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In Christ, Mark
In Christ, Mark
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The scriptures. May God bless the reading of His holy word.
The scriptures. May God bless the reading of His holy word.
"No one sews a patch of unshrunk cloth on an old
garment, for the patch will pull away from the garment, making the tear worse.
Neither do men pour new wine into old wineskins. If they do, the skins will
burst, the wine will run out and the wineskins will be ruined. No, they pour
new wine into new wineskins, and both are preserved."
Matthew 9:16-17
“No one sews a patch of unshrunk cloth on an old garment.
Otherwise, the new piece will pull away from the old, making the tear worse. And
no one pours new wine into old wineskins. Otherwise, the wine will burst the
skins, and both the wine and the wineskins will be ruined. No, they pour new
wine into new wineskins.”
Mark 2:21-22
He told them this parable: “No one tears a piece out of a
new garment to patch an old one. Otherwise, they will have torn the new
garment, and the patch from the new will not match the old. And no one pours
new wine into old wineskins. Otherwise, the new wine will burst the skins; the
wine will run out and the wineskins will be ruined. No, new wine must be poured
into new wineskins. And no one after drinking old wine wants the new, for they
say, ‘The old is better.’”
Luke 5:36-39
This ends this reading from God's holy word. Thanks be to God.
One thing is certain when we become Christians.
This ends this reading from God's holy word. Thanks be to God.
One thing is certain when we become Christians.
We’re expected to put our old selves behind us and accept
the new ways of living found in following Jesus.
I can say this is a certainty because the scriptures verify it as truth. Look at these words from Paul’s second letter to the church in Corinth:
I can say this is a certainty because the scriptures verify it as truth. Look at these words from Paul’s second letter to the church in Corinth:
“Therefore, if
anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!”
2 Corinthians 5:17
In Jesus, the old self is expected to be gone because a new life in Him has dawned. It’s out with the old and in with the new. God’s word is clear on this.
And yet there are so many Christians in the world who seem to feel like they can live in both worlds as followers of Jesus, allowing a portion of themselves to be new in Him while reserving the remaining portion to be connected to the sinful ways of their past. They want the world and its offerings but also want Jesus offers as well, a life approach that Jesus clearly does not want His disciples to take. Look again at today’s scripture passage and since all three passages are very similar, I will only use the Luke account here:
In Jesus, the old self is expected to be gone because a new life in Him has dawned. It’s out with the old and in with the new. God’s word is clear on this.
And yet there are so many Christians in the world who seem to feel like they can live in both worlds as followers of Jesus, allowing a portion of themselves to be new in Him while reserving the remaining portion to be connected to the sinful ways of their past. They want the world and its offerings but also want Jesus offers as well, a life approach that Jesus clearly does not want His disciples to take. Look again at today’s scripture passage and since all three passages are very similar, I will only use the Luke account here:
He told them this
parable: “No one tears a piece out of a new garment to patch an old one.
Otherwise, they will have torn the new garment, and the patch from the new will
not match the old. And no one pours new wine into old wineskins. Otherwise, the
new wine will burst the skins; the wine will run out and the wineskins will be
ruined. No, new wine must be poured into new wineskins. And no one after
drinking old wine wants the new, for they say, ‘The old is better.’” Luke 5:36-39
Here we find Jesus driving His point home by way of a
parable (using common life matters to teach spiritual truths) as He so often
does in His teachings. Here the illustrations are based on patching clothing
and pouring wine into wineskins, two things the people of New Testament would
be very familiar with.
First, He talks about mending garments.
In biblical times, just like today, accidents happen and sometimes we catch our clothing on something that could cause it to tear or rip. When that happens, typically we want to repair it so we can continue to wear it. This was the case even more so in the times of Jesus as people didn’t have large wardrobes to select from nor have a lot of places where they could purchase clothes. They had to mend what they had.
So what was the best way to patch a torn garment?
In biblical times, just like today, accidents happen and sometimes we catch our clothing on something that could cause it to tear or rip. When that happens, typically we want to repair it so we can continue to wear it. This was the case even more so in the times of Jesus as people didn’t have large wardrobes to select from nor have a lot of places where they could purchase clothes. They had to mend what they had.
So what was the best way to patch a torn garment?
