Date: 4 July 2018
IF YOU WANT NEW WINE, YOU NEED NEW WINESKINS
We are opening our hearts to change like never before. We are recognizing that too often we allow old mindsets to mire us in ruts of inflexibility and in irrelevance . Our wineskins have aged , and we can’t contain the new wine of the Spirit .
In our fast paced-paced world, Apple debuts a new iPhone almost every year and most popular apps have almost monthly updates.
We’ve come to expect frequent upgrades on all our technology. Yet for those of us involved in ministry and church, we tend to think the church needs no remolding or renovation. That is a faulty assumption.
While the gospel itself is both timeless and flawless , the packaging we wrap it in must adapt with the times or we will quickly loose relevance. Pipe organs, steeples, and choir robes were never wrong, but they won’t help us to reach today’s generation. Nor do stale religious systems, tired terminology or worn-out denominational programmes that should have been mothballed long ago. Jesus reminded us that we should never put new wine in an old wineskin,” put new wine into fresh wineskins, and both are preserved”, He said. Matthew 9:17b.
But many Churches and ministries today persist on pouring their new wine into old models, again and again. we resist innovation and we fight progress. I’m willing to guess that 90 percent of what we are doing in Church today needs a total makeover. We are facing the most daunting renovation project in the history of the Church. Yet the task is not impossible. It will require us to take these painful steps;-
- We must break free from the fear of change. God is always on the move. He might lead us to camp in one spot for a while, but we can never get too comfortable in one place. His trumpet will eventually blow, and the cloud of His presence will shift. Don’t park when God is calling you forward. Stay open to His fresh directives and expect Him to stretch your faith. He is adventurous.
And be prepared for surprise: Pentecost moments come suddenly! Acts 2:2.
The Holy Spirit is not under obligation to give you a two-year advance warning of His shifts.
- We must be willing to defy tradition. People who are married to the past cannot embrace the future. Sacred cows do not belong to the pulpit; they must be sacrificed. “ the way we’ve always done it” will not work in God’s new season. The crowd chooses the comfortable pews of nostalgia, but God is with the courageous few who are willing to blaze a new path into unreached territory.
3 – We must ask the Holy Spirit to reveal His new strategies. We cannot rely on Church growth gurus, popular books or rock-star preachers to lead us into genuine change. Copying spiritual trends is just a form of carnality-and it is a sad substitute for real innovation. If the Holy Spirit does orchestrate the work of transforming of the Church, our changes will be shallow. The last thing we need is a superficial upgrade.
And remember, you need your own download from God, not a suit of armor that was fashioned for someone else.
The Lord wants to unleash a gushing river of new wine into the Church today and among the nations, but we must prepare our wineskins. What is old must be renewed by the Spirit, what is outdated must be remolded, and what is ineffective must be replaced. God wants to do a new thing. Don’t resist it.
Let us arise and sing a new song;
“the cloud of glory is moving, let us move with the cloud -move with the cloud
May you Spirit arise in us and our strength be renewed;
Come let us move on together, as we follow where He leads, new heights we attain
As we move with the cloud-move with the cloud”.
Join us for “The Nations Pray” monthly Revival prayer this month we will be with Zoe Christian Family Centre in Matsapha this Saturday 28th July 2018 past the Eteteni Engen starting from 2:15pm to 3:30pm. Please also visit our Facebook page The Pentecost Ministries International Trust and your feedback is also welcome to the revolutionarymandate@gmail.com .