New wine for a new season

Yolandie Mostert (9 April 2023)

Today is the celebration of the feast of the first fruits as described in Leviticus 23:10-11. This feast is a shadow of the resurrection of Jesus from the dead. Jesus Christ was the first fruit and we will follow as the rest of the harvest at His return.

Paul connects the shadow and the real event in 1 Corinthians 15:20:

But now Christ is risen from the dead, and has become the first fruits of those who have fallen asleep. For since by man came death, by Man also came the resurrection of the dead. For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ all shall be made alive. But each one in his own order: Christ the first fruits, afterward those who are Christ’s at His coming. 

Today does not only mark the resurrection of Jesus, but also the start of the next spiritual season. The Word the Holy Spirit gave me to share can be summarised as follows: “new wine for a new season”.

 

Old or new wine

Jesus tells a parable in Luke 5:36-38:

Then He spoke a parable to them: “No one puts a piece from a new garment on an old one; otherwise the new makes a tear, and also the piece that was taken out of the new does not match the old. And no one puts new wine into old wineskins; or else the new wine will burst the wineskins and be spilled, and the wineskins will be ruined. But new wine must be put into new wineskins, and both are preserved. 

As the level of wine in the wineskin drops, the top portion of the skin dries out and creases and folds form. The leather gets tougher as it dries. Should this hard and dry wineskin gets filled up with wine, it will crack and tore on the creases.

 

Everything that we have achieved, experienced and done spiritually is old wine. There is nothing wrong with old wine. It has served a purpose. We have moved into a new season and the Lord wants to pour new wine.

So what is the difference between the old and the new wine? While I was praying about the message of the new season this week, I came accoss a writing about Simeon and Anna. The theme of that message was different, but just reading it brought clarity to what the Lord wants to do in the lives of each one of us.

 

Simeon and Anna

We find the passage in Luke 2:25-27 and also verses 36 to 38.

Simeon

Simeon represents the old wine and Anna the new wine. Let’s read verses 24 to 27 to see what old wine looks like.

And behold, there was a man in Jerusalem whose name was Simeon, and this man was just and devout, waiting for the Consolation of Israel, and the Holy Spirit was upon him. And it had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he would not see death before he had seen the Lord’s Christ. So he came by the Spirit into the temple. And when the parents brought in the Child Jesus, to do for Him according to the custom of the law…

It’s important to note that there was absolutely nothing wrong with the old wine. It is not sinful or something that requires repentance. Simeon lived in Jerusalem, the city of the Lord. Spiritually it means that we are in the right place, we are already in the Lord. Simeon was a righteous man. One of the translations calls him innocent. He was also a devout, law-abiding Jew. When we apply this to ourselves, we can see that we are already in the Lord. We have travelled a journey of repentance, confession, inner healing as well as deliverance. We are have consecrated ourselves to the Lord and serve Him with our whole heart and we are obedient to the law of the Spirit of life that is written on our innermost parts. Simeon also received revelation from the Holy Spirit. He was able to hear God’s voice. He also followed the leading of the Spirit of God. That is how he ended up at the temple on that crucial moment – it was the perfect timing of the leading of the Holy Spirit. I believe it will be fair to say that Simeon was truly a man of God.

I hope that you can see just how wonderful the old wine of the previous season was. How many people are there that longs for this wine. To be able to have, see and hear what we are experiencing. So if this wine is so wonderful, why change it? We serve the Lord, we experience His blessings, hear His voice and even get direct revelations from the Spirit. What can be better than this?

And no one, having drunk old wine, immediately desires new; for he says, ‘The old is better.” (Luk 5:39)

 

And yet, the Lord puts an end to Simeon’s season. He ends on a high note. It has become time to hand over the baton to Anna. For new wine into new wineskins. Listen to what Simeon says:

Lord, now You are letting Your servant depart in peace, according to Your word; for my eyes have seen Your salvation (Luk 2:29-30)

Anna

Now, let’s have a look at Anna. Luke 2:36-37:

Now there was one, Anna, a prophetess, the daughter of Phanuel, of the tribe of Asher. She was of a great age, and had lived with a husband seven years from her virginity; and this woman was a widow of about eighty-four years, who did not depart from the temple, but served God with fastings and prayers night and day. 

Anna was from the tribe of Asher. Later on we will look at the promised blessing prophesied over this tribe and how it defines our new season. Anna was old, she was already eighty-four years old. Spiritually we can see that maturity is a requirement for this new season. The time of being a spiritual baby has passed. We now seriously have to grow up. In contrast to Simeon that went to the temple on a daily basis, Anna stayed there day and night. She served God from this place with prayers and fasting. We can also see her spiritual maturity in her discipline. It was most certainly not easy to fast at the temple. Can you image the smell of the animals that was sacrificed. It must’ve smelled like a braai all the time. Anna lived in the presence of the Lord. She didn’t move in and out. In this we can already see a big difference between the old and the new. She was also a prophetess. She received revelations just like Simeon and she also heard God’s voice. The difference was that Anna spoke the words that she has heard. It’s what a prophet does. Hear and speak.

 

There was a very short time where Simeon and Anna’s seasons overlapped. It happened when Jesus was brought to the temple after the days of Mary’s purification have passed. In this short space of time, Simeon handed over the baton to Anna. He could now die in peace; his work was done. Anna was the one who continued to speak to everyone about the Messiah.

