Daily Devotions from Lutheran Hour Ministries
"The Ultimate Makeover"
Aug. 17, 2018
Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come. All this is from God, who through Christ reconciled us to Himself and gave us the ministry of reconciliation.
~ 2 Corinthians 5:17-18 (ESV)
Scripture says in Christ we are a new creation. The question is, are we?
Take a look at your life: an honest look. Are you truly happy? Do you feel blessed? Has your life been filled with blessings and joy? Do you have peace? Most people would confess their lives have been less than perfect -- or anything close to it.
If you doubt the validity of that statement, go to the library. Visit a bookstore. There you will find countless volumes telling you how to be successful as a parent, a spouse, or a lover. You will find books on how to be a good manager, a good employer, a good employee. There is no aspect of your life where someone isn't telling you how you can do better and be better.
With all of this advice, you would think the world would be at peace, we would be content, and our homes would be happy. In truth, discontent, disharmony, discouragement, and despondency are still featured on the menu for daily living.
Scripture says if you are in Christ you are a new creation.
Are you?
Were you content and happy yesterday? Will you be at peace tomorrow? I grant the world can offer an education that will make you smarter. It can offer you great career opportunities which have the potential of making you wealthier. Without the cross, you can buy a nice home which will offer some creature comforts, but only the cross of Christ can offer you a way to have your heart, soul, and mind recreated by the gift of God's salvation which comes to us through Christ Jesus the Lord.
Only the cross can dispel the old, destroy the sin, and create a new life of joy in this world and the next. My friend, look in the Bible's New Testament, and you will find countless people -- regular, everyday people -- whose lives were transformed, made infinitely better because of a contact with and belief in the Christ.
1. There is the Gergesene demoniac who lived naked, alone, and wandered in the cemetery of his town. Jesus cast out his demons and made him a new creation, a man who would be a living witness to the new life Jesus had given him (see Mark 5: 2-20).
2. Then there was the blind man of John 9 who not only received his sight, but also found a Savior. He became a new creation.
3. There was a leper, one of ten, whom Christ recreated. His body was healed, most certainly, but he also found in his thanksgiving, a healing for his soul. For that leper, the old had gone, the new had come.
4. Should we talk about the thief who hung next to Jesus on the cross? Even as he was dying, Jesus made him a new creation, a new man.
5. How about Paul, the apostle? Once Saul, the murderer, Jesus erased the old name, the old mindset, the old ways, and created within him something new.
In Jesus, we, like them, can also be made new.
THE PRAYER: Dear Lord, for Your gift of forgiveness and eternal life which has transformed me, I give thanks. May others also experience the phoenix of a new life in You. In Jesus' Name. Amen.
Use these devotions in your newsletter and bulletin! Used by permission; all rights reserved by the Int'l LLL (LHM).
Scripture says in Christ we are a new creation. The question is, are we?
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