And no one pours new wine into old wineskins. otherwise the new wine will tear the wineskins, and the wine will be spilled, and the wineskins will be ruined. But new wine must be poured into new wineskins.”
This verse completes the thought of the previous parable. New wine has a living and active power, and if it is poured into old and hardened wineskins, both will be damaged. In the same way, the Gospel of Christ is a living power that requires a renewed heart. It does not fit within a hardened, self-sufficient religious mindset, or one that lives only by outward forms. “New wineskins” symbolize those people whose hearts have been humbled, opened before God, and are ready to receive His renewing grace. This word is important for all times, because a person may try to have the language of the Gospel, yet not desire the inner transformation that the Gospel itself requires.