Kingdom Innovation

“New wine needs new wineskins” (Matthew 9; Mark 2; Luke 5). Jesus used this image to prepare his disciples for the radical transformation that would come through his death and resurrection.

• Old wineskins become stiff and brittle. They cannot handle the expansion that takes place as new wine continues to ferment. When stretched, they burst.
• New wineskins, however, are flexible. They can expand. They can hold what is still growing.

In fulfilling the Father’s plan woven throughout Israel’s history, Jesus would change everything, and he knew not everyone would be ready for it. But what about now?

• Is our Savior still at work bringing change, and are we ready for it? Are there moments when we, too, must become new wineskins, stretching, adapting, and making room for what he is doing?
• Two thousand years of church history answer with a resounding yes. The Church has continually adapted since the Holy Spirit was poured out at Pentecost. Some would even argue that the sharp decline of the church in the West is, in part, the result of a failure to adapt to new realities.

So how do we change well? Here are a few guiding principles, adapted from Ready or Not: Kingdom Innovation for a Brave New World by Doug Paul.

Five guidelines for adapting to new realities

1. Don’t wait for “eureka!”

• Innovation can feel intimidating. Many of us are waiting for that lightning-bolt moment, a grand idea that changes everything. But those moments are rare.
• Most innovations are far less glamorous. They begin by noticing a need and doing the hard, faithful work of meeting it. We try. We fail. We learn. We persist.
• Don’t wait for divine revelation to strike. Pay attention. See the need in front of you and take the next faithful step.

2. beware of digging in your heels

• Henry Ford was one of history’s great innovators. But once he found success with the Model T, he resisted change. Meanwhile, competitors introduced enclosed cars, new features, and fresh designs, and left him behind.
• The lesson is simple: past success can become present limitation. As a church, you are perfectly designed to get the results you are currently getting.
• If those results include reaching the lost and forming disciples, praise God and keep going. But if there is room for growth, there must also be a willingness to change.

3. love the power, not the form

• Ask yourself an honest question: Do I love the form, or the power that gave it form? Do we love the specific ministry, youth group, Alpha, GEMS, children’s programs, or do we love the gospel that gave birth to them?
• If we love the form, we have everything to lose, and we will resist change. But if we love the power behind the form, we are free. Free to release what was. Free to receive what is becoming.
• So what do you truly love about your church? The structure, or the Spirit at work within it?

4. collaboration is the key

• Innovation rarely happens in isolation. We often imagine breakthrough ideas coming in moments of solitude, but in reality they are forged through conversation, experimentation, and feedback.
• Trial and error invites voices into the process: leaders, family, even those outside the church. Their insights refine and sharpen what begins as a rough idea into something fruitful.
• God often uses community to shape what he is birthing.

5. follow the wind of the spirit

• In the Renewal Lab, we often say, “This is Plan B.” We plan. We pray. We set goals. But when we are done, we hold it all loosely, because God will reveal Plan A as we walk forward. This posture is not a lack of faith in planning. It is humility before the Holy Spirit. We lead with intention while remaining open to redirection.
• Kingdom innovation requires a shift in focus. The windshield of a car is much larger than the rearview mirror for a reason. If we fixate on what is behind us, we will struggle to move forward into what God has ahead.
• Doing what we have always done is a reliable path to stagnation. But the kingdom of God is not stagnant. It is alive. It is growing. It is moving.

So we ask: What is next, Lord? May we love you more than the forms you have given us for a season. And may we become the kind of people who can faithfully hold the new wine you are pouring out.