Transforming Identity: From Old Self to New Self

The Apostle as always combines his Doctrine and his practice he unlike many of his followers is never guilty of that false division the two always go together if I may put it in a phrase far too often as I was suggesting last Sunday morning at the beginning the Christian church today gives the impression that she's some kind of departmental store with a whole series of departments with a very loose connection between them the church was never meant to be like that the church is one and there are certain things which must never be divided. [00:02:52]

Christianity and morality morality is entirely negative it stops with a negative morality tells us put off the old men you don't do this and you don't do that and you don't to the other and then it fin it's finished that's morality it's always negative it's only put off the old but that is never Christianity and our Lord himself once and forever has made this thing perfectly plain and clear you remember what he says in the 11th chapter of The Gospel According to St Luke about the evil spirit that is driven out of the house by the men. [00:08:01]

The putting off and the putting on according to the way in which the Apostle is written here are to be actions once and forever but the connecting link the renewing in the spirit of the mind is continuous now this isn't my point it's the apostles he our translation unfortunately doesn't bring it out quite as clearly as it should that he put off concerning the former conversation the old men now that's he put that in a tense the aorist which means a once and for all action you put off one and forever that old man he says and you put on once and forever this new man yes but you go on being renewed in the spirit of your mind. [00:12:33]

The Apostle is really telling us here is that we ought to be what we are does that make sense to you be what you are realize what you are and be that I wonder whether an illustration will help you it seems that after the American Civil War and the liberation of some of the slaves in the South that some of the poor slaves very naturally kept on forgetting that they were now free men and they went on living and behaving exactly as if they were still slaves the same servile Spirit was there the same fear was there now actually there was a promulgation which stated that they were no longer slaves that they were free. [00:27:02]

The Apostle says why why why don't you realize these things why don't you realize that you yourselves are now dead to all this therefore he says reckon yourselves to be dead indeed unto sin but alive unto God he says let not sin therefore reign in your mortal body that he should obey it in the lusts thereof he says realize the truth about yourself Christ died to sin once and for all and you were in him and you've died and you are therefore dead to sin he says put this logic into practice and into operation neither yield you your members as instruments of unrighteousness Unto sin but yield yourselves unto God as those that are alive from the dead. [00:34:28]

The Apostle is going on to tell us that we must put off this old men everything that belongs to that because of its horrible its terrible nature that old men which is corrupt according to the deceitful lusts however the first thing we have to realize is the point that we've been making this morning which I must say again is what we are compelled to call a theological point did one apologize for theology God forbid it is a failure to understand these things that leads to so much trouble in practice. [00:36:55]

The Apostle can say to me now because you are old men is dead will have nothing to do with him don't go on doing some of the things that he used to do being that he is dead that's the argument so it is perfectly consistent the old men must always be thought of as I say in terms of our position our relationship to God we all start as in Adam then if we become Christian and born again we are in Christ and if you're in Christ you are no longer in Adam it's either one or the other and the fact that you're in Christ means that you're dead to that adamic nature dead to sin dead to the law dead to any possibility of condemnation. [00:24:28]

The Apostle is saying well here it is he says now with regard to that old life of yours let nobody be tripped by the word translated conversation here conversation in the authorized version always means conduct and behavior mode or manner of living you've got other illustration of it the Apostle in writing to the Philippians says only let your conversation be as it becometh the gospel of Christ now he didn't mean what you and I mean by conversation today he wasn't confining it to speech no no that's the whole of the life conversation he again says to the Philippians our conversation he says is in heaven which means our citizenship. [00:17:04]

The Apostle is really telling us here is that we ought to be what we are does that make sense to you be what you are realize what you are and be that I wonder whether an illustration will help you it seems that after the American Civil War and the liberation of some of the slaves in the South that some of the poor slaves very naturally kept on forgetting that they were now free men and they went on living and behaving exactly as if they were still slaves the same servile Spirit was there the same fear was there now actually there was a promulgation which stated that they were no longer slaves that they were free. [00:27:02]

The Apostle is really telling us here is that we ought to be what we are does that make sense to you be what you are realize what you are and be that I wonder whether an illustration will help you it seems that after the American Civil War and the liberation of some of the slaves in the South that some of the poor slaves very naturally kept on forgetting that they were now free men and they went on living and behaving exactly as if they were still slaves the same servile Spirit was there the same fear was there now actually there was a promulgation which stated that they were no longer slaves that they were free. [00:27:02]

The Apostle is really telling us here is that we ought to be what we are does that make sense to you be what you are realize what you are and be that I wonder whether an illustration will help you it seems that after the American Civil War and the liberation of some of the slaves in the South that some of the poor slaves very naturally kept on forgetting that they were now free men and they went on living and behaving exactly as if they were still slaves the same servile Spirit was there the same fear was there now actually there was a promulgation which stated that they were no longer slaves that they were free. [00:27:02]

The Apostle is really telling us here is that we ought to be what we are does that make sense to you be what you are realize what you are and be that I wonder whether an illustration will help you it seems that after the American Civil War and the liberation of some of the slaves in the South that some of the poor slaves very naturally kept on forgetting that they were now free men and they went on living and behaving exactly as if they were still slaves the same servile Spirit was there the same fear was there now actually there was a promulgation which stated that they were no longer slaves that they were free. [00:27:02]