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SOMETHING OLD, SOMETHING NEW

What’s the difference between being a saint who sins rather than being a sinner? It’s more than just playing with words. Our position in Christ is settled and solid, but our daily actions, often marked by failures and disobedience, disturb the harmony of our relationships with God.

· Read Romans 7:19,24. What good do you want to do that you can’t seem to do?

· What wrong that you don’t want to do, do you find yourself doing anyway?

Your answer to the preceding question points to the biggest problem for us Christians—the sinful side of our sainthood. The more we understand about our old sinful selves, our new selves in Christ and the sin we can’t seem to shake, the better prepared we will be to grow in our identity in Christ.

FROM SINNER TO SAINT

First review the truth. What do the following verses say about you who have accepted Jesus as your Lord and Savior?

· Romans 8:9

· 2 Corinthians 5:17

· Ephesians 5:8

· Colossians 1:13

We have changed kingdoms: We are members of God’s kingdom, not Satan’s. When we first trusted Christ, the darkness departed and we are now light. We are not partly new and partly old with two creatures inside battling for supremacy. But still we struggle with Satan’s temptations, darkness and the old self …

· Remember the story of Eustace in C. S. Lewis’s Voyage of the Dawn Treader? What does Eustace’s transformation tell you about your change from sinner to saint?

If you believe you are part dragon and part human, you will live an unfruitful life. When God took away your sin, He cut away your dragon skin (and dragon heart) and you became a totally new creature. Learning to think and act like a new creature in Christ (the outer change called “sanctification”) continues throughout life. But learning to live successfully like a new creature will only happen when you accept the truth that you already are a new creature.

The Nature of the Matter. Before you came to Christ, you were dead in sin, subject to Satan’s power, and living completely to fulfill sinful lusts and desires (see Ephesians 2:1-3). When you came into relationship with God through your new birth, you didn’t add a new divine nature to your old sinful nature. You exchanged natures (see 2 Corinthians 5:17).

· What evidence do you see in your life and in your heart that you have indeed exchanged natures? Where have you had glimpses of your new divine nature?

· Why is having that new divine nature essential to being able to grow in your relationship with the Lord and become more Christlike?

Either One or the Other. Ephesians 5:8 states, “You were formerly darkness, but now you are light in the Lord; walk as children of light.”

· What’s the difference between being darkness and being in darkness? What does this tell you about yourself before you knew Jesus?

· What’s the difference between being light and being in light? What does this tell you, a believer, about your role in the world?

· What instruction follows the statement that you are light—and what does that command mean in terms of your everyday life?

In the coming chapters, we’ll look more closely at what it means to walk by faith and walk in the Spirit. Right now, though, consider how crucial it is that you have the nature of Christ in you.

With Christ’s nature within, you can be more like Christ, not just act like Him. In what areas of your life today do you most need to be like Christ, not just act like Him? Let God know that’s where you need His transforming touch.

God knows we can’t measure up to His standards on our own, so He gives us an entirely new self—the life of Christ in us. This astounding act of grace enables us to become the people God wants us to be.

IS THE “OLD MAN” ALIVE, DYING OR ALREADY DEAD?

Before we came to Christ, we were sinners because it was our natures— our old selves, our “natural” ways—to sin. We couldn’t accept or understand the things of the Spirit.

Rest in Peace. At salvation, your old inner self died by crucifixion with Christ (see Romans 6:6; Galatians 2:20).

· Your old self (the sinner) and your old nature (sinfulness) died with Christ on the cross and are gone forever. Does that mean you are now sinless? Support your answer with specific evidence from your life.

Sin and Satan are still around, and they are strong and appealing. But because of the crucifixion of the old self, sin’s power over us is broken. We are no longer under any obligation to serve sin, to obey sin or to respond to sin.

· We sin when we make a willful decision to allow ourselves to act independently of God (which is how our old self acted all the time!). What decisions from the past seven days came to mind as you read that definition of sin? Let God know you’re aware of those decisions to act independently of Him and ask His forgiveness (see 1 John 1:9).

When we make the wrong decision to act independently of God, we violate our new natures and our new identity. Such actions must be confessed and turned away from.

Once Dead, Always Dead. Colossians 3:3 begins with the words “for you have died.” Paul is describing what has happened, not telling you something you need to do.

· Where, if at all, are you—like the pastor who visited me (Neil)—struggling to let your old self die?

· God expects you to know, accept and believe that your old self has died and been replaced by a new self, controlled by a new nature. What freedom comes with accepting this truth?

The new life that characterizes your new self is nothing less than the life of Jesus Christ implanted in you. The old self is dead, once and for all.

WHERE DOES THE FLESH FIT INTO THE PICTURE?

As my (Neil’s) Navy experience reflects, when we’re programmed to react a certain way under one skipper’s authority, it takes time to get used to a new skipper. Yep, we’re talking about the old self who operated under the authority of sin (the old skipper) and the new self who is in Christ (your new skipper).

