge of the cliff? I would rather want to stay as far away from the edge as I possibly could, not to see how close I can get without going over. I believe that you’ll be wiser if you do what God says doom. But you’ll notice that the Bible does talk about do not drink strong drink.

Find the verse that says God commanded us to drink strong drink. It’s not there, but it is a prohibition against it, but never for it. Now, a verse that I wanted to show you also found here in the book of Proverbs in chapter three. Just go to there right quick and look at this. There’s a couple verses that I want you to see there in the book of Proverbs chapter three. And look in verse nine. Remember the priest of Aaron.

They eat and drink what the people brought to be sacrificed or given. They lived off of the other 11 tribes, the tribe of Levi. So they would bring things and they would offer it. And so they got to eat some of the sacrifice and some of the things to drink. But the priest could not drink strong drink. that was not permitted. So if they could not, then I don’t believe the people would be bringing that. But notice what he says here in verse 9, honored the Lord with thy substance and with the first fruits of all thine increase, so shall thy barns be filled with plenty and thy presence shall burst out with new wine.

This is what the first fruits is what they also brought to the temple and they could not have been fermented drink. It had been new wine, fresh. Now there’s different words that are used and I have it down here and I got it all in my notes. I’ve got two different Hebrew words, one Greek word and how many times are used in the Old Testament and when they’re used meaning a fermented drink and when it’s not a fermented drink and the word, Oynos, which is Greek 28 times in the New Testament and how all those things were used, I’ve spent some time studying the Bible because I know that I’m going to have to give account to God for whatever I teach.

And so I know that I have to try to be as accurate as I possibly can. So I don’t have an ulterior motive. I’m not going to drink so that I got to find some verses to justify I just take the Bible and study, so what does God’s Word have to say about the subject? And I simply want to pass that on because I believe that it is so important. First, pressed grape juice. The only thing is they didn’t have the refrigeration like we have today.

If you had grape juice today, if you just let it sit long enough, you’ll have intoxicating wine on down the road. So the word wine can be used for fresh, great fruit, and can be used for the other because it’s the same stuff. It’s just that one move it in the cup. So you wonder, well, what does that mean? So take your Bible while you’re right here in Proverbs and look in chapter 20 of the book of Proverbs. Proverbs, chapter 20.

And notice what he says in verse 1. Wine is a mocker. Strong drink is raging and whosoever is deceived thereby is what? I don’t believe that it’s the best for God’s children to set an example. Well, just as long as you don’t drink too much. And how pray till do you determine how much is too much? And whenever your children watch what parents do, do they cut it off at the same point? How much would it take? At what time do you, when you say, well it doesn’t bother me, didn’t that verse just say, deceived themselves?

Did you say the word deceived there? Is deceived? Whosoever deceived, not wise. But of course, you know, when you want to do what you want to do, it’s going to be done. Look in chapter 23 of the book of Proverbs. Chapter 23, look in verse 21, verse 21. Well just look at verse 20, it’s right there also, it says, be not among wine bebbers, among riotous eaters of flesh, for the drunkard and the glutton shall come to poverty and drows in his shall clothe a man with rags.

You don’t hear a lot of good things about this. You say, well, how do you know when it’s really fermented. Well, the Bible even kind of gives you a clue at that too. Look on down there in verse 29. Look at verse 29, where it says, who hath woe, who hath sorrow, who hath contentions. Who hath babbles? You’ve ever seen a Trump battle? Who hath wounds without cause? Who hath redness of eyes? Sometimes I do because I don’t get enough sleep, but I mean that’s not the same thing.

Verse 30, they that carry long at the wine. They that go to seek mixed wine look not thou upon the wine when it is read, when it giveth his color in the cup, when it move itself a right, means it’s fermented, means it’s strong. intoxicating. If you drink some of it, you can get drunk. God says, don’t look at it when it’s fermented. Well, if you don’t look at it, you probably wouldn’t drink it. I believe the Scriptures are pretty clear.

Then notice what he says here in verse 32. At the last it vieteth like a serpent and stingeth like an adder, like a rattlesnake that’s got poison in its fangs that’s going to get you. I have a lot of people that I’ve dealt with over the years because being a preacher, you deal with people who have all kinds of addiction problems. And one of the biggest and the worst that there can possibly be is alcohol. I’ve watched so many homes ruin because of a dad who become a drunk.

