“The New Old • The Old New” ~ ✨
The Bible records the acts of God. Adam and Eve, created by God, allowed sin to enter the world through their transgression (Romans 5:12, 19). Their descendants, following their sinful parents, also stand in the position of sinners, generation after generation, separated from the life of God (Ephesians 4:18). Those living in trespasses and sins are alive with a dead spirit—they are the living dead (Genesis 2:17; Ephesians 2:1-2). The living dead are consumed with the concerns of the flesh; they follow its evil desires and fall short of the glory of God (Romans 3:23).
God is holy and righteous (Leviticus 11:44; Psalm 11:7; Ephesians 4:24; 2 Corinthians 5:21). Sinners must pay the debt for their sin; for the wages of sin is death (Romans 6:23). Because of His holiness and righteousness, God must demand the wages of sin. Balancing love and justice, God provided righteousness in place of unrighteousness; this substitute for unrighteousness is God’s only Son, Jesus Christ. He became flesh, took on human form, and paid the death wage for sinners to satisfy God’s justice (Romans 3:22-26; John 3:16).
Galatians 3:22 indicates that God has bound everyone over to disobedience so that He may have mercy on them all. The promised blessing comes through faith in Jesus Christ to those who believe. Jesus established a new covenant with His blood (1 Corinthians 11:25). Those willing to enter this covenant receive forgiveness of sins (Ephesians 2:13; Colossians 1:14, 20). Believers, having entered the covenant, belong to Christ. They become Abraham’s seed and heirs according to the promise of a heavenly inheritance (Galatians 3:29). If they remain faithful to this covenant throughout their lives, they will receive all the benefits promised under it.
Christ reconciles us to God (Romans 5:11), granting us the right to become children of God (John 1:12). We are justified by faith and live by that righteousness (Romans 1:17; Hebrews 10:38). Believers move from “death in Adam” to “life in Christ” (1 Corinthians 15:22). Henceforth, believers are rescued from the dominion of darkness and brought into the kingdom of God’s beloved Son (Colossians 1:13), becoming a new creation in Christ (2 Corinthians 5:17). Those who are new creations share in the life of Christ (Colossians 3:4); if we share in His sufferings, we will also share in His glory (Romans 8:17).
The dividing line between the old creation and the new creation is “salvation.” Before salvation, one is part of the old creation; through salvation, one becomes part of the new creation. This is a process: the old self must repent, dying with Christ, being buried with Him, and rising with the Lord (Psalm 34:18; Romans 6:3-4). Those who are raised are “born again”—new creations in Christ who may enter the kingdom of God (John 3:3-6). For those in covenant with the Lord, He will put His laws in their minds and write them on their hearts; He will remember their sins and lawless acts no more (Hebrews 10:16-17).
Some may ask: Since the old self has died and been buried with Jesus, and the resurrected one is a new creation, why does the old self still exist and need to be put to death (Romans 8:13)?
The Apostle Paul points out that believers, having been crucified with Christ, have had their sinful nature rendered powerless. They are to consider themselves dead to sin—losing interest in it and no longer responding to it (Romans 6:6; Galatians 2:20, 5:24). Such people live within the new creation, untouched by sin, because they are washed by the “Word”—an inward work of the Spirit, not dependent on external observance (Romans 2:29). The Apostle John also says in 1 John 3:9, “No one who is born of God will continue to sin, because God’s seed remains in them; they cannot go on sinning, because they have been born of God.” John’s teaching aligns with Hebrews 10:16.
Those who decide to believe are baptised and join the church, but they do not automatically stay on as sinless saints. Although the sins of the old self are forgiven, the sinful nature dwelling within remains. This is what Paul describes as the two laws at work within a person: the law of the mind that submits to God, and the law of the flesh that submits to sin (Romans 7:25). Through the Lord Jesus Christ, we can be set free from the law of sin and death, for the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has set us free (Romans 7:25, 8:1).
Paul’s admonitions reveal that among believers, some still allow sin to reign in their mortal bodies, obeying its evil desires. The Apostle John teaches that no one who lives in Christ keeps on sinning. No one who continues to sin has either seen Him or known Him (1 John 3:6). To be free from the law of sin and death, believers must live according to the indwelling Holy Spirit. Those who still live according to the flesh are in trouble (Romans 8:8)! To live according to the flesh leads to death, but by the Holy Spirit we put to death the misdeeds of the body and live (Romans 8:13).
The Lord Jesus Christ has become the mediator of a new covenant. He is able to save completely those who come to God through Him, because He always lives to intercede for them (Hebrews 7:22, 25). Even disciples like Peter faced repeated temptations; Satan wanted to sift them like wheat. Yet, Jesus prayed for Peter that his faith would not fail. After turning back, Peter was to strengthen his brothers (Luke 22:31-32).
