It's okay for us Christians to drink

My wife and I had guests over the other night and among our guests was a couple of a particular Christian denomination (I'm not sure which one). To make a long story short, we offered everyone some alcohol (glasses of wine, bottles of beer, etc.) to go with the meal and this couple made it pretty clear that they don't drink. When I quizzed them [politely] about it, they said it was because of their Christian convictions. I asked them what their basis was for it, and the husband of the pair stumbled his way through Ephesians 5:18, which reads:

I looked at him for a second and I immediately knew what I was going to say back to him, but instead I thought I'd tease it out a bit just to see where'd go with it. So I asked him to clarify, "So is this a choice based on your religious convictions or a personal decision?" to which he replied, "It's a choice I've made because of my relationship with Jesus Christ". "Okay," I continued "What if I told you that Christ himself tells us through scripture that it is not what goes into a man that defiles him, but what comes out of him?"

"... there is nothing outside a man which by going into him can defile him; but the things which come out of a man are what defile him." - Mark 7:15

I continued, "The thing to point out about Ephesians 5:18: 'And do not get drunk with wine...'. The emphasis in this passage is on the verb, i.e. the doing word ('drunk'); not the noun ('wine'). Otherwise are we to assume it would be okay to get drunk with another type of strong drink if wine alone is forbidden?"

 He just looked at me blankly. So I continued with this:

"... And let's not forget Christ's first miracle: the Wedding at Cana in John 2:1-11. Are you aware that Christ first demonstrated his divine power by turning water into wine so the wedding guests could drink?"

"When the steward of the feast tasted the water now become wine, and did not know where it came from (though the servants who had drawn the water knew), the steward of the feast called the bridegroom and said to him, 'Every man serves the good wine first; and when men have drunk freely, then the poor wine; but you have kept the good wine until now'. This, the first of his signs, Jesus did at Cana in Galilee, and manifested his glory; and his disciples believed in him." - John 2:9-11

Then there's the Last Supper where Jesus and his disciples broke bread and shared wine, but I didn't want to overwhelm the poor fellow with all of that truth, and it was at this point his wife very tactfully moved on the topic of discussion to something else, but after that last question I put to her husband he began to shift in his seat very awkwardly. I made him think; that's all I wanted to do.

What's important to understand though, is that even though it's okay for a Christian to drink alcohol, it must be done in moderation; don't let it lead you astray (Proverbs 20:1). 

Later that night - after all of our guests had left - I poured myself a glass of red wine (a 2000 Margaret River merlot) and pondered the words of St. Paul:

"No longer drink only water, but use a little wine for the sake of your stomach and your frequent ailments." - 1 Timothy 5:23