The Life You Have Received
"Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new." 2 Corinthians 5:17 (NKJV)
One of the most important things every believer must understand is what happened to him when he received Christ. Salvation is more than an experience that guarantees that you will go to heaven when you die. Something actually happened to you when you believed the gospel. You received a new life, you became a new creation, and your relationship with God changed completely. The Scriptures say that if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. Notice that the Bible does not say he is trying to become a new creation. It says he is one already. This is a present reality that every believer must come to understand.
The reason this understanding is important is that the way you see yourself will greatly influence how you live. A believer who continues to see himself entirely through the experiences of his past will struggle to walk in the realities of his new life. Perhaps you made terrible mistakes before you encountered Christ, perhaps your past was filled with habits and experiences you are ashamed of, but you must understand that your relationship with God is now defined by what Christ has accomplished. You are no longer separated from God. You have been brought near through Jesus Christ, and you have received His life.
As you go through today, become conscious of the life you have received. Refuse to allow guilt, condemnation, and the failures of your past to determine your expectations for your future. Begin to study God's Word to discover what is true concerning you in Christ, because the more you understand your identity in Him, the better equipped you become to live in agreement with that identity.
Prayer
Father, thank You for the new life I have received in Christ Jesus. Open the eyes of my understanding to see who I am in You. Help me to live daily in the consciousness of my new identity, in Jesus' name. Amen.
Confession
I am a new creation in Christ Jesus. The life of God is at work in me. My past does not define my future, and I walk daily in the realities of my redemption.
Further reading: Ephesians 2:4–10, Colossians 3:1–10, Romans 6:4–11.