Thus, believers will face trials; some may stumble or fall during testing. The Lord said, “Those who have had a bath need only to wash their feet; their whole body is clean. And you are clean, though not every one of you” (John 13:10). This statement highlights two types of people: (1) Those who, having bathed, only need to wash their feet to be completely clean. This refers to those truly washed by “the word of God” (1 John 3:9) and the baptism of the Holy Spirit, bearing the seal of the Spirit (Ephesians 1:13-14). (2) Those who, though bathed, are not clean—meaning those baptised outwardly but not truly saved (Luke 8:13; John 8:47; 1 John 2:19).
Saint Augustine noted that “trespass” refers to sins committed unknowingly, while “sin” stems from willful disobedience. This insight helps us to understand the lesson of John 13:10 in practical life. Ephesians 2:1 reminds Christians, “You were dead in your trespasses and sins… God made you alive.” Having been made alive, we must not willfully sin. Hebrews 10:26 gives a similar warning: “If we deliberately keep on sinning after we have received the knowledge of the truth, no sacrifice for sins is left.”
As believers, we must clearly understand that Jesus Christ is the author and perfecter of our faith (Hebrews 12:2); faith is the conduit for receiving grace. “Salvation by grace” is an ongoing development: He saves us from death, continues to save us in daily life, and will save us in the future (2 Corinthians 1:10). Ephesians 4:24 reveals that to those who are saved, God grants new life created to be like Him in true righteousness and holiness. God appointed Christ heir of all things (Hebrews 1:2), and the new creation is to be conformed to His image (Romans 8:29). Christ is the cornerstone; no one can lay any foundation other than the one already laid (1 Peter 2:5-6). Therefore, believers must build on Christ’s foundation.
“Putting off the old self” is not easy. From the scriptural lessons cited above, believers can still sin. The crucial question is whether they continue to sin willfully. God never asks us to rely on ourselves. Instead, the Holy Spirit, our Counsellor given by the Father, assists us according to the Father’s will as we persevere on the path of sanctification. Those led by the Spirit of God are children of God. Those God foreknew, He also predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son (Romans 8:29).
We are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do (Ephesians 2:10). Christ offered His entire life to God. We must follow His example, serving Christ in righteousness, peace, and joy in the Holy Spirit (Romans 14:17). The new creation must be diligent, not lazy, fervent in spirit, serving the Lord constantly (Romans 12:11), bringing Christ’s likeness into our lives, and bearing the fruit of light (Ephesians 5:9).
An English proverb says, “The hardest arithmetic to master is that which enables us to count our blessings.” I think an even harder lesson is learning to count our own follies. May God help us to count more of His grace and our own folly, and less of others’ evils and follies. If any believer uses Romans 5:20—”where sin increased, grace increased all the more”—to cover their repeated sins, let Romans 6:2 serve as an active reminder. In my many experiences, I have found that when I love others more, God bestows more grace upon me and those I love. God is faithful; we should not praise Him with words alone but with the testimony of our lives.
Do God’s children fear Him? If so, we are blessed, for “the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom; all who follow his precepts have good understanding” (Psalm 111:10). All God’s works are done in faithfulness and justice. How can we keep our way pure? By living according to God’s word (Psalm 119:9; Matthew 4:4).
Should believers remain a renewed old person or become a new person from the old? My personal reminder is to be always watchful in prayer, not to quench the Holy Spirit’s prompting (1 Thessalonians 5:19), striving not to grieve the Holy Spirit, and to live within the new, God-given life. To live a life worthy of the calling we have received, we must emulate our Lord Christ, understand God’s will, and conduct ourselves in a manner worthy of God.
Finally, I encourage us with these questions: Am I more advanced in Christ today than I was yesterday? Is my conduct worthy of the calling I have received? Do I have the mind of the Holy Spirit? Since we are predestined to be conformed to the image of Christ, let us offer our bodies as living sacrifices, making our whole lives a fragrant offering.
I conclude with this poem👇🏻
“Awakening” ✨
The wind beats me, the rain strikes me, Yet why do I remain secure and steady?
The light calls me, the darkness holds me, Suddenly, Your salvation calls out to me.
I resolved to come, yet after coming, I hid in Your mercy, signing over my own weakness.
I beg You to urge me on with the thorn-pierced brow, the spear-pierced hands, and the covenant blood,
To shame the drooping hands and disgrace the weak knees,
And to open wide my heart, awakening to the truth that the Lamb died for me.
So that I am no longer just for myself.
“Righteousness” brings life, uniting the Lamb and me.
✨✨ 💖 ~
en yan hua fang 