2 Corinthians 5:16-17

0:02 Looking at our world from a theological perspective. This is the Theology Central podcast making Theology Central. Have you ever got ready to say good morning? But it didn't feel like a good morning? It just felt like maybe a morning. There was nothing really good about it. Now. I can't speak for you, but for me, over the past few days, I don't know if anything has been good because there's just this feeling of discouragement, frustration, depression, irritation.

0:42 And the more I read, the more I look things up, the more comments I read, the more discouraged I become. And I just kind of want to say, you know what, ladies and gentlemen, I'm tapping out. That's it. I tap out. I'm done. Goodbye Christianity. You just do what you're going to do, and I'll be over here in the corner because I give up. I'm done. I just throw in. I throw up my hands, I throw in the towel, whatever analogy, whatever phrase I'm supposed to be, I'm done. I don't know what to say because it just has ugh. It's just so not good right now. So I'm not going to say good morning. It is a morning. It is Saturday, September the twenty first, twenty twenty four. It is currently ten thirty three am Central Time, and I am coming to you live from the Theology Central Studio located right here in Albilene, Texas. And from this very studio, I've been watching a lot of things unfold. I've been sent emails, I've been sent lots of information. Well, one person in this particular case, my daughter. She sent me this. Now, at the time that this was sent to me, it had been twenty four hours. It's now been a little longer, but she sent this to me. In the last twenty four hours, an anti trans politician was linked to a

2:13 transgender porn website, an anti gay activists was revealed to have been a gay porn actor, and a Save the Children congressman was found to be doing drugs at a sex party with a high school junior. Now, these are all Republicans, Conservatives who are you know. We'll talk about values and morality and all of these types of things. And the last twenty four hours, an anti trans politician was linked to a transgender porn website, and anti gay activist was revealed to have been a gay porn actor. And I Saved the Children congressman was found to be doing drugs at a sex party with a high school junior. Now I'm not going to give any of their names right now because they're still ongoing informa investigation, testimony, evidence, all kinds of things is starting to come out. It's getting ugly. Accusations are flying around, and it's just not good.

3:07 It's just it's just ugly. And of course people are screaming hypocrisy, hypocrisy. Of course that's going to be screaming inconsistency. And I could read all the things that my daughter sent to me about this, all the investigation, the information, what evidence has has and hasn't been found, Yeah, everything, And so I could go through all of that, But the point is, get you get the overall sense of what I'm talking about. Right, there's nothing good about that. First, all three individuals, they are being confronted with their own failures, their own sin, their own mistakes, their own however you would like to describe it. They're being confronted with who they have been and who they are in spite of what they have said. There's an inconsistency there. So that has been going on. But we all but most of you know, and again I'm not mentioning any names. A very very very prominent pastor, very famous pastor has been removed from his ministry due to well sin. Not going to give any information. We've already talked about that. Again, I'm not mentioning names to anyone because I don't need to give names, because whether we know the names or don't know the names, I know this is going to come shocking. But within the world of Christianity, within the world of conservative politicians, there is never ending amount of sin, inconsistency,

4:38 and just failure. It's just inevitable. And I hate to say it, it's inevitable in your life, my life, in your church, my church, all of us we are sinners. In fact, I did an entire broadcast about the fact that we are all sinners, and I know within the Christian world that there people struggle with that. I was reading common under the news stories from on Christian websites about the prominent pastor who has been removed because of sin, and I was reading some of the comments and it was insane. Basically, the comments go like this, He's not a Christian because a man who is regenerate would not commit such sin. He's not one of God's children, he is a reprobate, he's a heretic, he's ungodly, he's unsaved.

5:29 And I'm like, you've got to be kidding me. And if you've been paying any attention to just the summer, all the pastors, very prominent pastors who have been found in all kinds of sin over and over and over now Christians and again, and one of the most common, the most common thing is basically throwing them out of the Kingdom of God and saying they're not saved. It seems forever or immediately people will start talking about disqualified, qualified, just throwing things out many cases no real scripture, not even even trying to handle the text, and it just becomes it becomes maddening. And while all of that is going on, while all the yelling and fighting and accusations and judging, it's I mean, it's inevitable that someone somewhere when they're making these judgments that this person's not saved or where they're not saved, or and they're not saved or they're not saved. Well everyone's basically because people just immediately start judging. It's just like someone falls into sin I guess Christians just immediately think it's their job to start judging it and talking about it. It's just immediately just they want to be a part of the discussion.

6:44 And so my approach has been I'm not gonna mention names, but I'm gonna remind us instead of looking at their saying, let's look at our own sin. So that was my approach. But inevitably, as I was reading the comments, this would be frequently. Therefore, if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature. Old things are passed away. Behold, all things are become new. Anytime someone seems to commit now, it's weird. It's weird because you can commit fifty sins and those sins are okay. Those sins are ok But if you commit certain sins and all of a sudden it's the end.

