Would you turn down $100 million offered to you freely with no charge or hidden catch? Most people would receive it with wonder and gratitude.
Do you know what God is offering you? Not $100 million, but much, much more! What God is offering you is absolutely priceless. His desire is not just to give you blessings, but to take you into His family and place you in His kingdom, to transform you into a new person with a new life, new desires and a new future.
Paul says: “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come” (2Co 5:17 ESV).
Being made new is about a new appreciation. The first word in verse 17 is “therefore.” It is a word linking what will be said with what has been said. Paul just said, “He [Jesus] died for all, that those who live might no longer live for themselves but for him who for their sake died and was raised” (v15 ESV). True believers have personally come to know and value who the Lord Jesus is and what He has done. He is the one and only Savior, the one sent by God to provide salvation for a guilty, sinful world. Upon the cross, He suffered and paid the price for our sins. Those who receive this salvation are those who are willing to abandon their life of sin and choose Christ as their Savior and Lord. Do you value the Lord Jesus Christ?
Being made new is about a new identification. Each one of us, born into the human family, is naturally a sinner because of Adam’s sin. Like a leopard is born with spots and a zebra with stripes, so we are born sinners because it is our nature (Rom 5:12). When God saves a person from their sin, He places them into His family, making them His children. This is what is described in 2 Corinthians 5:17 as being “in Christ.” It is a place of nearness to Christ, where the barrier of sin has been broken by the cross and the sinner has sweet fellowship with God. It is a place of security in Christ, where we know the peace of sins forgiven and the comfort of God’s love. It is a place of enjoyment of Christ, where we get to behold and wonder at His beauty. Are you enjoying this new identity in Christ?
Being made new is about a new creation. It’s what it means to be born again. It is what God does in you when you trust in Christ. He gives you a new nature, the very nature of God Himself. From personal experience, I can honestly say that life in Christ is an amazing life! Words fall short of conveying its full reality. Receive His Son today and be made new!
