“’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.’”—Mark 2:22 (NIV)
There are a number of interpretations of the parable of the new and old wineskins in the Gospel of Mark. One approach is to look at is as a parable about growth or learning. We are often—frequently—resistant to change and new ideas. It is certainly harder to change when we hold on to our old ideas.
I have written thoughts before on “thinking outside of the box.” I have struggled with the notion of constructing boxes. Boxes are limitations—often self-imposed limitations. As Walt Disney admonished us, we have to refuse the existence of the box. Of course, growth cannot occur when we can’t see beyond the walls we build. I believe this is what Jesus tells us.
New wine stretches the wineskin as it ferments just like new learning expands the mind and stretches our framework of understanding. New wine explodes the old wineskin. Thusly, growth can come only when the recipient is open to change.
It is quite simple, really. If one seeks growth, one must be open to having one’s previous knowledge and understanding challenged. It is impossible to teach new ideas to someone who is set in his or her ways. Impossible.
This is not to say that all our old ideas are outdated or of no use. These are the foundations of new knowledge. We just can’t be chained to our knowledge. New wine. New wineskins.
“The difficulty lies not so much in developing new ideas as in escaping from old ones.”–John Maynard Keynes