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New Wine for New Wineskins September 2006 |
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A Brand New Life - Part Two - Enter the New
Everywhere you go these days you hear people talking about how
God is doing "a new
thing" - or how He is going to do "a new thing"! According to
Acts 17 when you find people continually looking for a new thing it is
often nothing more than a manifestation of a religious spirit.
The truth is that the "new thing" prophesied by Isaiah was fulfilled two
thousand years ago when Jesus established the New Covenant...
Isaiah 43: 18 - 19
(Amplified Bible)
18 Do not [earnestly] remember the former things;
neither consider the things of old.
19 Behold, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs forth; do you not
perceive and know it and will you not give heed to it? I will even make
a way in the wilderness and rivers in the desert
2 Corinthians 5: 17
(Amplified Bible)
17 Therefore if any person is [ingrafted] in Christ (the Messiah) he is
a new creation (a new creature altogether); the old [previous moral and
spiritual condition] has passed away. Behold, the fresh and new has
come!
Ephesians 4: 22 - 24
(Amplified Bible)
22 Strip yourselves of your former nature [put off and discard your old
unrenewed self] which characterised your previous manner of life and
becomes corrupt through lusts and desires that spring from delusion;
23 And be constantly renewed in the spirit of your mind [having a fresh mental and spiritual attitude],
24 And put on the new nature (the regenerate self) created in God's image, [Godlike] in true righteousness and holiness.
The following article appeared on an internet news service:
For years, there have been rumours among the homeless in downtown San
Francisco that a drifter in North Beach was sleeping in the gutter
while he had all the money he needed in the bank.
It's true. That drifter is 68-year-old Lou Dinarde.
Dinarde is homeless, he often sleeps in the gutter or on the sidewalk,
and he has plenty of cash -- a trust fund that at one point was worth
nearly $700,000. He draws $2,500 a month from the fund plus $500 a
month in Social Security.
Dinarde's had this money rolling in since 1992, when his mother died and her assets were sold to create the trust.
Trouble is, he can't resist the bottle. He abandoned his career as a carpenter three decades ago for life on the streets.
"I'm rich, but I like it out here. I ain't sleeping inside," Dinarde
mumbled through sips of vodka last summer, as he sat with legs splayed
in front of St. Francis of Assisi Church. "You can't make me."
"We can't make Lou do anything against his will, so for the moment,
we're trying to get Lou to be a little more in the here and now," said
Cyrus Carter who runs a local alcohol rehabilitation centre. "He lives
in the past a bit. It's hard for him."
You might think to yourself, "That's crazy!" And anyone looking
at this man's situation would probably agree with you. But have
you ever thought about how the angels - who are sent to minister to
those who are the heirs of salvation - see our lack of appropriation of
the abundance that has been provided for us! We live in sickness,
poverty, oppression, etc when our every need has already been met!
In Part One we made a decision to EXIT THE OLD - to forget the former
things and to stop giving consideration to the things of old so that we
can enter fully into God's new thing!
We decided and chose to abandon and forsake
Sin-Consciousness with its crippling effects - we decided to:
COME OUT OF SIN - to stop thinking SINNER - and to have our mind renewed to RIGHTEOUSNESS
COME OUT OF SICKNESS - to stop thinking SICK - and to have our mind renewed to HEALING
COME OUT OF OPPRESSION - to stop thinking UNDERDOG and FAILURE - and to have our mind renewed to OVERCOMER and VICTORY
COME OUT OF POVERTY - to stop thinking POOR - and to have our mind renewed to PROSPERITY
If we were to look to Scripture for a summary of Part One we need look no further than:
Romans 6: 1 - 18
1 WHAT SHALL we say [to all this]? Are we to remain in sin in order
that God's grace (favor and mercy) may multiply and overflow?
2 Certainly not! How can we who died to sin live in it any longer?
3 Are you ignorant of the fact that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into His death?
4 We were buried therefore with Him by the baptism into death, so that
just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glorious [power] of the
Father, so we too might [habitually] live and behave in newness of
life.
5 For if we have become one with Him by sharing a death like His, we
shall also be [one with Him in sharing] His resurrection [by a new life
lived for God].
6 We know that our old (unrenewed) self was nailed to the cross with
Him in order that [our] body [which is the instrument] of sin might be
made ineffective and inactive for evil, that we might no longer be the
slaves of sin.
