2 Corinthians 5:17: “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new.”
We will look at another characteristic of the new creation Christian. The Scripture passage points out, with regard to a new creation Christian, old things have passed away. Again, like we did previously, we must note the plain and assertive language the Holy Spirit uses in the Scripture passage to describe one who is in Christ. The Scripture passage does not say old things are passing away; nor old things might pass away; nor old things will pass away. It firmly states old things have passed away. It's an accomplished fact.
This is a marvelous work of God in the conversion of a sinner. God can both create and destroy. God creates a new creature and destroys the old nature of anyone in Christ. This is a spiritual phenomenon and may not be all visible to the natural eye, but we who have faith in God must embrace its reality. Old things have passed away from a new creation Christian. This is true of any one who is in Christ.
What are the old things that have passed away from a new creation Christian? The Bible identifies a list of old things which have passed away from a new creation Christian. The list includes both former religious customs and ungodly practices.
To begin with, the new creation Christian is not under the old covenant arrangement established between God and the people of Israel involving the Law of Moses. The old covenant vanishes in Christ. “In that He says, ‘A new Covenant,’ He has made the first obsolete. Now what is becoming obsolete and growing old is ready to vanish away” (Hebrews 8:13).
Participation in the old covenant religious rituals contributes absolutely nothing towards one’s standing in Christ. Christianity abolishes all old covenant rites, ceremonies, and laws, and introduces a way through salvation by grace for all mankind alike to become the people of God. For instance, circumcision, which identified the Jews under the old covenant as God’s people, completely loses significance in Christ. We read in Galatians 6:15: “For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor uncircumcision avails anything, but a new creation.”
For Gentiles who have become new creation Christians, old pagan religious practices such as idolatry and the occult passed away. New creation Christians have nothing to do with these vain superstitious practices of idol worship, sorcery, and the occult.
And finally, for all new creation Christians, who were formerly Jews and Gentiles, the old corrupt nature with its ungodly lifestyles in the flesh have passed away. We are exhorted in Colossians 3:5-11: “Therefore put to death your members which are on the earth: fornication, uncleanness, passion, evil desire, and covetousness, which is idolatry. Because of these things the wrath of God is coming upon the sons of disobedience, in which you yourselves once walked when you lived in them. But now you yourselves are to put off all these: anger, wrath, malice, blasphemy, filthy language out of your mouth. Do not lie to one another, since you have put off the old man with his deeds, and have put on the new man who is renewed in knowledge according to the image of Him who created him, where there is neither Greek nor Jew, circumcised nor uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave nor free, but Christ is all and in all.”
The wonder of the death of Christ on the Cross is its power to effectively bring an end to our old nature which was under the control of the flesh and the old body of sin and death. The Bible teaches this truth, but so many lack the faith to accept it that we have had all sorts of alternative explanations that lack the boldness of faith to take God at His word. But the plain declaration of the word of God is new creation Christians are delivered from the ungodliness of the old carnal nature. “We know that our old self was crucified with him so that the body of sin might be destroyed, and we might no longer be enslaved to sin. For whoever has died is freed from sin” (Romans 6:6-7). And we are assured in Romans 8:9: “You are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if indeed the Spirit of God dwells in you. Now if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he is not His.”
Therefore, for anyone who is a new creation in Christ, old things have passed away. Don’t look for them. Don’t accept them. Don’t identify yourself with them. Agree with God that the old things of your former ungodly lifestyle are gone!
Wednesday, January 28, 2009
Monday, January 19, 2009
Celebrate the Outcome of the Audacity of Hope against Social Prejudice: Barack Obama's Inauguration!
Yes, I believe Barack Obama's historical election to the US Presidency and his celebrated inauguration on January 20, 2008 as an African American indicates clearly that the Lord rules in the kingdoms of men. In a country where discrimination against African Americans was formally insitutionalized in the society as recently as just about four decades ago and which has a Congress of only one African American senator among a hundred senators, it is an acclaimed astonishment that Barack Obama, an African American of socially insignificant background, has been elected as the first U.S. African American President from among a list of highly prominent white candidates.
