In the last part, we started looking at practical ways through which the new man in Christ can be established in his or her newness and the first two steps were given which borders on
1. Having a consciousness of who you are in Christ.
2. Studying to show yourself approved.
The Word of God is as important as oxygen to the new man in Christ because of it's transformative and reformative impact.
John 6:63 [NLT]:
The Spirit alone gives eternal life. Human effort accomplishes nothing. And the very words I have spoken to you are spirit and life.
The mind of the new man in Christ cannot be renewed without the word of God, because there are deposits of information in his or her mind which were stored over along period of time when he or she was being governed by the flesh. These information serve as obstacles and are at variance to his or her new nature which is no longer of the government of the flesh but by the Spirit of God.
Romans 8:7 [NLT]:
For the sinful nature is always hostile to God. It never did obey God’s laws, and it never will.
This hostility towards God is as a result of the nature of information in the mind, because their source is not of the Spirit but of the flesh. The information of the flesh always rebels with that of the Spirit because they are never compatible and always at war with each other.
Galatians 5:17 [NLT]:
The sinful nature wants to do evil, which is just the opposite of what the Spirit wants. And the Spirit gives us desires that are the opposite of what the sinful nature desires. These two forces are constantly fighting each other, so you are not free to carry out your good intentions.
It's also interesting to note that our expressions whether it be in the spirit or flesh is determinant on what we are feeding the mind through the spirit or flesh, hence personal responsibility cannot be ruled out with respect to the nature of the new man in Christ.
However, inorder to feed the spirit into alignment with that of the Spirit of God by studying the scriptures to show ourselves approved of God, we should take the following steps seriously;
1. Take the position of a new born baby:
A new born baby desires the breast milk of her mother, and it's that desire that guarantees that he or she is fed and nourished by the contents of her mother's milk.
1 Peter 2:2 [NLT]:
Like newborn babies, you must crave pure spiritual milk so that you will grow into a full experience of salvation. Cry out for this nourishment
The new man in Christ must take responsibility for his or her spiritual food, not as a person who is already knowledgeable but as a new born who puts absolute trust in his or her mother to guide him or her through the process. In thesame manner, we must trust the Holy Spirit absolutely to guide us in the process of our spiritual feeding.
John 14:26 [NLT]:
But when the Father sends the Advocate as my representative—that is, the Holy Spirit—he will teach you everything and will remind you of everything I have told you.
The continual and consistent intake of the Word of God which is the spiritual diet of the new man in Christ will lead to the following;
1. An introduction of a new government to the mind which is a product of the Spirit of God and no longer in the order of the flesh. The government of the mind determines our actions.
2. A gradual depletion of the old information in the mind which was an offshoot of the flesh, to an introduction of new information which is a product of the Spirit.
3. The frequent and consistent intake of the Word of God leads to a population of Spirit based information in the mind which begins to dictate the stands of thought patterns, hence bringing into captivity anything that tends to exalt itself against the knowledge of God. At this point the new man in Christ begins to experience a renewal of the mind which leads to an exhibition of righteousness.
THINGS TO NOTE;
1. You must take responsibility for your spiritual growth, never transferring that responsibility to anyone else including your pastor. A pastor is a guide, but you are responsible for your spiritual growth.
2. Your mind controls all your actions, hence you must guide it with all due diligence, by ensuring that it is always governed by the Spirit of God.
3. The new man in Christ should never get to the point of absolute knowledge about God, because such a person becomes unteachable. We must approach the Word of God with all sense of humility and reverence.
.....TO BE CONTINUED.
Min. Awe Hilary
#TheMessenger
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