7 For when a man dies, he is freed (loosed, delivered) from [the power of] sin [among men].
8 Now if we have died with Christ, we believe that we shall also live with Him,
9 Because we know that Christ (the Anointed One), being once raised
from the dead, will never die again; death no longer has power over
Him.
10 For by the death He died, He died to sin [ending His relation to it]
once for all; and the life that He lives, He is living to God [in
unbroken fellowship with Him].
11 Even so consider yourselves also dead to sin and your relation to it
broken, but alive to God [living in unbroken fellowship with Him - this
is REVIVAL] in Christ Jesus.
12 Let not sin therefore rule as king in your mortal (short-lived,
perishable) bodies, to make you yield to its cravings and be subject to
its lusts and evil passions.
13 Do not continue offering or yielding your bodily members [and
faculties] to sin as instruments (tools) of wickedness. But offer and
yield yourselves to God as though you have been raised from the dead to
[perpetual] life, and your bodily members [and faculties] to God,
presenting them as implements of righteousness.
14 For sin shall not [any longer] exert dominion over you, since now
you are not under Law [as slaves], but under grace [as subjects of
God's favor and mercy].
15 What then [are we to conclude]? Shall we sin because we live not under Law but under God's favor and mercy? Certainly not!
16 Do you not know that if you continually surrender yourselves to
anyone to do his will, you are the slaves of him whom you obey, whether
that be to sin, which leads to death, or to obedience which leads to
righteousness (right doing and right standing with God)?
17 But thank God, though you were once slaves of sin, you have become
obedient with all your heart to the standard of teaching in which you
were instructed and to which you were committed.
18 And having been set free from sin, you have become the servants of
righteousness (of conformity to the divine will in thought, purpose,
and action).
Hebrews Chapter Six speaks about moving beyond the foundation of
"repentance from dead works and faith towards God". For
many, Christianity has become more about what you STOP doing when you
are born again than what you START doing when you are born again.
Simply put, that is nothing more than religion! When you begin to
exercise "faith towards God" you will start doing the same works that
Jesus did!
John 14: 12
12 I assure you, most solemnly I tell you, if anyone steadfastly
believes in Me, he will himself be able to do the things that I do; and
he will do even greater things than these, because I go to the Father.
He (the believer) will preach, he will teach, he will heal the sick, he will cast out demons, he will raise the dead!
Jesus didn't ever say, "Come to Me and I will carry you as you are, and
I will ignore all your junk and make excuses for you" - He said:
Matthew 16: 24
24 Then Jesus said to His disciples, If anyone desires to be My
disciple, let him deny himself [disregard, lose sight of, and forget
himself and his own interests] and take up his cross and follow Me
[cleave steadfastly to Me, conform wholly to My example in living and,
if need be, in dying, also].
EXIT THE OLD - abandon all the old hurts, wounds, disappointments, offences, insecurities, etc - and ENTER THE NEW!
John 3: 16 - 21
16 For God so greatly loved and dearly prized the world that He [even]
gave up His only begotten (unique) Son, so that whoever believes in
(trusts in, clings to, relies on) Him shall not perish (come to
destruction, be lost) but have eternal (everlasting) life.
17 For God did not send the Son into the world in order to judge (to
reject, to condemn, to pass sentence on) the world, but that the world
might find salvation and be made safe and sound through Him.
18 He who believes in Him [who clings to, trusts in, relies on Him] is
not judged [he who trusts in Him never comes up for judgment; for him
there is no rejection, no condemnation-he incurs no damnation]; but he
who does not believe (cleave to, rely on, trust in Him) is judged
already [he has already been convicted and has already received his
sentence] because he has not believed in and trusted in the name of the
only begotten Son of God. [He is condemned for refusing to let his
trust rest in Christ's name.]
19 The [basis of the] judgment (indictment, the test by which men are
judged, the ground for the sentence) lies in this: the Light has come
into the world, and people have loved the darkness rather than and more
than the Light, for their works (deeds) were evil.
20 For every wrongdoer hates (loathes, detests) the Light, and will not
come out into the Light but shrinks from it, lest his works (his deeds,
his activities, his conduct) be exposed and reproved.
21 But he who practices truth [who does what is right] comes out into
the Light; so that his works may be plainly shown to be what they
are-wrought with God [divinely prompted, done with God's help, in
dependence upon Him].
