If your book isn’t a buzz, it’s not the Bible.
IF ONLY YOU KNEW YOU WERE NEW.
A Medium Buddy I follow, Cheryl Watson, recently posted an article, “The Central Truth of Christian Life Often Overlooked in Church” which is well worth a read. The opening sentence was, “Many of us never grasp this simple yet critical teaching from the Bible: that we actually become new creations in Christ.” Now Cheryl lives on the other side of the day to me so this is not just a local phenomenon and it is one that is quite serious. While Satan can’t steal the Justification of the Saints, he can steal our Joy so that the life to the full is not experienced. One of his favourite tricks is to drag up the past, but that’s just what it is — a trick.
One of the texts Cheryl used as evidence is written in 2 Corinthians 5:17║ Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new.
A powerful text that can stop Satan, or one of his henchmen, in his tracks.
But what does it mean?
If you don’t know what it means you might as well howl like a hyena because you’re just making noises — a resounding, empty gong. The Bible might as well be a book of spells where you say certain words to summon a spirit.
GOD IS A SPIRIT BUT HE WILL NOT BE SUMMONED!!
Charles Spurgeon (from what I hear, he knew a bit about Bible stuff) wrote:-
Repair your own ignorance. Stay out of the fog. Exercise rigour in the meaning of words.
Satan knows what the words mean but as long as you don’t he’s nothing to worry about.
In English 2 Corinthians 5:17 is weaker than dishwater, but in Greek — vroooooom!!
I’ll try to give an analogy. A weak analogy, to be sure.
First in the Natural, then in the Spiritual.
It is written in 1 Corinthians 15:46 that the Holy Spirit uses Natural phenomenon, which are easily seen, as examples for what happens in the Spiritual ║However, the spiritual is not first, but the natural, and afterwards the spiritual.
My first mobile (cell) phone was one of these.
I would carry that phone with me everywhere; to the bank, to the movies, to the library — everywhere. It was 3G technology. I could speak to people and send SMS messages. It would also do basic +- calculations, as well as having a clock with an alarm. It was the ants pants and did everything I wanted a phone to do.
“That old phone is now broken. Now I have a new mobile.”
What does that English sentence tell you?
It tells you the old phone is metaphorically dead and there is another in its place — otherwise not much.
Is it the same type of phone? You don’t know. All you know is that it is not the same mobile I had. Is it just another one of the same type/model that works?
How new is the new phone? You don’t know. All you know is that it is not the same phone I had. Was it made recently? Is it actually a 2G phone that is older than the one that broke? All you know is that it is new in relation to me.
There is no evidence provided so the best you can do is guess — and that can only be based on your own experience. But if you are satisfied with getting the scant details then so be it.
But what if it is the Bible that makes the outrageous promise that it will change your life? The boast of Western Society is that we live in the information age. But information that does not change your life is not knowledge. And the wisdom of this age is, “KNOWLEDGE IS POWER.”
For instance, the information is out there that drinking and driving don’t mix. And it is knowledge of a past age that, “WISDOM COMES SUDDENLY.” I’d hazard a guess that many drunken drivers suddenly wished (past tense) they had used the information more wisely as they ploughed into the big truck.
There is a lot of second guessing in the English sentence about my phone but the Greek is much more precise.
What can Greek do with it?
Part 1 ||
“That phone is now broken.” → “Old things (G744 — archaios) have passed away (G3928 — parerchomai).
G744 — archaios = the original
G3928 — parerchomai = metaphorically dead as in English euphemism for dead, “passed away”: Aorist tense verb→ completed action that can’t be changed.
Part 2 ||
“I have a new mobile.”
There are a number of Greek words translated in the Bible as new, but the two main ones are:-
G3501 — neos = new in the sense of younger — “more recent in time.”
G2537 — kainos = new in the sense of “new in quality, different in nature from the old.” It carries the flavour of superiority.
