Some Christians have a spiritual blind spot in their knowledge of the Christian life. Despite being saved, they are mostly weak and lame. They have yet to realise what Christ has done for them and what they now have in Him. This lack of revelation leads to confusion, condemnation and even despair.

The phrase “In Christ” is the key to understanding the Christian life.

 

Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old thing has passed away; behold, the new thing has come.

2 Corinthians 5:17 (ESV)

 

To be in Christ is to be transformed into a new creation in Him. It is to believe and trust that Christ has made you right with God from the start.

 

But that is not the way you learned Christ!—assuming that you have heard about him and were taught in him, as the truth is in Jesus.

Ephesians 4:20-21 (ESV)

 

The Ephesians were already in Christ, but they needed to continue growing in their understanding of their relationship with Him until they had gained everything that they had in Him (Ephesians 1:18).

Every revelation of Christ is linked to you in order for you to enjoy and experience every good and perfect provision that comes with His Person (Philemon 1:6).

 

[You] are complete in Him, who is the head of all principality and power.

Colossians 2:10 (NKJV)

 

It is impossible to live the Christian life apart from Christ.

This is why the Apostle Paul emphasises it as a key aspect of revealing Christ throughout his epistles. To claim you are whole in Christ is to think that God no longer deals with you based on your sin but on your faith in His Son's redemptive work.

Jesus bestows upon you such incredible honour and worth that you can do nothing but marvel and exclaim, "Wow!" This occurs as a result of the new birth, in which Christ exchanges your old sinful nature for His spiritual character.

 

[Put] off the old man with his deeds, and have put on the new man who is renewed in knowledge according to the image of Him who created him.

Colossians 3:9-10 (NKJV)

 

This new spiritual being in Christ is not a change from your old self, but rather a restoration to your true identity, that is, to your image and likeness of God (Genesis 1:27; Colossians 3:10). This rediscovery of your identity of who and whose you are in Christ reconnects you with God.

The Apostle Paul refers to the new spiritual nature as the "new man," whereas the sinful nature is referred to as the "old man." As the "new man" in Christ, you no longer heed the deeds of the "old man," because you now live the life of your "true you." You achieve this by renewing your mind in the reality of your identity, which is God's image and likeness in you. The Greek word for "renewal" is anakaino, which means “to grow up, change into a new kind of life as opposed to the former distorted life, growing new strength and vigour”.

The “old man” was always a deceptive lie. It was never the person you were supposed to be. The “old man” was not part of God's original plan. The "old man," according to the Apostle Paul, is something in the past tense, but the "new man" is the believer's ever-present new creation reality.

Don’t live life as a new creation life with an old creation perspective. Don't become stuck in the past. Consider your past in Christ crucified, dead, and buried. It is not about how you used to live, because Christ is now living in you.