The point at which you start believing that what Jesus accomplished at
the Cross for EVERYONE doesn't apply to you and to your situation is
the point at which you invite condemnation into your life - with all of
the negative and destructive effects that accompany it.
It is the point at which you prefer DARKNESS to LIGHT, DEATH to LIFE, SICKNESS to HEALTH, OPPRESSION to FREEDOM, etc.
Even if you can only initially believe what is clearly and simply promised in God's Word at an intellectual level - start there!
John 8: 30 - 32
30 As He said these things, many believed in Him [trusted, relied on, and adhered to Him].
31 So Jesus said to those Jews who had believed in Him, If you abide
(continue) in My word [hold fast to My teachings and live in accordance
with them], you are truly My disciples.
32 And you will know the Truth, and the Truth will set you free
These Jews believed - but they had to abide/continue in the Word in
order to fully experience the reality of the freedom that the Word
brings!
Let me ask an important question - your answer will determine whether
or not you will ever be able to experience the fullness of God's
provision in your life for NOW!
When does eternal (everlasting) life begin? At the point that you first
believe, or when you die and leave the sphere of time?
If you believe that the answer is that eternal life begins at the point
that you are born again then you are qualified to ENTER THE NEW THING
that God instituted when Jesus rose again from the dead, and you are
destined to live a supernaturally empowered life of victory over sin
and death as you continue to experience the freedom that results from
believing in the fullness of God's provision for the NOW!
Alternatively, if you believe that eternal life does not begin until
you die and leave this world then you are in many respects limited in
your ability to ENTER THE NEW and, although you may still have a ticket
to heaven, you will be destined to live a life of weakness, defeat, and
despair!
When we are born again we become a NEW CREATION - we receive the nature
and life of God! We become the righteousness of God in Christ
Jesus!
Remember, those who believed in Jesus in John 8 - to whom Jesus said
that they should continue in His Word and experience the fullness of
freedom, immediately began to stumble. They trusted in and
depended more on their religious pedigree than in Jesus, and so Jesus
said that they were of their father the devil! They were stuck
with their old nature - they could never enjoy the blessing and freedom
of the NEW CREATION as long as religion and tradition meant more to
them than the Word of God!
As long as sin is preached and the weaknesses and failures of the old
nature are highlighted in the Church, rather than faith and the
strengths and possibilities of the NEW CREATION, then the fullness of
God's purposes for His people and for the people of the world can never
be fully accomplished!
We need to know that at the very moment we receive Jesus as our Saviour
- believing that He died and paid the penalty for our sins, and that He
rose again on the third day having done all that was necessary as our
substitute to turn away God's judgement and release His mercy; as soon
as we begin to confess His Lordship over our lives - at that moment we
receive His nature and we become the righteousness of God in Him!
The redemption that God has provided covers every need - perfectly
restoring fellowship between man and his heavenly Father, so that there
is no longer any sense of guilt, and all the sins of the past are
forgotten!
Hebrews 10: 5 - 23
5 Hence, when He [Christ] entered into the world, He said, Sacrifices
and offerings You have not desired, but instead You have made ready a
body for Me [to offer];
6 In burnt offerings and sin offerings You have taken no delight.
7 Then I said, Behold, here I am, coming to do Your will, O God-[to fulfill] what is written of Me in the volume of the Book.
8 When He said just before, You have neither desired, nor have You
taken delight in sacrifices and offerings and burnt offerings and sin
offerings-all of which are offered according to the Law-
9 He then went on to say, Behold, [here] I am, coming to do Your will.
Thus He does away with and annuls the first (former) order [as a means
of expiating sin] so that He might inaugurate and establish the second
(latter) order.
10 And in accordance with this will [of God], we have been made holy
(consecrated and sanctified) through the offering made once for all of
the body of Jesus Christ (the Anointed One).
11 Furthermore, every [human] priest stands [at his altar of service]
ministering daily, offering the same sacrifices over and over again,
which never are able to strip [from every side of us] the sins [that
envelop us] and take them away-
12 Whereas this One [Christ], after He had offered a single sacrifice
for our sins [that shall avail] for all time, sat down at the right
hand of God,
13 Then to wait until His enemies should be made a stool beneath His feet.
14 For by a single offering He has forever completely cleansed and perfected those who are consecrated and made holy.
15 And also the Holy Spirit adds His testimony to us [in confirmation of this]. For having said,
16 This is the agreement (testament, covenant) that I will set up and
conclude with them after those days, says the Lord: I will imprint My
laws upon their hearts, and I will inscribe them on their minds (on
their inmost thoughts and understanding),
17 He then goes on to say, And their sins and their lawbreaking I will remember no more.
18 Now where there is absolute remission (forgiveness and cancellation
of the penalty) of these [sins and lawbreaking], there is no longer any
offering made to atone for sin.
