What my enemies taught me about Mark 2

jennifer_bloom
What my enemies taught me about Mark 2

Mark 2:21-22 says:

21 “No one sews a patch of unshrunk cloth on an old garment. Otherwise, the new piece will pull away from the old, making the tear worse. 22 And no one pours new wine into old wineskins. Otherwise, the wine will burst the skins, and both the wine and the wineskins will be ruined. No, they pour new wine into new wineskins.”

The way I understand that is:

Nobody separates a weak person from their caregiver to make the weak person a foundational provider in another’s life because the weak person cannot handle the responsibility of being a family pillar

And nobody shares new powers or praises with old mentalities, because the new power and praise will enrage the older mentality and the new power and praise will be ruined, but new power and praise is shared with newer mentalities so that both the power, the praise and the corresponding mentality can be maintained.

One example I can think of is an older woman who accused me of trying to date a married doctor because I dressed up when he came by our lecture hall to give us a lecture on health and medicine, in my university, a lot of bible scholars would attend Christian seminars in a suit and tie or in formal work uniform so I thought I was just participating in the academic convention of honouring your seniors.

The fact is, the older woman was so blinded by her own possessiveness, she never considered that I might be motivated by something other than a romantic relationship when I talk to a single man. As a younger person, my social opportunities are many and I do not need to resort to a marital bonds for affection or help with questions about the world. She was incapable of understanding that my life involves things other than marriage and security, such as academic or Christian doctrine or social service.

This is the new praise and power poured into the old Wineskin or old mentality. The old Wineskin cannot tolerate new ideas, because it’s bitter and worn out and it’s mind is closed.

What my enemies taught me about Mark 2
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