The New Wine of the Bridegroom | Mark 2:18–22

Isaiah 58 and Mark 2 confront the same problem: spiritual legalism that is content with religious performance but lacks the substance of faith. Israel fasted, humbled themselves outwardly, and acted like they delighted to draw near to God, yet their hearts were far from him. God did not receive their fasting because it was joined to oppression, quarreling, self-interest, and pride. The fast God chooses loosens bonds of wickedness, serves the hungry, cares for the afflicted, and walks in true righteousness.

Mark presents John’s disciples and the Pharisees as questioning Christ because his disciples do not keep their made-up fasting rules. Their question puts them in the place of judge over the King of glory. Spiritual pride always overestimates its own excellence, whether it claims a righteousness of its own, imagines that God’s favor was deserved, boasts in a righteousness it does not possess, or elevates itself by pushing somebody else down.

Jesus answers with the picture of the bridegroom. Fasting is a discipline of denial and longing, but the Messiah for whom they longed was standing right in front of them. The coming of the bridegroom is a time for feasting, not fasting. Jesus identifies himself as the bridegroom of God’s people, a title belonging to Yahweh in the Old Testament, and as the bridegroom who will be taken away in suffering and death. The suffering servant and the divine husband of God’s people are one person: Jesus Christ, altogether God and altogether man.

Jesus’ images of unshrunk cloth and new wine make clear that the gospel cannot be added on to an old life. Christ does not come to patch up self-righteousness or pour the new covenant into an unregenerate heart. The old must pass away for the new to come. Christ clothes his people in his righteousness and washes them clean in the blood of the Lamb, but sinners must be born again, repent of their sins, and trust him rather than trying to mix his righteousness with their own filthy rags.

Fasting still has a place between Christ’s first coming and his return, but it must be done with a humble heart before God, not for the eyes of others. The call is to choose the real thing over the performative. God is not after religious posts, visible habits, or the appearance of holiness. God is after a heart made new by the Spirit, producing true humility, justice, mercy, kindness, love, joy, and righteousness.

##

---

Key Takeaways

• 1. Choose substance over religious performance. Spiritual performance can make a person look righteous while leaving the heart untouched. Prayer, fasting, church attendance, and Bible reading become dangerous when they are used to build an image rather than cultivate communion with God. God cares about actual righteousness, not the appearance of it. [25:08]
• 2. Christ is the bridegroom of God’s people. Jesus does not merely answer a question about fasting. His words announce that Yahweh has come near to restore his people, and that the bridegroom will be taken away in suffering for their sins. The joy of his presence and the sorrow of his death both reveal who he is. [15:21]
• 3. The gospel cannot be an add-on. New wine does not fit inside old wineskins, and Christ’s righteousness cannot be mixed with self-righteousness. The new covenant requires more than improved habits or religious association. The old must pass away because sinners must be made new from above. [21:41]
• 4. Fasting should express humble longing. Fasting is not a badge of discipline or a way to gain the notice of other people. Fasting denies the flesh in order to train the heart to long for the greater good found in Christ. The Father sees what is done in secret and receives humble devotion. [24:03]
• 5. True righteousness serves the afflicted. Isaiah’s chosen fast breaks yokes, feeds the hungry, covers the naked, and refuses the pride that points fingers at others. A transformed heart does not merely avoid public sin but pours itself out for those in need. God’s righteousness bears visible fruit in mercy and justice.
  
  ## [29:12]

Youtube Chapters

• [00:00] - Welcome
• [00:20] - Isaiah 58 and Empty Fasting
• [03:08] - Spiritual Legalism and Religious Pride
• [04:25] - Why Do Christ’s Disciples Not Fast?
• [06:24] - The Nature of Spiritual Pride
• [10:04] - Four Ways Pride Deceives
• [13:45] - Fasting, Longing, and the Bridegroom
• [15:21] - Jesus the Bridegroom and Suffering Servant
• [17:57] - Feasting in the Presence of Christ
• [19:03] - New Cloth and New Wineskins
• [21:41] - The Gospel Is Not an Add-On
• [24:03] - Fasting With the Right Heart
• [25:08] - Choose the Real Thing Over the Performative
• [29:12] - Isaiah’s Fast of Justice and Mercy
• [30:24] - Prayer for True Righteousness

