13. The New Creation
SECTION FOUR The Result of the One Act of Obedience
CHAPTER XIII The New Creation
Through the Apostle Paul, God has given us two great bodies of Truth. In the Epistle to the Romans the Gospel of Grace is unfolded in a systematic way. Romans is The Gospel according to Paul. Concerning this body of truth, he writes, "But I certify you, brethren, that the gospel which was preached of me is not after man. For I neither received it of man, neither was I taught it, but by the revelation of Jesus Christ" (Galatians 1:11-12). On this subject we cite Dr. John Brown of Edinburgh. In his exposition of the Epistle to the Galatians he says, "By a direct revelation similar to that which God made known His will to the prophets of old, Paul was made acquainted with that Gospel which he was to preach among the Gentiles. He was not sent to the apostles to be instructed. In the history of his conversion, nothing is said of his receiving instruction from Ananias or the disciples at Antioch. Jesus Christ took him under His own immediate tuition, and made known to him, not only what may be called the abstract part of Christianity, but its leading facts. He received of the Lord an account of the institution of the Lord’s Supper. He received of the Lord the Gospel he preached to the Corinthians, ’that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, and that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day according to the Scriptures.’ This statement does not by any means necessarily infer that Paul knew nothing about Jesus Christ but what he learned by revelation. This is certainly in the highest degree improbable. It means that his deep, thorough knowledge of ’the truth as it is in Jesus’ was of supernatural origin."
Through the Apostle Paul’s ministry our Lord’s prophetic statement in John 16:12-13, where He says, "I have yet many things to say unto you, but ye cannot bear them now. Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth: for he shall not speak of himself; but whatsoever he shall hear, that shall he speak: and he will shew you things to come," was in a very special way fulfilled. The other body of truth, of which Paul is the revelator, is concerning "the church, which is his body, the fulness of him that filleth all in all." The church is the New Creation in Christ. The Epistle to the Ephesians is the special revelation concerning the New Creation, but the Apostle Paul speaks about it in his other epistles also. He says, "Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature (creation): old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new" (2 Corinthians 5:17); "For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision availeth any thing, nor uncircumcision, but a new creature" (creation) (Galatians 6:15); "For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them" (Ephesians 2:10); "Having abolished in his flesh the enmity, even the law of commandments, in ordinances; for to make in himself of twain one new man, so making peace" (Ephesians 2:15).
Just as the "Gospel of the Kingdom" is the good news concerning God’s purpose in the earth, revealing our Lord’s relation to the covenant people Israel and the earth, so the "Gospel of the Grace of God" is the good news concerning the finished work of Christ--His death, burial and resurrection. The truth concerning the New Creation reveals the full result of the Gospel of Grace. When Paul says, "for to make in himself of twain one new man," he does not refer to the saved individual as such, but rather to the whole company of the redeemed ones of this age. The New Creation is the supreme product of the finished work of Christ. It is eternal and infinite in glory. The Old Creation is Adam, the first man, and every child of Adam in his or her unregenerate state. According to the Scriptures it is Fallen (Romans 5:12); Sinful (Romans 5:19, Cf. Genesis 5:3); Evil (Ephesians 2:1-3); Depraved (Romans 3:9-18); Blinded (2 Corinthians 4:4); Dead in trespasses and sins (Ephesians 2:1); Lost (2 Corinthians 4:3); Energized by Satan (Ephesians 2:2); Judged (John 3:18); Condemned (Romans 8:3); Executed (2 Corinthians 5:14; Romans 6:6); Under the sentence of the second death (Revelation 20:14-15). The New Creation is Christ, the Second Man, the Last Adam, and every born-again person of the present age. It is the heavenly company, the supreme product of the sacrificial work of Christ.
Concerning Christ in His post-resurrection position we read, "Knowing that Christ being raised from the dead dieth no more; death hath no more dominion over him. For in that he died, he died unto sin once: but in that he liveth, he liveth unto God" (Romans 6:9-10).
