Hanging out in the lobby after church is one of my favorite things to do. Sometimes it backfires – when that incredibly awkward conversation seems to never end and no one rescues me. But most of the time it’s great

And then every once-in-a-while I talk to someone and it reminds me why we do what we do.

That happened this past week. I noticed an older gentleman, probably close to 70, hanging around the lobby. He kept shooting glances my way while I was talking to a family so I wondered if he got drug there by his grandchildren and absolutely hated it. Or was he some kind of teetotaling former pastor that couldn’t believe I taught what the Bible actually says about alcohol. Then he came up to me. I gulped and braced for impact.

“I just want to thank you,” he said as he shook my hand and I breathed a sigh of relief. “I’ve been in churches my entire life and for the first time I heard the Bible in a way that I could actually understand it. For once I’ll be glad to come back to church next week.” At about that time his wife came up and joined us – a lady I have seen at our church many times in the past. And here’s the kicker: for several months now she’s been putting her husband down as a prayer request – that he would come to church with her and get back into a relationship with God.

Mission accomplished.

That reminded me of several things. First, that is the reason we teach the Bible for transformation not information. Big difference. Second, being “culturally relevant” doesn’t have an age limit. Sure, we are going to reach mostly the younger crowd. But God’s Word and worship of Him presented in a way that makes sense will reach far greater than our human goals and targets would suggest.

And that’s why we do what we do.

Preaching a sermon about what the Bible really says about alcohol was one of the hardest things I’ve done so far as a pastor of a new church. Why? Because what the Bible says is NOT what I’ve always thought or even taught to other people! I listened to several sermons on the topic and did a ton of research to arrive at this point and to make sure I wasn’t some kind of heretic. And apparently a lot of other people have the same questions. The video has already been watched more than 5o times and the podcast downloaded dozens more.

I promised all the OneLifers that I would post some of this research (most by conservative scholars, might I add) on the blog, so here it is. Enjoy! And after reading, leave me some comments below and tell me your thoughts…

History of Christianity and Alcohol – What led us to the place we are today in terms of this great debate in American Christianity (since it really is a non-issue everywhere else in the world).
Does Scripture Permit Us to Drink? - Detailed biblical research by Chancellor of Christ College.
The Bible and Alcohol – Another detailed, easy-to-understand study by a Dallas Theological Seminary professor.
Alcohol Blog – by Mark Driscoll, one of the greatest contemporary theologians of our day (in my opinion!) even if I don’t always agree with his presentation style. This is much of the same info from his chapter called “The Sin of Light Beer” from his book Radical Reformission.
Total Abstinence and Church Membership – Interesting sermon by one of my favorites, John Piper. He takes the stance that while drinking could be permitted biblically, Christians in our culture should abstain.
Not Addicted to Wine – An opposing viewpoint by John MacArthur, whom I admire. However, he unfortunately does not deal with the entire issue according to Scripture, never mentioning a single reference to Jesus’ first miracle or His reputation for being associated with alcohol (Luke 7:33-35).

God knew what he was doing when he planned this series for us at OneLife. It has been incredible to see the results over the past three weeks! This Sunday was no different. Well, except for how we opened the service…

• Our very emo OneLife Band stepped way out of their comfort zone and opened us up with “Whiskey For My Men, Beer for My Horses”
• So can you guess what we talked about? Yep, you guessed it. Horses.
• Not really…this was the long awaited for alcohol sermon.
• I had to rely on scripture rather than my legalistic background to preach this one.
• Where did we land on the subject? The Bible is clear that drinking and not getting drunk is not sin.
• Before you accuse me of being liberal and against the Bible, watch online for yourself or listen to the podcast. But listen to the whole thing!
• I have to admit…I did more research on this sermon than any other! Listened to lots of sermons and read lots of research from people smarter than me.
• That was because it made me uncomfortable! But I had to go with His Word instead of my word.
• I’ll be posting some of that research throughout the week for you to see for yourself…
• The great thing is where it all ended up: it might be permissible to drink alcohol but it – or nothing else – can master us.
• Jesus wants us to be mastered by HIM! Why? Because he wants us to have life to its fullest.
• This series has generated all kinds of web traffic. Our online videos have been viewed more than 200 times in just the past week. The podcast is getting more and more subscribers.
• How is that happening? We are letting God’s Word answer the questions people are asking instead of avoiding the questions. Inquiring minds want to know!
• Our volunteers stinkin’ rock. Tear down was less than 40 minutes – another record.
• Speaking of volunteers, I’m going to miss our college students who will be out on Spring Break this week.
• But speaking of college students, it was great to meet a lot of their parents who were there this Sunday because of “Parents Weekend” at UT. It’s cool that these kiddos love their new church enough to bring mom and dad!
• Next Sunday wraps up the series and let me just say this…DON’T BE LATE! You do NOT want to miss how the band is opening this one up!
• And with that in mind…this is the PERFECT week to bring someone who is skeptical of church-as-usual.
• See ya there!