Our Lives are Becoming New
Jesus Christ, the Lord, spoke some profound yet simple truths that tell us about our journey to salvation. One such saying includes these verses from the Gospels.
Mat 16:25 For whosoever will save his life shall lose it: and whosoever will lose his life for my sake shall find it.
Mat 10:39 He that findeth his life shall lose it: and he that loseth his life for my sake shall find it.
Note the qualifier in the Gospel of Matthew that the loss of life is for the Lord’s sake. Our suffering is our filling up in the afflictions of Jesus Christ, and that is how we are losing our old way of life. These sufferings and our loss are for the Lord’s sake because it is for “His Body” of which we are an active and living part.
Col 1:24 Who now rejoice in my sufferings for you, and fill up that which is behind of the afflictions of Christ in my flesh for his body’s sake, which is the church:
The Lord gave us the example we are following. We are to love one another as He loved us, which means giving up the wants of our flesh and instead serving others. This is laying down our life in Spirit.
Joh 15:12 This is my commandment, That ye love one another, as I have loved you.
Joh 15:13 Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends.
This is the mark of maturity when we begin to do this in deed and in truth rather than in thought.
1Jn 3:16 Hereby perceive we the love of God, because he laid down his life for us: and we ought to lay down our lives for the brethren.
The Lord is preparing us for greater works and knows what each of us needs to be ready for. We all share the same journey, but the details, the things we need to lose by our specific trials, vary. We may not fully understand the Lord’s purposes at the moment, but we are learning to trust Him in all ways.
How Does Physical Death Fit In? Shedding these clay bodies [flesh] is a certainty in the appointed time (dust to dust, ashes to ashes). Yet, losing our life for Christ is not primarily speaking about physical death. These losing our life verses, like all Scripture, are spiritual statements [Joh 6:63] and how the Scriptures should be rightly divided. Losing our life is losing our way of life, and it comes down to us being separated from the world and the world being separated from us. This verse from Paul in the NLT translation states this very well.
Gal 6:14 NLT As for me, may I never boast about anything except the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ. Because of that cross, my interest in this world has been crucified, and the world’s interest in me has also died.
Nonetheless, to reap the fullness of our new life in Christ [vs. the earnest deposit], we ultimately shed our bodies of clay and will be given a glorified spiritual body in the age to come. Thus, physical death is needed to complete the Lord’s journey.
1Co 15:36 Thou fool, that which thou sowest is not quickened, except it die
We are continuing to groan, awaiting the fullness to come.
Rom 8:23 And not only they, but ourselves also, which have the firstfruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, waiting for the adoption, to wit, the [full] redemption of our body.
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1Co 15:43 It is sown in dishonour; it is raised in glory: it is sown in weakness; it is raised in power:
1Co 15:44 It is sown a natural body; it is raised a spiritual body. There is a natural body, and there is a spiritual body.
New Life Comes from the Loss of the Old
When the Lord comes to establish His Temple within us, our life’s purpose begins to change from seeking and accumulating “worldly” possessions, interests and desires to seeking treasures in heaven. Our loss of earthly treasures is replaced over time with the treasures in heaven. When we labor to store possessions or treasure (money or anything of value to the world), we cannot be rich towards God.
Luk 12:21 So is he that layeth up treasure for himself, and is not rich toward God.
Losing what we value most in the carnal world will fundamentally change our identity and previous priorities for living. We now belong to Christ, and we lose much to create room for the Lord in our inward heaven. The void of what is lost can then be filled by the increase of Christ within us. Attaining the prize of Jesus Christ becomes the dominant driver of our lives when the Lord comes to us in our fiery trials. Paul wrote about losing all these things and having them be replaced by knowledge and intimacy with Christ Jesus.
Php 3:7 But what things were gain to me, those I counted loss for Christ.