Or even a wife that becomes a drunk. I’ve had to deal with that. Some of this I’ve dealt with since I have been here and that’s not a lie. and the impact that it makes upon the children, how it divides the home. It ruins their whole life savings and what they go through, and they can’t hold a job, all kinds of things that happen. And some people are gambling, they’re just rolling the dice. Russian roulette, it won’t get me.

You heard about the mosquito flying around the flames of the fire, you know, me, it won’t get me, it won’t get me, it won’t get me, it won’t get me. It got him. And that’s the way it is with some people. these verses are clear, but take your Bible, Luke, over there in the book of Habakkah, the book of Habakkah. In the book of Habakkah, there’s several scriptures that kind of gives you the idea that it’s maybe not the best thing to do.

Look what he says in Habakkah chapter 2, this is on page 957, and look at in verse 14, a positive and then a negative, positive for the earth shall be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the Lord as the waters cover the seed.” Verse 15, woe unto him that giveth his neighbor drink and puteth thy bottle to him and make it him drunken also that thou mayest look on their nakedness. This is why there’s so much trouble that goes on in a lot of problems because of the breakup of the home and some man taking his wife to some bar and they get to drinking and then a woman, dancing with some other man and some man dancing with some other woman is not his wife.

Listen, that’s trouble, trouble, trouble. I don’t want another man putting his hands on my wife. And last thing I need to do is put my arms around some other woman and dancing with some music. Now listen, if you don’t like what I’m saying, you be thankful for what I hold back. But that’s foolishness. It lays to trouble. So you don’t do that. Now the Scriptures are clear in some of these things and sometimes it’s a little difficult to understand.

But let’s see if we can look at one more while we’re here in the Old Testament. Look in the book of Deuteronomy. The book of Deuteronomy chapter 21. Deuteronomy chapter 21. A man and a wife have a rebellious son. Years ago they had a ways and means committee on how to deal with a rebellious child. Notify he says in verse 20, and they shall say unto the elders of the city, this our son is stubborn and rebellious. We don’t have anybody like that today do we?

He will not obey our voice. He is a glutton and a drunkard, and all the men of his city shall stone him with stones that he die. So shall thou put evil away from among you. Getting drunk is an evil thing.” You’d be surprised how much crime is committed because people drink, get on drugs, things that shape their thinking from being sound. If a man is going to have to count to God for all of his actions and his thinking.

I wouldn’t want to do something that would cloud my mind so I couldn’t think clearly. Just think about it. It’s a foolish thing. And yet there’s people that do it all the time and justify it. And the Bible talks about how that they will vomit. You know what I have missed? I have lived Wednesday. For the 73 years, I have never, and this really bothers me. never woke up with a headache and vomit in all night long. But a lot of people have got that experience.

You don’t have to do what the world does. I think the scriptures are pretty clear that that’s not something that God wants us to do. Turning your Bible to the book of, well, let’s just look in 1 Corinthians 5, 1 Corinthians 5. You may not have known that this verse was in the Bible, but I guess I need to show it to you. This is what God’s word has to say. First Corinthians in chapter 5 and verse 9, verse 9 says, I wrote unto you in an epistle not to company with foreignicators.

Verse 10, yet not altogether with the foreignicators of this world or with the covetousness or extortioners or with idolatous, for then must you have made go out of the world. In other words, the only way you can keep from becoming associated with anybody in the world is to have to take you out of it. What? Because there’s sinful people in the world. God can’t keep you from everybody because then how would you witness anybody? So there has to be contact made in the world.

But what you have to watch is that you reach them, not them reach you. Who’s influencing who? If you have a problem with alcohol, the last thing you need is to hang around people who drink alcohol. And if you’re trying to live a clean, pure life, the last thing you need is to stand around people and go with people and have close friends who are cheating on their wives or their husbands, running around and telling dirty jokes and things like that.

It doesn’t keep your mind clean and pure. good friends, godly friends. Is all I just can’t do? Yes you can. You can do it. Be the stabilizer. Then look what he else he says here. In verse 11, but now I have written unto you not to keep company. If any man that is called a brother, be a fornicator or a covetous or an idolater or a a regular or a drunkard or an extortion with such a one note not to even eat.

