This past Sunday I taught at the church where my wife and I met when we were teens. The subject was on "Guardrails," and I talked about the importance of establishing solid boundaries in our lives to protect us from what the Bible calls sin.
A lot of times, we refer to these guardrails as personal convictions, and no matter the label you place on it, the Bible points out that it is important to safeguard our hearts and lives against the evil that is in the world.
Paul, in a round-about way, lists an example of a guardrail in Ephesians 5:18 when he talks about drunkeness leading to debauchery. The Bible tells us that drunkeness is a sin, and this verse essentially says that it leads to debauchery (aka, a lot of other sinful actions). So, the guardrail to protect against drunkenness must be placed in the safe area away from getting drunk.
For some people, this would mean only consuming a couple of alcholic beverages, but for others it would mean no alcohol at all.
You could actually insert any activity that leads to sin in the place of alcohol. In most places, there can be some gray area of activity before hitting sin. The only solid exceptions are in the area of sexual immorality and temptation. The Bible is very clear that we are to flee from these.
Additionally, guardrails are great to put in our relationships, since the people we associate with have a direct impact on who we become. Proverbs tells us that the wise hang around wise people, but that people of poor character will lead others toward danger.
What's cool about the verse I mentioned, Ephesians 5:18, is that Paul not only tells us where the danger area is, and what we need to avoid, he also suggests a substition. He says that instead of getting drunk with wine, we need to be filled with the Holy Spirit.
Jesus didn't come to this world to end the fun that your heart desires. Instead, he came so his followers would have life abundantly.
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