Tuesday, May 15, 2007

A Biblical Study on Wine - Gospels

The study on wine continues through the Gospels today.

Matthew 9:17 (Mark 2:22) "Nor do people put new wine into old wineskins; otherwise the wineskins burst, and the wine pours out and the wineskins are ruined; but they put new wine into fresh wineskins, and both are preserved."
This verse really has nothing to do with wine other than that Jesus used wine as an object lesson. It makes me wonder why we wouldn't do that today. Alcoholism wasn't invented today.
Matthew 11:19 (Luke 7:34) "The Son of Man came eating and drinking, and they say, 'Behold, a gluttonous man and a drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and sinners!' Yet wisdom is vindicated by her deeds."
This is one of the most interesting verses. Jesus drank wine. If they called him a drunkard it wasn't water in his cup. He was misjudged for drinking wine yet He still did drink wine. He was with sinners drinking with them.
Matthew 21:33 "Listen to another parable. There was a landowner who PLANTED A VINEYARD AND PUT A WALL AROUND IT AND DUG A WINE PRESS IN IT, AND BUILT A TOWER, and rented it out to vine-growers and went on a journey."
This parable places God as the landowner who plants a vineyard for making wine. Again, Jesus uses wine in an illustration and shows God as the owner of it.
Matthew 26:29 (Mark 14:25, Luke 22:18) "But I say to you, I will not drink of this fruit of the vine from now on until that day when I drink it new with you in My Father's kingdom."
The Last Supper had Jesus and His disciples drinking wine and using it as an illustration for His blood.
Luke 1:15 "For he will be great in the sight of the Lord; and he will drink no wine or liquor, and he will be filled with the Holy Spirit while yet in his mother's womb."
This is about John the Baptist. So we see some element of holiness and separation associated with not drinking wine. It's tough to contrast this with Jesus drinking wine.
John 2:1-10 (9-10 here) "When the headwaiter tasted the water which had become wine, and did not know where it came from (but the servants who had drawn the water knew), the headwaiter called the bridegroom, and said to him,"Every man serves the good wine first, and when the people have drunk freely, then he serves the poorer wine; but you have kept the good wine until now."
This is the story of the wedding in Cana where Jesus turns the water into wine. Jesus not only provides alcohol for the party, but he also made good stuff. He also provided more wine for the people after they had drank a lot.
John 15:1-5 (1 shown) "I am the true vine, and My Father is the vinedresser."
Jesus compares himself to the vine that wine grapes grow on. The father is the master of the vine. We are the grapes.

1 comment:

Jason said...

I know I haven't been commenting very much during your survey of wine through bible, but I love what's happening. What I'm beginning to see rise to the top is that enjoying wine is good and excess is bad. The fruit of the spirit does not include abstinance but self-control.
I love what Rob Bell points out about wine as a humanizing experience where we come in contact with God in his creativity - I taste wine and I can tell what else was growing near the grapes (rosemary, berries, etc.). I can tell if it was an arid year or whether it was a sun drenched harvest. When we drink wine we are literally tasting what God was doing with the grapes. I guess that this could be said about beef or broccoli but there is something more with wine. Its got mystery and it creates a sublime feeling, a connectedness.

I love having all these wine verses in one place. This is a great service. Thank you. I'm inspired.