Let's Talk About Drunkeness

✨ Days of Awe 8 of 10: Drunkenness ✨

“You must not associate with anyone who claims to be a believer yet indulges in sexual sin, or is greedy, or worships idols, or is abusive, or is a drunkard, or cheats people. Don’t even eat with such people.” 1 Corinthians 5:11 (NLT)

At first glance, Paul’s warning in 1 Corinthians 5 about drunkenness can seem random and harsh. After all, what’s so bad about “a good buzz”? But Paul is stern: a chronically drunken person should be removed from fellowship.

Hang in there! There’s hope! I promise!

As someone who came from a long line of alcoholics and quit drinking very early on, I now see why. I was a devout, empathic, wise, overly-responsible girl—yet with just a few drinks, all that went out the window. That’s why I call drunkenness a gateway sin.

✦ Even the nicest person is capable of horrifying things while intoxicated.

✦ How many people have woken up not recalling who, what, when, or where?

✦ In alcoholic homes, the volatility and angst of drunkenness mark children forever. I know.

Even so, we can’t forget: Jesus was called a “friend of drunkards and sinners” (Luke 7:34). He seemed to prefer the company of strugglers over the self-righteous, offering grace without minimizing sin. That should both comfort us and caution us: no one is beyond His reach, and no one is above His call to repent.

👉 Heads up: Drunkenness is named alongside greed, idolatry, and sexual immorality. That should keep all of us humble, especially since those other three are often tolerated—or even celebrated—in the church at large. Even the Oxford Dictionary defines greed broadly, including lust and gluttony—not just money.

Yet drinking clinically clouds judgment, steals free will, and opens the door to destruction. That’s why Paul puts it on the shortlist.

But here’s the bigger picture: drunkenness isn’t just about alcohol. It’s a picture of any escape that numbs us, takes away our clarity, or masters us. Some people never touch alcohol but “get drunk” on:

✦ compulsive shopping or eating

✦ pornography or secret sexual cycles

✦ workaholism, busyness, or performance

✦ approval, drama, or toxic relationships

As odd as it sounds, these all amount to idols—people, places, or things that replace God as the true source of comfort, security, serenity, and joy.

The good news: Jesus can deliver us on a dime. Recovery communities like Alcoholics Anonymous or Celebrate Recovery provide practical tools and supportive fellowship. Unlike some churches, they welcome people right where they are.

And for so many strugglers who have been rejected or even traumatized by organized religion, the rooms of AA and its spinoffs remain a safe haven and a place of healing. Our Lord’s grace and miracle-working power are evident there every day. Originally deeply rooted in Scripture and Jesus, AA began as a profoundly Christian movement. Surely Satan wouldn’t rescue anyone from the jaws of addiction, death, and hell—so it must be Jesus at work. And Jesus loves us that much—He rescues by grace, without needing the marquee billing, though He longs for us to name Him.

In fact, AA often looks more like the early Christian church than many modern congregations: people gather daily, confess their sins, repent, bear one another’s burdens, and depend completely on God for survival. Truer to Christian community in 12 simple (not easy) steps. That’s the kind of humble, Spirit-filled fellowship described in Acts.

Could it be that Jesus is sometimes more present in the rooms of AA than in churches that invoke His name? And if so, isn’t that the greater sin—when greed and idolatry run rampant in the church, even while Christ’s Spirit is so clearly at work in AA without the hypocrisy of indulging those sins while spouting Scripture?

The Twelve Steps offer a simple, Spirit-friendly path to repentance and restoration—accessible to anyone, whether the struggle is alcohol or any other compulsion. It’s one reason so many encounter Christ for the first time in recovery: when you finally face your powerlessness, you see your need for God more clearly.

PRAYER

Scriptural prayer:

“Search me, O God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. Point out anything in me that offends you, and lead me along the path of everlasting life.” Psalm 139:23–24 (NLT)

7th Step prayer (BB)

“My Creator, I am now willing that You should have all of me, good and bad. I pray that You now remove from me every single defect of character which stands in the way of my usefulness to You and my fellows. Grant me strength, as I go out from here, to do Your bidding. Amen.”

In Christ's name. Thank You. I love You. 💖

DIG DEEPER

Visit a meeting, call the hotline, or take a self-assessment:

aa.org

celebraterecovery.com

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Edited with AI help for ease and accessibility.