EPISODE EXPANSION
God is determined to free us from legalism and to empower us to understand the fullness of freedom that belongs to us in Jesus. The heart of God is to see us unbound, completely free able to explore Him and walk with Him without being subject to any rules and regulations created by man.
The old and new do not mix.
In Luke 5:36, Jesus told a parable. “No one tears a piece of cloth from a new garment and puts it on an old garment, otherwise he will both tear the new and the piece from the new will not match the old.” (Or if you like, it looks weird!). “And no one puts new wine into old wineskins otherwise the new wine will burst the skins and it will be spilled out and the skins will be ruined. New wine must be put into new wineskins, and no one after drinking old wine wishes for new, for he says the old is good enough.” That last statement is Jesus being mischievous! That’s Jesus making a play on words and making it funny. We’ll talk about that in a minute.
He’s speaking about new and old in parables, you can’t add a piece of Christ onto your old self. I think normally that’s what we as Evangelicals have been doing for years – trying to add a piece of Jesus onto our old self, instead of recognizing that there is no old self. There’s only a new self. And the reason that we don’t keep our breakthroughs is because we don’t attach them to the new man, we’ve been attaching them to the old. So it’s easier to default to an old way of thinking under pressure.
You cannot put the Holy Spirit into the old man without having major problems because new wine is expansive. New wine expands and if you confine it, it will burst out of that space. When the Holy Spirit comes into a church in a fresh way and that church does not change to be in alignment with the Holy Spirit, that church will split. Here’s the thing: People say that the Holy Spirit splits churches – but that’s not true. The old man splits churches. The wineskin that is old, useless, and irrelevant splits churches. And people staying true to a tradition split churches. Read in the Gospels what Jesus said about the traditions of man, and about how we prefer the traditions that we have, rather than the life that God is giving us.
The new life requires a new way of thinking.
The Holy Spirit is expansive. He’s come to upgrade us. He’s come to increase us. He’s come to give us more. He’s come to show us who we are and He’s come to release us from the prison of the old. You can’t be around Him in a half-hearted way. He is the most provocative, joyful, excitable, and wonderful person I’ve ever met. He has come to deliver us from our old mindsets, to set us free from old practices, and to give us a new language and a new lifestyle so that we can partner with Him in a dynamic way.
He will break you out of everything from your old lifestyle; He will not ask your permission. He assumes that because you invited Him in! He won’t ask your permission; He will break you out because that’s His job. If we are living in an old mindset and trying to become new, we will be hugely stressed out. The new life requires a new way of thinking. If you’re trying to live a new life but you’re still bound to the old one, you will feel inadequate and insecure because new wine needs a new wineskin. God is not willing for you to be a balance of the old and the new. You are a new creation. All the old things have passed away. Rest in peace. Everything. Everything has become new.
We are becoming more like Him.
All the old things have passed away, everything has become new, and all those new things are from God. What that means is He wants you to be constantly receiving something every day. He’s always giving you something. That’s the thing that’s most enjoyable for us. It’s like every day is a birthday and Christmas Day. Every day, somewhere in your day, there’s a gift. You need to expect that level of favor. You are in Christ, and the Father’s going to treat you like He treats Jesus… that’s His pleasure. He loves that He gets to do that. Don’t deny Him the pleasure of giving you gifts.
So God is granting you a new lifestyle that’s new every morning. There are new gifts every day. He grants you favor and newness of life every day. When God grants you something He expects you to take Him for granted. And He’s really happy when you do. That’s something I’ve had to learn personally, to take God for granted – which is difficult when you’re a reserved English man, until the Lord said to me one day, ‘You know that English reserve? It died in Jesus. You know that stiff upper lip? Completely dead! You’re a new creation. We’re teaching you to become like Us, because, Graham, We don’t want to become like you!”
Want to learn more? Tune in to today’s podcast as we explore the fullness of freedom that belongs to us in Jesus.
P.S. Join us September 22-24, 2023 and Register for Brilliance23 Virtual Conference HERE!
For a very limited number of tickets, we’re also offering an exclusive three-day in-person conference experience! Join Graham Cooke and Team Brilliant for an intimate studio audience in Charleston, South Carolina. Click HERE to learn more information.
As always, thanks for listening!
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