Thoughts for the Day

Then the disciples of John came to him, saying, ‘Why do we and the Pharisees fast often, but your disciples do not fast?’ No one sews a piece of unshrunk cloth on an old cloak, for the patch pulls away from the cloak, and a worse tear is made. Neither is new wine put into old wineskins; otherwise, the skins burst, and the wine is spilled, and the skins are destroyed; but new wine is put into fresh wineskins, and so both are preserved.’

(Lectionary, New Revised Standard Version)

Thoughts

This double parable occurs in all three Synoptic Gospels (ie Matthew, Mark and Luke) to a question about why Jesus' disciples do not observe the laws concerning fasting. As with all parables Jesus bases his comments on practical scenarios that everyone would know. In this case, don't patch an old garment with new cloth, because the latter will shrink when washed and cause a problem. The same goes for putting new wine into an old wineskin, for it will ferment and burst.

The new patch and new wine, are the New Covenant with God (which we looked at 2 days ago under the 'Decrees of the Lord') and the Gospel of Jesus. The old cloth and wineskin are the Old Covenant and the Law of Moses. Jesus gently points out the old system which required people to follow the Law of Moses hasn't worked. If the Hebrews had kept to the Shema (basically to love God and all people) it would have been fine, but the Pharisaic schools had defined the Law down to its tiniest action. Jesus came to offer freedom from this legalism. He came to call us to repentance and offer us forgiveness for our sin.

Today we too shouldn't says "the old is better" just because its comfortable. Jesus condemns all of us who have shut minds. We shouldn't reject new ideas, for the Holy Spirit continues to challenge and lead us into new truth. If Doctors stuck to the old ways where would we have been today? As one theologian wrote: 'Let us have a care that in thought and action we are not hidebound reactionaries when we ought, as Christians, to be gallant adventurers.' The question today is, "Are you a gallant adventurer?"

Lord Jesus,
You call us to move into the future
finding new ways of worshipping,
and new ways of praying.
You call us to take the best of the old
and move forward in mission,
taking Your love to all with whom
we come in contact.
Open our eyes so that we may
not be hidebound by old ways,
and lead us forward into new paths.
Amen.