God declared this plainly to a stubborn and arrogant king once in Daniel 4:17: "This matter is by the decree of the watchers, and the demand by the word of the holy ones, so that the living may know that the Most High rules in the kingdom of men, and gives it to whomever He will, and sets up over it the lowest of men."
This world is bound by prejudices which blind many and delude them into vain pride of themselves and unjust spite for others. With this they ignore the real values with which God endows a man and are caught by surprise when God makes His commendation and confirms His approval of His chosen.
In the true Church, among true and sincere members of the Body of Christ, such evil and vain thinking are banished because the Spirit of God makes us who we are or can be in the Body of Christ. He does it in a way that none is better than the other and we all need one another. Praise the Lord.
But if the oppressed and despised of the world will wait on God it's amazing how marvelously the Lord gives grace to the humble and brings down the proud. "Surely He scorns the scorners; but He gives grace to the lowly. The wise shall inherit glory; but shame shall be the promotion of fools" (Proverbs 3:34-35).
Barack Obama's inauguration is a celebration for all upon earth for generations to come of the audacity of hope and the working of the power of God on the side of the lowly. David would have celebrated with these words in Psalms 75:5-7:
5: Lift not up your horn on high: speak not with a stiff neck.
6: For promotion comes neither from the east, nor from the west, nor from the south.
7: But God is the judge: He puts down one, and sets up another.
Our Father and God, You who rule in the kingdoms of men, we thank you for the grace and justice you have demonstrated, as well as the hope you have unleashed, to the poor, lowly, and oppressed through the raisng up of Barack Obama to the presidency of the United States of America. In the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, give Barack Obama grace and wisdom, power and favour, to execute Your will in his rulership according to Your purpose for the welfare of the people of the United States of America and all the nations of the earth. Amen!
God declared this plainly to a stubborn and arrogant king once in Daniel 4:17: "This matter is by the decree of the watchers, and the demand by the word of the holy ones, so that the living may know that the Most High rules in the kingdom of men, and gives it to whomever He will, and sets up over it the lowest of men."
This world is bound by prejudices which blind many and delude them into vain pride of themselves and unjust spite for others. With this they ignore the real values with which God endows a man and are caught by surprise when God makes His commendation and confirms His approval of His chosen.
In the true Church, among true and sincere members of the Body of Christ, such evil and vain thinking are banished because the Spirit of God makes us who we are or can be in the Body of Christ. He does it in a way that none is better than the other and we all need one another. Praise the Lord.
But if the oppressed and despised of the world will wait on God it's amazing how marvelously the Lord gives grace to the humble and brings down the proud. "Surely He scorns the scorners; but He gives grace to the lowly. The wise shall inherit glory; but shame shall be the promotion of fools" (Proverbs 3:34-35).
Barack Obama's inauguration is a celebration for all upon earth for generations to come of the audacity of hope and the working of the power of God on the side of the lowly. David would have celebrated with these words in Psalms 75:5-7:
5: Lift not up your horn on high: speak not with a stiff neck.
6: For promotion comes neither from the east, nor from the west, nor from the south.
7: But God is the judge: He puts down one, and sets up another.
Our Father and God, You who rule in the kingdoms of men, we thank you for the grace and justice you have demonstrated, as well as the hope you have unleashed, to the poor, lowly, and oppressed through the raisng up of Barack Obama to the presidency of the United States of America. In the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, give Barack Obama grace and wisdom, power and favour, to execute Your will in his rulership according to Your purpose for the welfare of the people of the United States of America and all the nations of the earth. Amen!
New Creation Christians: Transformed in Christ
2Corinthians 5:17: “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold; all things have become new.”
This Scripture passage states plainly “if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation….” The Holy Spirit clearly does not mean in the Scripture passage that one in Christ ought to be a new creation or is trying to be a new creation. He means, as the Scripture passage states, one who is in Christ is in fact a new creation.
