RBV: Titus 2:12

I wrote this essay, “The Rare Virtue of Self-Mastery,” for the December 31, 2021, CGG Weekly.

“. . . teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly in the present age.”
—Titus 2:12

January 1 is just hours away, which means New Year’s Eve celebrations are likewise imminent. Millions will be gathering in parties large and small to kick the old year to the curb and toast the incoming year’s promise. Beer, wine, champagne, and liquors of all sorts will be flowing, and undoubtedly, inebriation will soon follow for a good percentage of the revelers both before and after the ball drops and midnight strikes.

Experience tells us to expect public and private drunkenness to rise during these holidays, which church of God members do not observe. Every year, states and municipalities voice their concerns about the dangers of alcohol use, especially when vehicles are added to the mix. The American Automobile Association (AAA) reports that over 10,000 people die each year in alcohol-related traffic accidents. It cautions all drinkers to stay off the roads and use a designated driver to see them safely home because even one twelve-ounce beer can lower inhibitions. After two drinks, AAA says, reaction times slow, and judgment is severely impaired after three. It adds that marijuana, prescription drugs, and even over-the-counter medications can cause similar impairment, creating the possibility of dangerous and even life-threatening situations on the road.

According to the World Health Organization, Americans drink just under ten liters (2.64 gallons, almost an ounce a day) of alcohol per person per year, well below Czechia’s world-leading 14.26 liters (3.77 gallons) but far above most Islamic countries, whose average consumption barely moves the needle. For further comparison, drinkers in the United Kingdom consume 11.45 liters each, while French, Irish, and German citizens down 12-13 liters apiece each year. Worldwide, men tend to drink about three times more alcohol than women.

These statistics show that human beings love to drink alcoholic beverages—and a tremendous amount of them. Their drinking leads too often to inebriation and harm to themselves and others. Some become dependent on alcohol and suffer the sometimes-lifelong consequences of addiction.

While medical authorities say that alcoholism is a “disease” and that some are genetically predisposed to it, the Bible does not treat either drunkenness or alcohol addiction as such. Scripture consistently speaks of drinking to excess as a moral failing, a sin. As the apostle Paul puts it quite starkly in I Corinthians 6:10, “[D]runkards . . . will [not] inherit the kingdom of God.”

Note, however, that drinking alcohol in moderation is not a sin. Judges 9:13 speaks of “wine, which cheers both God and men.” The Passover ritual includes drinking wine (“this fruit of the vine,” a symbol of Christ’s shed blood; Matthew 26:27-29), and God allows His people to buy “wine or similar drink” with the festival tithe to enjoy His feasts (Deuteronomy 14:26). Paul even advises Timothy, “No longer drink only water, but use a little wine for your stomach’s sake and your frequent infirmities” (I Timothy 5:23). So, the Bible does not take a stance of abstinence from alcoholic beverages but urges temperance or moderation.

Alcohol becomes a problem only when we drink too much of it. As AAA noted, even a little bit of it begins to loosen us up, and a little more begins to impair our judgment so that we will say and do things that, sober, we would hold back. When we drink to excess, we relax our self-control, and the likelihood of committing other sins—lying, theft, hatred, violence, sexual immorality, to name a few—rises in proportion.

Thus, the Bible recommends sobriety. In terms of alcohol consumption, that means never allowing it to impair righteous judgment, even a little bit. In his epistle to Titus, the apostle Paul speaks of sobriety frequently because the culture in Crete, where Titus served, was well-known for alcoholic excess. He writes, “For the grace of God that brings salvation has appeared to all men, teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly in the present age” (Titus 2:11-12).

The Greek word underlying “soberly” is sōphronōs, which literally means “to save the mind” (sōzō, “to save,” + phrēn, “the mind”). Most lexicons define it to mean “of sound mind,” “right-minded,” “self-controlled,” “sober-minded,” “moderate,” “sensible.” It and its closely related variants are used sixteen times in the New Testament, and the common sense among them is self-control or self-mastery.

After calling these variants “untranslatable,” The Theological Lexicon of the New Testament comments, “[They] express first of all the idea of spiritual health, a correct or appropriate way of reasoning, but also a sense of moderation, a moderation or reserve that is expressed in inner equilibrium.” It goes on to say that the noun form, “sōphrosynē—while connoting moderation and just measure—has to do with character and life conduct . . . and so becomes a general virtue, the knowledge of what to do and what to avoid.”

It is this virtue, self-control or self-mastery, that is so rare in the world and is the key problem in drunkenness and alcoholism. The world glorifies letting go, even altogether abandoning oneself to the moment—just watch a few commercials that advertise alcoholic beverages. They often depict good-looking, youthful people having a rip-roaring time and not a care in the world. Television shows and movies frequently contain beautiful, happy people in bar and rave scenes, hinting that such alcohol-fueled, uninhibited activities are standard adult behavior, something to emulate if one desires to live well.

According to Scripture, nothing could be further from the truth. A Christian’s mind must always be under his or her control. We know that Jesus’ enemies accused Him of being a glutton and a drunkard because He ate and drank with sinners (see Matthew 11:18-19), but can we imagine Jesus ever “letting go,” even in such an atmosphere of abandon? It never happened; He always kept His mind, words, and actions under strict control. We know this because He never sinned, and sin is what happens when we relinquish control over ourselves and weakly surrender to the base drives of our nature. We “miss the mark,” failing to live up to God’s standards.

Our Savior Jesus Christ is the example par excellence of self-mastery. He suffered torture and death rather than lose control over Himself. If we wish to rise “to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ” (Ephesians 4:13), we must make self-control, a fruit of the Spirit (Galatians 5:23), a primary goal in our lives. We will have a lot less “fun”—as the world defines it—but we will have the last laugh as Christ welcomes us into His Kingdom with, “Well done, good and faithful servant” (Matthew 25:21, 23). Our self-mastery now will be rewarded with “fullness of joy” and “pleasures forevermore” in God’s presence (Psalm 16:11).