Is Drinking A Sin: What The Bible Says | Brief
The Daily + Weekly by Vince Miller
Release Date: 05/19/2026
Is Drinking A Sin: What The Bible Says | Brief
The Daily + Weekly by Vince Miller
The real question isn’t “Can a Christian drink?”—it’s “What’s controlling you?” Summary This message confronts the modern confusion surrounding alcohol, freedom, and spiritual maturity by shifting the focus from permission to mastery. Scripture does not condemn alcohol itself, but it consistently warns against drunkenness, addiction, loss of self-control, and being mastered by anything other than Christ. The deeper issue is dependence—whether believers are looking to substances for escape, peace, identity, or relief instead of the Holy Spirit. Mature Christianity stops...
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God Blocks the Road to Your Idols | Hosea 2:6-8
The Daily + Weekly by Vince Miller
Welcome to The Daily, where we study the Bible verse by verse, chapter by chapter, every day. Get your now. Our shout-out today goes to Jerry DeVries from Cleveland, GA. Thanks for your partnership in . Have you ever chased something you were convinced would make life better—only to watch the door slam shut? Plans fall apart. Opportunities disappear. The road suddenly becomes hard. In , God explains why that sometimes happens. Listen to our text today. Therefore I will hedge up her way with thorns, and I will build a wall against her, so...
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The Lie Behind Every Idol | Hosea 2:4-5
The Daily + Weekly by Vince Miller
Welcome to The Daily, where we study the Bible verse by verse, chapter by chapter, every day. Get your now. Our shout-out today goes to EB Cologne from St. Augustine, FL. Thanks for your partnership in . Why do people turn to idols in the first place? Because they believe a lie. Listen to our text today, . Upon her children also I will have no mercy, because they are children of whoredom. For their mother has played the whore; she who conceived them has acted shamefully. For she said, ‘I will go after my lovers, who give me my bread and...
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God Confronts Spiritual Adultery | Hosea 2:1-3
The Daily + Weekly by Vince Miller
Welcome to The Daily, where we study the Bible verse by verse, chapter by chapter, every day. Get your now. Our shout-out today goes to Joel Allman from Pella, IA. Thanks for your partnership in . What does God do when the people he loves begin drifting away from him? He confronts them. Listen to our text today, . Say to your brothers, “You are my people,” and to your sisters, “You have received mercy.” “Plead with your mother, plead— for she is not my wife, and I am not her husband— that she put away her whoring from her face, and...
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The Mercy That Comes After Judgment | Hosea 1:10-11
The Daily + Weekly by Vince Miller
Welcome to The Daily, where we study the Bible verse by verse, chapter by chapter, every day. Get your now. Our shout-out today goes to Thomas Hughes from Clarksville, TN. Thanks for your partnership in . Our text today is . Yet the number of the children of Israel shall be like the sand of the sea, which cannot be measured or numbered. And in the place where it was said to them, “You are not my people,” it shall be said to them, “Children of the living God.” And the children of Judah and the children of Israel shall be gathered together,...
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When a Nation Cheats on God | Hosea 1
The Daily + Weekly by Vince Miller
What if God told a prophet to marry a prostitute so an entire nation could see how badly it had betrayed him? Summary The book of Hosea opens with one of the most shocking commands in Scripture—God tells the prophet to marry an unfaithful woman so his broken marriage will become a living message to Israel. Beneath a season of prosperity during the reign of Jeroboam II, the nation had slowly drifted from the God who rescued them, blending worship of the Lord with the idols of their culture. Through Hosea’s family and the prophetic names of his children, God exposes Israel’s spiritual...
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Most Christians Want Rescue Not Rulership (A Savior & Not A Lord) | Brief
The Daily + Weekly by Vince Miller
A lot of people want Jesus to rescue them—but very few want him to rule them. Summary This message confronts one of the greatest misunderstandings in modern Christianity: wanting Jesus as Savior while resisting him as Lord. Many believers seek relief from pain, anxiety, addiction, or consequences while still trying to remain in control of their own lives. But the gospel is not self-improvement—it is surrender, crucifixion of the old self, and ongoing dependence on the Holy Spirit. Real Christianity is not occasional repentance during crisis moments; it is daily submission to Christ’s...
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When God Says “You Are Not My People” | Hosea 1:7-9
The Daily + Weekly by Vince Miller
Welcome to The Daily, where we study the Bible verse by verse, chapter by chapter, every day. Get your now. Our shout-out today goes to Jeffrey Mattson from Woodland Park, CO. Thanks for your partnership in . Our text today is Hosea 1:7-9. But I will have mercy on the house of Judah, and I will save them by the Lord their God. I will not save them by bow or by sword or by war or by horses or by horsemen.” When she had weaned No Mercy, she conceived and bore a son. And the Lord said, “Call his name Not My People, for you are not my people, and I am not your God.” — Hosea...
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When Mercy Begins to Withdraw | Hosea 1:6
The Daily + Weekly by Vince Miller
Welcome to The Daily, where we study the Bible verse by verse, chapter by chapter, every day. Get your now. Our shout-out today goes to Raymond Smith from Charlotte, NC. Thanks for your partnership in . Our text today is . She conceived again and bore a daughter. And the Lord said to him, “Call her name No Mercy, for I will no more have mercy on the house of Israel, to forgive them at all." — How patient is God? The story of Israel shows us something remarkable—God’s patience is long, but it is not endless. Hosea’s wife, Gomer,...
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The Sin a Nation Thought God Forgot | Hosea 1:4-5
The Daily + Weekly by Vince Miller
Welcome to The Daily, where we study the Bible verse by verse, chapter by chapter, every day. Get your now. Our shout-out today goes to Doug Whiting from Alexandria, MN. Thanks for your partnership in . Our text today is . And the Lord said to him, “Call his name Jezreel, for in just a little while I will punish the house of Jehu for the blood of Jezreel, and I will put an end to the kingdom of the house of Israel. And on that day I will break the bow of Israel in the Valley of Jezreel.” — Have you ever noticed how people assume that if...
info_outlineThe real question isn’t “Can a Christian drink?”—it’s “What’s controlling you?”
Summary
This message confronts the modern confusion surrounding alcohol, freedom, and spiritual maturity by shifting the focus from permission to mastery. Scripture does not condemn alcohol itself, but it consistently warns against drunkenness, addiction, loss of self-control, and being mastered by anything other than Christ. The deeper issue is dependence—whether believers are looking to substances for escape, peace, identity, or relief instead of the Holy Spirit. Mature Christianity stops asking, “What can I get away with?” and starts asking, “What best reflects Christ and builds others up?”
Reflection & Small Group Discussion Questions
1. Why do you think many Christians ask, “How much can I get away with?” instead of “What honors Christ?”
2. How does 1 Corinthians 6:12 help frame the issue of alcohol and personal freedom?
3. Why is the Bible’s concern more about mastery and dependence than the substance itself?
4. What is the difference between freedom in Christ and freedom to sin?
5. How does modern intoxication culture differ from the biblical context of wine and celebration?
6. Why is self-control such an important fruit of the Spirit (Galatians 5:22–23)?
7. How can a believer unintentionally damage their witness or influence weaker believers through their choices?
8. What are some modern “escape mechanisms” people use besides alcohol?
9. Why is the “cool pastor” drinking culture potentially harmful to recovering addicts and struggling believers?
10. What would it look like practically to live “fully alive” without dependence on substances?