Containers for New Wine
Two Conclusions
By Jonathan Mitchell

"During all the days of the earth, seedtime and harvest, and cold and heat, and summer and winter, and day and night, shall not cease." (Gen. 8:22)

There will always, seasonally, be New Wine; God's Vineyard continues producing (Jn. 15).

New Wine Needed New Wineskins
The Message of Mark 2:21-22

In these two verses, Jesus uses two illustrations to speak about something new, in comparison to something old. In this short article we shall investigate His point about needing new wineskins as containers for new wine. We will first look at the ancient practice for storing wine, particularly when it is freshly made, and then seek understanding of Jesus' illustration. Let us view our text:

21. "No one usually sews a patch of an unshrunk shred of cloth upon an old and worn out cloak (coat; outer garment). Yet, if [he does], is not the filling-result (the [patch] that fills up [the hole]) progressively lifting up away from it - the new, unused one from the old one - and a worse split-effect (or: tear; rip) is gradually happening?

22. "Further, no one normally pours freshly-made, new wine into old and worn out leather bottles (wineskins). Yet, if [he does], will not the wine proceed in bursting and ripping the leather bottles (wineskins), and the wine be progressively lost - as well as the wineskins (bottles)? To the contrary, new (= newly made) wine [is put] into new (different, just beginning to be used) wineskins (leather bottles)."

Jesus takes his illustrations from current, cultural practices. Verse 21 speaks of combining newly woven cloth that has not been first "shrunk," with

"an old and worn out cloak (outer garment)."

The point is obvious: one does not combine cloth that can shrink, when washed, with a garment than has finished its shrinking.

Likewise, in vs. 22, He uses the storing of freshly-made wine (which will expand its volume during the fermenting process), which no one would normally pour into "old and worn out leather bottles (wineskins)" as containers during the fermenting process. In both illustrations, if the normal, time-honored practices are not followed, there will be a "split-effect (or: tear; rip)," or a "bursting and ripping," and the results contradict the intent.

These same illustrations are also found in Mat. 9:16-17, and in both Gospels, these comparisons follow Jesus responding to Pharisees by using a reference to "the bridegroom." That figure speaks of a new relationship, and was used of John the immerser as a reference to the coming Messiah (Jn. 3:29-35). All three contexts are figuratively speaking of something new coming, or happening.

Our investigation will focus on the wine illustration. The wine has often been interpreted as referring to the new teaching that Jesus was proclaiming, and to the new arrangement (covenant) and the new creation of which Paul later taught. These are valid, and insightful interpretations. We would like to add a couple more layers, for your consideration.

First would be that the new wine is a figure for Christ, Himself. He could not be put into the old covenant system, for He would expand and break that system. He must come into a new system, or container - into a new Temple and into a new Humanity (1 Cor. 15:44-50, where Paul instructs us that

"flesh and blood cannot inherit the reign of God"

- it will burst the flesh and blood; also, Eph. 2:14-15, the making of the circumcision and the uncircumcision into one New Humanity). It is a system (world; ordered arrangement) where the expectation of the assumed appearance and glory is Christ within us (Col. 1:27b) and where

"God can be all things within the midst of and in union with all humans (or: may be everything in all things; or: should exist being All in all; or: would exist being everything, within the midst of everyone)" - 1 Cor. 15:28b.

We can see where this new wine was attempted to fit into the old wineskin of Second Temple Judaism, that there were splits and conflicts (see the book of Acts), and where Paul in Acts 18:6b declared that from that time on, he would go to the Gentiles (the ethnic multitudes of the nations) that were not a part of the old system of the Judaism of that day.

A second layer, congruent with the first that we just described, was the coming of the Holy Spirit into the midst of the new, called-out communities, and into individual members of the heavenly (spiritual) temple, as the fulfillment of,

"sending forth the Promise from out of the midst of, and from, My Father (or: am out from within repeatedly sending forth My Father's promise, as an Emissary; [with other MSS: From where I now am, I now continuously send off the Promise, which is My Father]) upon you people" (Lu. 24:49),

which Jesus also spoke of in Acts 1:5-8, where in vs. 8a He told them,

"Nevertheless, you folks will progressively receive power and will continue taking to yourselves ability: a sudden (point of time) added, full coming [= Parousia] of the Set-apart Breath-effect (the Holy Spirit and Sacred Attitude) upon you folks."

