Application in the Preaching of Grace

By Bryan Chapell

Goal of this lecture: To see how grace motivates and enables powerful application of Biblical truth for obedience and hope.

1. What is Application?

So you preached a fantastic sermon. Dr Rayburn's "So what?"

We are not ministers of information. We are ministers of transformation.

• The duty God requires of man.
• What the Scriptures principally teach
• What preachers principally preach

• The personal consequences of expounded truth.

We may know a lot of meaning but if we do not know it's significance, we do not really know it's meaning.

• Eg. What is the significance of the truth of the trinity? It's about a relational God.
• Eg. What's the significance of justification is by faith alone? Maybe it's to know that it's what Jesus did and not your good works.

• The attitude or behaviour a Biblical truth requires.

What should my heart do in response to this? Out of the heart are the issues of life (Prov 4:23)

• Application of biblical truth is not only about behaviour but about the attitude of the heart. If we can change behaviour but the heart has not changed, what is it's significance?
• We tend to focus on the exposition of Scripture and not on its application.
• Topical exposition where the source is from the text but the development is from everywhere else, we can use the word to say what we want. We need to get the topic, the main points, sub-points all from the text. Say what God says and not what I think. That is Expository preaching. Explanation, Illustration and Application all comes from the text.
• Explanation (exegesis, organisation, outline, argument) is not our goal in Expository preaching but it's Application.

What is important doesn't help you if you don't know why it's important.

The young may hear the Bible explained while growing up but they hear no relevance to their lives. They also did not see the impact of the word in their parents' lives. So they leave church once they leave the home.

2. How Important is Application?

• Broadus - "The main thing to be done".

• "If we leave it to men's choice to follow what is taught them, they will never move one foot. Therefore, the doctrine in itself profits nothing at all. - John Calvin (Sermon on 2Tim 4:1-2)

• Our Generational Experience (sola Spiritus)

Theologians sometimes objects to application because it's not the Pastor's job but that of the Holy Spirit. And that if we do try to apply we limit the work of the Holy Spirit. The Sola Spiritus (Spirit alone) argument.

• Just as we explain what the Spirit must ultimately interpret, we must apply what the Spirit will ultimately apply.

• Our Personal Ethos

The perceived character of the speaker.

Logos - verbal content. The written text.

Pathos - emotive content. Not just the message but the manner in which we say the message. If manner contradicts the message, which will we believe? Our manner has to reflect our message.

Ethos - credibility + compassion

Are you speaking truth or are you a truthful person? The most persuasive part of your message is whether you care or not.

• Logos - Explanation - Principles (least remembered except maybe the topic or inspiring thought)
• Pathos - Illustration - Demonstrate (last one likely to be remembered or the first one)
• Ethos - Application - Particular

(I will remember if I strongly disagree or the one I strongly agree)

This is only true as external memory. But there is also an internal memory, the message itself has a redemptive impact. We remember more than the content of the message, we remember the messenger (credibility and compassion). You can trust me but more than that you trust the word I represents. If application is avoided we damage the message. Move from the general to the particular application.

3. What are Perspectives on the "Place" of Application?

Traditional Practice: At the conclusion of the Exposition (ie at the end of the sermon; But consider advantages and disadvantages of Puritan tradition).

• Application that goes at the end of a sermon is a Puritan tradition. It follows a theological essay. Doctrine development from various passages. Followed by the uses. They became ministers of information instead of ministers of transformation. They were not thinking of how people were hearing. We have been thought to preach in an academic model.

Homiletical Advice: In each minor point's "Exposition" (ie integrating meaning and significance to expound understanding of the biblical text).

 

• Deductive Model (inverted pyramid)

The Homiletical advice means the Explanation, Illustration and Application is not the structure for the whole sermon but for each point. The introduction includes what and why. The application begins the message and not an afterthought. People are thinking even as we go along. We deduce the application from the principles.

• Inductive Models (conversational pyramid)

Application/Illustration, Illustration/Application and Explanation. Give people a reason for the subject. The reverse methodology is to start with the particular to the principle. That's where most people are at. We relate to our situations. We present the issues first and then what biblical principles apply.

• Integrated Models

Application from a Rhetorical need. ("Put a man in a hole" = Communications Model) And they want to know how to get out of the hole. Identifying the burden of the text.

