Posted by
Gary on Monday, March 02, 2009 4:25:14 PM
The other day I was cruising a website and happened to run across a piece titled ‘Beer Is Better than Jesus”. Well, as an occasional partaker of Blue Moon, a smooth alpine brew cooked up by the Coors family, and a believer in Jesus, the piece caught my eye. It reads like a David Letterman top ten reasons why beer is better than Jesus. As I read through the list it became apparent to me that the author probably had never read the New Testament and if he did, he did not understand it properly. If he had, he could not have written his list. I find that to be true of a lot of people. They are so certain that the bible is wrong about this or that but when pressed, they admit they have never read much less studied the Bible. So the obvious question is how can someone refute a book they have not read for themselves?
With that thought as a backdrop I felt compelled to respond to each pf the ten reasons of why beer is supposed to be better than Jesus.
10. No one will kill you for not drinking beer:
Response: Jesus never advocated killing period, much less killing for not believing in him. Instead He taught us to repeatedly forgive one another (check out the book of Matthew in the Bible, chapter 5 verse 44).
9. Beer doesn’t tell you how to have sex.
Response: Neither does Jesus. Not once is He recorded as saying anything about sex. He does tell us to refrain from adultery and immorality though. If you have yet to read the New Testament you would not know that and I think you will be very surprised at what you read.
8. Beer never caused a major war:
Response: Neither has Jesus. He taught that we should love our neighbors as ourselves and forgive our enemies (see Matthew chapter 18, verse 21) and never started or suggested starting a war. It is man that caused war in the name of Jesus (i.e. the crusades).
7. They don’t force beer on minors who can’t think for themselves:
Response: Jesus doesn’t force himself on anyone. He extends an invitation to accept Him but gives us the free will to make the choice. If we don’t accept Him, he leaves us alone to live out our lives. He does say he will deal with our unbelief in the afterlife.
6. When you have a beer, you don’t knock on people’s doors trying to give it away
Response: Jesus does not knock on your door, people do. In fact Jesus says we are the ones who should do the knocking (see Matthew chapter 7, verse 7). It’s your choice as to whether you decide to knock and open the door of your heart to Him. Nor does our acceptance of Him come without a cost. It cost Jesus His blood and his earthly life.
5. Nobody’s every been burned at the stake, hanged or tortured over his brand of beer.
Response: Jesus was scourged 40 times, his skin ripped from his back. He was then nailed to a tree and hung there for 9 hours, dying a slow and agonizing death. All of his disciples except John died as martyrs, murdered for their faith. Throughout the ages millions of Christians have been burned at the stake, fed to lions, impaled and lit afire to serve as human torches, beheaded and killed in numerous other ways simply because they believed in Jesus. Christ never taught that unbelievers should be killed. It was misguided men that falsely accused people of being witches and/or heretics and killed them. They were not following the teachings of Jesus as recorded in the Bible. Just like the atheist Hitler’s attempt to exterminate Jews wasn’t something most atheists would advocate.
4. You don’t have to wait 2000+ years for a second beer.
Response: You can experience the peace, power and joy of Christ in your life TODAY. How? Simply by confessing your belief in Him, asking for forgiveness of your sins (yes, all those men who started wars or killed and tortured in Christ’s names needed forgiveness for those sins) and if you earnestly ask, I guarantee you that you will begin to think differently as Christ becomes the owner of your heart.
3. There are laws saying beer labels can’t lie to you.
Response: Jesus can’t lie to you either. If you check him out, YOUR experience will be your personal truth barometer. If you have not given Him a close look, you will never know what He will do for you. How then could He be lying to you?
2. You can prove you have a beer.
Response: Jesus provides the best proof of himself there can be, his residence in your heart. But if you don’t invite Him in to your heart He can’t show himself to you and you won’t know His truth is real. If you are a skeptic, ask Him to reveal himself to you and earnestly seek Him out by reading the bible. Try it for a month and see what happens. What have got to lose? I’m betting He will reveal himself to you and he will provide all the proof you need.
1. If you’ve devoted your life to beer, there are groups to help you stop.
Response : Hmm, if beer was so good why would you want to stop drinking it? It’s also ironic that one of the most effective groups to help you stop drinking beer is Alcoholics Anonymous (AA). AA was founded by two Christians. Jesus offers the gift of eternal life in heaven. Who would want to stop that?
So next time you are sipping an ice cold brew and you are not sure what you think about Jesus ponder this thought. Ultimately everyone on the planet has to answer this question; who is Jesus? There are only two alternatives. Either He is who He says, the son of God, or He was something else. Why does everyone need to answer that question? Because Jesus is the ONLY teacher, prophet etc to say that He is the only way to heaven (book of John, chapter 14, verse; Jesus answered, "I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.).
Buddha never said that. Mohammad never said that. The Book of Mormon does not say that. The Torah does not say that. So much for all religions being similar but showing different paths to the same God. Then there is Satan who says, you/we can become like God on our own. That’s the New Age mindset. But again, that’s not what Jesus said.
What do you have to lose by taking some time to give Jesus a fair shake? I can’t think of anything except, some time. What do you stand to lose if you don’t check Him out and….you are wrong? By the time you realize He is who He says He is, it will be too late and you will only be able to knock on heaven’s door, not enter through it. Are you willing to risk trading eternity so you can save some time? If not, instead of cracking open the next six pack, crack open a Bible!