New Beginnings

Luke 5:36-38 “Then He spoke a parable to them: “No one puts a piece from a new garment on an old one; otherwise the new makes a tear, and also the piece that was taken out of the new does not match the old. And no one puts new wine into old wineskins; or else the new wine will burst the wineskins and be spilled, and the wineskins will be ruined.  But new wine must be put into new wineskins, and both are preserved.”

A common practice in Jesus’ day was the process of storing wine in animal skins. The process of fermentation took time and as the wine fermented the wineskins would become old and brittle. If new wine were to be placed in old ones, the risk of the skins tearing and spilling the wine was the risk therefore new wine was placed in new wineskins.

Jesus shared a parable with the disciples regarding the practice of storing wine. As in all things Jesus did, He took a common practice and applied a spiritual principle that all might understand.

Wine of God’s wrath

Wine has an interesting history in the Bible. I suppose, since wine has been common among mankind for thousands of years, it has been easily relatable when it comes to it’s usage.

During the days of Jeremiah when Israel had been practicing idolatry and had turned from serving the Lord, wine was representative of God’s wrath.

Jeremiah 25:15 “For thus says the Lord God of Israel to me: “Take this wine cup of fury from My hand, and cause all the nations, to whom I send you, to drink it. And they will drink and stagger and go mad because of the sword that I will send among them.”

For those who were drunk with the wine of pleasure and self-fulfillment, the senseless nature of the drunkard was likened to those who live for their own pleasure then discover later after the harm had been done, exactly what their actions have entailed. For Israel, their actions led to their downfall, not by chance but as God directly intervened and made sure they understood the magnitude of their error.

Job likewise likened the drinking of fermented wine to God’s wrath:

Job 21:17-21 “How often is the lamp of the wicked put out?
How often does their destruction come upon them,
The sorrows God distributes in His anger?
They are like straw before the wind,
And like chaff that a storm carries away.
They say, ‘God lays up one’s iniquity for his children’;
Let Him recompense him, that he may know it.
Let his eyes see his destruction,
And let him drink of the wrath of the Almighty.
For what does he care about his household after him,
When the number of his months is cut in half?”

Whether it is God’s people living in rebellion or the wicked who have forsaken any notion of God, wrath is poured out like wine, filling the cup. It is an interesting image of the rebellious, they hold up their goblets as if waiting to receive something back from the world, good times are short lived as they fill up of the lust of the flesh, and into the goblets pours forth God’s wrath.

The world’s way leads to death but eternal death is ultimately in the hands of the Almighty, He is the One who holds the keys. Wrath comes forth from God and since the world represents only a false front of temporary pleasure, the fake representation of something that looks good reveals its lack of substance.

In the last days as prophesied, the world will inherit the recourse of their ways:

Revelation 14:9,10 “Then a third angel followed them, saying with a loud voice, “If anyone worships the beast and his image, and receives his mark on his forehead or on his hand, he himself shall also drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which is poured out full strength into the cup of His indignation. He shall be tormented with fire and brimstone in the presence of the holy angels and in the presence of the Lamb.”

For those who have sealed their fate during the tribulation, the wrath of God will be made manifest on Earth. The time of great tribulation will be unlike anything mankind has ever known, woe to those who are upon the earth at that time, their fate will depend upon who they place their trust in.

Wine of Redemption and Healing

During the last supper, before Jesus’ crucifixion, He shared a timeless ceremony with His disciples that symbolized His love for them.

Luke 22:17-20 “Then He took the cup, and gave thanks, and said, “Take this and divide it among yourselves; or I say to you, I will not drink of the fruit of the vine until the kingdom of God comes.”

And He took bread, gave thanks and broke it, and gave it to them, saying, “This is My body which is given for you; do this in remembrance of Me.”

Likewise He also took the cup after supper, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in My blood, which is shed for you.

The wrath of God was satisfied by the shed blood of the Lamb.

Nothing else could do.

Jesus gave His life that we might have eternal life. Jesus gave of Himself to purchase a people for His own possession. For those who have received His life giving wine, they have become the new wineskins of God’s grace.

If take the morality of the world and try to fit it into God’s standard of righteousness, it would be like pouring God’s wine of grace into a standard that can’t hold it. The world, like the pharisees in Jesus’ day, will attempt to justify itself by their actions, they think they can make themselves good by doing what they deem as good.

But there is no one who is good.

There is not one person who can do good in and of themselves. Goodness is relegated to God alone and Jesus is the perfect manifestation of God’s goodness. When a believer receives Christ, they receive His goodness within them. When the faithful walk in God’s grace, they walk according to His Spirit and His Spirit manifests God’s goodness through their lives.

This is the only way to be good. By allowing God to work in and through His people, they demonstrate the transforming power of Christ in them.

Wedding Supper of the Lamb

When this age is complete, when the time of the church has reached its end and evil has been vanquished, then a time of unity will finally occur. Each man, woman, and child who joins in the wedding supper of the Lamb and celebrates what brought them to the table will know—they came by faith in Christ alone.

Revelation 19:9 “Then he said to me, “Write: ‘Blessed are those who are called to the marriage supper of the Lamb!’ ” And he said to me, “These are the true sayings of God.”

This supper will be a Holy convocation for the Bride and Bridegroom, a celebration of a union with the Savior and His people. When Jesus partook of the communion He promised His disciples that He would not partake of the ceremony again until the Kingdom of God comes.

What is the KIngdom of God?

It is the manifestation of all who have ever followed the King. The Kingdom of God comprises every person who has trusted in Him, they have all been bought with a price and that price was costly. The value of people who were worth Jesus’ life.

One day, God’s people will all be seated around His table and Jesus will lead the sacred assembly with a communion like no other.

I pray you will be there.

If you don’t know Jesus as your Lord and Savior, there is no better time than the present to begin. Trust begins with humility, it proceeds with repentance and a contrite spirit, and then it leads on by following the Shepherd.

To trust in the Savior is to trust in God’s love—that is a beginning that will have no end.