Luke 5:33-39

Colossians 1:15-20

Psalm 100:1b-2, 3, 4, 5

Luke 5:33-39

The scribes and Pharisees said to Jesus,

“The disciples of John the Baptist fast often and offer prayers,

and the disciples of the Pharisees do the same;

but yours eat and drink.”

Jesus answered them, “Can you make the wedding guests fast

while the bridegroom is with them?

But the days will come, and when the bridegroom is taken away from them,

then they will fast in those days.”

And he also told them a parable.

“No one tears a piece from a new cloak to patch an old one.

Otherwise, he will tear the new

and the piece from it will not match the old cloak.

Likewise, no one pours new wine into old wineskins.

Otherwise, the new wine will burst the skins,

and it will be spilled, and the skins will be ruined.

Rather, new wine must be poured into fresh wineskins.

And no one who has been drinking old wine desires new,

for he says, ‘The old is good.’”

Opening Prayer: Lord God, I want to taste and enjoy the new wine of salvation that your Son has brought. It is a wine that surpasses any earthly wine. It brings a joy that surpasses all earthly joy.

Encountering the Word of God

1. Luke on Jesus as the Bridegroom: Each of the Four Gospels identifies Jesus as the bridegroom. Matthew emphasizes Jesus as the fulfillment of messianic prophecies and as the King of the Jews. Jesus is the royal bridegroom. Mark focuses on Jesus’ suffering, servanthood, and the cost of discipleship. Jesus is the suffering bridegroom, who will be taken away for a time. Jesus gives his life as a ransom for many, for his bride (Mark 10:45). In John, Jesus is the divine, eternal bridegroom, and the source of eternal life. At the wedding of Cana (John 2:1-11), Jesus provides the abundant wine of salvation for his bride. The bride is called to abide in her bridegroom (John 15:4-7). The eternal bridegroom in John is divine, offering an everlasting relationship with his people through his life-giving presence. Luke presents Jesus as the Redeemer bridegroom. Jesus is the savior of the lost, the marginalized, and sinners. Jesus’ mission is to “seek and save the lost” (Luke 19:10), reflecting a bridegroom who pursues his bride to restore her. The redeemer bridegroom in Luke is compassionate, seeking to restore and reconcile humanity to God. All four dimensions complement one another. Jesus is our royal bridegroom who invites us to the kingdom’s wedding feast. Jesus is our suffering bridegroom who dies to save his bride. Jesus is the redeemer bridegroom, who pays our debt and frees us from the slavery of sin. Jesus is the divine bridegroom, who seeks eternal union with his bride.

2. New Wine in Fresh Wineskins: Jesus told a parable to complement his identification with the bridegroom promised by the prophets. He uses two examples. Jesus first speaks about how to repair a tear in an old cloak. No one ruins a new piece of clothing and cuts out a piece to fix an old one. Even if someone wanted to sacrifice a new garment for the old, the colors of the old and new would be off. It just can’t be done successfully. Likewise, new wine should not be put into old wineskins. The new wine is still fermenting and will release gases that create pressure. Old wineskins have already been stretched and are brittle from previous use. The old wineskins don’t have the elasticity to handle the pressure of the fermenting new wine and would burst. Jesus is introducing the New Covenant – symbolized by the new wine – and it cannot be contained in the limitations of the Old Covenant. The Pharisees are those who insist that the “Old wine is good.” They struggle to welcome the fulfillment of the Old Covenant in the New Covenant of Jesus and prefer their old ways and traditions.

3. The Preeminence of Christ, the Head of the Church: Colossians 1:15-20 might be a poem, hymn, or credal formula from the early Church. The verses begin by extoling Christ over all things. “Christ is the ‘image of the invisible God.’ He is the direct revelation of God’s own character in a unique way. Christ is also said to have existed before creation and to have been an active agent of creation. Indeed, ‘all things’ were created ‘in’ Christ, ‘through’ Christ, and even for Christ. This poetic pileup of prepositions draws readers into something profound – not only was Christ personally present and involved in the Father’s creation of all things, but all creation was made for Christ and is under his authority” (Prothro, The Apostle Paul and His Letters, 212). Even now, Christ remains involved in creation as he rules over the universe. Verses 18-20 transition from Christ’s supremacy as creator and sustainer with the Father to his supremacy in redemption as “head” of the Church. “He is Lord over all things not simply as the glorious firstborn Son but indeed as the one who brought salvation by the ‘blood of his cross.’ He is ‘firstborn from among the dead,’ so that his resurrection brings the promise of eternal life to all in Christ…. His resurrection has brought him a special preeminence, since in it he was publicly vindicated as the unique and righteous Son of God and ruler over all things (Prothro, The Apostle Paul and His Letters, 213). Jesus is supreme over all things and head of his body, the Church.

Conversing with Christ: Lord Jesus, in the gift of the Eucharist, I partake of the new wine of salvation and joy. Help me to appreciate this great gift and bring others to share in it.

Living the Word of God: Do I truly live with joy knowing that Jesus has brought salvation to the world? Do I communicate this joy – which is the fruit of charity – to others?