God’s Hope for Your Heart from Mark 2
GOD WANTS TO POUR NEW THINGS INTO YOUR LIFE
“And no one puts new wine into old wineskins. If he does, the wine will burst the skins—and the wine is destroyed, and so are the skins. But new wine is for fresh wineskins.” (Mark 2:22)
Jesus is with His disciples, and they get questioned by the Pharisees, the religious leaders of their day.
The essence of the encounter is that the Pharisees come to Jesus and tell Him, “You’re doing it wrong. This is how we are supposed to serve God, and you aren’t following the rules.”
Now, the Law of Judaism was a good thing, but in Christ a better thing had come. The traditions of the past had their place, but in Christ better ways had arrived. The problem with the Pharisees wasn’t that they weren’t following God at all, but that they weren’t willing to accept that sometimes He exchanges old ways for better ones.
As a result, despite all their obedience to the Law, the Pharisees were positioning themselves to become enemies of God.
So, Jesus gives them an illustration of their hearts, using the imagery of wine and wineskins. His basic point is this, “You can’t receive new blessings if you aren’t open to new ways.”
Why would He hold back blessings? He tells us why, “the wine [will be] destroyed, and so [will be] the skins.” Why would God pour out blessings on a life that won’t receive them with an open heart? Why would He offer new power to those who won’t accept a new perspective?
When it comes to the things of God, far more is gained with an open heart than with a closed hand. God is faithful, and He will show you what things to hold on to and what things need to be let go. The question is, are you willing to listen?
May you have ears to hear His Spirit whisper the new things He wants to pour into your life, for He gives good wine indeed. And, may you have hands that are open to receive the hope that comes from this truth: God wants to pour new things into your life.
-Pastor Phillip
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