7:27 Right. You can commit fifty sins and you're not disqualified. You can commit one sin and you are disqualified. It's very weird the way Christians and the way Christians throw the word around disqualified. And in many cases they'll go to a passage You're like, well, look at the rest of the things that can disqualify you. If you go to the qualification, look at the other things, pride, a lack of vigilance, or like we could go through but hey, that's okay. So so it's already weird. But inevitably it's the idea that if you commit this sin, well, you should never be able to commit that sin, because if you were in Christ, new creature, old things are passed away. Behold, all things have become new. So within at least a certain element of the Christian world, there is, and I hate to say this, there is almost a sense of perfectionism, Christian perfectionism that is much more prominent than anybody would like to admit. Now people will say, no, no, no, I don't believe you. I don't believe you can be perfect.

8:27 I'm not calling for perfection, but you are calling that you can't commit this sin or this sin or this sin, because if you are in Christ, you're a new creature. Old things are passed away, all things have become new. But if you're going to say you can't commit these sins if you are saved, well, according to this verse, if anyone's in Christ, he's a new creature. Old things have passed away, all things have become new. I would argue, then this would indicate you can't commit any sin if you're going to you two Corinthians five seventeen that way. Now I will make the argument the tewod Corinthians five p. Seventeen is one of the most misinterpreted, one of the most twisted and abused scriptures in the entire Bible, and I have been fighting against the way Christians have used it for I don't know ten years, fifteen years, it feels like, for a good portion of my Christian life, because I've always said, well, wait a minute, you're telling me that if I'm in Christ, I'm a new creature.

9:23 Old things have passed away, all things have become new. You're telling me, then there is basically there is no sin nature. So then why am I sinning? And you can't tell me that this is true of me practically? And at the same time say I can't be perfect. Well, if I can't be perfect, that means there's something keeping me from perfection. And whatever is keeping me from perfection clearly is not a new creature, and clearly not all something is holding it back. Well, what's keeping me from perfection? What is it? What is it? What is it? Well, if you're telling me I'm a new creature. Old things pass away and all things have become new. Then I should be able to be perfect. So can I be perfect? Or no? If you say I can't be perfect, well then I'm not a new creature. Not all things are new and not all the old things are gone.

10:06 So you've got to make up your mind. But Christians just do this double speak. So I get very tired of hearing Two Corinthians five seventeen, and over the last few days, I've just grown weary of it because I'm like, how much sin has to occur and Christians stand in such judgment. Well, this is a sign that the church is in trouble, well, that Christians have been committing sin inside the church. I don't know if you're aware of this. Since the very beginning you ever read First Corinthians, there has been sin happening in the Church since day one, just like there was sin happening in the nation of Israel from the very beginning, just like there was sin happening in the lives of every person you read in the Bible. But somehow we have this idea, Oh, this is now something different. It's not different. It's the same thing.

11:10 Church sin. In church, sin happens. It's inevitable because the people in the church and the people standing behind the pulpit, we're all sinners, but we have this weird mentality in the no no no, no no no. Inside the church, we are all in Christ. Therefore we're new creatures, the oldest passed away, all things that become new. So we are the good guys. It's those people out there who do bad things. In here, we don't commit any sin. And now now we say that, now, sometimes we'll back up and go, well, I mean, nobody's perfect. Well, okay, can you make up your mind? We love on one hand and point to everyone else and go the world out there, they're vile, they're sinners, they're disgusting, but not us.

11:54 And then other times we're like, well, nobody's perfect. Can we make up our minds? Can we? I tomorrow at Victory Baptist Church, if everything works according to plan, we'll be working on this. Therefore, thou art inexcusable, Oh man, whosoever thou art that judgest, for wherein thou judgest another, thou condemnest thyself, for thou that judgest doest the. Same things you may not be committing the same specific sin, but I guarantee you you're committing the same sin at least as as sin is placed in categories, the same type of sin, you're guilty of in some way, shape or form.

12:44 Maybe not the same specific but the same type the same category. You are most likely guilty of the same type of sin. Maybe not the same specific sin, but the same type of sin. And if we are going to be and if we're even going to be remotely honest with ourselves, we would have have to say that you and I are in a perpetual state of sin. If you look at God's standard, be ye holy as He is holy, you have never accomplished that. And if you've never accomplished that you're in a perpetual state of sin, love God with all your heart, mind, body, and soul. You've never accomplished that you're in a perpetual state of sin. Be Ye, perfect as your heavenly Father is perfect. You've never accomplished that you're in a perpetual state of sin.

13:24 We are all in a perpetual state of sin, But somehow all people who are in a perpetual state of sin, Well, then look at other sin and say, well, you've committed the wrong kind of sin. Now you be gone, You're out of here. You probably were never saved. And you're like, well, wait a minute, we're all in a perpetual state of sin. How can people who are all in a perpetual state of sin then point to other sin and say, that's the sin that crossed the line, that's the sin that threw you out of the Kingdom of God, that's the sin that throws you out of ministry. Wait, we're all everyone in the room is in a perpetual state of sin. Like we all show up with our rocks ready to stone the center, but we're all, all of us are holding our rocks in sinful hands. So this verse second Corinthians. Therefore, if any man being crist, he is a new creature, all things are passed away, all things become new again.

