"No one tears a patch from a new garment and sews it on an old one.  If he does, he will have torn the new garment, and the patch from the new will not match the old.  And no one pours new wine into old wineskins.  If he does, the new wine will burst the skins, the wine will run out and the wineskins will be ruined.  No, new wine must be poured into new wineskins.  And no one after drinking old wine wants the new, for he says, 'The old is better.' "

    Jesus gives two equally compelling visual’s, both very different but the same message.  Mixing the old with the new.  Jesus giving us two illustrations consecutively with the same meaning should tell us that Jesus wants our undivided attention.  The message is important and needs to be understood and applied to our lives.

    "No one sews a patch of unshrunk cloth on an old garment, for the patch will pull away from the garment, making the tear worse." 
Matthew 9:16

    "No one sews a patch of unshrunk cloth on an old garment.  If he does, the new piece will pull away from the old, making the tear worse."
Mark 2:21

    "No one tears a patch from a new garment and sews it on an old one.  If he does, he will have torn the new garment, and the patch from the new will not match the old."
Luke 5:36
   
    Linen, wool, and leather were materials used for clothing in the old Testament. (Leviticus 13:47-59)  This is the type of material the people would have been thinking about while listening to the parables.
    Linens are made from the long fibers of the flax stem.  The flax grown for fabric is planted thick so the leaf stems will be at the very top of the plant leaving the rest of the 4 foot stem straight and stem free.  The plant is harvested before maturity, tied in bundles and submerged in water to soak or most likely spread out on a grassy area where it can gather the dew at night and sun by day for several weeks.  After drying, the stems are beaten to separate the fibers from the non-fiber materials (pulp) so the fiber can be stripped apart into long thread used for weaving. 

    Wool or fleece comes from the sheering of sheep or goats.  The wool/fleece is sheered from the sheep or goat, cleaned, dyed (if preferred) and spun into thread.  (Fleece is the very short napped and dense wool closest to the skin, wool is longer and less dense and is exposed to the weather and elements.)

    Leather is skin or hide of animals.  The skin is cured to prevent decay and make the leather flexible yet tough. Through research it is believed that leather was cured or tanned with grease and smoke then sewn into shoes, garments, wineskins, bags, etc.

    All these materials will shrink or stretch over time.  Making it easily understood that you would not sew a new piece of material on an old garment.

    "Neither do men pour new wine into old wineskins.  If they do, the skins will burst, the wine will run out and the wineskins will be ruined.  No, they pour new wine into new wineskins, and both are preserved." Matthew 9:17

    "And no one pours new wine into old wineskins.  If he does, the wine will burst the skins, and both the wine and the wineskins will be ruined.  No, he pours new wine into new wineskins." Mark 2:22

    "And no one pours new wine into old wineskins.  If he does, the new wine will burst the skins, the wine will run out and the wineskins will be ruined." Luke 5:37

    "No, new wine must be poured into new wineskins." Luke 5:38

    If the wineries of the day were to pour new wine into a new wineskin there would be little to no problems with bursting wineskins.  But pouring new wine into old wineskins,  would cause the skin and wine to be destroyed.

    The fermentation process of fresh grape juice creates gasses (carbon dioxide).  The gasses expand and stretch the wineskins.  New wineskin can easily be expanded and stretched because they are new and most likely made of goat or sheep skin.  Both goat and sheep skin are relatively thin which allows the skin to be soft and supple, yet durable.

    Old wineskins, on the other hand, have previously been stretched to capacity, emptied out, and more than likely dried out, which causes shrinking, hardness, and cracking.  If we were to put new wine into an old, previously stretched skin there would not be any room for extra expansion of the new wine gasses, therefore the gasses from the new wine would rupture the wineskin destroying the skin, and emptying the new wine on the ground.  Jesus said, “Both the wine and the wineskins will be ruined.”

    When we accept Jesus as our Lord and Savior we become a new creation. (2 Corinthians 5:17  Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!) We are the new wineskins desirous of the new wine from God.

    Jesus tells us in both illustrations that we cannot bring our old ways of life into our new life without causing destruction.  We have been given a new life, a new start in life.  Why would we want to bring the old into the new anyway?  “You were taught, with regard to your former way of life, to put off your old self, which is being corrupted by its deceitful desires;” (Ephesians 4:22)  

    Jesus gives a much more simplistic parable using an example of a new garment being used to patch an old garment.  No one with common sense would take a new and perfectly good garment to patch an old torn up garment.  Those who know sewing know that if they were to take a new piece of natural fabric (cotton, linen, or wool) and sew it onto a garment to repair a tear, the new fabric would shrink after washing.  If the patch was sewn on properly, the patch would shrink tearing the garment worse than before.  What would be gained?       

    What Jesus was trying to portray is purity,  He wants us to be unmixed with anything else.  God wants our focus solely on Him, not to be distracted by worldly pleasures or the satisfaction of others.

    When Solomon succeeded his father David as King over the Israelites, God came to Solomon in a dream, “Ask for whatever you want me to give you.” (1 Kings 3:5)  Solomon realized his youth but already had the wisdom of knowing he could not lead the people without God’s favor.
   