Application from a Biblical FCF (Fallen Condition Focus). Identify a redemptive burden = Pastoral Model.

The "Swiss Cheese" effect of 2Tim 3:16-17, Rom 15:5. These are the holes in us. What is going to make them complete?

The Fallen Condition Focus Process.

• Identify the Big Idea of the text. The what question.
• Identify the Concerns causing the text (in context). The why question.
• Show how we Share the struggle (mutual condition). The how question. Mutual condition. How are we like them.

Pastoral effect: Truth❓Struggle

God gave you truth to help you with your struggles. Instead of burdening people we are shepherding people.

The common denominator of all the great preachers of all time is that they gave people hope.

Explanation, Illustration and Application are all needed for full exposition of a Biblical Text (though each has been debated in preaching history); but we still have questions regarding proportion, order and components.

4. What are Appropriate Proportions for Application?

We have a generic model but there is no generic congregation. Age, interest, occasions are decisions we make based on the demographics. We vary our Explanation, Illustration and Application proportions depending on who we are preaching to.

• It is the preacher's responsibility to both think of their congregations' capacities and necessities.
• Generic Model
• 1/3 Explanation
• 1/3 Illustration
• 1/3 Application 
• Appropriate Proportions for Application.
• The Seminary Error
• 2/3 Explanation
• 1/3 Illustration
• 1 sentence Application 
• The Popular Error
• 1 sentence Explanation
• 2/3 Illustration
• 1/3 Application 
• A Pastoral Model
• Audience - needs, learning, expectations, hostility
• Text - nature, subject
• Occasion

5. What are the Components of Application?

• Components of Explanation of Text.

General Processes

• Repeat it. Repeating is explanation.
• Re-state the truth in more familiar terms.
• Define terms or Describe people or events.
• Proof or Argument.

The most common is no. 2. We re-state in more familiar terms to be helpful to people. We know when not to keep going when it's clear and convincing. That's when we start applying.

• The Components of Application
• What should I do?  - Instructional Specificity. The what question. What does the text require me to do, believe, accept, change etc.
• Where should I do it? - Situational Specificity. Good application = situational specificity = Instructional Specificity. Where will it make a difference? Where should I do it? This is through the who door. Who needs to hear this? We don't identify them but their situation or struggle.
• Why should I do it? - Proper Motivation. The right things for the wrong reasons are wrong.
• How should I do it? - Proper Enablement. We may preach the first three but if we do not address the how, we are not just negligent but also cruel. How to do what you are told to do in Christ.

6. Prudent use of Application Options

• Open the horizon
• Reverse the train
• Turn the radio on
• Love a Puritan and a Parable.

7. What troubles us about Application

The four questions that application addresses are What, Where, Why and How.

• The Courage required to be specific. Considered the "Breaking Point". The call to change. Transformation hurts. It requires a confrontation with people. It's hard because we fear rejection.
• The interpretation required to be specific.
• Mistaking duties required by the text. Eg Jesus wore sandals, so we wear sandals. Samson is strong when he had long hair and weak when he had short hair, so we should all have short hair?
• Requiring duties not developed from the text.
• Not matching tone to task. Eg We angrily tell people they need to love.
• Confusing a "good idea" with a Biblical mandate. Eg You should have a 20 minute quiet time every morning. It's a good idea but not a mandate. A church can go to war over a good idea.
• The sense that the Holy Spirit is limited by requiring specific duties.
• The Grace that may be denied by requiring specific duties.

Is it ungracious to talk about duty?

1. To redeem from an empty way of life is gracious. 1Peter 1:18
2. To teach to say NO to ungodliness is gracious. Titus 2:12
3. To lead to the blessings of obedience and godliness is gracious. 
4. To teach that there is discipline for disobedience is gracious.

What is ungracious with regard to duty?

1. To teach that there is merit in obedience is ungracious.

Eg Sunday school teacher saying: If you are a good little girl, Jesus will love you. There is blessings in obedience but no merit in obedience. Isaiah 64:6

2. To teach that God rejects for disobedience is ungracious.

Romans 8:39. We are dependent upon the grace of God. Your obedience is not the basis of your acceptance or rejection.

3. To teach that God does not require godliness is ungracious. Lev 19:2, John 14:15
4. To teach the law apart from grace is ungracious.

You teach what is required but if it's not in the redemptive context of God it damages people. It is through grace that people response to obedience. The provision of God in Christ.