Php 3:8 Yea doubtless, and I count all things but loss for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord: for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and do count them but dung, that I may win Christ,
Pursuing worldly treasures (money, power, esteem of men, etc.) proves to be vanity in due time as it is not for the sake of finding Jesus Christ. In faith, we are taught not to be anxious and worry about any aspect of tomorrow. All things are being provided to us so says the Lord. The carnal worries of the world need to be cast aside so we can trust the Lord with our whole hearts and minds.
Luk 12:31 But rather seek ye the kingdom of God; and all these things shall be added unto you.
Luk 12:32 Fear not, little flock; for it is your Father’s good pleasure to give you the kingdom.
To get to a mature place of fearing not and trusting the Lord, our faith is tested many times, and we will truly suffer the loss of things we once valued. This is our dying to the old man, which is our flesh and carnal mind. The Apostles often wrote about suffering and the old life being sacrificed to find Christ. Here is one of Peter’s oft-cited Scriptures. The end purpose is always our salvation, which comes only after we have suffered in the flesh.
1Pe 4:1 Forasmuch then as Christ hath suffered for us in the flesh, arm yourselves likewise with the same mind: for he that hath suffered in the flesh hath ceased from sin;
Paul wrote of the Lord’s people becoming a living sacrifice, and this too is our appointment to fulfill to be saved from our sins.
Rom 12:1 I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service.
Rom 12:2 And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.
All the required sacrifices under the law of Moses are mere shadows of the sacrifices/costs we are made willing to pay to find Christ. Becoming a living sacrifice in the wilderness (the world) becomes our living experience at the appointed time. The rituals in Leviticus under the law of Moses spoke of this prophecy that we are fulfilling with Christ. One goat is sacrificed (the Lord), and the second goat (His Christ, you, and me) is released into the wilderness to bear the sins of Israel to this very day.
Lev 16:10 But the goat, on which the lot fell to be the scapegoat [you and me, the Elect], shall be presented alive before the LORD, to make an atonement with him, and to let him go for a scapegoat into the wilderness.
In the day of the Lord, it is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the God who is now living within us. A time comes during our tribulations when we awaken to the heavy hand of the Lord upon us, and then our progress toward salvation (overcoming) that had stalled continues in earnest.
Heb 10:31 It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God.
At the appointed time, Almighty God gets what He desires, which is every man’s sanctification. He is teaching us through the fear of the Lord, and this is how His commandments are written upon our hearts.
Eze 36:27 And I will put my spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statutes, and ye shall keep my judgments, and do them.
Heb 12:6 For whom the Lord loveth he chasteneth, and scourgeth every son whom he receiveth.
Psa 119:71 It is good for me that I have been afflicted; that I might learn thy statutes.
When the Lord brings the fire of His living and active word into our lives, His grace teaches and corrects us by killing off the fading carnal way of life. It is only through death that Satan and the carnal mind, which is defined as death [Rom 8:6], are destroyed out of our lives. This only happens on the cross as we follow our Lord.
Heb 2:14 Forasmuch then as the children are partakers of flesh and blood, he also himself likewise took part of the same; that through death he might destroy him that had the power of death, that is, the devil;
To finish our race, we are enduring ongoing tribulation and becoming a true outcasts in the world. They esteemed not our Lord when He walked in the flesh, and they are not esteeming the Body of Christ either. To the carnally minded, we become a gazingstock by those who scoff and mock the Lord.
Heb 10:32 But call to remembrance the former days, in which, after ye were illuminated, ye endured a great fight of afflictions;
Heb 10:33 Partly, whilst ye were made a gazingstock both by reproaches and afflictions; and partly, whilst ye became companions of them that were so used.
Losing a life is also likened to the shedding of blood in the Spirit. Blood is the life force that supplies and sustains life in a body by bringing the needed oxygen and nutrients. The loss of blood in the physical brings certain death. So it is in the Spirit as we cannot be saved unless that life force that sustains the carnal mind is shed. Our thought life is being changed as we lose the old way and take on the mind of Jesus Christ. The types and shadows of the Old Testament regarding all the sacrifices foretold of this mystery.
