New Wineskins for New Wine

“No one sews a patch of unshrunk cloth on an old garment... And no one pours new wine into old wineskins.” (Mark 2:21-22)

It never ceases to amaze me how often revelation can come from a verse, story, or parable we are well acquainted with when we focus on the big picture and the context of the event. We must ask questions like: Who is speaking? To whom are they speaking? Are they answering a question or addressing a particular concern? What is the full inference of their response? Often, these pertinent questions effectively separate fact from fiction.

Regarding the verse above, several things rise to the forefront of my understanding. First, three out of the four Gospel writers were led to include this parable. Second, it is one of the first parables Jesus tells. But above all, I must admit that I’ve always focused more upon the wineskins and less upon what was going into them. I failed to recall and tie together the fact that Jesus began His ministry by turning water into wine, and that His first parable highlights the importance of pouring new wine into new wineskins.

In His first miracle, Jesus turns water in stone jars into wine. Those stone jars were for ritual washing—a religious, symbolic practice that offered a temporary sense of spiritual purity, a "coming clean" moment. John rightly identified Jesus as “the lamb that takes away the sin of the world” (John 1:29). Before Jesus went to the cross, He offered an understanding that His flesh (words) is real food and His blood is real drink. Jesus’ urging that we remember Him through the Lord’s Supper reminds us of two essential truths: we are one with Jesus Christ through feeding on His word and drinking (accepting) His blood sacrificed for the permanent forgiveness of our sins. The cleansing offered through ceremonial washing with water was fleeting; the blood shed by Jesus covers our sin forever, as graciously as the metaphorical angel of death passed over the homes in Egypt that had the blood of a lamb over their doorposts.

In this first parable, Jesus compares the Kingdom of God to new wine. The "old wine" in "old wineskins" was religion with all its empty ceremony centered around the consequences of sin. The Gospel was the new wine that had to be poured into new wineskins. The early church quickly struggled with old Jewish rituals and traditions being introduced into church practices, such as “observing special days and months and seasons and years” (Galatians 4:10).

Sadly, a good example of why the Gospel (new wine) cannot be poured into old wineskins (old religious practices) still exists today in many denominational churches. Weekly ceremonial confession of sins, followed by absolution offered by a priest or pastor, tragically encourages a subconscious belief that the sacrifice of Jesus on the cross was not enough. The same churches that declare “the just shall live by faith” (Habakkuk 2:4) often teach that a weekly accounting of sins is required to make us "clean for another week." Christian liturgy is deeply meaningful and beautiful, but when recited from memory, it can become a habit rather than a heartfelt expression.

Father, Thank You for helping us understand Jesus’ parable illustrating the profound difference between the Old and New Covenants, and how impossible it is to contain the new within the old. Keep our hearts soft and thereby able to carry the fresh movement of Your Spirit without reservation. Help us yield to Your transformation, so we can serve You in every way possible for Your glory. Let us share this truth with those still struggling under the bondage of the Law, that they may find the same liberty we have in Christ. Amen.

mgb