Carol J German

Jesus didn’t waste any time during His public ministry. He used every opportunity to help those around Him to embrace something new. What’s new? Jesus Himself. People were of the Old Testament rules and laws, but now Jesus came on the scene to be the new way to connecting to God. In Luke 5:33-39, Jesus gives a few illustrations of what this new way looks like.

People were watching John the Baptist’s disciples fast and pray regularly as well as those who followed the Pharisees teachings, then there were those who began following Jesus. They were always eating and drinking. So, they questioned Jesus on why this is.

Jesus’ reply is one of hope for believers. Jesus asked them, “Do wedding guests fast while celebrating with the groom? Of course not.”³⁴ When you are in Christ’s presence, you can celebrate while feasting upon the Lord’s bounty of love, grace and mercy. Your soul becomes filled with the very nature of God!

Though they didn’t realize it at the time, Jesus was revealing how He is the Groom and His followers are His bride. He went on to say, “But someday the groom will be taken away from them, and then they will fast.”³⁵ Jesus was preparing people for why He came to earth. He was in their midst for a short time, but soon He would leave earth in an unfair, unjust way. The only way to put sin in its place. A way that would cause the Holy Spirit to come down and lead believers to understand biblical truths as He prepares them for their eternal home.

To further their understanding of who Jesus is, He gave them two illustrations of how to take off the old way of living and don the new way. It was time to embrace something new, and that new way was Jesus Himself.

Illustration 1: No one would ruin a new garment by cutting a piece of fabric out of it and sewing it onto an old garment like a patch. The new fabric wouldn’t match the old one, and you have just ruined the new garment. The old garment represents your sinful nature. When you choose to follow Jesus, you can’t take a part of God or His Word and attach Him to your sinful nature. God is truth, God is love, and God can never coexist with sin. When Adam and Eve chose to take the bait from Satan in the Garden, God had no choice but to exile them from it. God separated Himself from His very creation over sin. Your sinful nature must be removed so there is room for Jesus to permeate His sanctifying work within you.

Take some time and study the following scriptures: Galatians 2:20, Luke 9:23, Luke 14:33, Philippians 1:21, and 1 Peter 2:24. What is God saying to you in regards to this illustration and these truths?

Illustration 2: No one would put new wine in an old wineskin. The new wine would burst out of it spilling everywhere and ruining the skin. “New wine must be stored in new wineskins.”³⁸ As wine ferments it expands. A new wineskin would be flexible to stretch as the wine ferments. An old wineskin has been stretched out and would be unable to handle the fermentation process. Thus, your old sinful nature must be rendered dead by the blood of Christ so your new life in Him can take in all that He has for you. You need to be flexible and be willing to grow up in Christ’s likeness.

2 Corinthians 5:15-17 describes this perfectly, “(Jesus) died for everyone so that those who receive His new life will no longer live for themselves. Instead, they will live for Christ, who died and was raised for them. So, we have stopped evaluating others from a human point of view. At one time we thought of Christ merely from a human point of view. How differently we know Him now! This means that anyone who belongs to Christ has become a new person. The old life is gone; a new life has begun!”

Jesus is willing to remove your sinful nature and replace within you Himself. Unfortunately, most settle for what Jesus speaks of in verse 39, “But no one who drinks the old wine seems to want the new wine. The old is just fine, ‘they say.'” They accept a part of the Gospel instead of its entirety. They live with a divided heart; study 1 Kings 18:21, 1 Samuel 7:3, Isaiah 29:13, Matthew 6:24, James 1:8, and Revelation 3:15-19 to understand the peril that lies within each of us if we remain unrepentant.

Jesus is the new wine, the new way to God. You must let Him into your life and allow Himself to permeate your whole life. You will become a new person with an eternal ending. You cannot hold onto worldly ways or selfish desires and wants when Jesus enters in. The old you must be removed. God uses His sanctification process to help you become more like His Son.

Parallel this passage with Proverbs 9. How are the two relatable? Ask God for clarity as He works deep in your heart.

Today is a great day to embrace something new! You will find Jesus to be worth following.

PS: God is healing my shoulder nicely. I don’t have any other damage to my shoulder. All I need is time to heal along with some physical therapy. Thank you for praying for me.