Bible Reading

Mark 2:18-22
“Now John's disciples and the Pharisees were fasting. And people came and said to him, 'Why do John's disciples and the disciples of the Pharisees fast, but your disciples do not fast?' And Jesus said to them, 'Can the wedding guests fast while the bridegroom is with them? As long as they have the bridegroom with them, they cannot fast. The days will come when the bridegroom is taken away from them, and then they will fast in that day. No one sews a piece of unshrunk cloth on an old garment. If he does, the patch tears away from it, the new from the old, and a worse tear is made. And no one puts new wine into old wineskins. If he does, the wine will burst the skins—and the wine is destroyed, and so are the skins. But new wine is for fresh wineskins.” [04:25]

Isaiah 58:1-8
“Cry aloud; do not hold back; lift up your voice like a trumpet; declare to my people their transgression, to the house of Jacob their sins. Yet they seek me daily and delight to know my ways, as if they were a nation that did righteousness and did not forsake the judgment of their God; they ask of me righteous judgments; they delight to draw near to God. 'Why have we fasted, and you see it not? Why have we humbled ourselves, and you take no knowledge of it?' Behold, in the day of your fast you seek your own pleasure, and oppress all your workers. Behold, you fast only to quarrel and to fight and to hit with a wicked fist. Fasting like yours this day will not make your voice to be heard on high. Is such the fast that I choose, a day for a person to humble himself? Is it to bow down his head like a reed, and to spread sackcloth and ashes under him? Will you call this a fast, and a day acceptable to the LORD? Is not this the fast that I choose: to loose the bonds of wickedness, to undo the straps of the yoke, to let the oppressed go free, and to break every yoke? Is it not to share your bread with the hungry and bring the homeless poor into your house; when you see the naked, to cover him, and not to hide yourself from your own flesh? Then shall your light break forth like the dawn, and your healing shall spring up speedily; your righteousness shall go before you; the glory of the LORD shall be your rear guard.” [00:20]

Matthew 6:17-18
“But when you fast, anoint your head and wash your face, that your fasting may not be seen by others but by your Father who is in secret. And your Father who sees in secret will reward you.” [24:37]

Observation questions

1. In Isaiah 58, what practices and attitudes made Israel’s fasting unacceptable to God, and what actions describe the fast God chooses? [01:45]
2. In Mark 2:18–22, what question is asked about Jesus’ disciples, and which pictures does Jesus use in His answer?
3. What does Jesus say will change when the bridegroom is taken away from the wedding guests? [05:09]
4. According to Matthew 6:17–18, how should a person fast differently from someone seeking to be noticed by others? [24:37]

Interpretation questions

1. Why does the question about Jesus’ disciples fasting reveal more than a concern about religious practice? How does it show the danger of treating human traditions as a measure of righteousness? [07:49]
2. Jesus calls Himself the bridegroom and says He will be taken away. What does this reveal about both His identity and His mission to suffer for His people? [15:43]
3. What do the images of new cloth and new wine teach about trying to combine Christ’s righteousness with self-righteousness or a merely improved religious life? [20:35]
4. Isaiah connects acceptable worship with mercy, justice, and care for people in need. Why are these outward actions evidence of a heart that is truly seeking God rather than simply performing religion? [29:30]

Application questions

1. In what areas might religious habits—church attendance, Bible reading, prayer, fasting, or serving—become more about appearing faithful than truly drawing near to God? What would honest repentance look like in one of those areas? [25:41]
2. Spiritual pride often compares, boasts, or pushes others down to make oneself look better. When is the temptation to compare strongest, and how can the group pursue humility instead of criticism, gossip, or quiet self-congratulation? [12:26]
3. Fasting is meant to express humble longing for God rather than gain the attention of people. Would fasting be a helpful practice in this season of life? If so, what could be set aside, and what specific longing for Christ or dependence on God could guide that fast? [24:48]
4. The gospel cannot simply be added onto an old life; sinners must trust Christ’s righteousness rather than their own. Where is there a temptation to rely on being a “good person,” religious background, or spiritual effort instead of resting in Christ alone? [21:50]
5. Isaiah’s chosen fast includes feeding the hungry, caring for the afflicted, and refusing to point fingers. What is one practical need—in the church, neighborhood, workplace, or family—that the group could notice and respond to with mercy this week? [30:08]
6. True righteousness is often most clearly seen when nobody is watching. What would it look like for Christ’s humility, kindness, patience, or love to be more visible at home or in everyday relationships this week? [27:22]