Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here!
Many lament the life they have and long for a new one. They opine the moments that could have been spent on something worthwhile. Have you ever dreamed of heading to the airport, getting a plane ticket for anywhere, leaving the old life behind for a new one? That fantasy stirs many to believe the life they have is anything but good or not worth investing in. Simply going through the motions of life, rousing to the irritating sound of an alarm clock, punching into a routine job, only to go home to a mediocre existence and a mindset of indifference. If that isn’t self-resignation to depression then I don’t know what is. And we’ve all been there many times. I bet you can relate.
Jesus promises something much more than the blah-ness of everyday life, but too many Christians live a life just like the one described only they have a Jesus fish sticker on their back of their car to go with it. Is this what Jesus promised when he said our joy would be complete? Hardly. So, what’s wrong?
We Try And Make A New Creation For Ourselves
Every once in awhile, maybe once a year, we decide we need to do something different. New year, new you, Anyone? We tire of the old destructive habits and long to be free from them. When these moments hit, we rouse with all the inner strength we can muster to try and fashion for ourselves a new life, or a new body, maybe a new relationship, possibly a new career. If you go on Amazon, you will see scores of well-meaning books by authors who promise you happiness, freedom from (insert thing here), even prosperity if you just read their words and put them into practice. Every day, ordinary people, just like you and me, have volumes of these books, purchased out of desperation for relief. Maybe this book has it…no, this one…which one?
What happens after that? If you are pretty much like everyone else, your will wanes and the old habits, old life, or desire for something new disappears. We cannot make ourselves into a new creation with any merit what so ever. Even if we manage to get one bad habit under control, there are several others we have no power to control. It’s whack-a-mole of the self-will.
He Makes Us New Not Us
Only Christ can truly make us a new creation. It doesn’t say He makes a rehabilitated one, it doesn’t say He polishes up a better version of the old one, it says He makes it NEW. You are made new in Him, by Him, through Him. Your old way of thinking will be gone, the Holy Spirit will be your guide now, not your emotions or human intellect. If you want to be made new, all you have to do is ask.
If you’ve already committed to a life with Christ, ask Him how you can realize what He has done for you in better ways today. Ask Him how to bury your past so you can fully walk in the new life He has created in you.
Get a prayer or accountability partner to talk and pray through what is standing in the way of your new life in Christ. Surrender your ideas of what a new life in Christ is supposed to look like and just ask Him to help you realize the one He has for you.
How Does This Verse Speak To You?
As a prisoner for the Lord, then, I urge you to live a life worthy of the calling you have received.
Get Your New Creation T-Shirt Now!
Wear the shirt that goes with the topic.