Rev. Brian M. Abshire

Wine, in Scripture, is a promise from God of the blessings of the covenant (Psa 4:7 “Thou hast put gladness in my heart, more than when the grain and new wine abound.”). Though sinful men misuse and abuse this gift, yet God Himself uses it as an example of His goodness towards us. (Ps 104:14-15 “He causes the grass to grow for the cattle, and vegetation for the labor of man, so that he may bring forth food from the earth, And wine which makes man’s heart glad, so that he may make his face glisten with oil, and food which sustains man’s heart.”). In fact, wine is a blessing that God specifically promises to those who honor Him with the tithe. (Prov 3:9-10, “Honor the LORD from your wealth, and from the first of all your produce; So your barns will be filled with plenty, and your vats will overflow with new wine”.). As in all things in creation, wine itself is a symbol, a picture, a reflection of something bigger and greater. It is a picture of the blessings that come from a right relationship with God (Isa 25:6, “And the LORD of hosts will prepare a lavish banquet for all peoples on this mountain; a banquet of aged wine, choice pieces with marrow, and refined, aged wine. Isa 27:2 In that day, “A vineyard of wine, sing of it”). In fact, it is a picture of the new life we have in Christ; (Isa 55:1 “Ho! Every one who thirsts, come to the waters; and you who have no money come, buy and eat. Come, buy wine and milk without money and without cost.). Jesus used wine as a symbol of the indwelling Holy Spirit, who cannot be limited by old traditions (Matt 9:17 “Nor do men put new wine into old wineskins; otherwise the wineskins burst, and the wine pours out, and the wineskins are ruined; but they put new wine into fresh wineskins, and both are preserved.”) This is possibly, why the very first miracle that Jesus performed before His disciples, authenticating His ministry, was to turn water into wine. (John 2:9-11 “And when the headwaiter tasted the water which had become wine, and did not know where it came from (but the servants who had drawn the water knew), the headwaiter called the bridegroom, and said to him, “Every man serves the good wine first, and when men have drunk freely, then that which is poorer; you have kept the good wine until now.” This beginning of His signs Jesus did in Cana of Galilee, and manifested His glory, and His disciples believed in Him.). This miracle, demonstrated not only His lordship over creation, but was also a picture of what the Messiah would do in His ministry; i.e., take up common, dirty elements (water was practically undrinkable in those days) and transform them into something sweet and wonderful.

Some people have argued that the wine in Scripture was unfermented grape juice. But this is both linguistically and contextually untenable (see “Objections section for a detailed refutation). Grape juice rapidly ferments into wine. It is the fermenting process that bursts old wine skins. It is the alcohol in wine that, when used lawfully, lifts broken spirits, and makes the sad, glad. Drunkenness is forbidden, for that is dissipation; instead, we are to be filled with the Spirit (Eph 5:18). The alcohol in wine is a picture of the Holy Spirit.

Thus for churches to use grape juice instead of wine, is to destroy the imagery of the Holy Spirit in communion. Yes, some people refrain from any alcohol because they are concerned about drunkenness. But for a church to refuse to drink wine at communion is to implicitly reject the very image God has given us of the work of the Holy Spirit. It is no accident that modern evangelicalism has widely substituted grape juice for wine.

Thus, we need to reclaim this biblical imagery for communion celebrations to be complete. It is the Holy Spirit who gladdens our hearts, fills our lives with goodness, bursts the old wineskins and gives us new life. We want the Holy Spirit’s fullness in our lives and our Churches. Therefore, as a symbol then of the Holy Spirit’s work and power, real wine needs to be used instead of the “purple euphemism” in our communion.

Some people wonder if this is really necessary. Does it really matter if we use grape juice as a symbol of real wine? R.C. Sproul said it best. He said, if it’s only a symbol, then why not use peanut butter and jelly? God Himself declared what symbols we are to use. The Westminster Confession of Faith, the doctrinal standards of Presbyterian Churches requires wine; hence all PCA and OPC elders are oath bound to serve wine in the Lord’s Supper. God did not choose grape juice to represent His precious Son’s blood, but rather wine. He superintended creation so that sugar would ferment into alcohol, to symbolize the effects of His Holy Spirit leavening and working His will in our life. Let us not allow the wickedness of others, who abuse His good gifts, to steal from us, the imagery God Himself has provided. Let us approach His table with humility, and reverence and obedience.