Scripture: Romans 6:4
“When we were baptized, we were buried with Christ and shared his death. So, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the wonderful power of the Father, we also can live a new life.” (NCV)
Living a new kind of life is now possible for the believer who understands and practices these wonderful concepts. We have seen how the Spirit of Christ seals us, how we must choose to be controlled by him in our thought life, and how we can put to death the misdeeds of the body by the Spirit of Christ.
The reality of Paul’s insight—“I was put to death on the cross with Christ, and I do not live anymore—it is Christ who lives in me. I still live in my body, but I live by faith in the Son of God who loved me and gave himself to save me.” (Galatians 2:20, NCV)—becomes more of our everyday life experiences. The Spirit of Christ overpowers the old self so we can walk in newness of life.
In fact, our lives become hidden in Christ: “For you died, and your life is now hidden with Christ in God.” (Colossians 3:3, NIV)
We want to see more of our life hidden in Christ. After all, to become like Christ is now one of our primary objectives in life. “My dear children, for whom I am again in the pains of childbirth until Christ is formed in you…” (Galatians 4:19, NIV)
“Dear friends, now we are children of God, and what we will be has not yet been made known. But we know that when Christ appears, we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is.” (1 John 3:2, NIV)
In the book of Acts, it was apparent that something had happened in the lives of the believers. At one point it is stated, “When they saw the courage of Peter and John and realized that they were unschooled, ordinary men, they were astonished and they took note that these men had been with Jesus.” (Acts 4:13, NIV)
This is a tough question: When people look at us today as believers, can they tell we are a people who have been with Jesus?
Today, ask yourself:
Are there signs in my life that I am a person who is walking in the newness of life?
Pray:
Help me, God, to saturate my heart and life with the truth of your Word so Christ can be formed in me. In the name of your Son, I pray.
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