Paul Revere and The Raiders: "Kicks"

This song soared up the charts in the spring of 1967. It's about the danger of seeking thrills for thrills' sake. As the song says, they seem to keep getting harder to find.

Listen to the song here.

The Bible has much to say about overdoing pleasure. One bad effect is that intoxicants and a full belly cause one to forget God. As he said to the Israelites in Deuteronomy 29:6 (Bible in Basic English), "You have had no bread, or wine, or strong drink: so that you might see that I am the Lord your God." Sadly, they were slow learners.

Getting drunk also causes a person to lose their judgement. One monarch in 1 Kings 16:8-10 (BBE) learned that lesson the hard way. "In the twenty-sixth year that Asa was king of Judah, Elah, the son of Baasha, became king of Israel in Tirzah, and he was king for two years. And his servant Zimri, captain of half his war-carriages, made secret designs against him: now he was in Tirzah, drinking hard in the house of Arza, controller of the king's house in Tirzah. And Zimri went in and made an attack on him and put him to death, in the twenty-seventh year that Asa was king of Judah, and made himself king in his place."

And Paul points out that drinking to excess is no way for a Christian to act. Ephesians 5:18 (BBE) admonishes, "And do not take overmuch wine by which one may be overcome, but be full of the Spirit;"

Solomon also reminds us in Proverbs 20:1 (BBE) that, "Wine makes men foolish, and strong drink makes men come to blows; and whoever comes into error through these is not wise."

May you remain sober and watchful for Christ's coming. If that hasn't happened by Saturday, I'll hopefully post about the danger of rumors.

Kim Mitchel: "Go For a Soda"

This eighties song is one of my favourites. Its message is clear as well. Nobody hurts and nobody dies when you're drinking soft drinks.

Listen to Kim's song here.

The Bible has much to say about drinking to excess. Proverbs 20:1 (Bible in Basic English) reminds us that, "Wine makes men foolish, and strong drink makes men come to blows; and whoever comes into error through these is not wise."

My family life was ruined by my father who was an alcoholic. Isaiah 5:11 (BBE) is a rebuke to all those drunkards. "Cursed are those who get up early in the morning to give themselves up to strong drink; who keep on drinking far into the night till they are heated with wine!"

Even religious drinkers can be snared by booze. Isaiah 28:7 (BBE) warns, "And further, these are uncertain through wine, and have gone out of the right way through strong drink: the priest and the prophet are uncertain through strong drink, they are overcome by wine, they have gone out of the way through strong drink; their vision is false, they go wrong in their decisions."

Now the scriptures do say we should drink in moderation. Paul understood the medicinal use of alcohol well, as he wrote in 1 Timothy 5:23 (BBE). "Do not take only water as your drink, but take a little wine for the good of your stomach, and because you are frequently ill."

And though the verses in 1 Peter 2:18 and 19 (BBE) refer to false spiritual leaders, they do show how losing our senses through over indulgence in drink can entrap us. "For with high-sounding false words, making use of the attraction of unclean desires of the flesh, they get into their power those newly made free from those who are living in error; Saying that they will be free, while they themselves are the servants of destruction; because whatever gets the better of a man makes a servant of him."

Moderate imbibing of liquor is no sin but we dare not mislead weak siblings with our liberty. That's why Paul wrote in 1 Corinthians 10:23 and 24 (BBE) that, "We are free to do all things, but there are things which it is not wise to do. We are free to do all things, but not all things are for the common good. Let a man give attention not only to what is good for himself, but equally to his neighbour's good."

If our Master hasn't come back by Thursday, I hope to post about the perils of intoxication.