What Does it Mean to be a New Creature in Christ?

THE LORD JESUS brought my wicked soul into His family because the witness of His people was overwhelmingly loving and filled with joy and peace – something I never witnessed in the Roman cult or anywhere else in this fallen world. In my heart I longed for what they had. There was no doubt that it was God! Jesus Christ is KING – always has been, always will be! – “The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace…” (Galatians 5:22-23).

“For ye were sometimes darkness, but now are ye light in the Lord: walk as children of light: 9 (For the fruit of the Spirit is in all goodness and righteousness and truth;) 10 Proving what is acceptable unto the Lord.” Ephesians 5:8-10

Making Peace with God Now – before it’s too late.

“Born again” (John 3:3, 7),  “born of God” (1 John 4:7), “regeneration,” and being a “new creature” in Christ go hand in hand or we can say are synonymous.

“Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new. 18 And all things are of God, who hath reconciled us to himself by Jesus Christ, and hath given to us the ministry of reconciliation;” 2 Corinthians 5:17-18

Though it be true that we were “in times past sinners,” we who have been born again are saved by grace. As such we are “his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works.”

“For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: 9 Not of works, lest any man should boast. 10 For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them.” Ephesians 2:8-10

And, in such a glorious salvation, we are no longer sinners but rather Christ’s saints. We are no longer under the power of sin, no longer regulated to lawlessness but rather now regenerated, saved by grace, made new creatures in Christ and given power over sin that “we should live soberly, righteously, and godly, in this present world” (Romans 6:14, 17, 22; 2 Corinthians 5:17-18; Titus 2:11-14, etc.).  Being saved by Christ, by His grace, we are “Looking for that blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ” (Titus 2:11-14). This “so great salvation,” when possessed, will produce the fruit of holiness and “everlasting life” (Romans 6:22; Hebrews 2:3).

“For sin shall not have dominion over you: for ye are not under the law, but under grace. … But now being made free from sin, and become servants to God, ye have your fruit unto holiness, and the end everlasting life.” Romans 6:14, 22

Titus 2:11-14

“For the grace of God that bringeth salvation hath appeared to all men, 12 Teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly, in this present world; 13  Looking for that blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ; 14  Who gave himself for us, that he might redeem us from all iniquity, and purify unto himself a peculiar people, zealous of good works.”

Ephesians 2:1-10 

This passage is contrasting our old life in sin to our new life in Christ!

“And you hath he quickened, who were dead in trespasses and sins; 2 wherein in time past ye walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience: 3 among whom also we all had our conversation in times past in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind; and were by nature the children of wrath, even as others. 4 But God, who is rich in mercy, for his great love wherewith he loved us, 5 even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ, (by grace ye are saved;) 6 and hath raised us up together, and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus: 7 that in the ages to come he might shew the exceeding riches of his grace in his kindness toward us through Christ Jesus. 8 For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: 9 not of works, lest any man should boast. 10 For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them.”

God intends to continue His good work in those He has saved and yet will not do so against the free will He gave to every person.

“Being confident of this very thing, that he which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ:” Philippians 1:6 

God is presently working in the lives of those He’s saved into His kingdom. They must walk out, they must “work out” this so great salvation of Christ – a freedom to choose He never retracts.

“Wherefore, my beloved, as ye have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling. 13 For it is God which worketh in you both to will and to do of his good pleasure.” Philippians 2:12-13

God is bringing to perfection that which He began in each of His saints. This will culminate in eternal glory – never ending joy! See Revelation 21.

“But as it is written, Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love him.” 1 Corinthians 2:9

Those whom Jesus saves must “endure to the end” of their lives with Him. The Bible repeatedly teaches initial and final salvation (1 Peter 1:9, etc.). The apostate modern church world is filled with false teachers who teach that salvation is a “one and done” event. Yet the whole counsel of God’s Word teaches that initial salvation is God bringing us into His kingdom and yet we must continue with Him – on His stated terms – to receive final salvation (Hebrews 3:6, 12-14; 10:26-39, 2 Peter 2:20-22, etc.). Jesus warns His very own:

“And ye shall be hated of all men for my name’s sake: but he that endureth to the end shall be saved.” Matthew 10:22

The overwhelming majority of ministries today will not mention this biblical truth to you because they are tickling your ear while leading you into lukewarmness and eternal damnation – all while pretending to represent Christ. Beware. See 2 Timothy 4:2-4 and Revelation 3:15-16.

Jesus says to His people:

“And then shall many be offended, and shall betray one another, and shall hate one another. 11 And many false prophets shall rise, and shall deceive many. 12 And because iniquity shall abound, the love of many shall wax cold. 13 But he that shall endure unto the end, the same shall be saved.” Matthew 24:10-13

Those whom Jesus saves who then don’t “abide” or remain with and continue in Christ, will be “cast … into the fire.”

