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Sunday, September 13, 2009

New Life Through Death

You, who have shown me great and severe troubles, shall revive me again, and bring me up again from the depths of the earth. Psalm 71:20
This is a Messianic Psalm that prophesied about the resurrection of Christ. Jesus’ resurrection from the dead has tremendous significance and impact on our lives.

The apostle Paul says in Romans 6:4-5, “Therefore we were buried with Him through baptism into death, that just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life. For if we have been united together in the likeness of His death, certainly we also shall be in the likeness of His resurrection.”

What happened at salvation? You died—not the physical you, but that old self which was empowered by the old nature you inherited from Adam (Rom. 6:2-6; Col. 3:3). Paul said in Galatians 2:20: “I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me.” At salvation, your old man died with Him on the cross.

What is the result? In Adam you had an old self; in Christ you have a new self. In Adam you had a sin nature (Eph. 2:1-3); in Christ you are a partaker of the divine nature (2 Pet. 1:4). In Adam you were in the flesh (Rom. 7:18); in Christ you are in the Spirit (8:9). In Adam you could only walk after the flesh; in Christ you may choose to walk after the Spirit and not in the flesh. Colossians 3:3 says, “For you died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God.” The death that Paul talks about isn’t something God expects you to do something about. It has already happened at salvation. You can’t do anything to become what you already are. Your old man has been crucified with Christ and is replaced by a new creation in Christ Jesus (2 Cor. 5:17). Your old self was destroyed in the death of Christ (1 Cor. 15:20-22). Your new man is the life offered by the resurrected Christ for those who believe in Him (Gal. 2:20, Col. 3:4). How do we experience this newness of life?
  1. There must be a definite knowing of what Jesus did for you through His death. The most important truth in the whole New Testament is what Jesus did on the cross for us. If God’s people do not know the truth, they cannot believe. If they do not believe, they cannot experience (Rom. 6:6).
  2. There is a reckoning, which means we must recognize and acknowledge through our confession, what Christ has done for us (6:11). As we continue to do that, we are free from the dominion of sin and are no longer slaves of unrighteousness. We can live victoriously by the power of the new life we have in Christ.

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