My text is a little unusual for a convention sermon,” said Walter Blackman as he opened his address to the Alabama Baptist State Convention meeting in Montgomery Nov. 19.
Blackman, pastor of East Highland Baptist Church, Hartselle, explained that over the course of the past three years, baptisms had continued to decline, as reported by The Alabama Baptist and by LifeWay Christian Resources’ publication Facts and Trends.
In addition, Facts and Trends reported baptisms of teenagers have been declining for the past three decades, and On Mission magazine revealed 70 percent of adults age 18–30 are dropping out of church, with only a portion ever returning.
Blackman said books like “UnChristian” and “The Heart of Christianity” researched this decline and concluded it was because this age group views church people as “too judgmental, hypocritical, too political and sheltered,” Blackman said.
But Christ was a friend of sinners, he continued, and through this He invited them to join His Kingdom.
“I don’t need to tell you we have a problem,” Blackman said. “You see it in your associational meetings — the graying of our convention, the lack of growth and evangelism in our churches, the rising age of participants in state and national conventions. It all tells us what is taking place in our churches, associations and in our denomination … we are in danger, if we are not already there, of becoming old wineskins and being filled with old wine,” he said, referencing his sermon Scripture of Christ’s parable in Mark 2:22 and Luke 5:39.
Blackman explained the audience to whom Jesus is talking is the Pharisees who had become ritualistic in their traditions, opposing anything new.
“Yet Jesus was someone new, bringing a new message, new ways, new methods and changing the customs of the religious leadership,” he said.
And as a part of this “newness,” Christ and His followers were associating with nonbelievers, eating with them, fellowshipping with them and visiting them, as well as healing and cleansing on the Sabbath.
“Jesus was communicating something important about the Kingdom, something desperately needed in our lives, in our churches, in our associations and in our state convention … so we do not continue down the path of becoming old wineskins settling for old wine.”
Blackman said when unfermented juice was placed in a new, fresh wineskin, the skin would stretch and expand during the fermentation process to produce new wine. Once the wineskin had been used and expanded to its capacity, it would dry and harden, thus when new wine was placed in an old skin, it would simply burst.
The problem is that churches are attempting to reuse old wineskins, he said, paralleling it to old customs and ways of doing things. So when new wine (new ideas, new methods) is placed in old wineskins, both the wine and the wineskin are lost.
“I’ve seen this happen in churches,” he explained. “God sends new wine, perhaps through a new preacher filled with new wine — on fire for God, evangelistic, missions- and ministry-minded … or perhaps through a new convert who hasn’t yet learned the old wineskins’ ways and the joy of old wine.”
When change starts to take place in the church, members get nervous and try to “put the brakes on,” he said.
“If we are going to experience a change in our churches so fundamental that our young folks who are leaving our church can see it and desire it and those inside the church can experience it firsthand, it will be when we fall on our faces before God and seek, once again, to become new wineskins able to receive the new wine of God’s work in our lives,” Blackman said.
He also noted that when old wine is placed in new wineskins, “nothing happens. Perfectly good wineskins filled with old wine will not accomplish what God intends for the church to accomplish.
“Many believers are seeking to be new wineskins … but settling for old wine,” he said.
Better Bible studies, discipleship materials, music and church facilities are available today than ever before, Blackman said. Yet baptism and, seemingly, effectiveness for reaching younger generations and our communities continues to decline.
“We desperately need to become intentional about becoming new wineskins filled with new wine,” Blackman challenged. “If we don’t then we’re going to be the generation that missed the greatest opportunity to reach the world for Jesus Christ.”
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