You say, well, that’s pretty hard. I know. But did I read that out of the book? Is that the New Testament? Is this written to a church? Do you know what they were doing on the Lord’s supper, which is where we’re headed. You see, I believe that if God says, when we have the bread, it’s to be unleavened bread, it means no yeast in it. I mean, there’s no bacteria in it to cause it to create gas and cause it to rise.

You see, in Israel time, they had to be in a hurry. There was no time for that. It was without yeast. Leaven, a lot of time, has the connotation of sin, something wrong, cursed, not good. So that’s why we have the bread without the yeast in it. It’s flat. It has a notation pretty much. It’s blah. But it represents the body of Christ, it’s to be pure. Do you think that is okay for the bread? it’s okay for the grape juice to be fermented because of bacteria and causing to stir in the cup.

And that’s what that represents the precious blood of Jesus Christ. And I don’t believe that intoxicating wine represents the body and the blood of Jesus Christ. I think if you’re going to keep it with the bread, you ought to keep it with the blood. They’re both precious and they’re both to be kept pure. When Jesus went to the wedding and made the, well, the water into wine, do you believe that Jesus made intoxicating drink that everybody could get their fill and then everybody become drunk at the party?

Oh, they’d probably remember the party. Well, maybe they won’t remember the party either. But I don’t believe he made intoxicating wine. There’s only one word for wine. It’s that word that means fresh grape juice, but in time it produces contamination stuff. And that’s what you need to be careful of. There’s another verse in the Bible that we won’t take the time to look at, but let me explain it to you. The Bible says you do not take new wine and put into old sheep’s skins because he knew wine into an old sheepskin.

If it sets along, it builds up the gas and it will cause it to burst. But he says you put new wine into new sheepskin. And there’s the reason because he if it’s fermented, it’ll bust it. Ferman and wine into an old bag will not build anymore. It’s already done its job that’s already permanent. New wine has yet to have fermentation. So the Bible says you don’t do that. And so God has given to us a teaching that we should understand it is of the flesh and the flesh can desire it and you may love to get drunk once in a while.

My kids never saw a a can of beer in our home. You will not open our refrigerator and find strong drink for a little tummy sake. I don’t have it there. I’ll die of a stomach problem first. But I don’t believe that it’s wise to set a bad example on something that God says this can hurt you. You’re not going to think clearly. It’s going to cloud your mind. And you’re going to say things you shouldn’t say. And you’re not going to be able to do the things your judgment is impaired.

Why do you think even there is a law that if they catch you driving and they give you a breath test, if it’s over a certain percentage, they consider you impaired to drive. You’re not fit to drive. Well, what about a Christian? Should a Christian be like that, you think it through. I believe that Christians ought to be of the highest standard of good character, good integrity, and that our minds ought to be clear and sharp. Now we get a little bit older, we’re not going to be able to help it too much.

I told somebody the other day, I said, my computer up here is, well, it’s only got so many gigabytes, it’s full. And the only way I can remember new stuff is I got to go in and delete some old stuff. So when you ask me something and I don’t remember it’s because that was deleted it wasn’t considered important. Now go to 1 Corinthians in chapter 11. 1 Corinthians chapter 11. So when the Lord tells us in His Word, When you take this bread, it represents the body of Christ.

And when you take the grape juice, the wine, it’s grape juice, it represents the blood of Christ. And the body was pure and the blood was precious. Incorruptible blood. Nothing in it that could ever cause it to be changed. It can never be changed. And that’s why I believe that we need to be very careful. Now a lot of churches, they will serve you the real stuff. And I noticed whenever they have their communion service, some of y’all go to those churches so that you can get some of the…

No, no, I’m just okay. Now, remember this. I still love you. I want you to say it back. I want you to tell me. Preacher, I still love you. I say it. Preacher, I still love you. I, you weren’t together. Preacher, I still love you. Preacher, thank you. It’s not nice to lie in a church. Not nice. So I’m assuming you all told the truth because that’s what I’m trying to tell you. But if I go to your house and I open up a refrigerator and it’s loaded with nothing but bear in strong drink.

