“Behold, I am making all things new.” This declaration by God (Revelation 21:5) marks the end of the current age in which we now live and the beginning of the Kingdom age. But this transition from old to new has already started—it starts with us. As the Apostle Paul wrote: If anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation, the old has passed away, behold the new has come. (2 Corinthians 5:17) Christ came to inaugurate a new age. His death and resurrection changed everything. The old system of morality based on law, has been upgraded to a new system based on the law of Christ which is love. This new system will bring about a new kingdom, a new heaven and a new earth. Being in Christ has already made us new creatures: the old has passed, the new has come!
There are two stages to making us into new creatures: Phase one, “the old has passed away.” What does that mean? The New Testament calls our former self the “old man” (or “old person” since it includes both men and women)— not referring to elderly people but to our former way of thinking, being, and living. In last week’s column we talked about BC people and AD people. On calendars a date labeled as BC means a time before Christ’s birth. But when I refer to a BC person, I mean a person who has not yet believed in Christ. A person without Christ is “old” (Ephesians 4:21-22).
The Apostle John put it like this, “Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world—the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the boastful pride of life is not from the Father but from the world” (1 John 2:15-16). Loving things of this world: lust, desire, boasting, pride—these are all the old ways of thinking that are passing away.
The New Testament also describes the “old” person as being “in the flesh” (Romans 7:25; 8:3-13). Here, “the flesh” is not a reference to our physical bodies because Christians who are living “in the Spirit” still have a physical body. But living in the flesh means thinking and behaving in the old ways marked by anger, wrath, malice, slander, filthy language, and lies (Colossians 3:8-9). Those sinful ways of behaving are all BC—typical of one who has not yet been renewed. The old person’s thoughts conform to the patterns of thought of this world. The Apostle Paul instructed Christians, “Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind…” (Romans 12:2). Notice that Paul assumed that Christians were still thinking in the old way, and their minds needed to be transformed.
There is one other New Testament description of the “old” person, he is “in Adam.” “Just as in Adam all die, so also in Christ all will be made alive.” (1 Corinthians 15:22). The new creation is not just a change of religion, it is a change of family. The first Adam acted on behalf of the human race, bringing sin and death. But now Christ, the second Adam, has brought about a new human family—people transformed to become Christlike! (Romans 5:12-17).
The second stage of this transition to a new creation says “the new has come.” What does that mean? The verse about our new creation starts by saying that it only happens when we are “in Christ.” This means that by believing in Christ we become one with him. His righteousness becomes our righteousness. His death to sin becomes our death to sin. His resurrection becomes our resurrection and his life becomes our life. (more on this amazing thought next week).
The key to the new creation is not just our relationship with Christ, it is also our relationship with the Holy Spirit. The third person of the Trinity actually comes to live within us. And his presence transforms our way of thinking and of behaving: “The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.” (Galatians 5:22). Contrast these nine virtues with the deeds of the “old person”: anger, wrath, slander, filthy language, and lies (Colossians 3:8-9). We can all agree that we prefer someone who displays the fruit of the Spirit to one who thinks, acts, and talks in the flesh!
Last week I asked if you are a BC person or an AD person. Or, as the New Testament would ask, are you an Old Person or a New Person? Are you still conformed to the world and the life that is passing away or are you a new creature, part of the new creation that has already started? The real question is whether or not you are in Christ?
My 2026 New Years wish for us all, is that we be transformed by the renewing of our minds, that we no longer love the things of the world, that we be filled with the fruit of the Spirit: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness and self-control. In other words, that we each become a new creation, a new you, and as we all become a new us, our New Year will become really new!
Greg Giles is a published author, who, along with his wife Jean, has embraced the call to serve and teach around the globe. Their life together has included missionary work in Liberia, Bangladesh, teaching in China, and raising a family in Bemidji, Minnesota. Between global travels and local commitments, including serving as superintendent of Corn Bible Academy and their current part-time roles at Corn Heritage Village, the Gileses have found “home” in many places; yet, they now happily reside in retirement in Cordell. Please visit his website at reflections-on-wisdom.com.