The other day, I texted a friend letting her know I was praying for her son.
She wrote back, “Thank you! We’ve got to pray that he would be the new creation that he is and the enemy will leave him alone!”
Her words lingered in my thoughts, and I began to ponder what it means to be a new creation. The term is such a common phrase in the church, but I’m not sure we really get it. I think most of us act like we do. But do we?
I chewed on it in my spirit. Honestly, I didn’t start studying just yet; I just talked to God about it. I let it marinate inside of me for awhile.
“Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old is gone, the new has come! 2 Corinthians 5:17.”
Paul was so excited about it that he put an exclamation mark at the end. Verse 17 is all we usually memorize, but the next verse really helps us understand better.
“All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ and gave us this ministry of reconciliation. . .2 Corinthians 5:18.”
As new creations we are made right with God. But my friends, it doesn’t stop there, because creation in the Greek is the word ktsis which means formation, building, creation, creature, ordinance.
Literally, we are different when we are in Christ, we become a different being.
So, what does that look like?
I think it is as simple as being children of light rather than darkness.
And Paul tells us how to live as children of light. He spells it out in the book of Ephesians.
Do you want to know how to be a light in this dark world and to live as a new creation? Well, here you go. Come study with me this week.
Sneak Peek:
Ephesians 4: 17: “So I tell you this, and insist on it in the Lord, that you must no longer live as the Gentiles do, in the futility of their thinking.”
Ephesians 4:22-24: “You were taught, with regard to your former way of life, to put off your old self, which is being corrupted by its deceitful desires; 23 to be made new in the attitude of your minds; 24 and to put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness.”
Ephesians 4:26-27: “In your anger do not sin”[a]: Do not let the sun go down while you are still angry, 27 and do not give the devil a foothold.”
Ephesians 4:29: “Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen.”
Ephesians 4:30: “And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, with whom you were sealed for the day of redemption.”
Ephesians 4:32: “Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you.”
Ephesians 5: 1,2 “Follow God’s example, therefore, as dearly loved children 2 and walk in the way of love, just as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us as a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.”
How to Use this Plan:
I have a theory. We desperately need time alone with God every day. But we also benefit from fellowshipping with other believers and digging deeper together. Just in case you are a word nerd and editor, I looked up the word fellowshipping in the Urban Dictionary. It’s a word, and its spelled this way. But I digress . . .
Where was I?
Oh, yeah, we need both time alone with God and time with other believers, SO that is exactly what you can do to get the most out of the Bite of Bread reading plan! Click here to download the printable for the week with the scriptures and extra questions and prompts to deepen your time alone with God. One of my friends told me she prints off the sheet and cuts up the verses and questions and puts them all around their home for that week. Thanks, Suzy! That’s a great idea.
It’s also fun to pour a cup of coffee, light a candle, grab your Bible and journal and write down the verse and your answers to the questions. There’s something about putting it in ink. I don’t know what it is, and I have tons of notebooks stacked up on my bookshelves from years of journalling that I may never open again, but I know that those moments of taking time to journal the scripture and my thoughts and prayers grew me closer to my God. Maybe it’s because it makes us sit still for a moment and ponder each word. It also helps us focus. The candle also sets the mood, and it reminds me that the Light of the World is present with me. His Spirit is with us.
Fellowshipping
I am so excited about this word. :) And I love to meet with hundreds of believers who come to my kitchen every morning Monday -Friday for a Bite of Bread on Facebook Live. It’s soul nourishment on steroids some days. We get excited as we study the Word together and dig deep. You can comment and leave hearts and thumbs up and share the teaching with friends who also need some soul nourishment. I go live on my timeline at 8:20 ET every morning. Follow me on Facebook or friend me with a message that you want to watch the Bite of Bread daily broadcast.
Can I pray you up today?
Grab my hands.
“Dear Jesus, Yeshua! Your name means salvation. Thank you for saving us. Thank you for making us whole. Lord, we want to shine in this dark world. Help us do that. Let us walk in the truth of who and whose we are. We belong to the One who spoke light into the darkness. Use our words and actions to be light in this dark world. The darkness cannot overwhelm the light. Amen.”
Shine my friends,
XXOO
Andy
It’s sweet to tweet. :)
[bctt tweet=”How to Shine in a Dark Place Reading Plan.” username=”wordsbyandylee”]
[…] week as we studied how to live as children of light, we learned that we must live by faith, not in the futility of our thinking (Ephesians […]
I need this. Over and over again. xoxo
Hey Meg, thanks for stopping by! Shine girl!