Jesus tells His disciples that "no one sews a patch
of unshrunk cloth on an old garment for the patch will pull away from the
garment, making the tear worse.” The garment itself had been worn and washed
many times and so the material was already shrunk. To repair it properly, one
would need to use a patch from a garment that was also used and preshrunk. This
way, the patch would not change as the garment continued to be washed,
retaining its form. Conversely, a patch from new material sewn onto an old
garment would shrink when that old garment was washed, tearing and ripping away
from the old garment and making the damage worse than before.
Jesus was making it fundamentally clear that you can’t mix the old with the new. They simply aren’t compatible.
To make His point further, Jesus uses an illustration about wineskins saying, “neither do men pour new wine into old wineskins. If they do, the skins will burst, the wine will run out and the wineskins will be ruined. No, they pour new wine into new wineskins, and both are preserved."
In New Testament times, goatskins were fashioned into vessels to hold wine and it was pretty well known policy to use new wineskins to hold new wine.
Why?
It was a matter of fermentation.
Jesus was making it fundamentally clear that you can’t mix the old with the new. They simply aren’t compatible.
To make His point further, Jesus uses an illustration about wineskins saying, “neither do men pour new wine into old wineskins. If they do, the skins will burst, the wine will run out and the wineskins will be ruined. No, they pour new wine into new wineskins, and both are preserved."
In New Testament times, goatskins were fashioned into vessels to hold wine and it was pretty well known policy to use new wineskins to hold new wine.
Why?
It was a matter of fermentation.
You see, when new wine was poured into a wineskin, the
fermentation process would cause expansion inside the wineskin. An old
wineskin, already stretched out, would not be able to expand further and thus
would burst and waste its contents. On the other hand, a new wineskin would be
able to stretch and expand as the new wine fermented without breaking.
So what is Jesus trying to say to His people here?
He’s saying that all His ways, ways that were (and are) new and incompatible with the world’s ways, cannot be housed in a person who decides that he or she doesn’t want to be a “new creation”, allowing the old to be gone in exchange for the newness of Christ Jesus, just as new wine cannot be stored in an old wineskin.
So what is Jesus trying to say to His people here?
He’s saying that all His ways, ways that were (and are) new and incompatible with the world’s ways, cannot be housed in a person who decides that he or she doesn’t want to be a “new creation”, allowing the old to be gone in exchange for the newness of Christ Jesus, just as new wine cannot be stored in an old wineskin.
Which begs the question:
Are you and old or new wineskin?
Have you fully surrendered yourself to Jesus, becoming a new wineskin that is ready to grow and expand with the new will, way, word, and Spirit He is bringing to you?
Or have you decided to try and have Jesus and the world together, placing His new wine in your old wineskin, discovering that you can’t seem to stop repeating prior sinful behavior because your old wineskin can’t contain and hold the wisdom and direction Jesus has for you, leaving you ruined and empty?
Friends, we can’t possibly hold Jesus within us unless we fully become new in Him, unless we choose to become that new creation that Paul talks about in his letter to the church in Corinth.
Have you fully surrendered yourself to Jesus, becoming a new wineskin that is ready to grow and expand with the new will, way, word, and Spirit He is bringing to you?
Or have you decided to try and have Jesus and the world together, placing His new wine in your old wineskin, discovering that you can’t seem to stop repeating prior sinful behavior because your old wineskin can’t contain and hold the wisdom and direction Jesus has for you, leaving you ruined and empty?
Friends, we can’t possibly hold Jesus within us unless we fully become new in Him, unless we choose to become that new creation that Paul talks about in his letter to the church in Corinth.
Is it difficult?
It doesn’t have to be but we need to be aware that our
archenemy Satan wants nothing more than for us to stay connected to the sinful
ways of the world where he seeks to destroy every good and perfect thing that
God does. He wants you to be an old wineskin and many are choosing to follow
him more than their Savior.
Jesus on the other hand is our perfect ally and remedy
for every plot Satan tries to hatch. For Paul reminds us that we can do all
things through Christ who strengthens us (Philippians 4:13) and that goes for
not only becoming new but remaining that way, no matter what the enemy does.
In the end translation, Jesus wants us to become new
wineskins (new creations), changing and transforming us now ( 2 Corinthians
5:27) and forever (John 3:16).
And that’s good news. Thanks be to God for the gift of His Son.
Amen.
In Christ,
Mark
PS: Please share this with anyone you feel might be blessed by it.
Send any prayer requests to OurChristianWalk@aol.com
And that’s good news. Thanks be to God for the gift of His Son.
Amen.
In Christ,
Mark
PS: Please share this with anyone you feel might be blessed by it.
Send any prayer requests to OurChristianWalk@aol.com
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