Message Minute (The Old Is Gone)

"Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here!" — 2 Corinthians 5:17

Paul doesn't mince words here. He doesn't say the old is mostly gone, or mostly forgiven but still lingering. He says it has gone. Past tense. Done.

And yet so many believers live as if the old is still calling the shots. Still defining them. Still determining what they're capable of. The hamster wheel looks like this: try harder, fail, feel shame, try harder again. And somewhere along the way, the conclusion becomes, "This must just be who I am."

But that conclusion doesn't hold up when the Bible says you are a new creation. A completely new thing has come into existence.

The Apostle Paul knew what it was like to carry a past, he had one that could have buried him in shame. But he wrote these words with full conviction. In Christ, the identity isn't defined by what was, but by what now is. That's not wishful thinking. That's the Gospel.

Reflection: Is there a part of your past you're still letting define who you are, even though God says the old has gone?

Prayer: Lord, loosen the grip of the old identity. Where shame has convinced me the past still defines me, speak Your truth louder. You call me a new creation — help me live like I believe it. Amen.