Devotion 1/7, New in Christ

Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!
2 Corinthians 5:17

This verse in 2 Corinthians is one of my favorite verses for it speaks of my position before God through Jesus Christ. When one is born again through faith in the blood of Christ for the forgiveness of sins, we go from being outside of Christ, to being IN Christ. When God looks at us He sees us through the veil of His Son’s blood and we are clean before Him (Hebrews 9:11-28, Romans 5:8-11). When we are born again we love God and our desire is now to please God by living our life for Him. Now we are fully aware of His love for us and all that He has accomplished on our behalf before God!

It’s better than starting over! As Christians, we get a fresh and new start. God not only forgave us, pardoned us, ransomed us, and saved us, he also made us a new creation! And every time we come to him, every day we rededicate ourselves to serve him, and every new year we offer to him, we get a new start and a whole new world. So as we begin this new year, let’s begin by offering ourselves to him, asking him to cleanse us from all unrighteousness, and take leadership of our lives.

Almighty and holy God, I want to glorify you and bring you praise in the choices that I make, the people that I influence, the words that I speak, and the actions that I take in this year. I know that I am not guaranteed a single new day, but I want each day that I live to be a day I have lived for your glory and honor and praise. In the name of Jesus my Lord I pray. Amen.

Lord, every day I start with my devotion, I find myself new in you. You overwhelm me with your grace, love and mercies. And when I reflect on my past, you always had the best plan for me. The trials made me stronger while I doubted it at the time. You keep putting me in situations to strengthen my patience and trust in you. Thank you Lord for this journey you put me on to be a better witness for you. In Jesus’ name I pray, Amen.