Old Becomes New

Who doesn’t like a great makeover show??

They take the guy or girl who has a horrible time dressing - always looks kind of slovenly and bring them shopping to teach them how to shop and choose better style choices, then they get a new hair style, a girl maybe a make up makeover --- everyone goes WOW!!

OR

The person who is helped to lose a great amount of weight, exercise and get into shape - sometimes even having cosmetic surgery to at the end show off the NEW THEM!!!

Other times it might be a renovation - taking out the old and outdated, updating, freshening up, making everything new and shiny! Fixing all the functional problems...

Or

Finding a piece of old junk at a flea market and giving it new life and purpose, maybe as something different.

Or

Taking an old car and fixing it up with new engine, interior, paint job and wheels...

Yes, much of reality TV these days is focused on making OLD THINGS NEW ---

Interestingly, God has been in this business a really, really, long time!!!

Before Christ, man was bound by sin, and the law of God just showed man how much they fall short of that law.

How broken, torn apart, failing, and effected physically, spiritually, and mentally we are by sin!!!

Interestingly enough, where many like to embrace the old and tired making it retro, or cool, many today have tried to embrace the sinful world making it cool and acceptable, when all along God is wanting to TRANSFORM OUR LIVES INTO SOMETHING NEW AND BEAUTIFUL!!!!

2 Corinthians 5:17 NLT

17 This means that anyone who belongs to Christ has become a new person. The old life is gone; a new life has begun!

2 Corinthians 5:17 NKJV

17 Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new.

What a powerful statement this is, yet today in the church many are trying to embrace the new but are not allowing the OLD to pass away!!!

I am not sure if we understand what it means to be “IN CHRIST”

1. IN CHRIST

What does In CHRIST mean???

Coming to Jesus means putting to DEATH the OLD way of LIFE!!!

When we come to Jesus - we are not taking on a fire insurance policy, we are not getting a self help tool, we are not adding a few blessings and perks ---

Yes - these things happen, but to be IN CHRIST is to SURRENDER OUR LIVES to HIS LORDSHIP!

The church has stopped discussing the Lordship of Christ in our lives --- we don’t like words like SURRENDER any more - because they turn people off… they have a negative connotation, or a thought of LOSS...

The real thing is if we are IN CHRIST then the OLD HAS TO PASS AWAY!!!

Romans 6:11 NLT

11 So you also should consider yourselves to be dead to the power of sin and alive to God through Christ Jesus.

Paul also said,

Philippians 3:7–8 NLT

7 I once thought these things were valuable, but now I consider them worthless because of what Christ has done. 8 Yes, everything else is worthless when compared with the infinite value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have discarded everything else, counting it all as garbage, so that I could gain Christ

IN REALITY - grabbing hold of Christ means LETTING GO OF THE WORLD --- allowing the OLD SINFUL MAN and ALL ITS WAYS DIE in SURRENDER to the WILL OF THE FATHER

They Kingdom come, thy will be done!!! It is the prayer of the disciples seeking to know Him more!

DEAD TO SIN --- the term Paul uses is these things “pass away”

What does it mean to pass away???

To cease to exist - to be in the past - to no longer have effect

I wonder if we really recognize what the old is???

Salvation in Christ has become almost a self improvement technique any more, or a remedy for what we want to fix - not what He wants to change in us!

So we need to ask ourselves some questions...

As Christians are we holding onto the OLD THINGS!!!

Behavior

Attitudes

Way of Thinking

a. Behavior

The way we act!!! The things we do… the choices we make… the way we think! The attitudes we take toward what is right and what is wrong...

The Bible is filled with instruction on how we can do things God’s way and change how we behave --- have we truly experienced Christ if we have not embraced a new way of living He desires to bring to our lives.

James says in

James 1:21–25 NLT

21 So get rid of all the filth and evil in your lives, and humbly accept the word God has planted in your hearts, for it has the power to save your souls. 22 But don’t just listen to God’s word. You must do what it says. Otherwise, you are only fooling yourselves. 23 For if you listen to the word and don’t obey, it is like glancing at your face in a mirror. 24 You see yourself, walk away, and forget what you look like. 25 But if you look carefully into the perfect law that sets you free, and if you do what it says and don’t forget what you heard, then God will bless you for doing it.

James 1.21

If the filth and evil of this world is still hanging around - have we allowed it to pass away???

It seems like Christians are always fighting to embrace the lifestyle of this world, rather than shunning it!!!

So many behaviors that God’s word calls immoral - sex outside of marriage, drunkeness, partying, homosexuality, gossiping and bitterness, greed and idolatry — are being embraced in the church.

Jesus came to SET US FREE from this stuff!!!! If you know the TRUTH, the truth will set you free!

We want Christ, or the hope of heaven or acceptance by God, but we don’t want to surrender to the WILL OF GOD - which is to put away the flesh and all its evil desires!

Romans 12:1–2 NLT

1 And so, dear brothers and sisters, I plead with you to give your bodies to God because of all he has done for you. Let them be a living and holy sacrifice—the kind he will find acceptable. This is truly the way to worship him. 2 Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God’s will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect.

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God wants to TRANSFORM US!!!! NOT LEAVE US THE SAME!

We want to convince ourselves that people we love are ok and going to heaven - so we excuse the OLD THINGS hanging around in their lives.... and in our lives — but what we are doing is ignoring what it means to BE IN CHRIST!

ALLOWING the WORD OF GOD to be a MIRROR that shows us what must change in our lives and CHANGING IT!!!

