Symbols of The Holy Spirit - Part 6

“And no man putteth new wine into old bottles; else the Bulletin VCM-049
new wine will burst the bottles, and be spilled, and the bot- 29 July 2012
tles shall perish. But new wine must be put into new bot-
tles; and both are preserved. No man also having drunk
old wine straightway desireth new: for he saith, The old is
better” (Luke 5:37-39).
God uses familiar earthly pictures and symbols “And be not drunk
to teach us about Spiritual things (John 3:12). with wine, wherein
Jesus used parables to disclose to our under- is excess; but be filled with the
standing “… things which have been kept se- Spirit” (Ephesians 5:18).
cret from the foundation of the world”
Describing the state of religious people who
(Matthew 13:34-35). To help our understanding have not experienced the Holy Spirit, He
God uses many symbols such as: Dove, Fire, starkly pointed out that such people do not de-
Water, Wind, Oil, Seal (Guarantee), Rain, Riv- sire the Holy Spirit because they think that
ers, Wine, Cloud and Light to reveal the person “the old is better”. What an apt depiction of
and ministry of the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit is some Christians today!
gentle and invisible but He is also powerful, glo- On the day of Pentecost when the onlookers
rious and effective in operation. As we consider noticed effects similar to that of wine on the
the symbol of wine in this study, remember that disciples who received the Baptism of the
the Holy Spirit is a real person - the third PersonHoly Spirit, they accused them of being drunk,
of the divine Trinity along with the Father and but Peter quickly corrected them “… For
the Son (Matthew 28:18-20, 2 Corinthians these are not drunken, as ye suppose, see-
13:14, Ephesians 2:18). ing it is but the third hour of the day. But
this is that which was spoken by the
The Bible condemns the use of intoxicating prophet Joel” (Acts 2:12-16).
wine, often referred to as strong drinks
When the Bible used the symbol of wine for
(Proverbs 20:1; 31:4; Isaiah 5:11,22; 28:7) be-
the Holy Spirit, it was with respect to the good
cause of its many negative and damaging ef-
wine only because the Holy Spirit has no
fects. The normal good wine as used in the Bi-
negative effect on Christians. The analogy
ble generally refers to the juice from grape fruit
focuses on the positive benefits and impacts
(Luke 22:19). It is this type of wine that was de-
of the Holy Spirit. The story of the good Sa-
scribed as God’s provision “… that market glad
maritan who went to the wounded man “and
the heart of man...” (Psalms 104:15).
bound up his wounds, pouring in oil and
Paul’s admonition in Ephesians 5:18 draws an wine, and set him on his own beast, and
analogy for the symbolism of the Holy Spirit as brought him to an inn, and took care of
wine by recommending that excitement and him” (Luke 10:34); as well as of Paul’s admo-
stimulation for Christians should not come from
nition to Timothy to “Drink no longer water,
wine but from being filled by the Holy Spirit. Je-
but use a little wine for thy stomach's sake
sus drew a similar but different analogy when
He described in Luke 5:37-39 the new work of and thine often infirmities” (I Timothy 5:23)
God, conveyed by the ministry of the Spirit, as all points to the beneficial effects of wine.
new wine that is only suitable for new vessels. Academic research shows that wine:

Victorious Christian Ministry, 145-149 Cardigan Road, Burley, LeedsLS6 1LJ

Sunday Worship: 10.00 a.m. www.victoriouschristianministry.org
1. Reduces coronary heart diseases by Similarly the Holy Spirit works even when we
altering blood lipid levels, lowering the total cho- are not aware of it to cleanse and prevent
lesterol count, raising the high density lipopro- spiritual deterioration.
tein levels and smoothing the muscles of the
blood vessels. Spiritually speaking Proverbs 6. Has anti-bacterial effect particularly on
4:23 admonishes us to “Keep thy heart with all bacteria such as Helicobacter pylori, which
diligence; for out of it are the issues of life”. causes ulcer infections. In the same way the
The Holy Spirit helps the believer maintain a Holy Spirit destroys every agent / enemy that
healthy and holy heart before God. wants to infect us and make our condition
worse. On the other hand, He also heals our
2. Helps to maintains the immune system wounds.
at a normal level of immunity. A healthy im-
mune system helps the body to fight diseases 7. Is anti-stress by its calming influence
and stay healthy, so does the Holy Spirit help us which helps the body to relax and unwind
stay spiritually healthy to detect and fight (also mental transition from work to relaxation)
‘diseases’ that would undermine our Spiritual thereby promoting a calm and focused state
health. that enables the body to better fight illnesses.
In the same way the Holy Spirit renews our
3. Contains Polyphenols which are excel- strength and gives solace and peace that em-
lent antioxidants that lower total cholesterol, powers us for victory (Isaiah 40:28-31).
maintain normal levels of blood pressure, lessen On the whole, good wine in appropriate pro-
risks of cancer, stimulate the immune system portions result in a healthier life. The same is
and is also anti-bacterial. Similarly the Holy true of the Holy Spirit in Spiritual life, but note
Spirit helps the believer to maintain healthy spiri- that we cannot get too much of the Holy Spirit,
tual balance, fight spiritual cancer / diseases as God provides the right measure necessary
and boost confidence and faith. for each believer. In Matthew 10:16, Jesus
admonished His disciples “Behold I send
4.Contains Resveratrol - a naturally occurring you forth as sheep in the midst of wolves;
antioxidant that: be ye therefore wise as serpents and harm-
 decreases the stickiness of blood platelets less as doves”. This highlights the fact that
 helps blood vessels remain open and flexi- effective and successful Christian living is not
ble. a call to isolation but to insulation. In this de-
 inhibits the enzymes that can stimulate can- mon infested and sin infected world, the Holy
cer-cell growth and suppress immune re- Spirit in the Christian keeps him / her out of
sponse. the world’s pollution.
 inhibits acute and chronic phases of inflam-
mation. Science tells us that the human body is made
 inhibits tumours in the breast and uterus up of 75% to 80% water. As Jesus turned wa-
 works with other component, or a mixture, to ter to wine (John 2:1-11), may God turn our
contribute to the decrease in occurrence of body’s water into the wine of the Holy Spirit
cancer and high blood pressure and cause us to live a Holy Spirit filled and di-
rected lives.
In the same way, the Holy Spirit helps to main-Before the end of His earthly ministry, Jesus
tain a healthy and refreshing flow of the life of
instituted the Lord’s Supper using the em-
God through the believer and inhibit spiritual de-
blems of bread and wine. He commanded the
cay and abnormalities that could lead to false disciples to "do this in remembrance of
doctrines and backsliding. me" (Luke 22:19). May this remind us that
the wine, representing the blood of Jesus is
5. Contains Flavonoids which is also power- also a symbol of the Holy Spirit. May this stir
ful antioxidants that works to prevent cancer. us to drink today this wine of the Holy Spirit!

Victorious Christian Ministry, 145-149 Cardigan Road, Burley, LeedsLS6 1LJ

Sunday Worship: 10.00 a.m. www.victoriouschristianministry.org