Completely New

Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold the new has come. 2 Corinthians 5:17

If you have surrendered to Jesus, then God has taken your original, human born self and created something completely new. I have been pondering this phrase “he is a new creature.” In the Greek… it means “recently made, fresh, unused, of a new kind, unheard of.” (Strongs and Thayers Greek Lexicon).

This scripture communicates clearly what CH Spurgeon pointed out in his own study of this scripture as our “position in Christ.” With the old self omitted we are made into something completely fresh. We are not just cleaned up and set straight, we are completely remade. Reborn. New. These are some of my Advent thoughts these days. Without Jesus, human born, God with us, we could never have been reborn.

I am a songwriter. Or at least, I try. I take notes, rhythms, words and melodies and manipulate them into new songs. I do my best to be creative, but I did not design language ability, the idea for singing, or the notes of a scale. Creation is God’s work. Supernatural work. The creative work of God to take my old self and make me something completely different is only something he could do. I think of God’s creation of Adam. Genesis 2:7 MSG - “God formed man out of dirt from the ground and blew into his nostrils the breath of life. The man came alive - a living soul!” God took dirt and his breath, and made man. Only God could take a sinner and Jesus’ blood, and make a saint.

Just like Adam could not return himself to being dirt, you cannot return to being your old self. You can sure act like your old self, and so here is the push and pull between spirit and flesh - but you are not that person anymore. You are a new creation. You are someone who has never been seen before. This is a radical work and you couldn’t un-create yourself if you tried. Take heart and “be transformed as you embrace the glorious Christ-within as your new life and live in union with him! For God has recreated you all over again in his perfect righteousness, and you now belong to him” (Ephesians 4:24 The Passion Translation).