BECOMING THAT NEW CREATION that GOD WANTS US TO BECOME...

We cannot become new without letting go of the old!!!

2. Letting GO of the Old to Embrace the New

As in everything we can become COMFORTABLE with the way things are!!!

IN all those reality show topics I mentioned - people become comfortable with the hair style, the clothing style, the house falling apart around them… etc.

Over time, we stop seeing things for what they are, the dirt in the corner, the broken down faucet or appliance, the look that went out a decade ago… etc.

We often fear the NEW things because they are unknown to us, and we are not sure how others will react...

The same happens with our spiritual man and how we live...

We are holding onto the sinful ways because they are the familiar ways!

We have not experienced the joy of where surrendering to the new things God has in store will take us and what they will do for us.

In so many of those shows I hear people say - I should have done this years ago!

WOW!

The new is good!

GOD’s NEW IS PERFECT!!!!

If we are holding onto the old, we are not making room for the new.

There is a whole lot of new happening to our old facility. It is amazing how when you put new things in place, how old other things begin to look!

Yesterday I was faced with a decision - there was a vent pipe that was sticking straight up in the middle of the new ladies bathroom. In order to move that pipe it meant more asbestos coming out, more time, and taking up more space in an area that was already tight.

The contractor offered a solution that a higher efficiency furnace would allow us to vent at an angle, save us more energy, allow us to use the ceiling that was already opened up. In the long run the new would save money, the new would be quieter, the new would do a better job.

In my head at first I was trying to preserve the old, not have to change what did not need changing, but the new coming everywhere else meant another adjustment - and in time, cost, and long term benefit - going with the new was the right solution and within the contingency for that specific budget.

When God starts rearranging things in our lives - we begin discovering things that are NOW OUT OF PLACE!!! Like that vent! Sometimes it is not as easy as just clipping off a piece of the vent pipe - it takes a whole new system.

In your life - God wants to transform you into something NEW, stop holding onto the OLD

The old is of the world...

1 John 2:16 NLT

16 For the world offers only a craving for physical pleasure, a craving for everything we see, and pride in our achievements and possessions. These are not from the Father, but are from this world.

Romans 8:5 NLT

5 Those who are dominated by the sinful nature think about sinful things, but those who are controlled by the Holy Spirit think about things that please the Spirit.

Galatians 5:17 NLT

17 The sinful nature wants to do evil, which is just the opposite of what the Spirit wants. And the Spirit gives us desires that are the opposite of what the sinful nature desires. These two forces are constantly fighting each other, so you are not free to carry out your good intentions.

Galatians 5:24 NLT

24 Those who belong to Christ Jesus have nailed the passions and desires of their sinful nature to his cross and crucified them there.

Romans 13:14 NLT

14 Instead, clothe yourself with the presence of the Lord Jesus Christ. And don’t let yourself think about ways to indulge your evil desires.

Romans 8:8 NLT

8 That’s why those who are still under the control of their sinful nature can never please God.

Galatians 6:8 NLT

8 Those who live only to satisfy their own sinful nature will harvest decay and death from that sinful nature. But those who live to please the Spirit will harvest everlasting life from the Spirit.

We need to crucify the old --- let it PASS AWAY

SO WE CAN EMBRACE THE NEW THAT CHRIST HAS FOR US!

Galatians 5:24 NLT

24 Those who belong to Christ Jesus have nailed the passions and desires of their sinful nature to his cross and crucified them there.

If we are in CHRIST we are choosing to put the OLD MAN TO DEATH and LET IT PASS AWAY

3. Be A New Creation

God’s plan for you is for you to be a new creation.

Just like a catepillar becomes a butterfly, or a polywog a frog — God wants to transform you from a SINNER to a SAINT!

- The world tells the alcoholic - you are always an alcoholic - you cannot change yourself

- The world tells the homosexual, or pedophile or person addicted to pornography you cannot change - you were made this way

- The world tells us we cannot change who we are

The world is ignorant to the POWER OF CHRIST!

The abusive father can becoming a loving parent, the addict can be set free, the perverted can become whole again...

IF Jesus did not come to SET US FREE FROM SIN than His death on the cross is of no effect.

We have stopped believing that is HIS WILL, THAT IS WHY HE CAME!

Don’t tell me there is no power in the blood,

Don’t tell me the Spirit is of no effect

Don’t tell me the Word of God is not true, or flawed or irrelevant

The world tries to shove these lies upon us so we stay defeated just like they are defeated!

So we live in condemnation and guilt of our sin when God has a new path and a new life for us to lead.

If we are NEW CREATIONS - God wants to make our lives something NEW!

He wants our DIRECTION TO CHANGE!

He wants HIS PLANS TO BE FULFILLED in our lives and our children’s lives and our families lives!!!

God wants to change your name!!! Just like Jacob went from deceiver to Friend of God/ one who has prevailed,

Just like Saul became Paul, from persecutor of the truth, to AUTHOR, PREACHER, APOSTLE of TRUTH

Just like Sarai became SARAH because she would experience the PROMISE OF GOD

We need to allow JESUS to make a difference!

CONCLUSION

It is time that we stop calling ourselves Christians and living like those who are IN CHRIST!!!

IT is time we allow the OLD to pass away and allow HIS NEW to flood in!

God wants to change your name and make you into a new creation --- don’t settle for a fire insurance policy, when there is an INHERITANCE WAITING FOR YOU TO EXPERIENCE!