Being Made New in Christ

Truths about who we are in Christ need to be constantly considered:

The good news of the gospel is that while we are all dead in our trespasses and sins, we can be made alive and given new life in Christ. We really do become new creations when we come to Christ in faith and repentance. Yet there can be several problems the Christian faces when considering these great truths.

One problem is that the longer we are believers, it is possible that these glorious truths can become routine, mundane, and ho-hum. We can become so familiar with the many biblical texts on this and other matters that we might take them for granted. They can go in one ear and out the other.

There is also the ‘18 inches’ problem. That is roughly the distance from the head to the heart. Our minds might be full to overflowing with knowledge about our position in Christ. We might have memorised dozens of key texts on this. But as can so often be the case, while these truths fill our minds, we struggle to have them impact our hearts.

So we need to get back to basics, remind ourselves of God’s great words on these matters, and then pray that the Holy Spirit will take these biblical truths and radically grab hold of our hearts and souls. And I need this as much as anyone else.

I love to read and study Scripture. I love theology. I love reflecting on God and his word. But I always need to come back to these core truths. In part this is because I can easily focus on myself and all my weaknesses and mistakes, past and present. I can easily dwell on all the things I now look back on and cringe about – both in my non-Christian and Christian days.

I can readily focus on my own many sins and shortcomings. Just recently as I was doing this, God’s Spirit gave me a prompting. I was reminded that I need to concentrate on who I am in Christ, and what I have in Christ. Sure, regular introspection and spiritual check-ups are necessary, but regular reminders of the really good news of the Good News is also needed.

So with all that in mind, I have assembled just some of the many texts found in the New Testament that speak to our situation as having been made new in Christ. I need to keep reading and meditating on these – and you might too.

For where two or three are gathered in my name, there am I among them. Matthew 18:20

And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age. Matthew 28:20

But to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God. John 1:12

I have said these things to you, that in me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation. But take heart; I have overcome the world. John 16:33

Therefore, since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. Romans 5:1

There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. Romans 8:1

The Spirit himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, and if children, then heirs—heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ. Romans 8:16-17

In all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. Romans 8:37

We have the mind of Christ. 1 Corinthians 2:16

But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. 1 Corinthians 15:57

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

I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. Galatians 2:20

In Christ Jesus you are all sons of God, through faith. Galatians 3:26

Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places. Ephesians 1:3

In love he predestined us for adoption to himself as sons through Jesus Christ. Ephesians 1:4-5

But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ. Ephesians 2:4-5

For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works. Ephesians 2:10

I can do all things through him who strengthens me. Philippians 4:13

He has delivered us from the domain of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of his beloved Son, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins. Colossians 1:13-14

God gave us a spirit not of fear but of power and love and self-control. 2 Timothy 1:7

His divine power has granted to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of him who called us to his own glory and excellence, by which he has granted to us his precious and very great promises, so that through them you may become partakers of the divine nature. 2 Peter 1:3-4

Little children, you are from God and have overcome them, for he who is in you is greater than he who is in the world. 1 John 4:4

These are just a few of the many passages that we need to consider, to meditate on, and to embrace. As should be clear from my short list, simply reading Romans 8, or the book of Ephesians, will provide real soul food for you. And many wonderful promises found in the Old Testament could also be mentioned here.

The Christian cannot grow as a believer unless he first knows these vital biblical realities. But as I have been saying, it is not just knowing them that is imperative. It is also essential that we apply and appropriate them, that we experience them and live them out in our daily lives.

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