MIND THE NEW AND LIVING WAY

The Old Ways Lead to Death

Main Readings: Heb. 10:19-25, Rom. 12:1-2, 2 Cor. 5:17

In Christ all things become new for a Believer. This new life must be well understood and lived by faith or be lost! It must guard and guide thoughts through action to the complete overhaul of character. The Believer must therefore take all care to mind the newness, primarily through studying and meditating on God’s Word. This sermon looks at the primary areas in which newness has come to transform the Believer in daily relationship with God and what to care about and do in this life:

1.       New Saviour and High Priest: Jesus is the New Saviour and Mediator of the Believer. Without Him, people all over the world seek to relate to God through atoning practices and mediators. Even for Israel it was required that a person presents animals to priests to be offered as sacrifices for sins committed. Other peoples go about their attempt to elicit response from God through various forms of penance and sacrifices, often as prescribed by those among them that appear to be closer to the supernatural. After the death, resurrection and ascension of Christ Jesus, all such attempts and efforts at reaching God are incompetent and have indeed become completely obsolete and irrelevant. Christ is the only sacrifice whose blood indeed pays the penalty for sin, and breaks the power of sin through purifying the conscience. Also, as an eternal High Priest, He ever lives to ensure access to God for all those who put their trust in Him. (See Heb. 7:25, 9: 12-14)

It must be noted that in men’s incompetent attempts to reach God or the supernatural, they provided the sacrifices themselves, and therefore probably felt they could pray as they wished. Israel itself is not innocent of making similar petitions (Balaam, for example, was bribed to request God’s curse upon Israel through sacrifices, and David requested several retributions against sinners in general [See Num. 23:11, Psalm 35 and 109]). Those who come to God through Christ, however, must pray only according to God’s will. The Bible says clearly that God’s will is to provide for all manner of people, forgive trespasses, save sinners, and empower the saved to grow in the image of Christ. (See Mat. 6:7, 12-15, 1 John 5:14)

Renewal Actions:

·         Forsake all other attempts to reach God and come through Christ

·         Pray always according to God’s will

2.       New Nature: The Believer has a new nature not know before the New Covnant. Compared to this new nature, any other thing that can mark a person out as having a relationship with God, even circumcision which God Himself required, is useless. When a person receives Christ, He is born again and has the seed of God in him. This indwelling of God, made possible only after the perfect atoning and purifying sacrifice of Christ Jesus, makes him a totally new creature. This new creature is capable of the self-sacrificing love and sinless living of Christ Jesus. This is an explosive truth that must be taken in fully in order to unlock the full potential of the new nature to glorify God and bring multitudes to salvation. Note that this new nature attracts its own persecution just as perfect loving Jesus suffered, because it is strange to those who are yet to be released to it. You must take care not to react to such persecution in any way intended to harm your persecutors.  (See 1 Pe. 1:23, 1 John 3:9, Gal. 6:15, John 15:19-21, Mat. 5:44-45)

Renewal Actions

·         Pray for even those who have declared you an enemy and allow yourself to show sincere love to those who clearly persecute (work against) you.

·         Cultivate the habits of righteousness, aiming to live above reproach and doing good to all manner of people.

·         Other Believers have this new nature too. Recognize this and encourage them to live always according to their new nature.

3.       New Master: A Believer’s New Master is Almighty God Himself. He is no longer a slave to human beings, base passions (sin) or Satan. Before a person comes to Christ, sin is his primary master leading him to death. Satan only rides on the back of the fear of death that guilt produces, to entice and control people. Sinners so deceived become slaves to their inordinate passions, other people, deceiving spirits and Satan. Once sin is overthrown, the power of the fear of death is broken and with it Satan’s hold. The Believer is set free to serve and worship only God. This is true freedom, or freedom indeed. (See Mat. 11:28, Rom. 6:11-18)

Renewal Actions

·         Live in such a way as to always celebrate the victory over sin through Christ, just as Paul did, "O Death, where is your sting? O Hades, where is your victory? The sting of death is sin; and the strength of sin is the law.”  (Gal. 15:55-56)

·         Occupy your hands fully with the work of your New Master, Christ Jesus.

·         Determine not to live in fear or anxiety any more, for if you pass away today, you will certainly be received into God’s Paradise

4.       New Law: the Believer has been set free from the law of sin and death and can now live by the law of the Spirit of life. In comparison with what power the Holy Spirit affords the Believer, Paul could only conclude that the law given through Moses was a law of sin and death. It was a law of sin, because it was concerned not so much with what the adherents could and should do, as with what they must not do. For example, 9 out of the 10 commandments had “thou shall not”. It was also a law of death because the adherents realized more and more that they could not keep it, and that gave them little hope of life after death. In Christ, condemnation is set aside and eternal life is inherited by the Believer. If he follows the leading of the given Holy Spirit, sin will never thrive with him. Rather, he will bear much fruit of Christ-likeness, shining to draw many to eternal life. (See Rom. 8:1-2, Gal. 5:16, 22-23).

Renewal Actions

·         Walk by the Spirit, and soon, you will no longer need to be concerned about what you should not do.

·         Be filled with the Holy Spirit. Allow Him to control all that you do by being prayerful, studious of the Word and engaged in the Lord’s commission.