It is in this, His risen and glorified position, that we as believers are joined to Him. Paul writes, "Wherefore, my brethren, ye also are become dead to the law by the body of Christ; that ye should be married to another, even to him who is raised from the dead, that ye should bring forth fruit unto God" (Romans 7:4). As the last Adam, our Lord is the federal head of an entirely new race, a new species. "The first man is of the earth, earthy: the second man is the Lord from heaven. As is the earthy, such are they also that are earthy: and as is the heavenly, such are they also that are heavenly" (1 Corinthians 15:47-48). The New Creation is heavenly in its origin; it is heavenly in its calling; its walk is according to the heavenly standard; and its eternal destiny is heaven.
According to the Word each member of the New Creation has been chosen in Christ (Ephesians 1:4); predestinated for adoption as a son (Ephesians 1:5); redeemed with the precious blood of Christ (1 Peter 1:19); delivered from the Law and its curse (Galatians 4:5; Galatians 3:13) by an eternal redemption (Hebrews 9:12). He is created in righteousness and true holiness (Ephesians 4:24); he is born from above (John 3:3; John 3:6) of the Spirit (John 3:6); and the incorruptible seed (1 Peter 1:23); he is reconciled to God (2 Corinthians 5:19). He is justified freely by His grace (Romans 3:24; Romans 5:1) and is at peace with Him (Colossians 1:20; Romans 5:1). He is dead to the Law (Romans 7:4; Galatians 2:19) and passed beyond its reach and jurisdiction (Romans 6:7; Galatians 3:25); he is free from condemnation (John 5:24; Romans 8:1; Romans 8:34). He is complete in Christ (Colossians 2:10); accepted in the beloved (Ephesians 1:6) and perfected for ever (Hebrews 10:14). He is joined to the Lord (1 Corinthians 6:17) by the Holy Spirit (Galatians 3:27; 1 Corinthians 12:12-13). He is indwelt by the Spirit who abides for ever (John 14:16-17) and has been sealed by the Spirit until the day of redemption (Ephesians 1:13; Ephesians 4:30). He is a citizen of heaven (Php 3:20) and is already seated with Christ in heavenly places (Ephesians 2:6). He is sanctified (1 Corinthians 1:30); saved (Titus 3:5); eternally safe and secure (John 10:27-29; Romans 8:35-39). He is destined for heaven (John 14:1-3; 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18). "As he is so are we in this world" (1 John 4:17).
Whatever is true concerning the Lord Jesus Christ is also true of every one that is "in Him." This is with reference to the believer’s position in Christ. When we read, "For in that he died, he died unto sin once: but in that he liveth, he liveth unto God," we are reminded of the fact that our Lord is forever beyond the reach of death. So, also, has the believer’s relation to sin been completely severed. Words could not be plainer than those used by the Apostle Paul when he writes, "Knowing this, that our old man was crucified with him, that the body of sin might be destroyed (rendered powerless), that henceforth we should not serve sin. For he that is dead is freed from sin. Now if we be dead with Christ, we believe that we shall also live with him: Knowing that Christ being raised from the dead dieth no more; death hath no more dominion over him. For in that he died, he died unto sin once: but in that he liveth, he liveth unto God. Likewise reckon ye also yourselves to be dead indeed unto sin, but alive unto God through Jesus Christ our Lord" (Romans 6:6-11).
These verses reveal our identification with Christ in His death, burial and resurrection. Being identified with Him as our substitute we have set before us our judicial union with Christ. Had we not been on the cross, He never would have been there, because He had no sin or sins to suffer for. Note that Paul says that we died with Christ unto sin. This refers to the sin nature, the old man. Christ’s death was not only for sin, but also unto sin. The Apostle Peter tells us that we are dead to sins. Note his words, "Who his own self bare our sins in his own body on the tree, that we, being dead to sins, should live unto righteousness: by whose stripes ye were healed" (1 Peter 2:24). When Paul says we are to reckon ourselves dead unto sin, he tells us to accept as true what God says about us. It is not what we think or feel, but what He says. In each case, the nature of the creation depends upon the act of the head. Paul says, "As is the earthy, such are they also that are earthy; and as is the heavenly, such are they also that are heavenly. And as we have borne the image of the earthy, we shall also bear the image of the heavenly." The full realization of our bearing the image of the heavenly awaits the day when we who belong to Him, shall be like Him, because we are going to see Him as He is. When Paul designates the unregenerate as "the sons of disobedience," he is not referring to their personal disobedience, but rather as the natural children of Adam their federal head, in whom all sinned and are therefore the sons of disobedience. The individual becomes a member of the New Creation when he is created anew in Christ Jesus. This is not accomplished by any works of righteousness, nor by being good, nor by turning over a new leaf as sinners are sometimes urged to do. Neither is it through any religious effort on the part of the unsaved. Being baptized and becoming a member of a local church organization does not save from sin.