1. Teaching the "Deadly Be's" alone. They are not wrong in itself but is wrong by itself.

1. Be Like eg Be like Barnabas or David or Abraham except non of them were sinless. The exception is Jesus. But if you asked someone to be like Jesus you'll get 3 response: I can't. I can (The young rich man). Despair. Paul says follow my example even as I follow Christ (the redemptive context).

2. Be Good. It's not wrong in itself but wrong by itself. How good? We are required to be holy. Your status before God is not what you do but who you are in God.

3. Be Disciplined. Eg read your Bible, pray and go to church. After preaching that what do you say? Read more. Pray more. Go to church more. How much more? Do God love you more because you pray more? What did we make God to be? That he can be bribed by our works. We can't buy the affection of God or buy favour from God.

2. Teaching Polarities of Perspectives alone.

Liberal Christians vs Legalistic Christians. These are the two ends of the faith spectrum. The legalists says Moral Don't eg smoke, drink, gamble, modest dressing

Liberals says Social Do's eg care for the poor, environment, orphans, widows, tolerant. What it both does is to say your standing before God is based on what you do. They are not wrong in itself but wrong by itself. It's not a bad thing, it's bad theology. It's not based on works. 

8. How do we Properly Apply?

Regular use of ALL FOUR questions of Application. What, Where, Why, How.

• Provide Instructional Specificity (answering the What question):
• The specific instructions derived from and proved by the exposition's concepts and terms.
• The importance of "expositional rain".

What it is:

Consistent use of main points and/or sub-point key terms in applicational instructions. 

What it does:

Establishes your scriptural rationale.

Maintains your scriptural authority.

Overcomes the "Breaking Point".

We want to take them from truth to struggle. From principle to particular.

• Provide situational specificity (answering the Where question).
1. Identify where in real life the concept applies. Focus on what's appropriate for that group.
2. Be concrete by going in through the who door. If I try to speak to everyone, I will end up speaking to no one.
3. Spotlight one situation, then move quickly "unroll" (ie identify other situations your people face where the expositional principle also applies - "Don't fence me in").
4. Illustrate the application vs explanation - discover the motivation power of illustrations vs clarification power. The primary purpose of illustration is not to clarify but to motivate. To show how truth operates in real life eg a Human Interest Account.

• Provide Biblical Motivation (answering the Why question)
1. Love over Fear (self-protection)

If the primary purpose of serving God is so that he loves you, you are actually serving yourself. If we motivate by fear rather than love, they cannot serve him. Why do we do things for God? Because we love him. Biblical fear is not terror. It's reverence. He never punishes his children, to impose penalty to damage you for wrong. He may hurt you but he won't harm you. Christ took ALL the punishment on the cross. God disciplines not punish.

2. Gratitude over Gain (self-promotion)

We are not bribing them. If we are faithful we will want what he wants.

The motive hierarchy (Why should I do what God requires?)

• Love for God (motivated God's gracious character in the text). This has to be the first motivation. We live and die for him.
• Love for others (motivated by love for those our God loves). If we love God above all else we will love all that Jesus loves.
• Love for self (motivated by love for the person my God loves). There is a proper love for self. There are self destructive people who hates themselves. We need to remind people they are God's special people and they are the temple of the Holy Spirit and it's okay to love themselves.

The motivation layers (maintaining proper reasons for repentance)

• What can change.
• Fellowship
• Blessings
• Our assurance
• His delight in our actions
• Discipline
• Conviction
• What cannot change
• Sonship
• Welfare
• His affection
• His desire for our good
• Destiny
• Justification (no condemnation)

In Christ-centred (grace oriented) preaching the rules don't change; the reasons do.

Luke 14:27 Rom 15:4

9. How does God reveal his gracious character?

Answer: Through "Christ-centred exposition" that discloses the grace in all Scripture culminating in Christ.

• Alternative Approaches (Redemptive/Historical; Doctrinal Instruction; Relation Interaction; Literary Motif)
1. Predictive of the Work of Christ

Prophecies in the OT.

2. Preparatory for the Work of Christ

John the Baptist. Passover. The sacrificial system. Tabernacle. Jesus tabernacled among the people. All has been a dead end to prepare us for the perfect sacrifice. He will provide what we cannot provide for ourselves. 