In other words, the characteristics of a new creation make up and are manifested in anyone who is in Christ. Anyone who is in Christ lives the life of a new creation. The idea of a new creation means change has taken place from a former state. Thus, being in Christ produces a transformation which results in a new creation or a new being changed from the former sinful state which existed prior to being in Christ.
The word creation used in the passage denotes the result of a creative act. It is the same word used in the Bible to denote what God has created, produced, designed, or brought into existence (Mark 10:6; Mark 13:19; Romans 1:25; Revelation 3:14). And so, a sinner who comes to Christ is effectively assimilated into Christ and God makes of that sinner a completely new person. This implies there is an operation of the creative power of God in the conversion of a sinner in Christ to transform the person into a new creation.
The new creation in Christ is therefore not the product of human effort or genetic inheritance. It is the result of the creative work of God in Christ. John describes God’s sovereign work in producing this new creation in Christ as being born again solely of God. We read in John 1:12-13: “But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, to those who believe in His name: who were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.” What all of this says to us is that the conversion of a sinner who comes to Christ is the result of the powerful work of God alone through Christ without any input from man.
It is important that we understand the divine process of conversion and not mistake conformity to certain religious rituals and customs, joining churches, self-fostered change in behaviour, and social forms of rehabilitation for Christian conversion. Paul emphasizes the futility of these things in the transformation of a sinner in Christ in Galatians 6:15: “For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor uncircumcision avails anything, but a new creation.”
New creation Christians are offspring of God, born anew of God. God by His grace through salvation has created us new creatures in Christ. If we are Christians, by faith in God we must define ourselves according to what the word of God says we are, and not according to our feelings or the opinions of men. We were once sinners, dead in sin and iniquity, but by the grace of God we now are converted and transformed by divine creative power in Christ.
We are not aspiring to be but are new creatures in Christ and we live and walk as new creatures in Christ. Therefore, let us stand on our faith in Christ and live fully the newness of life which we have in Christ in whom God has made us to be new creations.
This Scripture passage states plainly “if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation….” The Holy Spirit clearly does not mean in the Scripture passage that one in Christ ought to be a new creation or is trying to be a new creation. He means, as the Scripture passage states, one who is in Christ is in fact a new creation.
In other words, the characteristics of a new creation make up and are manifested in anyone who is in Christ. Anyone who is in Christ lives the life of a new creation. The idea of a new creation means change has taken place from a former state. Thus, being in Christ produces a transformation which results in a new creation or a new being changed from the former sinful state which existed prior to being in Christ.
The word creation used in the passage denotes the result of a creative act. It is the same word used in the Bible to denote what God has created, produced, designed, or brought into existence (Mark 10:6; Mark 13:19; Romans 1:25; Revelation 3:14). And so, a sinner who comes to Christ is effectively assimilated into Christ and God makes of that sinner a completely new person. This implies there is an operation of the creative power of God in the conversion of a sinner in Christ to transform the person into a new creation.
The new creation in Christ is therefore not the product of human effort or genetic inheritance. It is the result of the creative work of God in Christ. John describes God’s sovereign work in producing this new creation in Christ as being born again solely of God. We read in John 1:12-13: “But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, to those who believe in His name: who were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.” What all of this says to us is that the conversion of a sinner who comes to Christ is the result of the powerful work of God alone through Christ without any input from man.
It is important that we understand the divine process of conversion and not mistake conformity to certain religious rituals and customs, joining churches, self-fostered change in behaviour, and social forms of rehabilitation for Christian conversion. Paul emphasizes the futility of these things in the transformation of a sinner in Christ in Galatians 6:15: “For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor uncircumcision avails anything, but a new creation.”
New creation Christians are offspring of God, born anew of God. God by His grace through salvation has created us new creatures in Christ. If we are Christians, by faith in God we must define ourselves according to what the word of God says we are, and not according to our feelings or the opinions of men. We were once sinners, dead in sin and iniquity, but by the grace of God we now are converted and transformed by divine creative power in Christ.
We are not aspiring to be but are new creatures in Christ and we live and walk as new creatures in Christ. Therefore, let us stand on our faith in Christ and live fully the newness of life which we have in Christ in whom God has made us to be new creations.