Heb 9:22 And according to the law almost all things are purified with blood, and without shedding of blood there is no remission.
Paul wrote of us following Christ in death in order to be given new life and reap salvation.
Rom 6:3 Know ye not, that so many of us as were baptized into Jesus Christ were baptized into his death?
Rom 6:4 Therefore we are buried with him by baptism into death: that like as Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life.
Rom 6:5 For if we have been planted together in the likeness of his death, we shall be also in the likeness of his resurrection:
Rom 6:6 Knowing this, that our old man is crucified with him, that the body of sin might be destroyed, that henceforth we should not serve sin.
Rom 6:7 For he that is dead is freed from sin.
When someone is dead, they no longer respond to provocation or engage in the same activities they once did. Thus, our old way of life dying is the other side of the same sword that is bringing forth eternal life.
Gal 2:20 I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me.
The Cost of Our New Life in Christ
Salvation is very costly, and we are only made willing to pay the price by the hand of the Lord. Eventually, we are learning that just as the Scriptures show, it is costing us everything to follow the Lord and find our new life.
The pulls and bondage to our flesh and a carnal world run much deeper than we first understand. Thus, we vastly underestimate the costs to be paid and the fiery trials needed to be experienced to become a disciple of Christ. The rich young ruler, that is you and me and everyone in their time knows the truth yet still clings to all their fleshly possessions. Worldly possessions include our lusts and interests or anything that stands in the way of following the Lord. We must give them up to find the true treasure in heaven, taking on the mind of Christ.
Luk 18:22 Now when Jesus heard these things, he said unto him, Yet lackest thou one thing: sell all that thou hast, and distribute unto the poor, and thou shalt have treasure in heaven: and come, follow me.
Luk 18:23 And when he heard this, he was very sorrowful: for he was very rich.
Luk 18:24 And when Jesus saw that he was very sorrowful, he said, How hardly shall they that have riches enter into the kingdom of God!
It is the poor in Spirit who are the blessed. These poor do not cling to earthly things, enabling the Lord to work with them. It is difficult to be led anywhere when there is active resistance from carnal strongholds. We cannot bring all these worldly possessions into the kingdom of God. They must be left behind or lost from us.
Luk 6:20 Then He lifted up His eyes toward His disciples, and said: “Blessed be ye poor, For yours is the kingdom of God.
A poor man in spirit has sold, lost, or given away many of their possessions to follow Christ. We cannot part with these riches until the Lord makes us willing to give them up. It is impossible in our strength to let go and sell everything, yet thankfully, with God, all things are possible. Even a rich man can enter the kingdom of God when they are made willing to pick up their cross and follow Him.
Mar 10:21 Then Jesus beholding him loved him, and said unto him, One thing thou lackest: go thy way, sell whatsoever thou hast, and give to the poor, and thou shalt have treasure in heaven: and come, take up the cross, and follow me.
The further we walk with Christ, the higher the bar and the greater our understanding of these costs. I have come to see that the costs are much higher than I once understood, and when we are holding onto these “possessions”, we are not making progress towards the kingdom. The Lord’s way is not to show us all of these costs upfront but rather show them to us as we are mature enough to bear the next trial.
Joh 16:12 I have yet many things to say unto you, but ye cannot bear them now.
The specific trials and losses anyone experiences are specific to every member of the Lord’s body that the Lord has placed. Some may have more money-focused trials, others health trials, some work trials, and still others are tested hard with relationships, including marriages. There are many parts in the Body of Christ, so what is needed to prepare a part varies widely among the brethren.
1Co 12:12 For as the body is one, and hath many members, and all the members of that one body, being many, are one body: so also is Christ.
In our experiences, we have “lost” much in our years of walking in the truth. Yet the cost and forsaking of all is still a higher bar as the Lord has recently made clear. The Lord gave up everything on the cross, and we are following Him in losing our lives as well. The simplicity of losing our life is clouded by our failure to grasp just how high the cost is. This is indeed every man’s cross to carry, which ultimately costs them everything they once esteemed in the world.
