Those who say new wine tastes bad - Lk 5:37-39 -

The original Korean text: https://blog.naver.com/stevision/220272108590

 

>> And no one puts new wine into old wineskins; if he does, the new wine will burst the skins and it will be spilled, and the skins will be destroyed. But new wine must be put into fresh wineskins. And no one after drinking old wine desires new; for he says, "The old is good." (Lk 5:37-39) <<

 

Jesus came into the world to rebuild the collapsed kingdom of God on the world. He who accepts his words and lives according to his words becomes the people of the new kingdom of God and obtains eternal life. However, there were some who refused to accept his words and interfered with his missionary work, finding fault with all his words and deeds. Jesus said to them, "New wine into new wineskins!"

 

At this time, Jesus made a very important remark: Those who have drunk old wine do not want to drink new wine. In other words, Jesus told who doesn't want to drink new wine.

 

Here, new wine might be the word and command of God given to us to allow us eternal life. That is, the new wine refers to 'a life of believing in Jesus as the Savior and obeying him'. Then, what is the old wine? The old wine might be the system and ideology that has made me happy until now. Pharisees, lawyers, and priests had been enjoying a satisfying(!) life until then, in the sweet intoxication of their religious system and ideology. This is the state of the preference for the old thing. They would rather die than drink the new wine, that is, than receive Jesus of Nazareth as their Lord.

 

For a pastor who has received his father's church illegally, the new wine would be this: >Confess the sins of your house to God and the whole church, pray for forgiveness, and humbly leave the church and start again your ministry from a small church.< But you can't give up the delicious old wine to accept the new bitter wine unless you resolutely crucify yourself.

 

It would be very difficult for a Buddhist monk to humbly abandon the old wine and take the new wine after receiving Christianity. How hard it was to become a Buddhist monk, and how he is respected now! Nevertheless, should he give up his present life and enter the Christianity to be baptized and begin a new life as a beginner in the church? He would feel frustrated when he thinks of the hierarchy, the baptized - deacon (jibsa) - exhorter (gwonsa) - elder - pastor. However, in order to obtain true eternal life, you must drink the new wine, even if it does not taste good.

 

However, the new wine has the bitter taste of 'cross' at first, but it tastes sweet when you become a true believer and live in true grace. Then the old wine becomes like excrement to you, as to Paul.