Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new.
—2 Corinthians 5:17 (NKJV)
You are a new creation in Christ! Now that you are a new creation in Him, it is time to believe old things have passed away. ALL things in your life are new. Your body didn’t change when you came to Him. Your mind was the same when you were born again. So what became new? It was your born-again spirit filled with all the fullness of God where you became new.
“Unless one is born of water and the Spirit,” Jesus said, “he cannot enter the kingdom of God. That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit” (John 3:5-6).
You consist of three parts—spirit, soul (mind), and body (1Thessalonians 5:23). Your mind and your body were unchanged when you were saved—waiting to be transformed by the fullness of God you received in your spirit.
Your old identity—your sin nature—"passed away” when Jesus Christ found you. You became totally new in Him. But you can look at yourself—in your flesh, and see nothing has changed. You still have temptations as you had before becoming a new creation. However, you have the fullness of God and His righteousness and power living within your spirit (Ephesians 1:18-20). When you start to believe what you received when you were born-again, you can turn away from sinful thoughts and stand against evil. When you believe in your mind (soul) the fullness of God you have received in your spirit, you KNOW the old has passed away. You KNOW you are a new creation in Christ. You believe that you are no longer defined by your past which has defeated you. When something from the past rises to tempt or shame you, you can say, “No! That is not me. The real me is in Christ. He lives in me, and that is who I am!”
The newness of Christ you received in your born-again spirit transforms you—the whole person (Romans 12:2). Your mind (soul) is where you receive the fullness of understanding of God’s Truth, and your flesh (body) is where you live what you believe.
Knowing your identity in Christ comes from having a personal revelation from God’s Word. The Holy Spirit guides you into all Truth (John 16:13). You can listen forever to others declaring His Truth, but until His Word transforms your mind and you believe it in your heart, you will not experience the newness of life you received in your born-again spirit. You will forever struggle to try to obtain the freedom you already have in Christ.
You have to take ownership of God’s Truth and allow the Holy Spirit access to your mind. No one else can explain what Jesus has given you in your born-again spirit. His fullness just waits to renew your mind until you believe. The Holy Spirit convinces you of who you are in Christ.
Are you ready to live the freedom you have in Christ? Allow the Holy Spirit to convince you of who you are as His new creation. Be renewed in your mind by the Truth He reveals. Put on your new nature until you believe His Truth (Ephesians 4:23-24). You will begin to see yourself as God sees you—as the new creation His Son created.
©2021 Lynn Lacher
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