New wine in old wineskins
And no one pours new wine into old wineskins. If he does, the new wine will burst the skins, the wine will run out and the wineskins will be ruined – Jesus. In this verse Jesus explains how it is impossible to reform old institutions. In context this is often understood to explain how God had a new covenant that was no longer compatible with Judaism. Hence the old wineskin of Judaism was replaced with the new wineskin of Christianity. However, this metaphor can be applied to more than religion. The “old wineskins” can represent any old institution that has changed and lost its way. These institutions can include churches, political parties and even nations. With true change we many times need to discard the old wineskins and start anew. I believe we are at the point that the old institutions of this country can no longer be reformed. It is time for real change.