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1 Timothy 5:23 "No longer drink only water, but use a little wine for the sake of your stomach and your frequent ailments."

 

What a funny verse in which to try and find deeper meaning, but I'll give it a shot! ... A few days ago, I decided to give up wine, for a little while at least. I have done this before and, as with all forms of fasting/self-denial, it seemed to have good results, some inexplicable ones, in fact. (There definitely is something mysteriously powerful about fasting!) When I read this verse this morning, at first I thought God was telling me not to abstain from wine altogether. But as I sit with it, I think that's wrong. I think God is telling me not to be scrupulous, which I can tend to be about some things.

 

Paul is advising Timothy to have wine sometimes in order to help with his digestion. Perhaps Timothy took a hard line approach against alcohol, and needed to be told by someone he respected that it was not just okay to have a drink sometimes, but even necessary for his health. In my case, I am not unwell, my wine drinking is purely for pleasure. There is no necessity for it in my life, so I can give it up as a personal mortification.

 

I'm not scrupulous about wine, but I can be about other things. I think God is reminding me that there can be a time and a place for things of which I am wary. Some things that I distrust and try to avoid completely, like artificial intelligence for example, may have useful applications, despite the fact that they can also be abused. I should not take scrupulous stances against things like this. I should learn from Paul that I can and should use them "a little" when they would be helpful to me or others, while remaining aware and cautious of the problems they can cause.