WEEKLY DEVOTION

“And he spake also a parable unto them; No man putteth a piece of a new garment upon an old; if otherwise, then both the new maketh a rent, and the piece that was taken out of the new agreeth not with the old.And no man putteth new wine into old bottles; else the new wine will burst the bottles, and be spilled, and the bottles shall perish. But new wine must be put into new bottles; and both are preserved. No man also having drunk old wine straightway desireth new: for he saith,The old is better.” Luke 5:36-39

This parable of the Lord Jesus makes use of three illustrations to point out the foolishness and error of the scribes and Pharisees who asked why Jesus’ disciples did not fast like those of John the Baptist. No one with any sense would cut up and ruin a new garment in order to patch an old one. Not only would the new garment be ruined; the patch would not match the old garment; and if the patch is of new, unshrunk cloth, it would make a worse tear in the old garment when it shrunk and pulled away. One also would not put new wine into old wine skins; for the pressure of the fermenting new wine would burst the dry and rigid old wine skins, causing the loss of both the wine and the skins.

Jesus’ point with these two illustrations is the incompatibility of the Pharisees’ dependence upon their own works of the Law for salvation and the Gospel of forgiveness and full salvation through faith alone in Christ and His redemptive work. The old garment of works righteousness, or salvation by the works of the Law, cannot be mended with pieces of the new garment of salvation by God’s grace alone for Jesus’ sake. Rather than trying to patch up the tears and sins in the life of one who hopes to be saved by his own works, he should take off and discard the filthy and spotted garment of the flesh and be clothed with the garment of forgiveness of sins and imputed righteousness in Jesus Christ. If one tries to pour the Gospel, which tells of and offers forgiveness of sins and eternal salvation by God’s grace alone for Christ’s sake, and which can be received only through faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, into the old skins of works righteousness, both will be lost; for the Gospel excludes salvation by human works. “By grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: not of works, lest any man should boast” (Ephesians 2:8-9).

Finally, Jesus illustrated man’s reluctance to believe the Gospel and trust in Christ alone for salvation. In the same way that one who has drunk old wine assumes that the old is better and does not desire the new, so also those who have imbibed the old religious belief that man must merit his own salvation by his works and life do not desire the new wine of salvation as a gracious gift of God through Jesus Christ our Lord. Those who trust in their own works for salvation must be shown the inadequacy and bitter end of such drink before they will desire the sweet Gospel of Jesus Christ.

Thy righteousness, O Christ, alone can cover me; no righteousness avails save that which is of Thee. To whom save Thee, who canst alone for sin atone, Lord, shall I flee? Amen. (The Lutheran Hymnal, #380, Verse 5)

[Devotion by Randy Moll. Scripture from the King James Version of the Bible]

News, Pages 2 on 05/08/2013