…and continued to speak of Him to all who were looking for the redemption and deliverance of Jerusalem. (Luk 2:38b)

 

Two other women

Up until this point it’s easy to recognise and understand Simeon’s old wine. But we don’t have that much clarity on the new wine yet. We need to look at two other women in the Bible to really understand what God is calling us to. The two women are sisters, Martha and Mary. We find the story in Luke 10:38-42.

Now it happened as they went that He entered a certain village; and a certain woman named Martha welcomed Him into her house. And she had a sister called Mary, who also sat at Jesus’ feet and heard His word. But Martha was distracted with much serving, and she approached Him and said, “Lord, do You not care that my sister has left me to serve alone? Therefore tell her to help me.” And Jesus answered and said to her, “Martha, Martha, you are worried and troubled about many things. But one thing is needed, and Mary has chosen that good part, which will not be taken away from her.” 

Martha represents the old. Just like Simeon she was busy with good and necessary work. She served the Lord in the manner that she understood it. Mary represents the new wineskins that we have to bring for the filling up with new wine. Instead of just serving God, He calls us to time at His feet. He calls us to a new way of life from a place of worship.

 

John chapter 12 verses 1 to 3 as well as Mark 14:3 adds further details to how Mary worshipped Jesus. The word offer describes the essence of this season the best. Mary brought an alabaster jar filled with a pound of pure oil of nard. She gave everything to Jesus with no expectation to receive anything in return; no multiplication or promise of blessing. This jar of perfume could’ve been sold for 300 denarii. One denarius was a day’s wages. Do the math, 300 denarii equated to almost one year’s salary. And here she brings this extremely expensive item, break it and pour it out on Jesus. For the rest of the people in the room it must’ve look like excessive wastage. Like she was completely out of balance. Unreasonable extravagance.

The time that you spend at His feet, might also look like an irrational out-of-balance, waste of precious time. Be prepared for the criticism. But that is exactly what He is calling us to. A total surrender of our finances, our time, our habits and our lifestyle. A total surrender of our whole being – to be broken and poured out.

 

How will this season look in practice?

Your time of prayer will start to look different. It might be longer in time, but there will be less talking and more worship. It takes time to wait on Him.

Your routines will change. Something that I’ve come to realised is that God doesn’t adapt to our routine. Excuses like: “but Lord, it’s Monday, I have to do the washing” will not fly when He calls you to sit at His feet. He might ask for your long weekend or ask you to change your Saturday plans of sports and hobbies. Sometimes He will wake you in the night and you have to surrender your sleep. Usually when this happens, we expect a great experience or revelation. Yet, Mary poured out her perfume without expecting anything in return. Maybe you already have a fixed way of doing Bible study and daily prayers and don’t feel like changing it. In this new season, it might start to look different.

You will also become less dependent on other people for spiritual nourishment. This is a season of hearing directly. But not only hearing like Simeon did, but to hear and proclaim like Anna did. Not proclaiming that which you have heard from someone else. What you have heard yourself must be shared.

Mary’s precious, expensive perfume of nard could’ve been sold for a lot of money. It was a great sacrifice that costed her. We are being called to a season of radical, reckless worship at His feet. To pour yourself out as an offering to Him, without worrying about the cost. He is worthy!

 

The result

Anna came from the tribe of Asher. Let’s read the two prophecies that was spoken over this tribe.

Gen 49:20  “Asher’s food [supply] shall be rich and bountiful, And he shall yield and deliver royal delights. 

Deut 33:24-25  Of Asher he said, “More blessed than sons is Asher; May he be favored by his brothers, And may he dip his foot in oil. “Your strongholds will be iron and bronze, And as your days are, so will your strength, your rest and security be. 

This is the result of our coming Mary-season. We will be fed with the best spiritual food. First-hand and nourishing. We will be given royal delights to hand out to others.

The next thing that will happen is that a pleasant aroma will fill the whole room. When we spend more time alone at His feet, it will have an effect on the people around us and on a lost world. The Mary-season will also strengthen and prepare us for the soon-approaching time of tribulation. This season also contains a specific anointing. Asher is the tribe that dips his foot in the oil. This anointing can only be obtained at the feet of Jesus Christ.

 

We currently find ourselves in the overlapping week where Simeon hands over the baton to Anna. As we are currently celebrating the feast of unleavened bread and are searching for hidden leaven in our hearts, we must also take the time to calculate the cost.

Are we willing? Can we be trusted with the new wine? Or will we allow this season to pass us by? Will we be obedient and buy the time midst the voices of criticism and judgement? Or will we expect that He fills our current wineskins with His precious new wine? He will not do it. He will not waste His priced wine on skins that He knows will not be able to hold it. Then you will look around and fervently yearn for the new wine that others have received, but you will not taste it. New wine comes at a price. And it only gets poured out at His feet.

 

I want to close this message with a Word that I’ve already received in August 2022. While I was busy preparing this message, the Holy Spirit reminded me of it.

“I am calling and bringing you to a lifestyle of Mary – someone that lives from the place at My feet. It’s a low place, but the highest in My Kingdom. I’m raising you to the exalted place at My feet. From this place I’m able to speak and to do a deep work.

Buy time and give My Spirit the opportunity to show you your heart. This is your place, my bride. With your face against My feet. Your tears, consecration and prayers at a place of complete surrender to Me. Your hair against My feet.

In the natural man will think that there is no lower place. For flesh this is a place of humiliation. But this is the key to be able to live the Mary lifestyle.

You ask: “but how Lord? How do I achieve this practically in our busy lives?” Allow My Spirit to teach you. Take the time every day and manifest this. Go and read how Mary ministered to Me. Manifest it in the physical and it will come to pass in the spiritual”