SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 4/29/2017
9:09 PM
My Worship Time Focus: PT-2 “The Position of the New Man”
Bible Reading & Meditation Reference: Colossians 3:9b-10a
Message of the
verses: “since you laid aside the
old self with its evil practices, and have put on the new self.”
We spoke of true believers as being in Christ and once
this happened at their time of conversation they have laid aside the old self
with its evil practices and have put on the new self, and even though at times
believers do not live like they have laid aside the old self, in position they
have done so.
The Bible views all men as either in Christ or in Adam as
there is no middle ground at all. John
MacArthur quotes Puritan Thomas Goodwin “There are but two men that are seen
standing before God, Adam and Jesus Christ; and these two men have all other
men hanging at their girdles.” Not sue
girdle is the correct term as we are living in the 31 century, but I think the
point is made.
Let us look at what Paul wrote to the Romans explaining
the contrast between Adam and Christ: “12
Therefore, just as through one man sin entered into the world, and death
through sin, and so death spread to all men, because all sinned- 13 for until
the Law sin was in the world, but sin is not imputed when there is no law. 14
Nevertheless death reigned from Adam until Moses, even over those who had not
sinned in the likeness of the offense of Adam, who is a type of Him who was to
come. 15 But the free gift is not like the transgression. For if by the
transgression of the one the many died, much more did the grace of God and the
gift by the grace of the one Man, Jesus Christ, abound to the many. 16 The gift is not like that which came through
the one who sinned; for on the one hand the judgment arose from one transgression resulting
in condemnation, but on the other hand the free gift arose from many
transgressions resulting in justification.
17 For if by the transgression of the one, death reigned through the one, much
more those who receive the abundance of grace and of the gift of righteousness will
reign in life through the One, Jesus Christ. 18 So then as through one
transgression there resulted condemnation to all men, even so through one act
of righteousness there resulted justification of life to all men. 19 For as through the one man’s disobedience
the many were made sinners, even so through the obedience of the One the many
will be made righteous. 20 The Law came in so that the transgression would increase;
but where sin increased, grace abounded all the more, 21 so that, as sin reigned in death, even so
grace would reign through righteousness to eternal life through Jesus Christ
our Lord (Romans 5:12-21).”
John MacArthur asks “The question then arises as to why
believers sin if the old self is gone.
They do so because the new self lives in the old body and must content
with the flesh. Paul shows this in the
conflict described in Romans 7:14-25. He
makes it clear there that sin is not in the inner man, the “I” that loves what
is holy, but is in the flesh. ‘The flesh’
does not mean the body in and of itself; but it does mean the body as it is
being used and tyrannized over by sin. It means the body as it is possessed by sin
and evil; it is the body as sin dwells in it during this earthly life.’ (D.
Martyn Lloyd-Jones) The flesh includes
all the sinful desires, drives, and passions associated with our
humanness. The presence of the
unredeemed flesh causes us to ‘groan within ourselves, waiting eagerly for our
adoption as sons, the redemption of our body’ (Romans 8;23).”
4/29/2017
9:26 PM
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