Did Jesus turn water into alcoholic wine?

¶C His disciples believed on Jesus because of the water made into new wine (Gospel of John 2:1-11)

O And the third day there was a marriage in Cana of Galilee; and the mother of Jesus was there. And both Jesus was called, and his disciples, to the marriage.

O And when they wanted wine, the mother of Jesus says to him, “They have no wine.” Jesus says to her, “Woman, what have I to do with you? My hour has not yet come.”

C His mother says to the servants, “Whatsoever he says to you, do it.” And six waterpots of stone were set there, after the manner of the purifying of the Jews, containing two or three measures each. Jesus says to them, “Fill the waterpots with water.” And they filled them up to the brim. And he says to them, “Draw out now; and take some to the director of the feast.” And they took it.

C When the director of the feast had tasted the water that had been made wine, and did not know where it came from (but the servants who drew the water knew), the director of the feast called the bridegroom; and he says to him, “Every man at the beginning sets forth good wine. And when men have drunk freely, then the inferior; but you have kept the good wine until now.”

U Jesus did this beginning of miracles in Cana of Galilee; and he revealed his glory. And his disciples believed on him.

Now I must say something, very briefly, about the water that Jesus turned into “wine”. I have spoken about this subject in a number of studies before, so I am not going to try to disprove or prove anything, because a full treatment of the subject of Biblical wine can take up a small book, and there are many good studies that have been made on this subject.

A very good one that I can recommend is “Did Jesus Make Alcoholic Wine?” August 23, 2005 (first published January 22, 1998) Way of Life Literature, P.O. Box 610368, Port Huron, MI 48061 866-295-4143, fbns@wayoflife.org (written by the late Bruce Lackey).

You can read it in full at this web address: https://www.wayoflife.org/database/did_jesus_make_alcoholic_wine.html

The author made this point (among other very good points) about Jesus making water into wine: “THERE IS NO REQUIREMENT THAT WINE OF JOHN 2 BE ALCOHOLIC. Many insist that it was alcoholic, on the basis of John 2:10, which says, “Every man at the beginning doth set forth good wine; and when men have well drunk, then that which is worse; but thou hast kept the good wine until now.” They would say that, in those days, it was common to serve the best alcoholic wine at first, saving the worst until later, when men’s tastes have been dulled by much drinking. But the point is just the opposite here! These people could definitely recognize that the wine which Jesus made was much better than what they had been served at first. This could not have been possible if they were already well on their way to becoming intoxicated! The fact is, neither the wine which they had at first, nor that which Christ made, was alcoholic.”

Here is my personal stance on the subject:

1) I used to be an alcoholic and a drug addict before I was saved, so I know first-hand the terrible damage that alcohol and drugs can do to a person’s mind and body. I want nothing to do with any alcohol whatsoever. I have been completely clean from alcoholic beverages for more than 34 years, thanks to God!

2) Before I was saved, I knew many who claimed to be Christians, and yet they did not abstain from alcohol or beer, even my Sunday-school teacher, a Southern Baptist young man who wasn’t a bad person, and I know that he was saved; but his standards were very low. When I (as a lost young man about to become a teenager) discovered that he occasionally drank beer, it was devastating to me; and he wasn’t the only professing Christian that I knew with low standards. Not long after that, I stopped going to church and wanted nothing to do with Christianity of any kind. I thought something like, “I’m not even saved, but I’m better than he is; so why should I get saved? It made no difference for him.” From that time until I was twenty-two years old, I wanted nothing to do with church, with Jesus Christ, or the Bible. I was lost and going to Hell, because some people who claimed to be Christians did not live up to their profession. They thought that a little beer would do no harm; but it did! They thought that a little tobacco would do no harm; but it did! They thought that a little sin would do no harm, but it did! As a lost young man, I was watching and judging to see whether Christianity was real or not; and they failed the test. Thankfully, I finally did meet a Christian who meant business with God while I was in the Navy, and I was saved in 1982. But I almost went to Hell, because some Christians thought that drinking booze was not a problem. They were wrong!! How many others have gone to Hell, because some professing Christians thought that drinking a little wine with their spaghetti was not a big deal? God has kept track of every single one, and I guarantee you that many Christians are going to be shocked when they discover the huge impact their backsliding on God had on others who were observing them to see whether their profession was real or not.

3) There is no reason whatsoever for a Christian to drink alcohol of any kind. The Apostle Paul counseled his preacher student Timothy:

“Do not drink water alone any longer, but use a little grape juice [or wine] for your stomach’s sake and your often infirmities.” (1 Timothy 5:23)

Even if I were to accept the proposition that drinking a little wine would help my acid reflux, why put my testimony at risk by consuming alcohol? Today we have much better medicines that are available for treating acid reflux or other stomach problems. We don’t need to drink grape juice or wine for stomach problems. So there is no justification for drinking wine from this passage.

