So if anyone is in Christ, there is a new creation: everything old has passed away; see, everything has become new!” vs. 17
2 Corinthians 5:16-17
One of the basic truths of all great world religions is that the past does not define our future, and that is most certainly true of Christianity. Paul makes that very clear in his second letter to the Corinthians when he writes that in Christ, the old has passed away and everything has become new. Given that this is the truth, it’s amazing and appalling that so many people remain caught in the past. Some remember the brokenness of dysfunctional homes. Others carry the sin and guilt of multiple addictions. Still others lament failed relationships and fraudulent behaviors. Continually looking over their shoulders they’re convinced that the future will contain just more of the same old misery and pain.
Now that may well be what happens for such folks but that’s not because it’s inevitable or predestined. What Paul taught and we believe is that in the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus we have been set free from whatever has been enslaving us. We aren’t doomed to repeat the sins of the past, and when we trust that living word of grace, the future is opened up and we can become the beautiful people God has created us to be. There’s no special formula to be repeated and no magic mushrooms. The new birth is an act of the Spirit and accessible through faith.
Thought for the Day: Where do I see the newness in myself?
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