“Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation, the old has gone, the new has come.â€

~2 Corinthians 5:17

While writing about the new creation realities to the church in Corinth, Apostle Paul took time to state that these realities belonged to those who are in Christ.

And, what exactly does it mean to be in Christ?

To be in Christ means that you have believed in Jesus as the Son of God. It is important  you get this distinction early on in this series. Quite a lot of folks believe in Jesus Christ; but the fact that they believe in Him doesn’t put them in Christ. It is what you believe about Jesus that matters.

Some believe that Jesus Christ was a good man that lived and died so many years ago. Some other religions believe that He was a great teacher, while some believe that He was a mighty prophet. While all of those things are true, believing any of those things about Jesus won’t put you in Christ. What puts you in Christ is that you believe that Jesus Christ is the son of God.

You have to believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God. You have to believe that Jesus came into this world from God.  And that Jesus died on the cross, not as a martyr, but as a substitute for you and I. Jesus didn’t die on the cross for what He believed. His death on the cross was not an accident. He didn’t die on the cross as a crook. Jesus died on the cross as a substitute and a sacrifice. He said, ‘This instruction I receive from my Father, that I lay down my life.’ He gave up His life for the salvation of mankind.

So it’s not enough to believe that Jesus existed, that He was a guru, a prophet, a mighty teacher; it’s imperative that you believe that Jesus Christ is the son of God; that He died as a substitute for mankind, for the sins of the world and for your own sins; He was buried and He resurrected again on the third day according to the Scriptures; then He ascended to the right hand of God, to the place of glory.

In addition, in as much as believing these things about Jesus is important to being in Christ, it is not enough; you also have to be baptized into His name.

So when you believe in Jesus Christ as the son of God, as the substitute of God, and as the Saviour of the world; and you are baptized into His name; and you receive Him into your life as your Lord and personal Saviour, the Bible says you’re saved. You become a  new creation. These are the group of people that the Holy Spirit through the Apostle Paul was referring to in the fifth chapter of his second epistle to the Corinthian church.

“Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation, the old has gone, the new has come.â€

~2 Corinthians 5:17

So you must do some soul searching today and ask yourself, ‘ What do I believe about Jesus? Am I in Christ?’

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