The only reason that any person wants to drink an alcoholic beverage is to get drunk! That’s it! Otherwise, why drink it? I can easily drink grape juice without alcohol, so why drink wine with alcohol?

I have been a Christian for almost 35 years, and I have found that the people who say things like, “Jesus made water into wine!” are just looking for a fig-leaf to cover their sins! They want to drink booze, because they are alcoholics or they are becoming alcoholics, and don’t know it yet!

4) Alcohol is not something that the human body needs, like food or water or air to breathe. We do not need it for anything, except to get drunk or put in our car’s gas tank to power the engine. If we need to feel good, the Bible tells us to be filled with the Spirit (see quotation below Ephesians 5:15-21). If we have problems, the Bible tells us to pray and seek the Lord:

“Is anyone among you afflicted? Let him pray. Is anyone merry? Let him sing psalms. Is anyone sick among you? Let him call for the elders of the Assembly; and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the Name of the Lord; and the prayer of faith shall deliver the sick, and the Lord shall raise him up; and if he has committed sins, they shall be forgiven him. Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another, that you may be healed. The frequent earnest prayer of a righteous man avails much.” (James 5:13 - 16)

5) The Bible has many negative things to say about alcohol. Here are some special passages:

“See then that you walk circumspectly; not as fools, but as wise; redeeming the time, because the days are evil. Therefore be not unwise; but understanding what is the will of the Lord. And be not drunk with wine (in which is excess), but be continually filled with the Spirit: speaking to yourselves in Psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord; giving thanks always for all things to God and the Father in the Name of our Lord Jesus Christ; submitting yourselves one to another in the fear of God.” (Ephesians 5:15-21)

Proverbs 21:17: “He that loves pleasure shall be a poor man; he that loves wine and oil shall not be rich.”

Proverbs 20:1: “Wine is a mocker, and strong drink is raging; and whosoever is deceived by these is not wise.”

Proverbs 23:29-30: “Who has woe? Who has sorrow? Who has contentions? Who has babbling? Who has wounds without cause? Who has redness of eyes? They that linger long at the wine: they that go to seek mixed wine.”

Proverbs 23:31-35: “Look not upon the wine when it is red, when it gives his color in the cup, when it moves itself aright. At the last it bites like a serpent, and stings like an adder. Your eyes shall behold strange women, and your heart shall utter perverse things. Moreover, you shall be as he that lies down in the midst of the sea, or as he that lies upon the top of a ship’s mast. You shall say, “They have smitten me, but I was not sick; they have beaten me, but I did not feel anything. When shall I awake? I will seek it yet again.”

Proverbs 23:20-21: “Be not among winedrinkers, or among profligate eaters of flesh: for the drunkard and the glutton shall come to poverty; and drowsiness shall clothe you with rags.”

6) Do you want to be close to God? Don’t drink alcohol of any kind. It just might save your life:

“And Nadab and Abihu, the sons of Aaron, took both of them his censer, and put fire in it, and put incense on it; and they offered strange fire before Jehovah, which he did not command them to do. And fire went out from Jehovah, and devoured them; and they died before Jehovah....And Jehovah spoke to Aaron, saying, “DRINK NO WINE NOR ALCOHOL; neither you, nor your sons with you, when you go into the Tabernacle of the congregation, lest you die. It shall be a Statute forever throughout your generations, so that you may put difference between holy and unholy, and between unclean and clean; and so that you may teach the children of Israel all the Statutes which Jehovah has spoken to them by the hand of Moses.” (Leviticus 10:1 - 11) [Emphasis mine]

The bottom line, my friends is this:

1) The people who do not know Jesus Christ as their Savior expect you to be better than they are. If you drink any kind of alcoholic beverage, even “near beer” (which looks like the real thing, but isnt’), you are telling their through your actions that Jesus doesn’t do anything for you; so they will think (and do think) as a result: “Why should I get saved? He/she is no different than I am!” Through your backsliding, you will be responsible for sending your friends, loved ones, and neighbors to Hell. I have been there; I know for a fact that lost people think and do this, and do it often.

2) We who are saved have something much better than alcohol! We have the Holy Spirit dwelling within us, who is far better than any alcohol or drug! FAR BETTER! Our relationship with Jesus gives us all that we need, in this life or the next, to be happy, healthy, and content.

3) Alcohol is an idol that will cool off your desire to study the Bible and pray to the Lord. It will lead you down a path of personal destruction that can only end in death. You may end up living under a bridge or in an alleyway because you lost your home, your family, your job, and your health. You may even kill some people on the road while you were driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs. It just isn’t worth it!!