Reacting to Your Old Skipper. Our old sinful selves with their sinful natures were cruel, self-serving skippers under the authority of Satan himself. By God’s grace, we have a new admiral—Jesus—and a new skipper: Our new selves are powered by the divine nature of Jesus Christ. So why do we live as if our old skippers are still in control? Because everything we learned before we became Christians was programmed into our brains.

· What habits and patterns of thinking that you learned from the world still influence how you act?

· In what areas of your life do you especially tend to operate independently of God and center your interests on yourself?

When you were born again, your old self died and your new self came to life. But your flesh (your previously learned independence) remained. So even though your old skipper is gone, your flesh remains in opposition to God as a programmed tendency for sin— living independently of God.

Responding to Your New Skipper. As a Christian you are no longer “in the flesh” or spiritually dead. You are in Christ. But even though you are not in the flesh, you may still choose to walk according to the flesh (see Romans 8:12-13). You may still act independently of God by saying yes to the patterns and habits programmed into your mind by the world you lived in.

· It’s your responsibility to keep the flesh and its deeds from dominating your life. How well are you doing that? If you’re experiencing success, what’s your secret? If you’re struggling, try to figure out why.

How can you keep the flesh from dominating your life? First, by learning to walk in the Spirit (see Galatians 5:1) and, second, by letting God transform your pattern of thinking by “the renewing of your mind” (Romans 12:2). Those two topics are the focus of the next five chapters. (Yes, five! This is important stuff!) But first, a few more things about sin and sainthood.

WHAT ROLE DOES SIN PLAY IN OUR STRUGGLE
TOWARD SAINTLY BEHAVIOR?

When you received Christ, the power of sin to dominate you was broken. You no longer have to sin, but sin still strongly appeals to your flesh, tempting you to act independently of God. It is your responsibility to not let sin reign in your life (see Romans 6:12-13).

Doing What I Don’t Want to Do. We’re back to recognizing once again, with Paul, that we know what we should be doing, but we can’t do it (see Romans 7:15-16).

· According to Romans 7:20, why can’t you and I do what we know we should be doing?

· What did you learn about yourself and the sin living in you from the comparison of sin to a sliver in your finger (see page 51)?

On the Battleground. Now let’s look at where the struggle to do what you want to do takes place.

· According to Romans 7:22-23, where does your desire to do what’s right come from?

· Where does sin attack in an attempt to keep you from doing right?

· Where do these opponents—your new self and your flesh— wage war?

· What kind of defensive strategy does that location suggest to you?

The battleground between your new self (your inner being) and your flesh (your previously learned independence) is your mind. That’s why it is so important for you to learn how to renew your mind (see Romans 12:2) and take every thought captive to the obedience of Christ (see 2 Corinthians 10:5). So stay tuned—and remember that, thanks to God, the battle for your mind is a winnable war.

START STOMPING!

A Little Help from a Friend. Sometimes we are the last to notice any changes or growth in ourselves because we live with ourselves day in and day out. It may be hard for you to identify any changes in your life and in your heart since you named Jesus your Lord and exchanged natures. So ask a friend or two what changes they have seen and are seeing in you as you continue along your Christian walk.

Bon Voyage, Skipper. Get together with a close friend or two from church and have a farewell party for the old skipper. That means good food and plenty of it as you talk about the old skipper and celebrate his or her departure. Share your lists of those habits and patterns of thinking that each of you learned from the world and that still influence how you act. Let each other know those areas of your life where you tend to operate independently of God and center your interests on yourself. Then, as a way of saying farewell to these things, agree to ask each other from time to time how life under the new skipper is. This will remind you that the old skipper is in fact gone and encourage you to respond only to the new skipper.

Drive Defensively! Okay, the opponents have been identified and the battleground located. The war between your new self (your inner being) and your flesh (your previously learned independence) occurs in your mind. Before we get to the five chapters on how to win the war, ask some Christian friends (ideally, some folks who’ve been dealing with this battle for a lot longer than you have) what they do to stand strong in the Lord and resist the appeals of the flesh, their old skippers. No need to wait until the next chapter to start driving defensively!

God, I could have written those words that Paul said—I do what I don’t want to do and I don’t do what I want to do. And sometimes it’s awfully easy to act independently of You. I had a lot of practice doing that! I’m glad this chapter reminded me that this struggle against independence and sin is a winnable war. I’m sure anxious to learn how to win. Help me stand strong in You against the appeal of sin, that old skipper I know too well. Thanks. I pray in Jesus’ name. Amen.

STRENGTH GIVERS

These words are for you and about you! As you read each day’s verse, ask yourself, “How would my life be different if I could live out this truth?”—and ask God to help you do so.

Monday:	Romans 6:1-6
Tuesday:	1 Thessalonians 5:5
Wednesday:	Galatians 2:20
Thursday:	1 Corinthians 3:16
Friday:	1 John 3:1-2