Brand Spanking New | JOE AMARAL
Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come. 2 Corinthians 5:17
2 Corinthians 5:17 (ESV)
If I hadn’t gone into Pastoral Ministry or Christian Media, I think I would have gone into real estate. I don’t know what it is, but there’s something about the housing market that I just absolutely love. My poor wife has had to put up with this hobby for more than 30 years now. Believe it or not, we have moved 13 times over the past 33 years. Yep, you read that right.
There are two main options when it comes to purchasing a house. You can either get a new build, or a resale. There are advantages and disadvantages to both possibilities. The nice thing about a brand-new home is that you get to pick all of the finishes according to your taste. One of the advantages to buying a resale home is that some of the major work has been done over the years, such as finishing a basement or fencing in the backyard. Like I said, there are pros and cons to both choices. So why am I talking to you about real estate. Because, there are actually a lot of similarities between real estate and our lives.
The day you said yes to Jesus, you became a brand-new person. Tragically, many people don’t see themselves that way. Instead of accepting the fact that God sees us as a brand new build, we still see ourselves as a resale and are constantly working on trying to remodel and update the old model. Think of it this way… When you surrender your life to Jesus, it’s like buying an older home that sits on a highly desired piece of property. Instead of trying to upgrade the old, you will get the highest value out of the property by completely doing away with the old home and building something brand new from the ground up.
You don’t use any of the old electrical or the plumbing, you literally get rid of everything and start from scratch. You build a proper foundation, you do all the wiring and plumbing to code and the highest standars. You use and source out the best materials possible. That’s what happens to you when you surrender your life to Jesus. The Greek words used in this passage for “new” and “creation” back up this type of thinking.
God wants you to start seeing yourself as he sees you. The old nature, the old struggles, the old sins, he has given you the power to overcome them all, because the Bible says that the same spirit that raised Christ from the dead, is at work in you. If we can really allow that to sink in and choose to live as a brand-new creation, then we can look forward to the future with great excitement and anticipation
2023 is behind you. Whatever happened, happened. You are a brand-new creature that has been given a brand-new year and a brand-new opportunity to live a life, of freedom and blessing. As the scripture says,
This day I call the heavens and the earth as witnesses against you that I have set before you life and death, blessings and curses. Now choose life!
Deuteronomy 30:19
