Read the transcript from today's video devotional.
I remember when I put a ring on my wife's finger. It symbolized commitment. That was my way of saying, by putting on this ring on your finger, I'm only committed to you. That was my way of saying the single life is gone and I'm stepping into a new chapter. I'm a new man. I'm a married man.
Living Into Your New Life
When Paul says to put on your new nature, he says this in verse 1, "Since you have been raised to new life with Christ," first he reminds us, you have a new life with Christ. Just like I transitioned from being single to married, Paul says, "You have a new life with Christ." You've been redeemed. You've been forgiven. You have the mind of Christ. Then he says, live into that. That's what you get. Become who you already are. As Christians, when we give our lives to the Lord, we are now righteous. We're holy. We have our position. That's who we are. Then we have our practice. Our practice doesn't always line up to our position because we still sin.
Knowing Your Creator
Paul reminds us, "Put on your new nature." Then he says, "and be renewed as you learn to know your Creator." The key is, as you learn to know your Creator, how can we put on this new nature? By knowing the Lord intimately. Here's why. Because as we focus on loving the Lord, on filling our minds with truth, as I spend time in the presence of God, God's going to remind me of who I am and whose I am. This is where community comes in as well. Sometimes we forget who we are, and we need people to remind us who we are because we have a new nature. We just have to live into it.
Remembering Who You Are
This is why when we sin, we're simply forgetting who we are and whose we are. My position is, I am free. I have the Spirit of God living on the inside of me, and I can overcome sin through the power of the Holy Spirit, because that's my new man. I need to be reminded of that. Paul says this: "Put on your new nature and be renewed as you learn to know your Creator." The focus has to be on knowing our Creator and reminding ourselves of who we are and whose we are.