3. Reflective of the Work of Christ

The most common way of identifying God's grace in our lives. The still small voice of God to Elijah who ran into the dessert after a great victory. He called a stiff neck people his treasured possession. A faithful God who gave land back to the unfaithful. He reveals his gracious character in taking care of people who cannot take care of themselves. His affection drives them to obedience.

4. Resultant of the Work of Christ

This is after Christ, the epistles. How can we sinful people now go boldly to the throne of God. It's the result of the great high priest that have made the way for us. The Holy Spirit interceding on our behalf.

• Universal Approach (Two lenses to uses in all contexts)
1. God's nature which provides the work of Christ.
2. Our nature which requires the work of Christ

Ask what does this text tell me about God and what does this text tell me about me. When we ask these questions, it will help us see the redemptive plan of God.

10. What is the Purpose of Expounding Grace from All Scripture?

• Too many people confuse their Who and their Do (ie confuse their justification with their sanctification). The young ruler asked "what must I do?"
1. What we do does not determine who we are
2. Who we are determines what we do

• Faithful exposition shows the "imperative rests on the indicative and the order is not reversible" (Deut 5:6; Epistle structure Heb 10:14).

If you capture that truth, it will change all your relationships with people.

11. How does Expounding Grace enable the Application of Scripture?

How do we discover the power for Christian Living. What gives people the power to obey God?

• Knowledge is Power.
1. Proper knowledge  - What honours God and Blessed US (Doctrine and Duty). What to do and Who God is.
2. Who you are. You are human. Susceptible to sin. Vulnerable and helped by practical; But they are also Redeemed - loved by the father, united to Christ, in-dwelt by the Spirit = New Creation - 2Cor 5:17, Gal 2:20, 1John 4:4.
• Love is Power.

What is the primary reason the Redeemed sin? Because we love it. How do we overcome love for sin? A greater love!

1. What is the source of love? 1John4:19 - we love because…
2. What is the effect of love?
1. Holiness: Love to walk with him. John 14:15 - If you love  me… Titus 2:11,12 - The Grace of God teaches us.
2. Service: Love of what and whom he loves. 2Cor 5:14 - the love of Christ controls. Matt 25:40 - as you did it to one of the least of these my brothers, you did it to me. Not just obedience but want to.
3. How to build love? Means of Grace (prayer, fellowship) is not Means to Grace (not what we do to obtain favour) (what if we see it as bread and not barter).

Conclusion: Filling up the heart with the Power of Grace.

Bryan Chapell is the Senior Pastor of Grace Presbyterian Church in Peoria, IL and President Emeritus of Covenant Theological Seminary in St. Louis, Missouri. He is known globally as an established preacher, teacher and speaker especially in the area of homiletics. Bryan has also authored several books, including Unlimited Grace, Each for the Other, Holiness by Grace, Praying Backwards, The Gospel According to Daniel and The Hardest Sermons You’ll Ever Have to Preach and Christ-Centered Preaching—a preaching textbook that is now in multiple editions and languages. Bryan and his wife, Kathy, have four adult children, a growing number of grandchildren. He lives rich with friends, fishing and faith.

New Wine in New Wine Skins

Pastor Melinda Song

Luke 5:27-39, NIV

27 After this, Jesus went out and saw a tax collector by the name of Levi sitting at his tax booth. “Follow me,” Jesus said to him, 28 and Levi got up, left everything and followed him. 

29 Then Levi held a great banquet for Jesus at his house, and a large crowd of tax collectors and others were eating with them. 30 But the Pharisees and the teachers of the law who belonged to their sect complained to his disciples, “Why do you eat and drink with tax collectors and ‘sinners’?” 

31 Jesus answered them, “It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. 32 I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance.” 

33 They said to him, “John’s disciples often fast and pray, and so do the disciples of the Pharisees, but yours go on eating and drinking.” 

34 Jesus answered, “Can you make the guests of the bridegroom fast while he is with them? 35 But the time will come when the bridegroom will be taken from them; in those days they will fast.” 

36 He told them this parable: “No one tears a patch from a new garment and sews it on an old one. If he does, he will have torn the new garment, and the patch from the new will not match the old. 37 And no one pours new wine into old wineskins. If he does, the new wine will burst the skins, the wine will run out and the wineskins will be ruined. 38 No, new wine must be poured into new wineskins. 39 And no one after drinking old wine wants the new, for he says, ‘The old is better.’” 

