Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature

 Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature


(2 Corinthians 5:17-21)Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new. And all things are of God, who hath reconciled us to himself by Jesus Christ, and hath given to us the ministry of reconciliation;To wit, that God was in Christ, reconciling the world unto himself, not imputing their trespasses unto them; and hath committed unto us the word of reconciliation. Now then we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God did beseech you by us: we pray you in Christ's stead, be ye reconciled to God. For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him.

Paul had hope. It was a hope for an eternal home in heaven. Because of that hope, Paul confessed that he preached the gospel in truth and humility, without being discouraged or afraid of death in the midst of great tribulation. He says that he so sacrificially labored for the gospel because he was compelled by the love of Christ revealed on the cross. Jesus died on the cross by redeeming everyone. Those who are compelled by this love of Christ will say, "Wherefore henceforth know we no man after the flesh: yea, though we have known Christ after the flesh, yet now henceforth know we him no more."To know something after the body is to judge on the basis of the body.

False teachers entered the Corinthian Church. They boasted of their appearance and judged according to the standards of the flesh. They had great eloquence, recommendations from celebrities, backgrounds and experiences that people would envy. They denied Paul's apostolic power for their appearance. Knowing after the flesh denied the gospel Paul preached. Humans hate weakness. Because they think they hide the glory of God. Because they see their appearance and follow the flesh and judge according to what they know. Therefore, they believe that those who believe in Jesus must live well to reveal the glory of God, and should not be tails but heads. People even judge faith according to the flesh.

Those who know after the flesh, those who boast of appearance, cannot accept Jesus as Savior. Jesus Christ, from the perspective of the world, is the most cursed and dead loser. At the time of Jesus, the Israelites eagerly awaited the Messiah. However, the Messiah they waited for was the Messiah who, like David and Solomon, freed Israel and gave the whole world to him. However, the Messiah appeared, but it was not the greatness I expected. Even he died helplessly on the cross. The Israelites, who expected the excellence of appearance following the flesh, could not accept Jesus as their Savior.

On the contrary, Paul boasted of his weaknesses. 『And he said unto me, My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness. Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me.』Those who are compelled not by the standard of the flesh but by the love of the cross of Christ are those who are in Christ and are new creatures. He who is a new creature in Christ does not see the world as he knows after the flesh. He doesn't judge people on the basis of visible external standards.

Everyone died because one died for everyone, and today the church doesn't talk very well about the death of everyone. If I don't die with Christ, I'm still the master. It means that they will not live for themselves again, but for those who have risen again. The word “for the person who lives again” is the expression “to the person who lives again”. Most church people today believe that "Christ died for everyone." But you may be immersed in humanism. Christ must be everything. That is to gain repentance and justification. When we repent, faith comes, when we believe, we are justified, and when we believe, we receive the Holy Spirit and become holy.

If our lives are based on the knowledge of the world, our physical emotions, and our will, we cannot say that we died with Christ. The living Jesus directs our hearts and, accordingly, produces the fruit that only the Holy Spirit can bear. We must live a life with the Holy Spirit. However, most people presume that they cannot do it themselves, and they are obsessed with the idea that everything is solved by confessing and reflecting on it.

Those who die should not live for the world, but must be overcomers toward the world. Those who live for the world are not those who are in Jesus. Those who overcome the world are those who are in Jesus. We must awaken from convenient doctrines made by people. He cannot enter Jesus unless Jesus follows what died for everyone on the cross. He will never live for himself again. So it becomes 『Therefore if any man be in Christ 』. 


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