1. III. THE GOSPEL WILL CHANGE YOUR CHURCH.
1.1. When a church shares the good news about Jesus, people will accept Christ and the church will grow. Change is inescapable when growth takes place.
1.2. The very first church in Jerusalem experienced the change of rapid growth, expanding from 120 to 3,000 to over 5,000 members in just a few months
1.2.1. The first Jewish Christians also had to face a radical change of thinking when Gentiles began to accept Christ and became part of the church.
1.3. Change is not only an effect of growth, however, it is also a prerequisite for it
1.3.1. New methods, new tools, new ways of organizing and ministering are constantly needed if the church is to effectively reach each new generation for Christ
1.3.2. Our job is to take a gospel that never changes to a world that will never stay the same.
2. APPLICATION
2.1. Jesus recognized that all of us are naturally resistant to change.
2.1.1. In Luke 5:39, Jesus concludes the parable of the wineskins with these words:
2.1.2. “No one after drinking old wine wants the new, for he says, ‘The old is better.’ ”
2.2. As we are faithful to the gospel, God’s Word will continue to change us.
2.2.1. And as our church is faithful to the Great Commission by winning people to Christ, we will continue to undergo change
2.2.2. To do that gracefully we must be flexible, patient, and positive
2.2.3. May God continually renew and refresh us so that we are always ready for the new blessings he will send us through the life-changing power of the gospel.
3. ILLUSTRATION
3.1. Hebrews 11:21 “By faith Jacob, when he was dying, blessed each of Joseph’s sons, and worshiped as he leaned on the top of his staff.”
3.1.1. Jacob’s entire life had been a great adventure of faith that had carried him to the promised land.
3.1.2. And now in the evening of his years he still had his traveling staff in his hand, still ready for the open road
3.1.3. He was still ready to go wherever God wanted to take him
3.1.4. If we are to fully embrace the challenge of changing faith, we must never lose our spirit of adventure.
4. Luke 5:36–39
4.1. Luke 5:36 36 Then Jesus gave them this illustration: “No one tears a piece of cloth from a new garment and uses it to patch an old garment. For then the new garment would be ruined, and the new patch wouldn’t even match the old garment.
4.2. Luke 5:37 37 “And no one puts new wine into old wineskins. For the new wine would burst the wineskins, spilling the wine and ruining the skins.
4.3. Luke 5:38 38 New wine must be stored in new wineskins.
4.4. Luke 5:39 39 But no one who drinks the old wine seems to want the new wine. ‘The old is just fine,’ they say.”
5. In biblical times, wine was put into leather bottles called wineskins.
5.1. Because new wine expands as it ferments, it was usually put in a new wineskin, which was soft and pliable and could expand with the wine.
5.1.1. Over time a wineskin would dry out and become hard
5.1.2. If you put new wine into an old wineskin, you would ruin the wineskin and lose the wine.
5.2. The same is true of using a new piece of cloth to repair a hole in an old garment
5.2.1. Because the new cloth shrinks when it is washed and because it is stronger than the old cloth, it will tear an even larger hole in the old garment.
5.2.2. Jesus used these two analogies to teach us an important lesson about the gospel.
5.3. The gospel is a radical, life-changing power that demands certain changes from us.
6. I. THE GOSPEL WILL CHANGE YOUR LIFE FOREVER.
6.1. In John 3:3, Jesus said, “I tell you the truth, no one can see the kingdom of God unless he is born again.”
6.1.1. In 2 Corinthians 5:17, the apostle Paul stated the same principle in different words:
6.1.2. “if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!”
6.2. Becoming a Christian is the most dramatic change you could ever undergo:
6.2.1. A supernatural renovation of your fallen human nature.
6.2.2. When you become a Christian, you begin a lifelong process that will transform you down to the very core of your being.
6.2.3. Be prepared to be stretched, for that is exactly what the “new wine” of the gospel will do to you when Christ comes into your life
7. II. THE GOSPEL WILL CHANGE YOUR BELIEFS.
7.1. The Jewish leaders of Jesus’ day found it difficult to accept his teaching because their minds were hardened by centuries of ritual and tradition.
7.1.1. They had so encumbered God’s Word with their own opinions that they could not see the truth when he was standing before their very eyes.
7.1.2. As a result, Jesus condemned them for “setting aside the commands of God in order to observe your own traditions!” (Mark 7:9).
7.2. As a church, what we believe and what we practice must be governed by this principle:
7.2.1. “In essentials, unity. In opinions, liberty. And in all things love.”
7.2.2. An essential is any belief or behavior for which we have a clear New Testament commandment or example
7.2.2.1. Such things are binding on all Christians
7.2.2.2. Everything else is a matter of opinion or expediency, and we must be flexible on these matters.
7.2.3. Our aim is to speak where the Bible speaks and be silent where the Bible is silent.
7.3. Through the ages people have done to the New Testament exactly what the Pharisees did to the Old
7.3.1. They have encumbered the clear, simple teaching of God’s Word with human creeds and traditions
7.3.2. The Bible alone is our authority, and we must constantly guard against approaching God’s Word with our own preconceived ideas and theological baggage.