The New Patch on an Old Garment
Luke 5:36-39
Also in Matt 9:16; Mark 2:21
This one will be treated together with the next parable.
The New Wine in Old Wine Skins
Luke 5:37
Hear It! Luke 5
Also in Matt 9:17; Mark 2:22
The Setting
The setting is the same as above: There is the question about fasting, the presence of the Bridegroom and the Pharisees are clinging to their old rules and regulations.
The Problem
What are the old garment and the new garment symbolizing? What are the new wine and the old wine skins symbolizing? The old garment and old wineskin are Judaism. The new garment and new wine are Christianity.
The problem was that the Pharisees liked the old system. They were at the top and didn’t want it to change. They had the power, prestige, praise, etc.
The Pharisees had written the Talmud and the Mishnah which were huge books filled with rules and their own interpretations of the scriptures. They gave more emphasis to their writings than the Word of God.
Why isn’t it possible to make repairs on the old system of Judaism? Time and again, Israel was disciplined and brought back to the land and given another chance. But not this time.
The Central Truth
Christianity is not a patch for Judaism. It is the replacement of Pharisaic Judaism because Pharisaic Judaism cannot contain Christianity. In what way? There was no place for Gentiles, Samaritans, blind, sick, lame, etc in Pharisaic Judaism. The law was no match for the indwelling of the Holy Spirit. I say Pharisaic Judaism because Christ was the fulfillment of Judaism, but it had been twisted into something evil.
This is not teaching a permanent replacement of Israel by the church as the Reformed theologians teach. Remember that the parables say something about a subject but not everything about the subject. We have to look elsewhere to see what the future holds for the Jews.
Application: Jesus did not come into my life to patch up the old man and just give me a new lifestyle. He came to give me a whole new life. He came to give me a new way to approach God.
The first two sayings proclaimed that Messiah is here. The next two sayings reveal what Messiah will do. He will do away with the old system and replace it with something new, something better. The old system cannot contain it.
1 comment:
What a revelation! The old man or old way of doing things in my life cannot exist with the new path I am choosing to take. They cannot coexist. When I look at the disciples, it seems they had to turn away from the old in a split secound. While I have been going back and forth for years. When Jesus said come, they had to stop what they where doing and follow him; without looking back. They left without concern for the money to be made from their large catch of fish or what their boss would say about leaving tax collecting records and everything else on the table you were working on. Lord, help me. I choose to leave my old man behind understanding that the new man you shall put forth cannot coexsist with the old. Assist me Lord, for I know not how to make this all take place but, I know it is where you want me to go. May the grace of God oversee me throughout this journey. In Jesus name, Amen.
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