No, it is when the sinner "with the heart believes unto righteousness." He is then joined to the Lord (1 Corinthians 6:17) by the Holy Spirit (Galatians 3:27; 1 Corinthians 12:12-13), and is then "blessed with every spiritual blessing in the heavenlies in Christ" (Ephesians 1:3). We have already noted some of the many blessings and benefits that constitute the riches of His grace. And now, note some things concerning the blessings that the believer is blessed with in Christ. It is God the Father who bestows the blessings; they are in Christ the Son, and are not material but spiritual.
Most of them are not experimental. Justification is not something we feel in our emotional nature nor in our nervous system. It is a judicial act of God, and therefore something that takes place in the mind and reckoning of God. Experiences will follow as the result of being declared righteous in Christ. I will never forget the day when I discovered what it meant to be justified. It was years after I was saved. The Lord used an old brother in the Lord to make it known to me. Neither are they progressive; it is not something the believer receives in installments because of any merits of his. Sonship (adoption), another great blessing, is not progressive. The saved one is as much a son the day he is saved as he ever will be in time or eternity. Neither are the blessings in Christ related to human merit, "For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: not of works, lest any man should boast" (Ephesians 2:8-9); "Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to his mercy he saved us, by the washing of regeneration, and the renewing of the Holy Ghost" (Titus 3:5); "Being justified freely (without cause) by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus" (Romans 3:24); "Who hath saved us, and called us with a holy calling, not according to our works, but according to his purpose, and the grace which was given us in Christ Jesus before the world began, but is now made manifest by the appearing of our Saviour Jesus Christ, who hath abolished death, and hath brought life and immortality to light through the gospel" (2 Timothy 1:9-10).
They are eternal in character, and not something one possesses one day and not the next. They do not change with the moon, but are fixed facts, and we are called upon to accept them as such, and to rest and rejoice in them. They are known only through the Word.
We have already noted that the New Creation is a new race, a new species. It is the People that the Lord is now taking out for His name. This is accomplished by the preaching of the Gospel of Grace, and the ministry of the Holy Spirit. When the last member has been added to this company of redeemed ones, God’s purpose for this age will be completed. The Lord will come for His own. He said, "Let not your heart be troubled: ye believe in God, believe also in me. In my Father’s house are many mansions: if it were not so I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also" (John 14:1-3). The Apostle Paul tells us how this will be accomplished. He writes, "For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first: then we that are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord" (1 Thessalonians 4:16-17). To the Corinthians he writes, "Behold, I shew you a mystery; we shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed, in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump: for the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed. For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal must put on immortality" (1 Corinthians 15:51-53). To the Philippians he writes, "For our conversation is in heaven; from whence also we look for the Saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ: who shall change our vile body, that it may be fashioned like unto his glorious body, according to the working whereby he is able even to subdue all things to himself" (Php 3:20-21). The Apostle John writes, "Beloved, now are we the sons (children) of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be: but we know that, when he shall appear, we shall be like him; for we shall see him as he is" (1 John 3:2). The assurance given to us in the Word that our Lord will come for His own has been the hope and comfort of the Lord’s people ever since He returned to the Father. It has been one of the greatest incentives in all missionary efforts. Our great missionary leaders have been firm believers in the soon coming of the Lord Jesus Christ. It is also a motive for holiness. "And every one that hath this hope in him purifieth himself, even as he is pure" (1 John 3:3).
"Now unto him that is able to keep you from falling, and to present you faultless before the presence of his glory with exceeding joy, to the only wise God our Saviour, be glory and majesty, dominion and power, both now and ever. Amen" Jude 1:24-25).