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?