The Challenge to Rigidity | The Wolfe Notes

These notes follow our 7-step rhythm for Bible study. Unless otherwise noted, all Bible quotes are from the Good News Translation.

The Challenge to Rigidity

(From Luke 5:33-39)

Wine with Leaves by stux at Pixabay

1. Summary

The Pharisees, still confused, ask Jesus, "Why is it that You and Your disciples can party, while we fast? Even John and his disciples fast." 

Jesus reasoned that because He was with them, they had no need to fast. When He leaves them, that is when they will fast again. He sympathized with how confused they felt because it contradicted what they thought was right. But, if they truly wanted to see the truth, Jesus told them they would need to discard their old way of thinking and become something new.

2. N/W/L Statements

1. I NOTICED that:
1. The Pharisees think solemnity is more important than celebrating.
2. Jesus says the disciples celebrate because He is with them.
2. I WONDER if:
1. We celebrate because we know God is with us, or if we tend to stay in a state of solemnity. 
2. We should fast regularly or perhaps only when we feel an absence of His presence.
3. I think God wants us to LEARN that:
1. Understanding who God is requires me to unlearn what I have learned and accept his way of thinking.
2. We must accept transformation.

3. Key Verse

Anyway, those who've never tasted the new wine won't know what they're missing; they'll always say, "The old wine is good enough for me." Luke 5:39 VOICE

This verse makes me wonder what "new wine" am I refusing to experience by clinging to my preconceived notions. Am I allowing the Holy Spirit to tell me what is true, or am I relying on tradition?

4. God's Character

1. God wants us to celebrate in His presence. (Jesus tells the Pharisees that the disciples don't need to fast because He is with them.)
1. For thy maker is thy husband; the LORD of hosts is his name; and thy Redeemer the Holy One of Israel; The God of the whole earth shall he be called. Isaiah 54:5 KJV
2. His left hand is under my head, and his right hand caresses me. Promise me, women of Jerusalem; swear by the swift deer and the gazelles that you will not interrupt our love. Song of Solomon 2:6-7
3. Enter the Temple gates with thanksgiving; go into its courts with praise. Give thanks to him and praise him. The LORD is good; his love is eternal and his faithfulness lasts forever. Psalm 100:4-5
2. God is in the transformation business. (Jesus talks of new coats and new garments to communicate the need to challenge your way of thinking.)
1. I will give you a new heart and a new mind. I will take away your stubborn heart of stone and give you an obedient heart. Ezekiel 36:26
2. "I am the vine, and you are the branches. Those who remain in me, and I in them, will bear much fruit; for you can do nothing without me. John 15:5
3. All of us, then, reflect the glory of the Lord with uncovered faces; and that same glory, coming from the Lord, who is the Spirit, transforms us into his likeness in an ever greater degree of glory. 2 Corinthians 3:18
3. God is the new thing we've been waiting for. (When Jesus compares old and new, the "new" symbolizes His way of thinking, and Jesus' way is God's way.)
1. In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. Genesis 1:1 NLT
2. But the LORD says, "Do not cling to the events of the past or dwell on what happened long ago. Watch for the new thing I am going to do. It is happening already - you can see it now! I will make a road through the wilderness and give you streams of water there. Even the wild animals will honor me; jackals and ostriches will praise me when I make rivers flow in the desert to give water to my chosen people. They are the people I made for myself, and they will sing my praises!" Isaiah 43:18-19
3. Put on your new nature, and be renewed as you learn to know your Creator and become like him. Colossians 3:10 NLT

5. Pray

Father God, thank You for inviting me into a life spent celebrating You. May I always join the feast instead of the fast because I know the truth of who You are: Goodness and Love.

6. Act

• Celebrate His presence continually.
• Accept His way of thinking.
• Embrace newness of life with others.

7. Annotation Notes

? Denotes a question, * a personal thought, x a cross reference, ! a connection, and italics a referenced source.

1. ? What might you learn from a thematic study on wine, old vs. new, garment, and bridegroom. All of these words relate to a wedding feast. *Oh Lord, I'm ready.
1. The changing of water to wine at the wedding in Cana. John 2:1-12
2. Wine poured out in remembrance of Jesus' blood poured out at the Last Supper. Matthew 26:26-30
3. Ruth commanding Boaz to cover her with the hem of his garment to remind him of his responsibility toward her. Ruth 3
4. God covering us, his bride, in a new garment. Isaiah 61:10
2. * I don't remember this story in Mark ending the same way (Mark 2:18-22). I believe Luke adds the idea that no one who has had old wine will want new, which is a metaphor for the stubbornness of the Pharisees refusing to see the new thing God is doing.

Sample these related resources:

• To browse notes on Mark's version of this encounter.
• To reflect on communion.
• To connect garments with the concluding poem of Proverbs.
• To see the symbology of the church as Jesus' bride.
• For encouragement to restart.

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