2 Cor 5:17 deals with the old things and new things in your life when you become a new creature in Christ. For many of us, some of the old things fell off right away. Yet, other old things stuck around and continue to be a problem for us in this flesh.
When you are dealing with the old things in your life that are hard to change, you can help them “pass away” by replacing them with new things. Instead of just striving to get the old things out, strive to get new things in their place.
It helps to identify what the Bible calls the “old things” you’re dealing with. The reason to identify these things Biblically is that you can find the Biblical “new things” that can replace the old things. For example, “Be not drunk with wine, wherein is excess; but be filled with the Spirit”, Eph 5:18. You can easily see that the Spirit replaces the drink. Eph 4:22-32 is a great passage that includes several old things and new things that replace them.
In this sermon, we’ll talk about some other old things and new things that might not be as easy to discern as the two passages in Eph 4 & 5. These should help you develop as a new creature in Christ.
- Not covetousness for what you don’t have, but contentment with what you do have. Contentment replaces covetousness and the desire to have what you don’t have goes away.
- Not concupiscence to fulfill your want, but compassion to fulfill their need. Your heart goes out to them in either case. Compassion replaces concupiscence and the “feeling” derived from compassion is better than concupiscence.
- Not complacency with where you are in your life, but circumspection to make the changes that improve your life. Circumspection gives you a way to get out of complacency and the benefit is that your new life is better than your old life.
- Not haughtiness which exalts you now and debases you later, but humility which abases you now and exalts you in due time. Humility replaces haughtiness and gives you a much better life as a new creature with a much better hope at the end.
- Not fear which discourages you in your battles, but faith which strengthens you in your fight. Faith dispels the fear and gives you the courage to face the old things that must pass away.
Conclusion: when dealing with old things and new things, remember that the old things are easier to get out of your life when you replace them with new things from the new man at the same time.