Parable Of The Cloth And Wineskins Series

Explanation of the parable

If a woman sewed a patch of new cloth on a piece of garment that had been washed, the next time it was washed the patch would then shrink and ruin the whole garment. If new wine was poured into old wineskins, the pressure of the gas from the fermentation would break the old wineskin and the wine would sip out and be lost.

Application of the parable

Do not mix the old covenant with the new covenant.

Jesus' disciples had just received new teachings from the Lord and they needed to know how to relate that life to the old truths of the Jewish faith. With these illustrations, Christ taught how to relate the old and the new.

Jesus taught that to put new cloth on an old garment would destroy both. To put new wine into old wineskins would also destroy both. To try to mix Law and Grace would effectively destroy both. Jesus is saying some things just cannot be mixed. When God reveals a new thing, He sometimes wants us to totally forget about the old.

(Isa 43:18-19) "Forget the former things; do not dwell on the past. {19} See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the desert and streams in the wasteland.

Jesus' mission involved a radical break with common religious practices for what he brings is not a patch but a whole new garment. Jesus' teaching is like fermenting wine that seems to almost have inherent vigor and can not be contained within an old rigid system.

Jesus, during the Last Supper, spoke of a new covenant, which is indeed new and not merely an improved extension of the old.

(Luke 22:20) In the same way, after the supper he took the cup, saying, "This cup is the new covenant in my blood, which is poured out for you.

How is the new covenant different from the old? The new covenant is a once-and-for-all sacrifice of sin while the old covenant requires repeated sacrifice of sins.

When Jesus spoke of the new covenant, He was referring to His blood as shed for the forgiveness of our sins in place of the old covenant which simply uses the blood of animals.

(Mat 26:28) This is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins.

The big difference between this blood sacrifice and the one in the old covenant is that it is only offered once for our sins. The old covenant requires repeated sacrifice of sin and shedding of blood before God would forgive the people of their sins. When Christ died for our sins, He paid for its debt and satisfied God's divine justice completely. There is no need for us to continually offer sacrifices for our sins by punishing ourselves.

Hebrews 10:14 because by one sacrifice he (ie Jesus) has made perfect forever those who are being made holy. (NIV)

Hebrews 9:28 so Christ was sacrificed once to take away the sins of many people; and he will appear a second time, not to bear sin, but to bring salvation to those who are waiting for him. (NIV)

John 19:30 (NIV) When he had received the drink, Jesus said, "It is finished." With that, he bowed his head and gave up his spirit.

In the parable, Jesus is telling us not to be guilty of mixing the old covenant with the new covenant. The new covenant promises a complete sacrifice for sin at Calvary. We must not mix this new covenant with the old covenant and continue to live our lives as if we need to continually punish ourselves or do works of penance as recompense for our sins.

Do not try to live your new life with your old.

When you invite Jesus into your life, He does not do a partial job of patching up your life. He turns you into a totally new creation.

(2 Cor 5:17) Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!

We must not hinder God's effort to turn us into a new creation by trying to live our new life alongside our old one. Let us seriously examine our life to see which aspects are not consistent with the life of a Christian. We must get rid of all sins that God brings to our attention. It is no use if we serve God faithfully in church and witness to our friends if we continue to hold on to secret sins in our lives. Like the parable, the inconsistency will eat us up. The new cloth will cut a hold in the old garment. As we try to read the Bible but continue to hold on to sin, the new life will eat us up and make us more and more guilty.