1 Timothy 5:23, A little wine for the stomach’s sake

An age-old debate in the body of Christ, should Christians consume alcohol. Paul tells Timothy in verse 23 that he should use some wine for medicinal purposes to deal with frequent stomach issues that he struggles with. We must make clear, as Paul did in his other letters, that consuming alcohol is not necessarily the problem consuming alcohol until one is drunk is the issue. In Ephesians 5:18 Paul commands the church of Ephesus to not be drunk with wine because it leads to debauchery, and instead they should be filled with the spirit of God. Intoxication is something that should be avoided at all cost for believers because you surrender control over to the flesh and eliminate God’s control over your life.

Personally, our family believes it is best for all believers to abstain from alcohol consumption because everyone’s tolerance level is different. The only way to know when your personal limit of crossing over from sober to intoxicated is to cross the line because no two people have the same threshold. We believe risk is not worth the reward/value that is obtained from partaking in it but also realize that scripture doesn’t exclude consumption of alcohol from the life of a believer it only excludes being intoxicated. (expect in instances where certain officials in the church are commanded to abstain completely from strong drink, 1 Timothy 3:1-7, he is tells Timothy here in chapter 5 it is ok for him since he has stomach issues,
Titus 1:5-9)

1 Timothy 5:23-25, In the open and in hidden corners

Have you ever tried to hide something, and it just seems impossible to hide? Jeremiah and Judah seem to always be able to stumble upon stuff that we have hidden for them (Christmas/B-day gifts). They are 3 and 5-year-olds that are experts in finding things that they are aren’t really looking for, they just stumble across them and say, “Mommy who is this for.” Somethings just can’t be hidden. Paul tells Timothy in verse 24 and 25 of chapter 5 that our sins and good deeds are this way. Some people’s sins are out in the open for the world to see while other sins are seemingly hidden from other’s eyes. The same is true of good deeds, some receive great accolades for the charitable works, donations, and public service while some do just as much, but it goes totally unrecognized. Paul said that the things that seem to be done in obscurity can not be hidden forever and will eventually be revealed.

We must realize that the scripture says in Galatians 6:7, we will a reap exactly what we have sown in this earth. The individual that leaves openly in their sins will reap the same reward of the individual who is good at hiding their sinful behavior. There are no secrets from the Creator, God is all-knowing, and nothing can be hiding from Him. We can fool those around us 100% of the time but God sees more than just our actions, He sees the motive of our heart. He knows if we are acting in rebellion, pride, selfishness, or out of greed. He doesn’t just hear the eloquent words that come from our lips justifying our actions, He hears the cry of our conscience saying, “I told them not to do it.” Privacy is an illusion used by Satan to convince you that no one really knows what is going on, you have everyone fooled. “Do not be deceived: God cannot be mocked. A man reaps what he sows (Galatians 6:7)