19 Therefore, brethren, since we have full freedom and confidence to
enter into the [Holy of] Holies [by the power and virtue] in the blood
of Jesus,
20 By this fresh (new) and living way which He initiated and dedicated
and opened for us through the separating curtain (veil of the Holy of
Holies), that is, through His flesh,
21 And since we have [such] a great and wonderful and noble Priest [Who rules] over the house of God,
22 Let us all come forward and draw near with true (honest and sincere)
hearts in unqualified assurance and absolute conviction engendered by
faith (by that leaning of the entire human personality on God in
absolute trust and confidence in His power, wisdom, and goodness),
having our hearts sprinkled and purified from a guilty (evil)
conscience and our bodies cleansed with pure water.
23 So let us seize and hold fast and retain without wavering the hope
we cherish and confess and our acknowledgement of it, for He Who
promised is reliable (sure) and faithful to His word.
Why would anyone ever want to remain in the old - or even a half-way
house between the old and the new - when we have the opportunity to
seize, hold fast to, and retain without wavering, supernatural hope, so
that we can boldly confess before an unbelieving world that our Father
God, who is faithful, will fulfill every promise of His Word in our
lives.
Colossians 1: 13 - 14
13 [The Father] has delivered and drawn us to Himself out of the
control and the dominion of darkness and has transferred us into the
kingdom of the Son of His love,
14 In Whom we have our redemption through His blood, [which means] the forgiveness of our sins.
We have been delivered from Satan's dominion - he no longer has a right to reign over us.
We have been transferred into the kingdom of God's Son - we are
recreated and now have authority over Satan and all of his works.
We have redemption through the blood of Jesus - all of our sins
(failures, shortcomings) have been forgiven, remitted, cancelled out,
obliterated, once and for all time removed and forgotten! NOW THAT is
GOOD NEWS!
We are the righteousness of God in Christ Jesus! The devil hates
that! He has sought to use religion to undermine and remove the
power from that truth - and sadly he has often succeeded by deceiving
believers back into once again receiving condemnation in their lives,
and so crippling them in their ability to come BOLDLY into God's
presence and speak the language of FAITH!
Righteousness restores to man all that he lost in the Fall - and
MORE! It also gives him a new relationship with God as a son -
with all the accompanying blessings and privileges!
Let's lay hold upon all that righteousness means so that we can ENTER
THE NEW - so that GOD'S NEW THING can be fully realized in the Church
as we accept all that the NEW COVENANT includes!
\o/ RIGHTEOUSNESS RESTORES OUR STANDING WITH GOD - it removes and
replaces the old Sin-Consciousness that was so effective in paralyzing
our faith and robbing us of our confidence and assurance in God's
presence. Righteousness gives to us the same standing with God
that Jesus had in His time on earth. Just think for a minute
about His total lack of fear in His Father's presence, and His utter
fearlessness in the face of satan! No wonder the devil hates
righteousness and has sought to steal the revelation of it from the
church!
Jesus had no sense of weakness, powerlessness or inferiority in the
face of demons, sickness, the weather, or even death! He was not
afraid to speak to any of these and expect them to conform to His Word!
And now we are the righteousness of God in Him - we can expect the same!
\o/ RIGHTEOUSNESS RESTORES OUR FELLOWSHIP WITH GOD - Jesus
approached and came to the Father with the same confidence and freedom
that a child comes to a parent. Jesus spoke to and addressed the
Father with simplicity and familiarity, as a child speaking to his
earthly father and not with complex religious tones and titles.
Jesus' fellowship with the Father was a perfect demonstration of the
simplicity of relationship between a child and his parent. What child
in a normal family comes home at mealtime and does not expect to sit
down at a table and eat a meal that his parent has provided. In
the same way when Jesus was confronted with the feeding of five
thousand hungry people He had complete confidence in His Father's
ability to provide for them all!