Luk 14:27 And whosoever doth not bear his cross, and come after me, cannot be my disciple.
Luk 14:28 For which of you, intending to build a tower, sitteth not down first, and counteth the cost, whether he have sufficient to finish it?
Luk 14:29 Lest haply, after he hath laid the foundation, and is not able to finish it, all that behold it begin to mock him,
Luk 14:30 Saying, This man began to build, and was not able to finish.
Luk 14:31 Or what king, going to make war against another king, sitteth not down first, and consulteth whether he be able with ten thousand to meet him that cometh against him with twenty thousand?
Luk 14:32 Or else, while the other is yet a great way off, he sendeth an ambassage, and desireth conditions of peace.
Luk 14:33 So likewise, whosoever he be of you that forsaketh not all that he hath, he cannot be my disciple.
Anything held back can hinder our walk and progress on the road to salvation. The symbols of eating His flesh and drinking His blood are spiritual speak to one losing their life. For many in this age, these costs are too much to bear, and they do not continue walking with the Lord. We have seen many once strong in the faith fall to the wayside. Lord willing, we are staying the course and not turning back.
Joh 6:66 From that time many of his disciples went back, and walked no more with him.
Joh 6:67 Then said Jesus unto the twelve, Will ye also go away?
Joh 6:68 Then Simon Peter answered him, Lord, to whom shall we go? thou hast the words of eternal life.
We are in good company when we can spiritually see these things happening in our lives. Those that mind worldly things think we are strange and speak evil of us just as they did the Lord. Our lives have been fundamentally changed and there is no going back.
1Pe 4:4 Wherein they think it strange that ye run not with them to the same excess of riot, speaking evil of you:
Joh 15:19 If ye were of the world, the world would love his own: but because ye are not of the world, but I have chosen you out of the world, therefore the world hateth you.
Our transformation is gradual at first yet accelerates as we can bear greater trials the further we walk. The massive trials come later and only when we can bear them. We are understanding with greater clarity that nothing is happenstance in our lives. The Lord has declared every day and every event in advance, and we are just living them out [Psa 139:16, Isa 46:10]. These afflictions we suffer are relatively light when one considers the eternal weight of glory they are bringing forth within us.
2Co 4:15 For all things are for your sakes, that the abundant grace might through the thanksgiving of many redound to the glory of God.
2Co 4:16 For which cause we faint not; but though our outward man perish, yet the inward man is renewed day by day.
2Co 4:17 For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, worketh for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory;
The things we are suffering now are not experiences we could have handled years ago. But now we are able, thanks to the faith and understanding the Lord has given us. Our flesh, like all flesh, still complains at times, yet more often than before, we quickly see the good in the trial that is fading out the old life and bringing forth the new life.
2Co 5:17 Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away[died]; behold, all things are become new.
The Bigger Challenges
We can easily make some changes in our lives, but the deep-rooted sin and carnal way of life require some big trials to weed them out of us. One of the more difficult changes we adapt and experience is the increasing isolation from the world, including losing former friends, neighbors, and even relationships with our physical family. Yet we are not surprised because the Lord told us this would be the case.
Luk 12:51 Suppose ye that I am come to give peace on earth? I tell you, Nay; but rather division:
Mat 19:29 And every one that hath forsaken houses, or brethren, or sisters, or father, or mother, or wife, or children, or lands, for my name’s sake, shall receive an hundredfold, and shall inherit everlasting life.
To be in Christ, one is increasingly withdrawn from society. There are few with ears to hear the truth or even a desire to hear it, and we do lose interest in engaging in carnal dialogs. The word for church in the NT Greek language is “ekklesia,” which means called-out ones. To be in Christ, one is increasingly living a separated life from those not in the faith.
