Aged Wine

The Parable:

Connoisseurs of wine prefer what is very old, very aged, very fermented—not to mention a certain selection of grapes.  God is a connoisseur.  His wine has been fermenting for 6,000 years…

The Discussion:

There are bowls of fermented wine in heaven from the winepress of the wrath of God.

Revelation 15:7: “And one of the four living creatures gave to the seven angels seven golden bowls full of the wrath of God who lives forever and ever.”

Revelation 19:11-16: “Then I saw heaven opened, and behold, a white horse! The one sitting on it is called Faithful and True, and in righteousness he judges and makes war. His eyes are like a flame of fire, and on his head are many diadems, and he has a name written that no one knows but himself. He is clothed in a robe dipped in blood, and the name by which he is called is The Word of God. And the armies of heaven, arrayed in fine linen, white and pure, were following him on white horses. From his mouth comes a sharp sword with which to strike down the nations, and he will rule them with a rod of iron. He will tread the winepress of the fury of the wrath of God the Almighty. On his robe and on his thigh he has a name written, King of kings and Lord of lords.”

After this meditation, I immediately thought of Jesus’ words, "No one puts new wine into old wineskins. If he does, the new wine will burst the skins and it will be spilled, and the skins will be destroyed. But new wine must be put into fresh wineskins. And no one after drinking old wine desires new, for he says, ‘The old is good" (Luke 5:37-39). So what is the wine that has been fermenting in the New Covenant of new wineskins? Jesus himself defined the wine at the Last Supper: "And likewise [he took] the cup after they had eaten, saying, 'This cup that is poured out for you is the new covenant in my blood.'" The blood that saves and cleanses those who put their hope in Jesus Christ is the same blood that has been fermenting in the wrath that is stored up against all wickedness for the day of wrath. How much stronger and more potent is that wrath now that it has fermented for so long! And how much stronger and more powerful is that blood as we drink it at the marriage supper, that we might be drunk and fully satisfied in the goodness of the wine of Jesus Christ!  For Ephesians 5:18 says, "And do not get drunk with wine, for that is debauchery, but be filled with the Spirit." At the end of the age, the perfectly fermented wine will be ready to be poured out upon the Earth in wrath and poured into His elect Bride in power and consummation of our marriage with the Lamb!  Praise the Lord!  Praise the Lord!

Mark 14:25: “Truly I say to you that never will I drink of the fruit of the vine again, until that day when I drink it anew in the kingdom of God.”

The Beam of Light

The Parable:

The cavern was so dark you could practically feel it.  Not a shadow could be seen through the blackness, but Faith could see a beam of light filtering down far in front of her.  It appeared to be breaking through a hole or crack in the top of the cave.  She began to feel her way along the wall toward the light.  It grew brighter and brighter, as the sun was clearly directly overhead.  As she entered the light, its warm rays flowed over her like a waterfall.  She covered her eyes with her hand, for the light was overwhelming in contrast to the darkness in which she had been engulfed.  She began climbing the wall for a way through the hole.  The sunlight seemed to pull her upward.  Once she had reached the top and poked her head through the hole, it was like entering heaven.  Oh the contrast!  From darkness everywhere, with a beam of light offering a way out--to light everywhere and no darkness!  It was clear from the beauty of nature around her that the light meant life.  Not a thing grew in that cavern.  It was cold, hard, rocky, and dead—except where the light met its floor through the hole; there, it was alive!

The Discussion:

John 12:46: “I have come into the world as light, so that whoever believes in me may not remain in darkness.”

John 8:12: “Again Jesus spoke to them, saying, ‘I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.’”

Jesus is as the beam of light, and the dark, sin-filled world is like the cavern.  If we depart from Jesus, we plunge ourselves into a blackness of blindness and death.  We are cast into “outer darkness” as Jesus described it (Matthew 25:30).  The further from the light we venture, the blacker our way becomes.  The light pierces through Jesus Christ, the only gateway into heaven.  He is like a window that breaks into the cavern of darkness our sin has created.  Our only way into the glorious light of God and His holiness and beauty is through the window of Jesus.  The light is a narrow shaft with one entrance.  We cannot presume to find our own ways into the Kingdom of Light.  We must pursue the one place where it enters our darkness.  We must seek the Lord while He may be found, even while it is still day.  When the sun sets, the light stops shining through.  We must reach the window of heaven before the setting of grace!  Jesus said, “We must work the works of him who sent me while it is day; night is coming, when no one can work. As long as I am in the world, I am the light of the world” (John 9:4-5).