So, when I tell someone who has made the effort to consult the easily available information, “That archaios mobile is now parerchomai. Now I have a kainos one,” (s)he hears, “The old mobile is dead. I now have a superior one.”
It’s no longer just a phone.
I may get cancelled for being phonophobic but the old phone was a dumb-phone. The new one is a top-of-the-wozzer smart-phone which has far more computing power that all that combined in the Apollo Moon landing missions. (See how many slide-rules you can spot in the movie, “Apollo 13”?)
I no longer carry my phone with me to the bank, to the movies, to the library — everywhere. I carry my bank, the movies, the library — everything — everywhere with me.
Of course it costs much, much more but what I didn’t tell you is that it was a gift and I didn’t have to pay the price.
HOWEVER . . . I am an anachronism. I still use it only to speak to people and send SMS messages, do basic +- calculations, and check the time — because I am unaware of its capabilities. [Although my wife is expanding my horizons. She’s the Geek in our house now. But she is much younger — 73.]
OK. I told you it was a weak analogy.
Any Natural analogy for the Divine is always weak.
How does this relate to the Bible?
Before proceeding, it would be remiss of me if you weren’t told that ALL the Epistles are written to the Redeemed who are Righteous, as can be seen by cross-referencing the salutations.
SAINTS = Romans, Corinthians, Ephesians, Philippians, Colossians
BRETHREN = Galatians, Thessalonians, James
SON/CHILD = Timothy, Titus
LITTLE CHILDREN = 1 John
BELOVED = Philemon
US/OUR = Hebrews
ELECT/PILGRIMS = Galatians (Called Brethren by Paul)
There may be references to the unrighteous in the letter but it is the Saved who are being directly addressed.
It is best to set the table using some illustrations of a well known piece of Christian Lore.
Indwelling Holy Spirit.
Judges 3:10, Judges 6:34, 1 Samuel 16:13–14, 1 Kings 22:24, 2 Chronicles 18:23, Isaiah 11:2, Isaiah 61:1, Isaiah 63:14, Ezekiel 11:5, Ezekiel 37:1 are a selection of incidents in the Old Testament which show that the Holy Spirit came upon specific individuals for a purpose.
There are a multitude of verses about the Holy Spirit dwelling within the Saints.
Here is just one.
It is written in 1 Corinthians 3:16║Do you not know that you are a temple of God and that the Spirit of God dwells in you?
This was not possible under the Torah because it was promised only after the Resurrection — as part of the New Covenant (Jeremiah 31:33).
And Paul gives an important instruction.
It is written in Galatians 5:16║I say then: Walk in the Spirit, and you shall not fulfil the lust of the flesh.
That is, use the smart phone you’ve been given.
There should be only one set of prints in the sand!
The measuring rod of the Holy Spirit is stark. Anyone, including NT Saints, walk in the Spirit or not in the Spirit. There is nothing between.
It is written in 1 Kings 18:21║And Elijah came to all the people, and said, “How long will you falter between two opinions [sit on the fence]? If the Lord is God, follow Him; but if Baal, follow him.”
Jesus says in Luke 11:23║He who is not with Me is against Me, and he who does not gather with Me scatters.
Put another way, the NT Saint is walking in the World (G2889 — kosmos = the ungodly multitude; the whole mass of men alienated from God, and therefore hostile to the cause of Christ) when not walking in the Spirit.
It would be surprising if you hadn’t heard the story of the dumb phone but, as sweet as the story sounds, it is not Scriptural. The second set of prints is the NT Saint trying to escape.
But you will notice that the tracks converge.
All is not lost.
It is written in John 16:8║And when He [Holy Spirit] has come, He will convict the world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgement:
There is confusion in the pews about conviction and condemnation.
Just in case you didn’t know, they are different but closely connected in the judicial system. Simply put, conviction is the result of assessing the evidence and declaring the guilt of a person, while condemnation is declaring the penalty. The guilt (conviction) can’t be denied. The Judge, however, can show mercy regarding the penalty.