[Parallel texts in Matthew 9:9-17 & Mark 2:14-22]

My text for this week’s message is taken from Luke 5:37-38 but we shall start reading from verse 27 to have a better idea of the context from which that fragment of conversation was taken.

In Luke chapter 5, Jesus is declaring a new way of life. And He is explaining to the disciples and the Pharisees that those who want to embrace this new way, cannot simply try and attach it to the old way of living. If they did, it would destroy everything.

The Parable of the New Patch (Lu. 5:36)

We live in a disposable age. When was the last time you mended your clothes? Even without having done it before we know how ridiculous it would be to tear up a patch from a new garment to sew onto an old garment.

The new material, especially if it is of natural fibre, may shrink and destroy the garment. The colours would not match the older garment which would be more faded. 

Jesus is not interested in a patching things up. Jesus’ way is a radical break from with the traditional religious practices of the day.

The Parable of the New Wineskin (Lu. 5:37-38)

To understand this parable we must know what is the wineskin that Jesus is talking about. The KJV translators have translated the word "wineskins" as bottles but these were not bottles as we know them today.

In Bible times goat skins were used as containers for liquids. The wineskin maker would skin the hide – strip it skilfully in one piece so that it would have minimal openings and seams. Then olive oil is massaged into every pore to retain its suppleness. This was just the beginning of forty more painstaking steps before the goatskin was transformed into a high quality wineskin.

Wineskins come in all shapes and sizes – huge ones out of ox hides that would hold fifty or more gallons of water all the way down to dainty ones for scented oil. But the ones in which the wineskin maker took greatest pride, were his one-liter she-goat flasks decorated with subtle dyes and intricate stitching.

For best results with wine storage, the wineskin is filled with cheap wine for a few weeks to cure it and to remove the tannin taste. Then re-filled with fine wine you wish to age and sealed tightly.

The process of fermentation causes the skin to expand and stretch and would cause dry and brittle wineskin to crack and burst. However, the leather of a new wineskin would remain pliant until the fermentation process was complete, then harden into a secure container for long-term maturing. Once a skin was re-opened and the wine consumed, it could serve indefinitely as a firm, durable water jug.

Wine is one of the symbols for the Holy Spirit.

On the day of Pentecost in Acts 2, the Holy Spirit came in great force on the assembly of believers accompanied by supernatural signs – a sound like a rushing wind, the appearance of something like tongues of fire, and the miraculous ability to speak in other tongues for the proclamation of biblical truth.

The unbelieving observers thought the disciples had been drinking too much and were simply babbling under the influence of alcohol. The first words of Peter’s sermon confirm this fact: “These men are not drunk, as you suppose. It’s only nine in the morning!” (Acts 2:15) He went on to say that what had happened was a fulfilment (partially, at least) of Joel 2:28‑32, which predicted a universal outpouring of God’s Spirit in the “last days." The unbelievers confused the coming of the Spirit with the power of wine.

A similar comparison occurs in Ephesians 5:18, “Do not get drunk on wine, which leads to debauchery. Instead, be filled with the Spirit." The point of comparison between wine and the Holy Spirit is influence or control. A person under the influence of wine experiences altered behaviour. If the person drinks enough wine, his or her mental processes will be affected and decision‑making ability radically altered-almost always with a negative result.

Likewise, the filling of the Holy Spirit produces a change in behaviour. In the Book of Acts, once-timid disciples became flaming evangelists for Jesus Christ. In Ephesians 5:19‑21, Paul mentioned three practical results of the filling of the Spirit: Singing, a thankful heart, and an attitude of mutual submission. The last result is most significant because true submission always involves giving up your right to be in control in every situation. Only a heart touched by the Holy Spirit can maintain such an attitude in every relationship of life.

In John 2, Jesus turned water into wine at the wedding feast in Cana. This miracle not only demonstrated Jesus’ power over nature, it also confirmed the joy that Jesus brings to human life through the transforming ministry of the Holy Spirit. While Moses turned water into blood as a sign of God’s judgment (Exodus 7:14‑24), Jesus turned water into wine as a sign that salvation has come at last to the world.

Thus, there is both a positive and negative meaning to wine as it relates to the Holy Spirit. Negatively, wine may control the human mind and body, leading to drunkenness and debauchery. Positively, it pictures the joy that Jesus Christ brings when His salvation comes to the human heart. It also points to the change that is possible when the Holy Spirit fills us.

