Luke 5

So He Himself often withdrew into the wilderness and prayed. (Luke 5:16)

This happened when more and more people came to Jesus to hear Him and for healing. Jesus got busier and busier. Yet the Bible reminds us that the busier Jesus gets, the more time He found for prayer and communion with God.

This seems to be a direct contrast to how we deal with busy lives today. The busier we get, the less time we have for prayer. The busier we are, the less time we have for God.

We may be busy with our work on this earth. We may be busy with the many work in church. In Jesus' case in this verse, I think we can apply it to either situation.

Whatever we are busy with, the important thing is still to find time for deep communion with God.

What do we mean by deep communion?

Jesus went into the wilderness, away from the crowds.
He went there Himself, alone.
He did this often.
He prayed.

And this was how He could finish His work that was entrusted Him on earth. This was how He had the strength to drink the bitter cup. This was how He stayed true and focused to His task on earth right to the end.

Jesus won the victory because He had His quiet-time with God. Have you had your quiet-time with God today?

And no one, having drunk old wine, immediately desires new; for he says, 'The old is better.' (Luke 5:39)

NLT translates it this way: But no one who drinks the old wine seems to want the new wine. 'The old is just fine,' they say.

Interesting verse. I don't remember seeing it before!

The Pharisees and scribes were so used to their old ways that they were not willing to accept the "new wine", which really reflects how the human heart is like, isn't it?

How often are we not willing to come out of our comfort zone to try something new or different? We do not like to break away from our routines, even though at times we do complain about how boring it can get. Doing something we are not used to doing give us uncertainty, and it causes us to lose our authority and our control. The Pharisees didn't like this.

"The old is just fine." Sounds like someone who does not desire progress. This stagnation will become like stale water breeding mosquites! It can be quite deadly.

This seems to be the same attitude for truth-seekers who are just beginning to see the light. They are not readily accepting of the "new wine".

Which isn't a bad sign; it shows that they are truly studying the word of God. But in fact, it isn't a new wine at all! Jesus did not bring something new; He came to fulfill the Scriptures which the Pharisees held on to. And the gospel in the True Church isn't "new" too; it is a revival of the Apostolic Church and their teachings.

Jesus already knew this negative attitude of man more than 2000 years ago.

Let us take heed not to hold such attitude in our lives. While it is definitely good to be cautious about "new wine", let us never reject it immediately merely because we are avoiding the trouble and effort to try it. If we missed out on a good wine, then we have only ourselves to blame!