. . . instructing us to deny ungodliness and worldly desires and to live sensibly, righteously, and in a godly manner in the present age.
As children learn to read, it is amazing to see them move from seeing a jumble of letters on a page, to recognizing words, to reading phrases, and then to understanding what they read. After learning to read, it is nearly impossible to go back and only see a jumble of letters. Now we see these letters are not random: they are put together intentionally to say something. As Christ followers, our lives are changed when we surrender to Jesus. When we make that decision, our eyes begin to view the world differently and our attitudes, desires, and behaviors change to be like His.
Because of the transforming work of the Holy Spirit and the example we have in the life of Christ, we will never see the world the same again. Ephesians 4:21-24 says, “If indeed you have heard Him and have been taught in Him, just as truth is in Jesus, that, in reference to your former way of life, you are to rid yourselves of the old self, which is being corrupted in accordance with the lusts of deceit, and that you are to be renewed in the spirit of your minds, and to put on the new self, which in the likeness of God has been created in righteousness and holiness of the truth.” May the old self and former nature be as foreign to us as seeing a jumble of letters before we learned to read. We are made new in Christ and will never be the same!
- What are some habits of your old nature? How have those been impacted by Christ?
- Are there any areas of your old nature you are holding onto? Why is it hard to let go of those things?
- Pray and repent for the parts of your old nature that you are holding onto.