New wine represents a new move of God's Spirit or a fresh outpouring of anointing for the plan of God. We must know how to prepare ourselves and what we must do to contain the new anointing when it comes.

Do you know why there are so many denominations? New denominations are formed as the mainstream denominations refuse to be renewed from within. Martin Luther never wanted to leave the Catholic Church but he was given no choice.

In the early history of the Assemblies of God, we were viewed with suspicion and speaking in tongues was deemed to be from the devil! But every renewal was not really new in the sense that they were a rediscovery of God’s original plans for the church which had been replaced by the traditions of man.

In this passage we are looking at this morning, the new wine points to two things that ushers in the Kingdom of God.

A. Jesus Chose the Unexpected (Luke 5:27-29)

27 After this, Jesus went out and saw a tax collector by the name of Levi sitting at his tax booth. “Follow me,” Jesus said to him, 28 and Levi got up, left everything and followed him. 

29 Then Levi held a great banquet for Jesus at his house, and a large crowd of tax collectors and others were eating with them.

Levi was a tax collector for the Roman government. Tax collectors were hated and despised by their fellow Jews for they were seen to have betrayed their nation for material gain and they were alienated from the religious community because they regularly defiled themselves by contact with Gentiles

They were classed with “robbers, evil-doers, adulterers” (Lu. 18:11), with prostitutes (Matt. 21;32, and with pagan Gentiles (Matt. 18:17). They were the outcasts of society. Thus, it was scandalous and publicly unacceptable for Jesus to pick a tax collector as one of his disciples.

Jesus simply spoke the words, “Follow me,” and Levi made a decisive break, leaving everything to follow Jesus – literally “was following him” indicating a continuous pattern of life. Levi did follow Jesus for the rest of his life for Levi was none other than the Matthew the gospel writer.

In the parallel passage in Matt 9:9, the man sitting at the tax office is called “Matthew” and “Matthew the tax collector” is listed as one of the 12 in Matthew 10:2,3. It is common for first-century Jews to have two names (usually one in Hebrew or Aramaic and the other in Greek or Latin).

From that time on, instead of collecting tax money, Levi collected souls for Christ. He was an accurate record keeper and keen observer of people. He captured the smallest details. Those traits served him well when he wrote the Gospel of Matthew some 20 years later

The Bible is full of God’s unlikely choices such as the shepherd boy David for King of Israel. Just two weeks ago we heard the astounding testimony of Bro. Kenny Wong.

Jesus sees what we can become even when we are lost in our sins.

1 Corinthians 1:26-29, NIV

Brothers, think of what you were when you were called. Not many of you were wise by human standards; not many were influential; not many were of noble birth. 27 But God chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise; God chose the weak things of the world to shame the strong. 28 He chose the lowly things of this world and the despised things–and the things that are not–to nullify the things that are, 29 so that no one may boast before him.

Levi regarded the change in his life as an occasion for celebration and rejoicing. He threw a great (farewell?) banquet at his home to honour Jesus and many guests were invited, including a large crowd of tax collectors. Do we also celebrate and rejoice over the salvation Jesus has bought for us at a great price? Do we long to share the good news with our friends and loved ones? Or has our excitement died down?

B. Jesus Did the Unexpected (Luke 5:30-35)

30 But the Pharisees and the teachers of the law who belonged to their sect complained to his disciples, “Why do you eat and drink with tax collectors and ‘sinners’?” 

31 Jesus answered them, “It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. 32 I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance.” 

33 They said to him, “John’s disciples often fast and pray, and so do the disciples of the Pharisees, but yours go on eating and drinking.” 

34 Jesus answered, “Can you make the guests of the bridegroom fast while he is with them? 35 But the time will come when the bridegroom will be taken from them; in those days they will fast.” 

The Pharisees and the teachers of the law were dedicated to upholding the purity of Jewish faith and life. They were exclusive while Jesus was inclusive.

Even as contact with lepers (Luke 5:12–16) brought ritual uncleanness, so in the minds of the Pharisees contact with tax collectors and sinners brought moral (as well as ritual) uncleanness.

So they were horrified that Jesus would dine with “sinners.”

Criticism #1 - He Associated with the Wrong People

30 “Why do you eat and drink with tax collectors and ‘sinners’?” 