That’s between you and the Lord. I may never come back again, but that’s between you and the Lord. But I think you need to be wise. I’d throw the stuff out, pour down the drink. And whatever you have done, don’t do it anymore. Just don’t do it anymore. You can’t change everything that’s ever been done, but you can live a pure life from here on out. You’re God’s child. Live like God’s child. And go by what the Word of God says.

Don’t let the world, if you ever notice on these beer commercials, they’ll have it on there and they’re at the campfire. And they’re all drinking, they all got their can in their hand. It doesn’t get any better than this. I think, duh. Why don’t they show some big old fat woman’s hanging over a bar stool and a teeth are all out and down. Wake like a hag as she said, they don’t get any better than this. Where did I come from?

Look up here. Look up here. This is you and me. Not that we got to get serious here. This is you and me. This is sin. We all have sin on us. God loves all of us. We’ve all sinned. We just maybe not do the same one, but we got enough. And the Bible says that God loves us, but the pay for sin is eternal separation from Him. So to go to heaven, you have to be perfect, and righteous has got a none of us are perfect.

None of us are righteous. That’s why we need to save you. We can’t save ourselves. We are sinners, that’s what we do. And we’re good at it. We’re experts. This hand represents Jesus Christ. He’s the Lord God in the flesh. He came into the world because He loves us, but He hates our sin. Our sin separates us from God. So Christ, who had no sin, took hours, paid for them to cross, came back from the dead, and said, if we would believe He did it for us, He’d put that payment to our account, and we go to heaven on what Jesus Christ did for us.

That’s a gift, that’s free. So God loves you in spite of anything you’ve ever done or ever will do, and will give you the free gift to be turned out, you can go to heaven on what He did. You don’t go to heaven because you deserve it, you never will, and you’re right, nobody deserves it. It’s a gift, it’s free. because God so loved the world. He gave His only begotten Son to whosoever believe it than Him should not perish but have everlasting life.

Let’s pray, shall we? With every head bowed and every eye closed and no one looking around, I pray that you have trusted Christ as your Savior. But if you haven’t, why not right now just between you and the Lord? Is it Lord? I know I’m a sinner and I believe Christ died, paid for my sins and I’m gonna trust Him as my only hope of going to heaven. And friend, if you’ll believe that and trust Him, I like to have prayer for you.

So I’m going to ask you in just a moment to raise your hand and let me know that you’re trusting Christ as your Savior this morning. If you’ve already done it, you never have to do it again. But if you haven’t, and what I said made sense. You say, I want to go to heaven and I want to trust Christ right now. We’ll just slip you in it very quickly and put it right back down, even when it all.

Even when it all. If you’re watching by internet, right on the screen, it says, yes, I will trust Christ as my Savior. We’d love to know that someone trusts the Lord. Father, we ask your blessings upon each one here. And Father, as your children, as we partake of the Lord’s Supper, to realize that there’s no sin in the bread, and that there’s no fermentation in the grape juice, because it represents the body and the blood of Jesus Christ. We thank you for that in Christ and we pray.

Amen. Are you a new listener to Bibleline? Do you enjoy the teachings of Dr. Arnold? Well, if you’ve never contacted us before, We want to give you Dr. Arnold’s book, The Gospel Driven Man. Every day we receive many emails from folks who have questions about repentance and salvation, about faith in works, and about how to share the Gospel with friends and loved ones. This book, The Gospel Driven Man, covers all those topics, and we want all new listeners of Bibleline to receive a free copy.

There’s no obligation, no donation necessary, simply call us at 1-800-576-3771 or write to us and request your free copy of the Gospel-Driven Main. The mailing address is 4811 George Road, Tampa, Florida, 33634. Again, don’t forget to include your mailing address, and God bless you and thank you for listening to Bible Thanks for joining us on Bibleline. If you are in the area, we welcome you to visit us. The address for Calvary Community Church is 4811 George Road, Tampa, Florida, 33634.

And now, a closing thought from Pastor Arnold. Friend, one day it will happen. The trumpet will sound, and we will be changed. Taught up to meet the Lord in the air. So live today and every day. Believing that the Lord is coming soon just keep looking up