Father, help us to keep our minds on you
Of the three 'vices' mentioned in the title above I can only find biblical references to the first one, so we'll concentrate on that one for now.
Alcohol has been used for centuries as a way to kill germs and make water safer to drink. Basically it is a poison, but one that the human body can cope with in small amounts. If living in a country without guaranteed clean drinking water mixing wine with water was an ideal way to kill the germs and make the water safer. I think this was what Paul was refering to in his letter to Timothy (1 Tim 5:23) "Drink no longer water, but use a little wine for thy stomach's sake and thine often infirmities."
Do we in these days, who have access to clean, purified drinking water through our taps need to drink wine at all?
To be honest I'd prefer to have watered wine than some of the chemicals which are used in the water industry, but that's just a personal preference.
Another use of wine is in celebrations. Wine was used at the wedding at Cana (John 2:1-11) where Jesus turned the water into wine, wine had to be brought with various sacrifices and King Ahasuerus had a banquet of wine at time when he asked Esther what her petition was.
But, like the other two mentioned above, it can cause problems. The first mention of the word wine was when Noah got drunk and "uncovered himself". It may also have been why Isaac didn't recognise Jacob when Jacob deceived him, because he also brought wine with his pottage. The Levites were told not to drink wine or strong drink. This may have been because the two sons of Aaron, Nadab and Abihu died after offering "strange fire". It doesn't say directly why they did this, but God's reply to Aaron afterwards was "Do not drink wine nor strong drink, thou, nor thy sons with thee, when ye go into the tabernacle of the congregation, lest ye die". It wasn't that they could never drink wine, only not while they were ministering in the Tabernacle/Temple. Wine even gets a proverb to itself (Proverbs 23:29-35) where it mentions exactly the problems that can stem from over-use.
I've never smoked or taken drugs, nor even wanted to, but most of the same problems still apply. To be honest, I could never see the point!
Yet wine is important to us. Jesus commanded that we remember him, in the bread and in the wine. Jesus likened himself to the true vine as well as symbolising the pouring out of his blood in sacrifice. Jesus commanded that we pass the cup between us to show this commitment and cooperation to each other.
Why do some people drink to excess?
Why did Jesus say to remember him in bread and wine and not something else?