This, you may recall is reminiscent of the Spirit coming upon Jesus, anointing Him for ministry, at His immersion into the Jordan River, by John. This new existence (this new creation) was an ongoing experience for Christ's followers. Eph. 5:18 gives this analogous admonition:

"And stop being made drunk (or: Do not be continuously made intoxicated) by wine [of the old covenant], within which exists the disposition of one having no hope of safety (un-savingness; dissipation and ill health; desperation), but rather be continuously or repeatedly filled full in spirit (within [the] Spirit; within the midst of [the] Breath-effect; in the sphere of attitude; in union with [the] Breath)."

A whole new society (the called-out, new covenant communities) was created in order to house (as God's temple) Christ and the Spirit of God. This was (and we are) the new wineskins. This, of course, did indeed come with new revelations and new teachings. But we suggest that Christ and the Spirit were the central components of this new Wine. This brought to humanity the joyous favor of God's Grace, and the Life of the newly incarnated, then resurrected, Christ into the many members of His body.

Marge White was both editing and contributing to a book that was being written by a long-time inmate of a state correctional facility. She adds practical wisdom to our study:

"Since working on this book and coming across the laws, demands and failures of human attempts to make all things equal (or what is believed to be equal), my mental rambling has been one of noticing that trying to turn Father's nature of love into human laws is not unlike trying to fit His life into our old natures and worldly systems, and the whole attempt goes bust and makes things worse. So we keep passing laws and never learn that a new system is needed that is filled with His life and not our works. And no, I'm not talking about any human system ending with "ism". Yes, as in all things, the new wine and the new skins are of Him, by Him, and for Him to express His fullness even in and through us."

New Wine in an Old Wineskin

There seem to be more than one application of what Jesus affirmed, both in Mark, above, and in Mat. 9:17,

"Neither are people normally draining fresh, recently made, new wine into old skin-bags (bottles), otherwise the skin-bags are constantly bursting (being torn open), and then the wine is constantly being spilled out and the skin-bags continue being destroyed (ruined). To the contrary, people normally drain fresh, just-made, new wine into skin-bags having a new character and quality - and both continue being preserved."

But, in fact, this is what Jesus actually did, during His first century ministry. John Gavazzoni wrote:

"Yes; long ago I came to the conclusion that though, as the Lord said, new wine is not normally poured into old wine skins lest the old wineskin burst, and the wine and the skin are lost, nevertheless, that's exactly what He did. In Himself, in His death and resurrection, the old system, with its wall of partition between Jew and Gentile had been torn down, with the two having been made one in Him, and symbolically, the Holy of Holies had been opened to all humanity with no difference by the rending of His flesh.

"But, consistent with a system of shadows and types, the remaining symbols, the city (the Jerusalem which is below), and the temple (prophetic of that New/Real temple of His body) could not be left standing. Bereft of life, it all imploded upon itself, facilitated by the army of Titus. That destruction constituted a public display that the old had come to its end, and the new... represented by the whole Christian community that had fled the city... now existing completely outside the environs of the old, as His corporate body, the true temple of God, it/they were God's way forward from that time onward."

My response:

Good observations, John, both of the first century and of the present. Thanks for the added details of both the inner curtain and His own flesh being rent. Think of it, the New Wine (the Spirit) was poured into the old wineskin of Jesus, Himself, who represented all of Israel, and the first Adam, and this tore Him apart - His body broken for us. The cup that they drank was His Wine poured out for us; His blood, His Life.

That's why they had to take up their crosses and follow Him - they were old wine skins which also had to die, in order to be resurrected as new wineskins -- as was He. The old man cannot contain the new; it must be transformed into the likeness of His glorious body... only the "house from heaven" can contain the New Creation.

He sends His rain, as new wine, upon the just (those grafted into the Just One) and the unjust (those not yet engrafted). In both cases, the old wineskins must be broken. It is His Resurrection Life that creates new wineskins, in all of us - each one in his or her own order.

At the wedding celebration (Jn. 2) the new wine was not created until the old was running out; the human need, in order to continue celebrating, was the reason for the miracle. We live in a time where the old wine is running out for many folks, and cultures. May this present need induce a new outpouring of Himself, for our present day.

Jonathan

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