    Solomon told God, "Now, O LORD my God, you have made your servant king in place of my father David.  But I am only a little child and do not know how to carry out my duties.  Your servant is here among the people you have chosen, a great people, too numerous to count or number.  So give your servant a discerning heart to govern your people and to distinguish between right and wrong.  For who is able to govern this great people of yours?" (1 Kings 3:7-9)
   
    Solomon’s downfall was his many wives.  It was not that he had so many wives (not that this is acceptable to God) but the wives he did have were from foreign nations, wives that God strictly forbid the intermarriage of.  Nevertheless, Solomon held fast to his 700 wives and 300 concubines in love. (1 Kings 11:2-3)

    The wives of Solomon wanted to bring the old into the new, something familiar but destructive.  Being a wife of Solomon, the lifestyle had to be very posh and lofty.  Solomon was an extremely wealthy man having God’s blessings poured into his lap with full measure.  But the wives were not satisfied with the luxury and comfort Solomon had provided them, nor were they able to recognize the source from whom Solomon had gotten his wisdom and wealth.  The wives wanted to bring their old way of life into their new way of life.

    Solomon not only allowed his wives to have their foreign gods, but Solomon built a high place for Chemosh--the detestable god of Moab, and for Molech--the detestable god of the Ammonites.  He did the same for all his foreign wives, who burned incense and offered sacrifices to their gods. (1 Kings 11:7-8)  Solomon not only allowed his wives to worship other gods, but by agreeing to mix the old with the new Solomon himself participated in this false worship.  By not disagreeing he agreed and eventually fell to worship their gods himself. 

    God became angry with Solomon because he had turned his heart from God and followed other gods.  So the LORD said to Solomon, "Since this is your attitude and you have not kept my covenant and my decrees, which I commanded you, I will most certainly tear the kingdom away from you and give it to one of your subordinates. (1 Kings 11:11)

    What are the old things in our lives we have allowed to linger,  mixing with the new? 

    Each one of us needs to look into our personal hearts, ask God to expose anything that we’ve allowed to mix with the new causing hindrances or even separation between God and ourselves.  If we ask God He will reveal what it is that’s choking our seed of faith.  It will then be up to us to act in obedience.

    We need to recognize there are things in our lives, decisions and actions that are contrary to the word of God.  Our celebrations, customs, and traditions should be carefully scrutinized.  We cannot afford to twist the truth in hopes of justifying tradition or culture. 

     If there is a justification for incorporating the old into the new we need to make sure we know what and why we may be compromising.  If we are celebrating something because it is what our culture has become accustomed to or traditions that have been passed down from generation to generation, we need to be alert and sift the bad from the good. (Col 2:8)  It is our responsibility to find and understand the true meaning of why we celebrate not just merely accept it because it is what has been done for years or because someone else does it. 

    We as Christians do not have the luxury of playing dumb or claiming ignorance.  We also cannot use our children to justify our decisions to be mixed with ungodly pleasures.  Remember, it is the children that Jesus used as an example of purity and innocence showing so much love for them. (Mt 18:1-4)  Jesus said to His disciples "Things that cause people to sin are bound to come, but woe to that person through whom they come.  It would be better for him to be thrown into the sea with a millstone tied around his neck than for him to cause one of these little ones to sin.  So watch yourselves." (Luke 17:1-3)

    If we don’t read and study God’s word, indwell it, and apply it to our lives who’s fault is that?  Each of us are held personally accountable without excuse for our actions. (John 15:22)

    What is it in our lives that keeps us from drawing close to God, from hearing the clear and direct voice of God?  Striving for the destiny God has for us?  It may be that we don’t want to draw any closer to God because we are afraid God may have us do something outside of our comfort or give something up familiar and pleasing to us.  If this is where you have decided to stay--complacent and satisfied--then you will never know the riches God has in store for you.  You have become content with the east side of the Jordan forsaking the land of milk and honey. (Joshua 18:7)

    Do our activities from the past bring glory and  honor to God?  Do we honor God when we participate in them?  Are we trying to bring our old habits and our old style of life into the new?

    There are many ways we hang onto the past attempting to mix with the new.  God desires purity--to be unmixed with any other.  This is the real message of these parables.  Don’t bring the past in and mix it with the new.  Are we doing this?  Is God being glorified?   

    Christians need to be aware of what our motives are.  Are they pure?  Or are they satisfying to our flesh, following the trend of the world?  We need to examine the true reasoning for our acceptance of the old seeping into the new.  Not only do we accept the old with open arms but we become offended if not angry when the old is exposed as unacceptable with the new.  Not all things seemingly good are good.  We must test and approve all things. (Rom 12:2)

    We as Christians are to acquire an unquenchable thirst for more, more of God, more growth, more fruit, more blessings.  There will come a time in every true believer’s life when they will not be satisfied with the status quo.  God has His way of stirring the hearts of a true believer, to desire more of God, not just stand still but move forward.  We want growth, movement from infancy to maturity, but growth means change and change may be difficult because we will be asked to step out in faith.  We will be asked to abandon the things we are so familiar and comfortable with and step out into the unfamiliar, possibly uncomfortable territories.  We can rest assured, God has promised that He will not give us anything we cannot handle.  He knows our strengths and weaknesses better than we do.