Clint,
Once you are saved, you cannot lose your salvation. It is God himself who keeps us, not ourselves. If a person were to lose their salvation everytime they sinned, no one could ever "know" he or she has eternal life. But the scriptures say we can know for certain.
1 John 5:13 These things have I written unto you that believe on the name of the Son of God;that ye may know that ye have eternal life, and that ye may believe on the name of the Son of God.
This verse clearly says that a person who believes on Jesus can know they have eternal life. If we could lose our salvation because of sin, we could never know for certain if we were saved, because any honest Christian will admit they sin at times.
John 5:24 Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that heareth my word, and believeth on him that sent me, hath everlasting life, and shall not come into condemnation; but is passed from death unto life.
And John 5:24 shows that the moment you believe on Jesus, that you pass from death to life, and that you have (hath) this everlasting life NOW.
And I agree with you, a Christian should not drink because it is a poor testimony, plus it could cause someone else to stumble and fall. But note that Jesus also includes gluttony in Matt 11:19 and Luke 7:34 alongside being a winebibber. Lots of folks do not think that overeating is a sin, but being obese is a serious health problem. I know a person who is at least 150 pounds overweight, and he suffers from high blood pressure, diabetes, and kidney stones. This person has not had a single drink in his entire life but suffers terrible health problems from eating too much. So, in my opinion, being a glutton is just as sinful as being a winebibber.
So I am not condoning drinking in anyway whatsoever. But I do think some who teach that a Christian cannot drink in moderation are wrong. Maybe I am reading the scriptures wrong, but I don't think so. I simply want to understand the scriptures as God intended, not as men teach.
And Jesus warned of those who would teach man's tradition and reject God's commandments.
Mark 7:9 And he said unto them, Full well ye reject the commandment of God, that ye may keep your own tradition.
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