What is the meaning of Matthew 9:17? Neither do men pour new wine into old wineskins • Jesus chooses a homely picture every listener understood—new, still-fermenting wine stretches. Dry, brittle wineskins can’t flex. • The image follows questions about fasting (Matthew 9:14-16); Jesus is explaining why His disciples aren’t bound to the old ritual cycle. • Spiritually, the “old wineskins” point to the Mosaic system as practiced by the Pharisees—external rules that could never change the heart (Hebrews 8:13; Galatians 3:24-25). • “New wine” pictures the life of the kingdom Jesus brings: forgiveness, grace, the indwelling Spirit (Jeremiah 31:31-33; Mark 2:22; Luke 5:37). • Attempting to squeeze the gospel into legalistic structures always fails; you can’t bolt grace onto performance. If they do, the skins will burst, the wine will spill, and the wineskins will be ruined • Mixing the two destroys both: – The wine (gospel) “spills”—its power is diluted when blended with works (Galatians 5:4; Colossians 2:23). – The wineskins (old system) “burst”—rituals collapse under the weight of what they were never designed to carry (Acts 15:10). • The Lord is warning against syncretism: Christ plus anything equals loss (Revelation 3:16). Instead, they pour new wine into new wineskins • God supplies a completely new container—a renewed heart and a new covenant relationship (Ezekiel 36:26; 2 Corinthians 5:17). • The “new wineskin” is the believer and the church, made alive by the Spirit (Romans 7:6; Ephesians 2:22). • Only regeneration can hold the dynamic life Jesus gives (John 3:3-6). and both are preserved • When the gospel rests in a heart made new, two good things happen: – The wine keeps maturing—believers grow, churches multiply (John 15:5; Acts 2:42-47). – The wineskin stays supple—obedience motivated by love stays fresh, not brittle (1 Peter 1:5; Philippians 1:6). • God’s design safeguards His truth and His people together. summary Matthew 9:17 teaches that the living, grace-filled message of Christ cannot be confined within old, law-based forms. Only a heart and community renewed by the Spirit can contain and express the fullness of the gospel, and when that match is made, both the message and the messenger thrive. |
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