Analysing John 16:8 it is seen that the Holy Spirit convicts (warns) the kosmos, which may include some NT Saints who have stumbled. The difference is that the latter will heed the warning, repent and become blameless; while the unrighteous will ignore the warning and blunder on. (This is part of the topic of Eternal Security which is beyond the scope of this article.) It is important to mention, however, that instant repentance when stung by conviction is vitally important because it is written in Ephesians 4:30║ And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, with whom you were sealed for the day of redemption.
So what is the result of being Righteous?
The post THE KINGDOM OF HEAVEN IS NOT IKEA points out that NT Saints have the Mind of Christ, as is written in 1 Corinthians 2:16║For “who has known the mind of the Lord that he may instruct Him?” But we have the mind of Christ.
If you decide to read the post you will see that it relates to the indwelling Holy Spirit.
And it is written in 1 Corinthians 2:10–12║ “No one knows the things of God except the Spirit of God. . . . Now we have received . . . the Spirit who is from God, that we might know the things that have been freely given to us by God.
Having The Mind of Christ is not that we can do hard sums. It is a Divine Gift that gives us the ability to see things from God’s perspective.
But there’s more; much, much more!
It is written in Romans 8:11║But if (G1487 — ei) the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, He who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through His Spirit who dwells in you.
G1487 — ei = Greek conditional. This is different to the English conditional. It is explained (very poorly, I apologise — but try hard) in THE IMPORTANCE OF GRAMMAR TO YOUR SOUL that the statement about the indwelling Holy Spirit being true (and this has been verified above) means the appropriate translation of G1487 — ei is, “because.” → But BECAUSE the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, He who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through His Spirit who dwells in you.
JUST IN CASE YOU WEREN’T PAYING ATTENTION.
BECAUSE the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you
IF ME NO IFS AND BUT ME NO BUTS. THERE IS NO DOUBT!! TO SUBSCRIBE TO THE ENGLISH “CONDITIONAL IF” IS TO CONTRADICT THE HOLY SPIRIT.
So back to 2 Corinthians 5:17 and the (G2537) kainos creation which you are.
It is written in John 1:13 that you║… were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.
And in John 6:63║It is the Spirit who gives life; the flesh profits nothing. The words that I speak to you are spirit, and they are life.
2 Corinthians 5:17║ Therefore, BECAUSE anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new.
BECAUSE the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, you have been gifted the ability to see things from the perspective of God Himself because your spirit is alive in Christ! You are not the same old, same old which has had a retread.
You have been given the ultimate SMART PHONE — indescribably expensive without you having to pay the price. But you must learn how to use it. Yehovah always keeps His Remnant. There are Teaching Priests out there but you may have to kiss a few frogs before you find your prince.
You may be blessed but, in my part of town, the general standard of teaching in the Church is like running an engine designed for high-octane Spirit fuel on coal. The pulpit can read the notes on the page but they don’t often hear the melody.
CONCLUSION: The Holy Spirit has written much more than we are, in general, being told. Is it any wonder that the church in the west is wasting away? The focus is on love and good works, and Tolerance and Inclusion are the new gospel?
So when the Dark Side reminds you about bad things you did in the past, you can legally say, “What you say is true. But by the Power of the Blood of Christ, that sinner is dead,” and get on with your living your life to the full.
You are at liberty to reject that conclusion but be a Berean.
Hit me with your best shot.
The forgoing evidence has not been presented to convince any reader but to allow a personal decision to be made. There is much more to know about this subject. Perhaps you’ll pay another visit, sometime. If you have seen something you like, I encourage plagiarism. So, always check everything I say first, then please re-cycle, re-brand, re-structure, re-issue, re-label, or re-gurgitate in any manner you please. No need to acknowledge me because the Holy Spirit Who holds the Intellectual Rights.
All Glory to the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.
(We all have a plank in our eye. It’s bigger than we think.)