Those who oppose us [outwardly and implicitly] are those of our own household. This includes both physical family and the spiritual fathers and mothers who nursed us early on. To be worthy of Christ, we are being made to suffer these things. These variances become trials of our faith. We have to love Christ more than anyone else to be worthy, but at first, we are unable to pay the high costs (by carrying our cross to death).
Mat 10:35 For I am come to set a man at variance against his father, and the daughter against her mother, and the daughter in law against her mother in law.
Mat 10:36 And a man’s foes shall be they of his own household.
Mat 10:37 He that loveth father or mother more than me is not worthy of me: and he that loveth son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me.
Mat 10:38 And he that taketh not his cross, and followeth after me, is not worthy of me.
The Lord was rejected and sent to be crucified by the Jews, His own people. We, too, must be rejected by our own people in due time.
Mat 27:22 Pilate saith unto them, What shall I do then with Jesus which is called Christ? They [The Jews, Israel] all say unto him, Let him be crucified.
The more we live a godly life set apart from the world (i.e., obey Him), the more our persecution increases. In our immaturity, we are not standing at first and are going along with the world to avoid conflict and persecution.
2Ti 3:12 Yea, and all that will live godly in Christ Jesus shall suffer persecution.
Mat 5:11 Blessed are ye, when men shall revile you, and persecute you, and shall say all manner of evil against you falsely, for my sake.
Eventually, we find ourselves seemingly cut off from everyone as our beliefs and deeds are rejected by the carnal world. We are in very good company as Elijah and even Paul wrote of this isolation and rejection by their brethren. There remains a remnant in every generation set apart for His purposes.
Being dead to the world and having become a living sacrifice, we have the stench of death to the carnally minded world. Those in Christ carry with them the stench of death to those outside the faith. Yet the same stench is a sweet-smelling savor to those in the household of faith. This is not a physical sense or smell, yet there is a spiritual reality to how the Lord orchestrates the push/pull dynamic among the Elect and the world.
2Co 2:14 Now thanks be to God who always leads us in triumph in Christ, and through us diffuses the fragrance of His knowledge in every place.
2Co 2:15 For we are to God the fragrance of Christ among those who are being saved and among those who are perishing.
2Co 2:16 To the one we are the aroma of death leading to death, and to the other the aroma of life leading to life. And who is sufficient for these things?
As said above, the cost of our discipleship and losing our lives also pertains to our possessions. The Lord knows what we need and what we do not need to advance us into His Kingdom and serve Him. Part of our suffering and loss of the old life relates to losing things we highly value. This certainly includes financial things like money, stock values, homes, etc., but it also extends to anything we value or enjoy, including interests and hobbies that impede our walk. I can look back and see the Lord’s hands releasing me from possessions [playing golf, watching sports, drinking wine, etc] that were hindering my progress to finding new life in Jesus Christ.
It is not enjoyable to our flesh when our possessions are plundered, be it by theft, dishonesty, cheating, or even greed. Yet, we are given the example of the early church being joyful for the plundering of their possessions, knowing it was working righteousness within them.
Heb 10:34 For ye had compassion of me in my bonds, and took joyfully the plundering [spoiling] of your goods, knowing in yourselves that ye have in heaven a better and an enduring substance.
We should arm ourselves in the same mind in how we respond when the Lord orchestrates the losses of our earthly possessions. Faith has us forgiving everyone, knowing it was all done by the Lord’s hands.
In Closing:
To the few who are given the eyes to see the truth of what we have shared, we encourage all to continue strongly in the faith no matter what losses the Lord brings upon us. Learn to take the negative and carnal thoughts captive and look for the good the Lord is working in the trial. To the carnal mind, all of this talk of loss and dying to the world is foolishness. But to us in the faith being saved in this age, these truths are the power of God at work in our lives.
1Co 1:18 For the preaching of the cross is to them that perish foolishness; but unto us which are saved it is the power of God.
1Co 1:19 For it is written, I will destroy the wisdom of the wise, and will bring to nothing the understanding of the prudent.
Blessings to all. May the Lord keep you strong in these turbulent times and dying daily to the things of this world.