Yesterday there seemed to be some new things in the spiritual river that I was hearing, ends and beginnings, new things has been a theme for a while. Lord, please help me to hear, help me to listen to what You are saying.
Here are some helpful verses:
Isaiah 42:9 NIV: "See, the former things have taken place, and new things I declare; before they spring into being I announce them to you.”
Isaiah 43:18-19 NIV: “Forget the former things; do not dwell on the past. [19] See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the wilderness and streams in the wasteland."
Isaiah 48:6-7 NIV: "You have heard these things; look at them all. Will you not admit them? “From now on I will tell you of new things, of hidden things unknown to you. [7] They are created now, and not long ago; you have not heard of them before today. So you cannot say, 'Yes, I knew of them.'"
There is definitely something to the Lord bringing forth surprises, new things, new revelations! I love the fact that He is still creating, still unfolding His plan and purposes and sometimes we are unaware, and when it falls into place, we see all the things that He has prepared in advance, and how certain aspects of our previous experiences were actually pointing to this, we just didn't understand it at the time.
Often I find that He has been talking, but without the final context, I have misunderstood Him. It is like what happened with the Apostles and Jesus' passion and death, He had been speaking about it very literally, and they just couldn't grasp it, and it didn't make sense, until afterwards when they remembered.
The danger in the new wine and new material to patch old, is that the new does not coexist well with old paradigms. In fact, one could say they can be destructive. The familiarity of the old can also limit our acceptance of the new! We like the old better, we don't like change!
The version of this teaching as recorded by Mark is interesting, here it is - Mark 2:21-22 NIV: “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. [22] 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.”
Looking at the version from Luke, we gain some additional information - Luke 5:36-39 NIV: [36] "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. [37] 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. [38] No, new wine must be poured into new wineskins. [39] And no one after drinking old wine wants the new, for they say, 'The old is better.' ”
Important things to note:
1) Trying to path the old with new is bad, it ruins both.
2) Trying to contain new wine in old wine skins is bad, it ruins both.
3) Many prefer the old over the new.
4) New wine requires new wine skins!
What does new wine symbolize?
Here are a few verses -
Genesis 27:27-28 NIV
"So he went to him and kissed him . When Isaac caught the smell of his clothes, he blessed him and said, “Ah, the smell of my son is like the smell of a field that the Lord has blessed. [28] May God give you heaven's dew and earth's richness---an abundance of grain and new wine."
Deuteronomy 7:12-13 NIV
"If you pay attention to these laws and are careful to follow them, then the Lord your God will keep his covenant of love with you, as he swore to your ancestors. [13] He will love you and bless you and increase your numbers. He will bless the fruit of your womb, the crops of your land---your grain, new wine and olive oil---the calves of your herds and the lambs of your flocks in the land he swore to your ancestors to give you."
Psalm 4:6-8 NIV
Many, Lord, are asking, “Who will bring us prosperity?” Let the light of your face shine on us. [7] Fill my heart with joy when their grain and new wine abound. [8] In peace I will lie down and sleep, for you alone, Lord, make me dwell in safety.
New wine is symbolic in the Old Testament of the Lord's blessing, and abundance. There is joy in the harvest, and peace in the provision of the Lord.
In the New Testament, we find the New Wine is symbolic of the New Covenant, and Jesus' blood, which is shed for us, washing us clean, paying the price for our transgressions, the greatest blessing of all time!
Luke 22:17-20 NIV:
"After taking the cup, he gave thanks and said, “Take this and divide it among you. [18] For I tell you I will not drink again from the fruit of the vine until the kingdom of God comes.” [19] And he took bread, gave thanks and broke it, and gave it to them, saying, “This is my body given for you; do this in remembrance of me.” [20] In the same way, after the supper he took the cup, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in my blood, which is poured out for you."
I am greatly encouraged this morning that the Lord is moving, is unfolding, is revealing new things! I am encouraged because He is about it, and it is not of our doing! His plans and purposes, as they are revealed will make sense, for then we will see in retrospect, and will understand that He has been speaking all along!
I am encouraged that God's blessing in new wine, may very well require me to accept new things, new paradigms, new ways of doing things! I must be willing to lay down those things I am familiar with, those things I prefer, in order to join myself to what New thing the Lord is pouring forth!
I love when the Lord is moving, there is joy in the revelation, joy in His provision, and joy provides endurance, for sometimes there is a process and timing that takes longer than we want.
Yes Lord, pour out Your New Wine!
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