Surgeon General warns of link between alcohol and cancer

US Surgeon General Dr. Vivek Murthy on Friday issued a Surgeon General’s Advisory titled “Alcohol and Cancer Risk.” It warns that “consuming alcohol increases the risk of developing at least seven types of cancer”: mouth, throat, voice box, esophagus, breast (in women), liver, and colon and rectum.

The report explains four ways alcohol causes an increased risk of cancer and notes that higher alcohol consumption increases alcohol-related cancer risks in both men and women.

If you drink alcohol at all, I’m sure you’re wondering how much is too much. It turns out, even less than one drink a week increases the cancer risk for women by 16.5 percent and men by 10 percent. Two drinks a day increases this risk by 21.8 percent for women and 13.1 percent for men.

What does the Bible say about alcohol?

When I read the report, I remembered a statement by my seminary Greek professor: “There is no case for total abstention in the Bible.” He pointed to Paul’s admonition to Timothy: “No longer drink only water, but use a little wine for the sake of your stomach and your frequent ailments” (1 Timothy 5:23). Jesus famously turned water into “good wine” (John 2:10). At the Last Supper, he used the “fruit of the vine” (Luke 22:18) to represent “the new covenant in my blood” (v. 20).

Archaeologists discovered a jar near Jerusalem inscribed with “wine made from black raisins”; jars labeled “smoked wine” and “very dark wine” have also been found at sites nearby. According to scholars, this indicates a taste in Jerusalem for rich, concentrated wine.

The Bible repeatedly warns against drunkenness:

• “Do not get drunk with wine, for that is debauchery” (Ephesians 5:18).
• “Wine is a mocker, strong drink a brawler, and whoever is led astray by it is not wise” (Proverbs 20:1).
• “Let us walk properly as in the daytime, not in orgies and drunkenness, not in sexual immorality and sensuality” (Romans 13:13).
• “Woe to those who rise early in the morning, that they may run after strong drink, who tarry late into the evening as wine inflames them!” (Isaiah 5:11).

However, the only people in Scripture required to abstain totally from alcohol were those who made a “Nazirite” commitment (Numbers 6), a “special vow” of separation from the things of the world for the purpose of focusing more fully on God. In such a vow, a person “shall separate himself from wine and strong drink” (v. 3).

Do we know more than those who wrote the Bible?

If consuming any alcohol is as dangerous as the surgeon general’s report indicates, why then does the Bible not prohibit its use? Does this question indicate that we know more today than those who wrote the Bible and even the One who inspired it?

This is a much larger question than the issue of alcohol consumption.

Since Darwin’s evolutionary theories were published, millions have been persuaded that science has made biblical accounts of creation irrelevant and outdated. It is popular today to claim that biblical sexual morality is outdated in light of current knowledge regarding same-sex orientation and gender dysphoria. Many who encounter faithful followers of other world religions wonder how the Bible can claim that Jesus is the only way to heaven (John 14:6).

And yet we read, “All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work” (2 Timothy 3:16–17). Note the words, “all Scripture is,” indicating that every word of the Bible is and always will be “breathed out” or inspired by God.

Hebrews 4:12 similarly points to the present-tense relevance and power of Scripture: “The word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart.” Again, note the present tense.

Jesus was clear: “Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will not pass away” (Matthew 24:35).

The right way to resolve apparent contradictions

Which is it, then? Are we to continue believing that a book composed more than two thousand years ago is as accurate and relevant today as when it was written? Are we then to dismiss the findings of contemporary scientists and others when they seem to contradict the Bible?

Some resolve this tension by claiming that the Bible is to be read symbolically and metaphorically rather than literally and authoritatively. They view it as a diary of religious experience rather than a direct revelation from God. In this sense, they find value where they can but do not feel the need to defend its statements when they seem to be contradicted by modern knowledge.

This, however, is not how the Bible views itself. Nor did those who originally received biblical truth view it as merely suggestive or illustrative. To the contrary, many gave their lives to preach and teach God’s word, refusing to compromise with their persecutors lest they betray their Lord.

Following their example, the right approach to resolving apparent contradictions between God’s word and contemporary knowledge is to assume the truth of Scripture and then identify ways to resolve such contradictions.

Apparent contradictions sometimes resolve themselves over time; for example, many scholars claimed that the Pool of Siloam as described in Scripture did not exist in Jerusalem, then archaeologists discovered it in June 2004. I have visited the impressive site many times over the years. With regard to the surgeon general’s warning against consuming alcohol, other research indicates that alcohol consumption in moderation brings significant health benefits.

All this to say, we are mistaken in concluding that all contemporary knowledge is certain and unchanging.

Other apparent contradictions are resolved when we know more about the historical context of Scripture. For example, the wine typically used in Jesus’ day was far less alcoholic than wine consumed today. Water quality in Canaan was very poor, so fermented beverages were the typical means of hydration. Wineskins had antioxidants and alcohol to kill bacteria, rendering the wine safe for consumption.

Because wine was consumed like water today, it was diluted so as not to cause drunkenness. Pliny the Elder, for example, created ratios for cutting wine. Some did consume beverages with higher alcohol content (cf. the “good wine” of John 2:10 and the “strong drink” of Proverbs 20:1), but it was used far less frequently and meant to be consumed in much greater moderation.

“Love letters from home”

I am not suggesting that all apparent contradictions between the Bible and contemporary knowledge are capable of such a simple resolution. But I am suggesting that when such conflicts exist, we should judge what we know by what God knows rather than the reverse. We are to read culture through the prism of Scripture rather than Scripture through the prism of culture.

This is not because faith is, in the words of a boy asked to define the term, “believing what you know ain’t so.” It is because our minds are finite and fallen, while God’s mind as revealed in his word is omniscient and absolute (cf. Isaiah 55:8–9).

Either approach requires a faith commitment: We either believe that human knowledge is superior to biblical truth or we believe that biblical truth is superior to human knowledge. Neither approach can be proven to the satisfaction of those to take the other view.

For my part, I believe that the Creator is superior to his creation and thus trust his wisdom over ours. I am also encouraged by the enormous quantity of evidence for the veracity and abiding relevance of Scripture. (For more, see my article, “Why do we believe the Bible is actually the word of God?” and my books, The Bible—You Can Believe It, Seven Crucial Questions About the Bible, and Wrestling With God: How Can I Love a God I’m Not Sure I Trust?).

And, at the end of the day, I seek to remember the purpose of Scripture: not to be a compendium of knowledge but to lead us into a personal relationship with its Author. John noted:

Jesus did many other signs in the presence of the disciples, which are not written in this book; but these are written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name (John 20:30–31).

A. W. Tozer observed:

The Bible is not an end in itself, but a means to bring men to an intimate and satisfying knowledge of God, that they may enter into him, that they may delight in his presence, may taste and know the inner sweetness of the very God himself in the core and center of their hearts.

St. Augustine called the Bible “love letters from home.” J. I. Packer described it as “God preaching.”

When last did encountering God’s word change your life?

Why not today?