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Saturday, December 8, 2012

A NEW CREATURE (IN CHRIST)

                           2 Corinthians 5: 1-7: 6  12.08.12

  "For we must all appear before the judge-
     ment seat of Christ that every one may 
   receive the things done in his body, accor-
     ding to that he hath done, whether it be 
   good or bad."            1 Corinthians 5: 10
                                          

    As a fallen race we  find ourselves; Children of 
God  to  be  temporarily  clothed  in  mortal  flesh
subject to struggles and temptations as are others.
 We have our hope in Christ and guarantee of the 
Holy Spirit, since our confidence is not in self,but  
in Christ Jesus.  


 Our goal is to be well pleasing to our Lord since 
at the end of our earthly  existence we  will stand 
before  Him  to give account for the  deeds of our 
flesh, receiving  reward or loss according  to our
 works here.

 Having  received Jesus Christ, we now live according to the Spirit
and  know we are judged  according  to truth,  not appearance.  As
Christ has died for us, we are dead in Christ.  Since He arose from
the dead, we have eternal life in Him.  He is with the Father and we
know where He is we shall be. Our Lord is interceding for us, thus
we have fellowship with the Father by  faith in the person and  the
work of  his  Son, Jesus Christ.  Old things are  passing away, and 
everything is being renewed in Christ Jesus our Lord. We are said 
to be seated with Him in the Heavenly places, Ephesians 2. 

Not only have we been reconciled to God in Christ; he has given to

us the ministry of reconciliation.  In Christ's stead,  we call on men
to become  rightly related or reconciled to the Father.  Since Christ
took our place,  we stand in His place,  alive in Him.  We also stand
as  new creatures, righteous  before God through the Son, with no
righteousness of our own to claim.  

The coming into the world, as a human child, by the Lord Jesus was
for the express purpose of  redemption for mankind.  Christ fulfilled
His  mission and  left a cadre of Apostles*  through whom  His  Holy
Spirit could live and work to accomplish the further mission of esta-
blishing  His  Church or  Bride.  To get  this underway,  He  died  for
each who would accept Him, then returned  to the  Father where he
intercedes on our behalf.  The  work  is being  carried out  by  these
"New Creatures,"  something unclear in Old Testament times.  They
are given the Spirit of Jesus Christ and  they can do nothing except
through reliance on that Spirit.  By the Power of God they are given
unique and specific Spiritual gifts enabling each to do his own pecu-
liar work assigned by that Spirit.  Since the "vessels" used for these
tasks had to be free from  guilt of sin,  which separates  from a Holy
God, Christ's blood shed on the cross for their sin, actually cleanses
them and makes  them to be righteous.  "Husband's  love your wives
even as  Christ also loved  the church, and  gave  himself for it.  That
He might sanctify and  cleanse it  with the  washing of  water by  the
Word,  that  he might  present it  to himself,  a glorious church, with-
out spot or wrinkle, or any such thing, but that it should be holy and
without blemish." ( Ephesians 5: 25-27)  

     This righteousness is not a righteousness of their own. It is the
 
righteousness of Jesus Christ  imputed to each  because of  a per-
sonal faith in God  the son.  We are only limited in the endeavor by
our  flesh or  physical  bodies.  God's Word  states in 1 Corinthians
15:50, "...flesh and blood cannot inherit  the Kingdom of God..."

    Therefore,  we know this  body of  flesh cannot  enter into God's eternal presence except it be changed to a  Spiritual body.  (God is 
a Spirit) In the mind of Christ we are in His Holy presence now, 

      ("...seated with Him in Heavenly places..."  Ephesians 2:4-10) 

  The guilt of sin has been expunged from our records in Christ, by
his blood and our life in christ is cleansed through the "washing of
the water of the Word..."  (Word of God)  Ephesians 5 

APOSTLE:  One who is sent. (to represent another)

                                                                
donporter,sr                                               11.25.12

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