New Wine in an Old Wineskin

When life gets tough, the tough get going.

Cheers,

Jim

 

Aye. Verily, it is so.

 

Kirk Cameron and Ray Comfort use the parachute illustration in their teachings on The Way of the Master also. I agree that we can not water down the gospel just to make people more comfortable. Yes, church membership is falling...why? Because we are getting closer and closer to the end times when more and more people will be deceived. Watering down the message just plays into that, it doesn't help or solve the problem.

 

I have always taken this scripture to explain that Christianity is not a continuation of Judaism. The new wine (Christianity) would be spoiled or contaminated by the remnants left over in the old wineskin (Judaism). Secondly the old wineskin will burst having outlived its usefulness. Jesus also explained our tendency to stay with the old in preference of anything new.

Instead, Jesus didn't trust this new religion (new wine) to the old leaders, he hand selected 12 Men who he personally trained to spread the good news.

 

I think you have something here, except I call that old wineskin Judaism or the Law.

Paul also spent enormous portions of his writings trying to explain to the believers who were previously Jews that Christianity is not a continuation of Judaism.

And I don't know who wrote Hebrwes, but I think the nail was hit on the head here;

Heb 7:11 If therefore perfection were by the Levitical priesthood, (for under it the people received the law,) what further need was there that another priest should rise after the order of Melchisedec, and not be called after the order of Aaron?
12 For the priesthood being changed, there is made of necessity a change also of the law.

 

I pastored a church with many people from diverse backgrounds. In a Bible study I led was a lady who had been a stripper, a man had played in bars and had tatoos, another man and his wife were much the opposite. My wife and I are clean cut and have no tatoos. One thing we all had in common was a deep love for one another. As a group we stood by and supported one another in so many ways. One of the husbands died a few feet from me in the church. All of us helped his wife out financially and helped her to get on her feet. We did a lot of manual labor to help her with her home. We did such thigs as clean her house, trim the trees and mow the lawn. She also had a young child. The man who had tatoos now leadds the music in a church and teaches people how toi make disciples. I met with that man personally at least once a week teaching him how to walk with God. He was a new Christian.

That is what a church is all about, not how we dress or like or dislike.

God will do more with a sinner who knows he is saved by grace than 1000 who are self righteous.

 

:applause: :applause: :godisgood:

God bless you, what a testimony... :thumbs:

 

People are neither drawn into Christianity nore repelled away from it because of rules, dress codes, or entertainment. People who have a true heart for God will seek Him out based on the inward drive of the holy Ghost.

These polls, church growth techniques, and entertainment schemes draw crowds but fail to build Christ's church.

"Heaven help us to know the difference between a crowd and a church."~ Dr. David Allen

 

The Bible is God's word and tells us plain how to live in it, he has not amended anything in it to make us feel better about being Christians, he does not force us to believe or to live by his word, he tells what will happen if we dont but we make the decision's in our life. Now you say your friends still smoke and drink but are Christians and they may well be but have never really turned their life over to God, I for one would speak to these friends about the stuff in their life they are doing and try and get them to stop these things if they refuse to at the least put the drinking behind them I would cut off there. You being a Christian can not live Christ like and condone this in anyway. So many claim they know Christ, but the real question is does Christ know them, for many who profess the faith will be in Hell someday, The mighty word of God and the Church is not for peoples pleasure so many Churches now days think they must entertain the flock with gyms and all kinds of things but they spend less and less time in the word of God being preached and trying to win souls with having a good ol time, which nothing wrong with having a good time with our brothers and sisters in Christ but when the programs and trips and things take over then there lies the problem. in my on thoughts, I could go on for days on this but I will stop now cause I am getting in preacher mode and I have a headache and I dont want my blood pressure up this morning. I will end this with when I became a Christian I had to cut some friends away for I knew it would not work, did I try and talk to them yes and when I run into them today I still try and talk to them but they are living the good life or so they think. But back to the rules you say is driving so many away, what would you have us do? Ignore what the Word of God tell us so they can feel better about being there or believing in him? We have a relaxed dress code at our Church meaning women can wear pants if they want, and it causes no problems as long as they dress modest same with the men, most of us still dress nice and all is good, face it some people dont make alot of money and have lots of bills to pay so why should we force people to buy dress's or suits they cant afford to begin with, so I forone have no problem with modest dress in Church, but the Word of God tells us how to live our lives and that I wont condone being stepped around in anyway.