To eat with someone was a sign of friendship and full acceptance. By eating with these people Jesus was identifying with them. Since they were religiously impure people, the Pharisees believed that Jesus was compromising his position as a teacher and Messiah.

It is like having dinner with a Japanese during the Japanese occupation. How could God work through someone who enjoyed fellowship with the dregs of Jewish society? Yet true Christianity has always broken down economic, social, ethnic, and racial barriers.

Jesus’s Response #1

31 Jesus answered them, “It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. 32 I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance.” 

Jesus responded to this criticism with an illustration drawn from medicine. In Jesus’ day, there were no hospitals or doctors’ offices so doctors made house calls. As a doctor of the soul, Jesus had to go where those who were sick in the soul were in order to help them. Only those who were sick, who recognised that they have a need will respond to the offer of help. A person who is well (or thinks mistakenly that he is) will not seek treatment.

Jesus concluded by saying, “I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance.” His mission was to those in need of a change of heart and a change of life.

By associating with the unrighteous, Jesus is not advocating a lowering of proper biblical standards of righteousness. On the contrary, the purpose of his ministry is to make possible for the fallen to be lifted up to God’s standards of righteousness. The gospel is for the poor, for prisoners, for the blind, and for the oppressed (4:18). He is our peace who has broken down every wall.

How do we view and treat people who are different from us? The poor, the LGBT, the HIV positive. Do we only welcome those who are like us?

Criticism #2 – He Did Not Conform with Expectations

33 They said to him, “John’s disciples often fast and pray, and so do the disciples of the Pharisees, but yours go on eating and drinking.”

Fasting was required of all only on the Day of Atonement (Le. 16:29) and in commemoration of the destruction of Jerusalem (Zech. 7;3, 5; 8:19). John’s disciples fasted frequently and the Pharisees promoted voluntary fasts on Mondays and Thursdays (Lu. 18:12) as an act of piety.

Jesus fasted during his time of testing in the wilderness (Lu. 4:2) but he apparently did not fast frequently enough or so that it could be noticed (Matt. 6:16-18). Since fasting was a sign of serious religious commitment and essential in preparing for Israel’s long-awaited deliverance, it seemed inappropriate that Jesus’ disciples ate and drank.

Jesus was not anti-fasting. He believed in fasting, for He fasted Himself, He taught fasting and anticipating his rejection and death at the hands of his enemies, He implies that His own disciples one day will fast. But Jesus' protest here is at the abuse of the practice of fasting among Jews in His day.

Jesus’s Response #2

34 Jesus answered, “Can you make the guests of the bridegroom fast while he is with them? 35 But the time will come when the bridegroom will be taken from them; in those days they will fast.”

Jesus likens himself to a bridegroom coming to his bride and his disciples as the guests of a wedding party. There is a time for everything and it was not right to fast (an expression of sorrow) at a wedding.

The picture of the bridegroom coming to his bride looks forward ultimately to the great marriage supper in heaven. During Jesus’ absence (when the bridegroom is taken away), while the church is preparing for the Lord’s return, fasting will be appropriate (Acts 13:2-3)

Our 40 days fast and pray begins tomorrow. Now is the time for us to fast and pray.

C. Incompatibility of the New and the Old (Luke 5:36-38)

36 He told them this parable: “No one tears a patch from a new garment and sews it on an old one. If he does, he will have torn the new garment, and the patch from the new will not match the old. 37 And no one pours new wine into old wineskins. If he does, the new wine will burst the skins, the wine will run out and the wineskins will be ruined. 38 No, new wine must be poured into new wineskins.

Jesus showed the difference between his ministry and that of John the Baptist. John was a reformer seeking to bring about repentance among those steeped in the traditions of Judaism. Jesus’ purpose was to bring in something new.

Just as a patch of new cloth (i.e., not shrunk) cloth does not patch an old garment well nor can new (i.e., unfermented ) wine be accommodated in old wineskins, so the new ideas of the gospel will not be accommodated by old patterns of thought.

Jesus is not interested in a patched up job. What Jesus brings is so new that it cannot be combined with the old. To do so would be to destroy what is new and to put together something that does not fit.

D. Resistance to Change (Luke 5: 39)

People tend to want the old and reject the new, assuming (wrongly in this case) that the old is better. Jesus recognised that old habits and ways of thinking are hard to change. We are all very comfortable in our old ways and we do not want to try the new even in small things. How about praying with your eyes open? Using guitar or drums in worship?