“If a man abide (remain) not in me, he is cast forth as a branch, and is withered; and men gather them, and cast them into the fire, and they are burned.” John 15:6

“For Ye are Bought with a Price”

Upon being born of God, the miracle of regeneration whereby God makes us His “new creature” in Christ, we immediately become the temple or dwelling place of His Holy Spirit.

“What? know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy  Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own? 20 For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God’s.” 1 Corinthians 6:19-20

Jesus came and died to save His people to Himself and the Father and therefore our “reasonable” response is to present our bodies to Him as a “living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God.”

“I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service.” Romans 12:1

Jesus “died for all” and those who’ve appropriated His salvation by responding repentance and faith to His drawing and conviction, are to live for Him, not themselves (Acts 20:21).

“And that he died for all, that they which live should not henceforth live unto themselves, but unto him which died for them, and rose again.” 2 Corinthians 5:15

Here’s proof that God’s people must be who HE created us to be, as new creatures. God will use every bit of it! Boom Jesus!

“Jesus brought me to a house where they were all praying in the name of Jesus. At first It freaked me out because I had never heard anybody praying like this. But all of sudden, I knelt down and said I don’t know what you guys have but I want it.” Karen Cochran

One commentator states:

“The new creature is described in 2 Corinthians 5:17: “Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.” The word “therefore” refers us back to verses 14-16 where Paul tells us that all believers have died with Christ and no longer live for themselves. Our lives are no longer worldly; they are now spiritual. Our “death” is that of the old sin nature which was nailed to the cross with Christ. It was buried with Him, and just as He was raised up by the Father, so are we raised up to “walk in newness of life” (Romans 6:4). That new person that was raised up is what Paul refers to in 2 Corinthians 5:17 as the “new creature.”

To understand the new creation, first we must grasp that it is in fact a creation, something created by God. John 1:13 tells us that this new birth was brought about by the will of God. We did not inherit the new nature from our parents or decide to re-create ourselves anew. Neither did God simply clean up our old nature; He created something entirely fresh and unique. The new creation is completely new, brought about from nothing, just as the whole universe was created by God ex nihilo, from nothing. Only the Creator could accomplish such a feat.

Second, “old things are passed away.” The “old” refers to everything that is part of our old nature—natural pride, love of sin, reliance on works, and our former opinions, habits and passions. Most significantly, what we loved has passed away, especially the supreme love of self and with it self-righteousness, self-promotion, and self-justification. The new creature looks outwardly toward Christ instead of inwardly toward self. The old things died, nailed to the cross with our sin nature.

Along with the old passing away, “all things are become new.” Old, dead things are replaced with new things, full of life and the glory of God. The newborn soul delights in the things of God and abhors the things of the world and the flesh. Our purposes, feelings, desires, and understandings are fresh and different. We see the world differently. The Bible seems to be a new book, and though we may have read it before, there is a beauty about it which we never saw before, and which we wonder at not having perceived. The whole face of nature seems to us to be changed, and we seem to be in a new world. The heavens and the earth are filled with new wonders, and all things seem now to speak forth the praise of God. There are new feelings toward all people—a new kind of love toward family and friends, a new compassion never before felt for enemies, and a new love for all mankind. The things we once loved, we now detest. The sin we once held onto, we now desire to put away forever. We “have put off the old man with his deeds” (Colossians 3:9), and “put on the new man, which after God is created in righteousness and true holiness” (Ephesians 4:24).

What about the Christian who continues to sin? There is a difference between continuing to sin and continuing to live in sin. No one reaches sinless perfection in this life, but the redeemed Christian is being sanctified (made holy) day by day, sinning less and hating it more each time he fails. Yes, we still sin, but unwillingly and less and less frequently as we mature. The new creature hates the sin that still has a hold on us. The difference is that the new creation is no longer a slave to sin, as we formerly were. We are now freed from sin and it no longer has power over us (Romans 6:6-7). And “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness” (1 John 1:9). Now we are empowered by and for righteousness. We now have the choice to either let sin reign or to count ourselves “dead indeed unto sin, but alive unto God through Jesus Christ our Lord” (Romans 6:11-12). Best of all, now we have the power to choose the latter.

The new creation is a wondrous thing, formed in the mind of God and created by His power and for His glory.”

PRAYER: Father thank You for finding and saving me by the precious blood of Jesus. I come in His holy name and ask You to do Your deeper work in me. Please continue the good work You began in this life and work in me both to will and to do of Your good pleasure. Amen

Support | STORE | Podcasts | The Conquering Cross of Christ [podcast] | The Cross Victory | Sin – Man’s Core Problem | Making Peace with God Now – before it’s too late.

WHAT Happened to the Cross?

BEGIN THE DAY WITH PRAYER EM Bounds

Sinners Saved By Grace?