Spiritual Life
"Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new" (2 Cor. 5:17).
What is your understanding of what that above text means? How are we a "new creature" in Jesus?
All inhabitants of this earth, whether they ever realize it or not, are God's by birth. Yet, this life we all share in this world is, as we all know, very temporary. Sin has brought decay and death not only to every human being but to all life on the planet. Nothing is immune to the crushing devastation caused by sin.
The good news, however, is that we have a choice whether this life is all we have or whether we will accept the wonderful gift of eternal life.
This eternal life, however, demands a turning around, a conversion. The Bible uses several metaphors to describe this crucial experience. The most graphic is that of a new birth, the image used to depict the turning point at which a person accepts the gift of eternal life in Christ. When this happens, the "old person" dies, and a "new person" is born.
Nowhere in the Bible is the need for this new birth described with greater clarity than in John 3. Read the section (vss. 1-21) that relates Jesus' encounter with Nicodemus. What does it tell us about the nature of this new birth? What is your own understanding of the new birth?
The new life of the follower of Jesus, who has turned around from a life of self-service to a life of commitment to the kingdom, will be characterized by growth. The newly born spiritual person needs to feed on the right kind of spiritual food and must gradually mature. The apostle Peter encourages us to "grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ" (2 Pet. 3:18, NIV).
| If someone were to ask you, "Have you been born again?" what would you reply? What does your answer say to you about your walk with Jesus? |
No comments:
Post a Comment