Sunday Service 24/09/12. Sermon Topic: The New Man

Bible Reading: 2 Corinthians 5:14-17

“For the love of Christ constrain us; because we thus judge, that if one died for all, then were all dead. And that he died for all, that they which live should not henceforth live unto themselves, but unto him which died for them, and rose again.  Wherefore henceforth know we no man after the flesh: yea, though we have known Christ after the flesh, yet now henceforth know we him no more. Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold all things are become new.”

The above passage talks about believers in Christ, who have received the nature of God and become a new man. The new man ceases to live for himself but starts living for God because God puts his Spirit within him. The Spirit of God begins to bear fruits and one of the fruits of the spirit is love.  God himself is love. The God kind of love gives sacrificially without expecting anything back. 

John 3: 16: “For God so love the world that he gave his only begotten son that whosoever believes in him will not perish but have eternal life.”

The nature of God begins to develop in the new man the more he comes into an intimate relationship with God. The new man takes on the divine nature of God. This divine nature of God constrains the new man to love people unconditionally. It becomes easy to love the unlovable and to forgive those who have offended him. This Agape love makes the new man go out of his way to help even when it is not convenient. The divine love of God flows freely from within him. The love of God within the new man also makes him to believe in the promises of God because faith works by love.   

Galatians 5:6 “For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor circumcision avails anything, but faith working through love.”

Since the flesh of Jesus Christ was crucified on the cross and rose from the dead with a new body, God no more recons with the flesh but with the spirit of man that is resurrected with Christ. God expects us to identify with the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. Our flesh must be crucified with Christ because whatever is done in the flesh is not acceptable unto God. As far God is concerned the flesh does not exist, it is crucified. That is why the bible says that flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God. God does not evaluate us from a human point of view; but looks deep down into the spirit of man.

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.”

God also wants us to evaluate people from his perspective. If we continue to view people according to the flesh we will fail to perceive the real person that God has created in his own image. God deposits his gifts in the spirit of man. We must not evaluate people from a human point of view. People must be viewed the way God sees and values them. Any work of the flesh whether good or bad is no value from God’s perspective.

 Jesus did not give up on Peter because Peter later became the Apostle to the Jews. God did not view Saul from a human perspective and he later became an Apostle to the Gentiles. Jesus Christ was viewed by many from a human point of view. Many people did not have the revelation of the glory of God that was residing within him. This glory was revealed to Peter, James and John on the Mount of Transfiguration.  

Luke 9: 28-29. “Now it came to pass, about eight days after these sayings, that He took Peter, John, and James and went up on the mountain to pray.  As He prayed, the appearance of His face was altered, and His robe became white and glistening.”

As a new man in Christ, the old way of life is passed away and things have become new.  The old man lived without God. Without Christ we are on our own even though we try to live as best as we can. However as a true Christian, Christ himself comes to reside in us and we are led by his spirit as we learn to rely on him.  Christianity is supposed to be a way of life and not a religion.

2 Corinthians 5:17. “Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold all things are become new.”

We must allow the Lord to occupy the driver seat of our lives while we seat beside him as the passenger. The Lord himself will take us to places we have never imagined. Many Christians prefer to be the driver. They feel comfortable having God as a front passenger. Some only allow him in the back seat of their lives while they allow their friends and family in the front seat. The Lord is however faithful to his word because he says “I will never leave you nor forsake you. When you have made a mess of your life and cry unto the Lord, he will answer you and show you where you have missed it. You then need to go back to that place and surrender completely to Christ.

Prayer: I ask O Lord that you enlarge the capacity of my thirst and hunger for you.

Enjoy the blessings of God.