In worldly terms of winery ‘old wine’ is preferred because it is smooth, mature, predictable, familiar, and sophisticated. You can recognize it, name it, and label it! Just like we can label Christians by their denominations and traditions.

For anyone who has been drinking old wine it can be a challenge to trade it for the new. New wine is bitter, strong, sharp to the taste, unfamiliar, unpredictable, and highly volatile. But it is critically important that we desire and embrace the new wine that come from the Lord!

The course of time will cause all wineskins to start to dry out. In order to receive new wine we must keep our wineskin new. How do you keep a wineskin new?

E. Renewing Our Wineskins [Slide 12]

When we look at the phrase “new wine” – the Greek word “new” actually means something that is “brand new” (neos). However, the Greek word for “new wineskin” is referring to something that has been “renewed” (kainos).

The first thing that you do to restore a hard a brittle wineskin is to soak it in water to make it moist. For us we have to be soaked in the water of the word of God. We have to go back to the scriptures for our foundation.

The wineskin then has to be rubbed with fresh oil to keep it flexible. The fresh oil represents the newness of the anointing in our lives which gives us the ability to move forward in God.

The word anointing means “to smear” or “rub” with oil. At times God will send anointed people like prophets to rub us to keep us flexible.

It’s important to note that an old wineskin is someone who refuses to change. It is a mindset and nothing to do with age.

Let us renew our wine skin by:

1. soaking yourself in the Word of God (soak in water)

2. being sensitive to the spirit (rubbing with oil)

F. Steps to Renewal

Make necessary adjustments

God prepares us for major changes by teaching us in small places little adjustments. David was prepared for Goliath through his encounter with the bear and the lion. 

Did you know I was denied a B.Th. because I was not a full-time pastor? I had to argue and plead my case to the President of MBTS. Today, many of the students in MBTS are matured learners, and working professionals.

I was so blessed at the NDC meeting last Tuesday. Pastor Clement shared on his conviction that the church has to change to reach out to young people if it is to survive. Then we heard the testimony of Pastor Daniel Saik of Citystar Church (formerly First Assembly of God, Chinese church) who shared his 4 year journey as Senior Pastor of the church. In the first 3 years more than 120 members left the church. People are resistant to change. But now the church has grown to 240. Pastor Priscilla Tai, the former Senior Pastor sits as a member and advisor to the church.

Be flexible

The last 7 words of a dying church are “ We have always done it this way.” We go through these ruts when we loose our joy and we loose our joy when we are not washed in the water and rubbed with oil. The only way to be spiritually flexible is to soaked in the Word and filled with the Holy Spirit.

What God has for the church is going to take us being flexible. The wineskin must be flexible and have the ability to be stretched far enough to contain the new ideas, patterns of thought, and the methods of the new wine.

Step out of your comfort zone

Before we can move forward into a new thing, we usually have to let go of something we've been doing awhile. God nudges us outside of our comfort zones toward unfamiliar experiences to encourage us to rely on Him.

God wants us to trust Him by doing what He wants us to do and going where He wants us to go. We must learn to let go of what we have before we take hold of something new, and learn to trust God. We walk by faith, not by sight.

Do new things. Life is not just the way you are seeing it. 

Don't get squeezed into a mould defining yourself by your visible gifts or past.  If you are doing the right things, you don't have to do them flawlessly to succeed. But if you're doing the wrong thing, it doesn't matter if you do it perfectly to fail. 

CONCLUSION

Let us be open to new and fresh ways of serving God. God wants to pour new wine, new experiences, but he can't pour it into old wine skins. New things can't happen without us changing. We need to change the container because the content is ready to be poured. 

God is the greatest change agent. We are all being changed from glory to glory!

God is the one that changes the season in order for new structures and processes to be set up. The change in season makes it impossible for you to continue in your old mindset. 

Life is all about the cycle of seasons. The greatest blessings (miracles of life) are found in seasons of transition. 

2 Chronicles 29: 36, KJV (concerning setting the house of the Lord in order)

And Hezekiah rejoiced, and all the people, that God had prepared the people: for the thing was done suddenly. 

When you are prepared, it will be done suddenly. Is your wineskin prepared to receive the new wine?