What child in a normal family should have to carry the worry of where
his next pair of shoes is coming from - that is his parents
concern! Similarly, Jesus wasn't fazed when he had to pay his
taxes and there was nothing in the pot - He knew that was Father's
concern and that He just had to receive His direction as to where the
money was kept!
When Smith Wigglesworth responded to God's call to full-time ministry
he had a successful plumbing business. He told the Lord that if
the day came that either he or any of his children had holes in their
shoes or clothing then he would go back to plumbing! Of course,
her never had to! But this was a man who knew his
Father!
Jesus had no sense of lack - whether it was in relation to money, or
wisdom, or knowledge, or ability. He knew that all of His needs
were met through the perfect fellowship and relationship He had with
His Father.
Now WE have the same fellowship - the same relationship!
\o/ RIGHTEOUSNESS RESTORES FAITH - Jesus believed completely in
the Father's ability to come through in every situation. And He
said we could do the same!
John 15: 16
16 You have not chosen Me, but I have chosen you and I have appointed
you [I have planted you], that you might go and bear fruit and keep on
bearing, and that your fruit may be lasting [that it may remain,
abide], so that whatever you ask the Father in My Name [as presenting
all that I AM], He may give it to you.
John 16: 26
26 At that time you will ask (pray) in My Name; and I am not saying
that I will ask the Father on your behalf [for it will be unnecessary].
27 For the Father Himself [tenderly] loves you because you have loved Me and have believed that I came out from the Father.
Jesus believed in who He was - we must believe in who we are in
Him! Jesus believed in the mission He had come to fulfill.
We must break loose from the restraints of false humility and believe
that we too have a mission to accomplish. Will you be called
arrogant? Probably! Will you be called worse? No
doubt!
John 15: 20
20 Remember that I told you, A servant is not greater than his master
[is not superior to him]. If they persecuted Me, they will also
persecute you; if they kept My word and obeyed My teachings, they will
also keep and obey yours.
What did they say about Jesus?
Matthew 10: 25
25 It is sufficient for the disciple to be like his teacher, and the
servant or slave like his master. If they have called the Master of the
house Beelzebub, how much more will they speak evil of those of His
household.
If you have any doubt about the need for a restoration of
righteousness, then you just need to listen to the faithlessness
evident in the words of a great majority of Christians. Many are
like Thomas who said:
John 20: 25
"Unless I see in His hands the marks made by the nails and put my
finger into the nail prints, and put my hand into His side, I will
never believe [it]."
That is not the faith of the Bible! That is not the God-kind of
faith! That is merely faith in what you can see and hear and
feel. I have heard people say, "If I could see someone get out of
a wheelchair then I would really believe in healing". But that is
not the faith that accesses the supernatural power of God and brings
heaven to earth!
We can now operate in the same level of faith as Jesus did!
\o/ RIGHTEOUSNESS RESTORES PEACE - When righteousness is
restored, peace is restored! Righteousness restores our peace
with God. The old man had no peace.
Isaiah 57: 20 - 21
20 But the wicked are like the troubled sea, for it cannot rest, and its waters cast up mire and dirt.
21 There is no peace, says my God, for the wicked
The sense of lack, the sense of guilt, the awareness of all kinds of
burdens and financial worries cause stress, anxiety, and restlessness.
But righteousness restores quietness and rest to the spirit.
Matthew 11: 28 - 30
28 Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy-laden and overburdened,
and I will cause you to rest. [I will ease and relieve and refresh your
souls.]
29 Take My yoke upon you and learn of Me, for I am gentle (meek) and
humble (lowly) in heart, and you will find rest (relief and ease and
refreshment and recreation and blessed quiet) for your souls.
30 For My yoke is wholesome (useful, good-not harsh, hard, sharp, or
pressing, but comfortable, gracious, and pleasant), and My burden is
light and easy to be borne
Romans 5: 1
1 THEREFORE, SINCE we are justified (acquitted, declared righteous, and
given a right standing with God) through faith, let us [grasp the fact
that we] have [the peace of reconciliation to hold and to enjoy] peace
with God through our Lord Jesus Christ (the Messiah, the Anointed One).
The Word of God tells us that we need be anxious for nothing!
Jesus said, "Do not worry!" We have nothing to worry about!
We are no longer afraid of the electricity bill or the phone bill or
any other bill. We have faith to meet every circumstance!
We are overcomers!