Monday, January 12, 2009
New Creation Christians: Being in Christ
2Corinthians 5:17: “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold; all things have become new.”
To fully appreciate who we Christians are, we need to grasp the true meaning and thoroughness of the change God produces in one who has become a believer in Christ. The Scripture passage, 2 Corinthians 5:17, plainly describes this change as a transformation from an old to a new creation.
The Scripture passage first identifies what is the fundamental root-cause of this change. It is being “in Christ.” One must be in Christ to experience this change.
The Scripture passage is plainly making a distinction between people who are in Christ and people who are not in Christ. It is good to note the distinction is not between people who belong to a religious organization or church group and people who do not belong to a religious organization or church group. The distinction is clearly between being in Christ and not being in Christ.
What does it mean to be in Christ? According to the Scriptures, to be in Christ is to be taken into Christ to become a vital part of Christ.
Jesus used the parable of the vine and its branches in John 15 to illustrate this integral connection between Him and those who abide in Him. In the parable, the branches of the vine are so united with the vine as to derive their existence and all their nourishment from the vine. The branches are sustained by the vine and share the life and substance of the vine.
Jesus explains in the parable in John 15:4-6: “Abide in Me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in Me. I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing. If anyone does not abide in Me, he is cast out as a branch and is withered; and they gather them and throw them into the fire, and they are burned.”
According to Jesus, as the branches of the vine have no existence and cannot function if separated from or outside the vine, so no genuine Christian can exist or function as a true Christian outside or independent of Him. To be in Christ means therefore to be in union with Christ and to be in absolute dependence upon Christ. Any one who is in Christ is sustained by Christ with the life and strength of Christ and shares in the character and Spirit of Christ.
Therefore, being in Christ is a necessary condition or fundamental basis for being a new creation Christian. "If any man is in Christ" denotes all who are in Christ. Hence, all who are in Christ are transformed into new creation Christians. It implies that this profound spiritual change of a human being is universally possible.
Any one from any culture, nation, tribe, people, and religion can undergo that Christian transformation. But the necessary condition is that they must be in Christ.
To fully appreciate who we Christians are, we need to grasp the true meaning and thoroughness of the change God produces in one who has become a believer in Christ. The Scripture passage, 2 Corinthians 5:17, plainly describes this change as a transformation from an old to a new creation.
The Scripture passage first identifies what is the fundamental root-cause of this change. It is being “in Christ.” One must be in Christ to experience this change.
The Scripture passage is plainly making a distinction between people who are in Christ and people who are not in Christ. It is good to note the distinction is not between people who belong to a religious organization or church group and people who do not belong to a religious organization or church group. The distinction is clearly between being in Christ and not being in Christ.
What does it mean to be in Christ? According to the Scriptures, to be in Christ is to be taken into Christ to become a vital part of Christ.
Jesus used the parable of the vine and its branches in John 15 to illustrate this integral connection between Him and those who abide in Him. In the parable, the branches of the vine are so united with the vine as to derive their existence and all their nourishment from the vine. The branches are sustained by the vine and share the life and substance of the vine.
Jesus explains in the parable in John 15:4-6: “Abide in Me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in Me. I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing. If anyone does not abide in Me, he is cast out as a branch and is withered; and they gather them and throw them into the fire, and they are burned.”
According to Jesus, as the branches of the vine have no existence and cannot function if separated from or outside the vine, so no genuine Christian can exist or function as a true Christian outside or independent of Him. To be in Christ means therefore to be in union with Christ and to be in absolute dependence upon Christ. Any one who is in Christ is sustained by Christ with the life and strength of Christ and shares in the character and Spirit of Christ.
Therefore, being in Christ is a necessary condition or fundamental basis for being a new creation Christian. "If any man is in Christ" denotes all who are in Christ. Hence, all who are in Christ are transformed into new creation Christians. It implies that this profound spiritual change of a human being is universally possible.
Any one from any culture, nation, tribe, people, and religion can undergo that Christian transformation. But the necessary condition is that they must be in Christ.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
Posts
