Wednesday, April 16, 2008

Old Wine Skins - April 16, 2008

Good morning! At the end of Luke chapter 5, where Jesus tells the well known saying of wine and wine skins, we find the following little gem:

But no one who drinks the old wine seems to want the fresh and the new. `The old is better,' they say." (Luke 5:39)

In a secular sense, we know this means that people are resistant to change. In the spiritual sense, Jesus knew that the Jews did not want to embrace the Good News of the new covenant that He brought to them.

In the military, we learned of commanders who clung religiously to old ways until fired after a humiliating defeat. However, each new war seemed to show a leader from some country doing that very thing. We have a tendency to cling to the old ways! In some cases the old ways are a good place to start; we don't throw out the ten commandments just because they are old. However, the old ways can also be a smothering blanket when someone clings too tightly and refuses to see the Good News of Jesus. Motivational speakers are much more than a dime per dozen these days; that is, they cost way more than a dime and hordes of them wander the corporate landscape. Whether speaking of paradigms or ruts, many of these speakers have a similar message, "Don't wallow in the same old rut." Jesus brought us a new message, life in Him by grace through faith. We must be out and spreading this new message. Trust in the Lord to guide you into opportunities for spreading the wonderful news about our Lord Jesus.

Praise God in the highest!

Bucky

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