\o/ RIGHTEOUSNESS RESTORES FREEDOM - That which man has sought for and
struggled to attain to - freedom! The greatest freedom of all is
not political freedom, or financial freedom, or freedom from sickness -
but freedom from Sin Consciousness.
Galatians 5: 1
1 IN [this] freedom Christ has made us free [and completely liberated
us]; stand fast then, and do not be hampered and held ensnared and
submit again to a yoke of slavery [which you have once put off].
What were these Galatian believers being warned to resist? The
legalisers who sought to bring them back under the Law, and make them
feel guilty and inferior because they weren't circumcised!
Galatians 5: 2 - 9
2 Notice, it is I, Paul, who tells you that if you receive
circumcision, Christ will be of no profit (advantage, avail) to you
[for if you distrust Him, you can gain nothing from Him].
3 I once more protest and testify to every man who receives
circumcision that he is under obligation and bound to practice the
whole of the Law and its ordinances.
4 If you seek to be justified and declared righteous and to be given a
right standing with God through the Law, you are brought to nothing and
so separated (severed) from Christ. You have fallen away from grace
(from God's gracious favor and unmerited blessing).
5 For we, [not relying on the Law but] through the [Holy] Spirit's
[help], by faith anticipate and wait for the blessing and good for
which our righteousness and right standing with God [our conformity to
His will in purpose, thought, and action, causes us] to hope.
6 For [if we are] in Christ Jesus, neither circumcision nor
uncircumcision counts for anything, but only faith activated and
energized and expressed and working through love.
7 You were running the race nobly. Who has interfered in (hindered and stopped you from) your heeding and following the Truth?
8 This [evil] persuasion is not from Him Who called you [Who invited you to freedom in Christ].
9 A little leaven (a slight inclination to error, or a few false
teachers) leavens the whole lump [it perverts the whole conception of
faith or misleads the whole church].
Righteousness gives us the same freedom that Jesus had - freedom from
the fear of satan, and freedom from the fear of man! We stand in
the liberating truth that we can do all things in Christ, knowing that
"Greater is He that is in us than he that is in the world!
\o/ RIGHTEOUSNESS RESTORES SONSHIP - We are sons of God!
God is our Father! We know Him and we love Him and He loves
us! We are not servants. We are not sinners. We are
sons.
Romans 8: 17
17 And if we are [His] children, then we are [His] heirs also: heirs of
God and fellow heirs with Christ [sharing His inheritance with Him];
only we must share His suffering if we are to share His glory.
A BRAND NEW LIFE begins with the revelation of the NEW COVENANT!
The Old Covenant with its offerings, sacrifices and laws was fulfilled.
The New Covenant was instituted with the once-and-for-all sacrifice of
Jesus Christ. He became the High Priest, and we became the
priests of the New Covenant.
It is the New Covenant that binds the believer to Christ, and Christ to the believer.
The New Covenant brings the revelation of the Lordship of Jesus Christ - and of a brand new life that is lived by faith!
We have an advocate with the Father - our great High Priest ever lives
to intercede for us at the Father's right hand - as we, His body,
continue His works on the earth.
We need to know that our prayers can be effective - as we pray the prayer of faith!
James 5: 16
The earnest (heartfelt, continued) prayer of a righteous man makes tremendous power available [dynamic in its working].
We are the righteous and so our fired-up, red-hot prayers can make much power available - dynamic in its working!
Be bold in your prayers! Be bold in your use of the name of
Jesus! The righteous are as bold as a lion! Be as bold and
fearless as Jesus was in His dealing with satan and sickness and
disease - you have His name! You have His ability!
The key to victory is acting fearlessly, and boldly confessing the Word of God! This is what makes demons tremble!
God has given you the right - as the righteousness of God!
And so as we EXIT THE OLD and ENTER THE NEW:
Are you willing to live this BRAND NEW LIFE - leaving the OLD behind -
forgetting the former things and no longer considering the things of
old - having your mind renewed to the terms of the New Covenant - God's
New Thing!
Ephesians 4: 22 - 24
22 Strip yourselves of your former nature [put off and discard your old
unrenewed self] which characterised your previous manner of life and
becomes corrupt through lusts and desires that spring from delusion;
23 And be constantly renewed in the spirit of your mind [having a fresh mental and spiritual attitude],
24 And put on the new nature (the regenerate self) created in God's image, [Godlike] in true righteousness and holiness.
EXIT THE OLD and ENTER THE NEW
A BRAND NEW LIFE
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