REVIVAL AND OLD WINESKINS

Over the last couple of weeks, my wife and I have received at least half a dozen inquiries about the “outpouring” occurring in Central Florida. A few nights ago my older daughter asked me, “Dad, what do you know about what’s going on in Lakeland, Florida?’ She went on, “A friend and his wife are taking next week off from work and flying there to be in the meetings.” I responded carefully, “Tell them to go with an open heart and not to believe everything they hear.”

Why would I say something like that? Because of what the Bible says about new wine and 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. No, new wine must be poured into new wineskins” (Luke 5:37-38).

New wine is still fermenting and as it does, it produces a large amount of carbon dioxide. In simple terms, we call this gas. It is not until the wine is more mature that the fermenting process stops and the gaseous overflow is halted. Does this not describe revival and the excess of “gas” in the form of hype and hyperbole? If there has been one consistent criticism of revival, of outpourings of the Spirit, it has been about the hype that tends to surround it in the early days.
Does this mean the revival is bad and should be ignored and avoided? Absolutely not! The zeal of the immature should be recognized and when it gets totally out of hand, it needs to be brought back into bounds by those who care. (I understand that this has already been done in Lakeland in the matter of Paul Cain’s involvement.)

I’m considered an “old wineskin” since I’ve been a follower of Jesus for more than fifty years. Does Luke 5:37-38 mean that I am disqualified from any new moves of the Spirit? If so, I’m devastated!

To all the old wineskins reading this blog, here’s what the Lord breathed into my heart: “Keep your heart open to Me and there will always be room for more. You will not miss anything I am going to do!”

In the natural world, leather dries and cannot be brought back to enough flexibility to be a “container” again, but that’s not the case in the “kingdom of God.” When we keep our hearts open, He keeps us ready for more and more.

Revival will always be messy as desperate people try to respond to what God is doing. Anyone who suggests that revival should be neat and in order has no idea of what really happened on the Day of Pentecost, or at Azusa Street, or in any of the great awakenings throughout history. Don’t try to figure it all out. Open your heart and ask the Lord what He is saying to you about your life and walk with Him.