14:22 Let me make it very clear. I'm gonna state it again. I know I'm being repetitive. It's one of the most twisted and abused and misinterpreted verses in the entire Bible. Now why am I mentioning it? Because I was sitting here going so what do I do? Yesterday I mentioned two Timothy, Chapter one, verse seven. I spent a lot of time working on that, and I'm having some trouble with it. But I knew that I would kind of get into the kind of the same type of discussion that we've had. So I'm like, well, at some point we'll work on it. Then, I'm just going to be honest. I got into a long converse station, a long chat with AI about sin ministry qualification, disqualification, just got into a long back and forth throwing out my hypotheses, having them challenged, and maybe at some point we'll work through all of that. But so while I was doing all of that, I'm like, well, let's look and see. You know, we're still doing the sermon's two point oh app sermon challenge. Well, let me take a look really quick and see what's going on, you know, on the Sermon's two point oh app.

15:32 And I look, and the very first sermon I see is entitled a New Creation Second Corinthians five sixteen and seventeen. I'm like, you've got to be kidding me. In the midst of everything going on, we're gonna hear a sermon on Second Corinthians five seventeen. So I again I don't listen to anything I'm going to review. Remember this is a part of the Sermon's two point oh app challenge. We're just supposed to be listening to a sermon every day from the Sermon's two point oh app. Right, So I'm just gonna random This is the one. I mean, I could not skip it, right because in the midst of all of the stuff going on, we're gonna be doing or are we gonna basically say, hey, you've heard all the stuff going on out there in the world.

16:15 What none of those people are saying, Because if they were really saved, there would be a new creature, All things were passed away, all things have become new. Are they going to approach it that way? Are they just going to ignore everything going on around them, whether within conservative you know, right leaning you know, Christian politicians and within the church? Are they gonna Are they gonna just forget that? Are they gonna mention that? How are they going? I don't know what they're going to do, but we're gonna find out together. I don't know how much of this we're going to review. We're gonna probably review until we get their basic hypotheses, and then maybe that's it. We'll stop. It's called a new creation. I don't even know the name of the church. Again, I just saw it like just a few minutes ago. I think it was under the new tab. It was new sermons. It may not even it may have been in my feet or it may have been under the new tab. And there was just one of the ones at the top, and I was like, okay, I mean, it's so relevant, right, it's relevant.

17:09 So I guess when you see here's the question. When you see sin all in the church, right, all within the Christian world, sin failure, moral failure, falling, fail whatever. And I know some people don't like the terms falling or fail because they say that seems to indicate, well that the person didn't know what they were doing and they just kind of stumbled and fell. But falling and falling into sin, fell, the fall of man, the fall of Satan. Those are biblical terms and they have a long use within church history. That don't necessarily indicate that someone's not responsible. It just is the term that has been utilized. So I know I've saw lots of criticism of that terminology. But the point is, and a lot of when you see all of that happening within the Christianity.

17:56 How do you approach it as an individual? Do you go, well, most likely none of these people are saved. Is your first approach to start throwing people out of the Kingdom of God? And then quote two Corinthians five seventeen, Well, if anyone's in Christ, here's a new creature, whld things pass away? All things that be come new? I don't know what their problem is. Is that your first reaction or is your reaction go, I'm not shocked or surprised because everyone in the church is a sinner, including me. Now, I'm not saying that we should have such a numb attitude towards it, but I'm saying we should have the attitude. I don't think we should be that shocked or surprise. It's been happening since biblical times. And do you then, do you worry about getting all the details about their sin?

18:41 Because I have seen a lot of people on YouTube talking about the famous pastor and everybody wants the details. They're like, give us the details. We want to know exactly what happened. We want to know all the details. They want to know the details. Are you worried about those details. Are you more worried about the details of your own sin? Because everyone I've seen on YouTube they seem to be approaching it as if they're the good that they don't have sin, and they want to find out all the details about the sin of someone else. Well, let's see how this is approached and light of everything going on, let's see what we can find out here we go.

19:24 Well, good morning. We are going to be in second Corinthians chapter five again this morning. So if you have a Bible and turn over there. This is an exciting week. And it's an exciting week because we get to have a baptism. Anytime we have a baptism, it's an exciting week. And after the sermon, Jim Christensen is going to come up and share his testimony about what Jesus has done to save him. And as he does that, one of the couple of things I want you to be listening for is what is Jim's new perception of Jesus. Because one of the things that God does when he saves a person is he doesn't just change our behavior. He does that, but he does more than that. He changes us at the level of the heart, so that we look at Jesus differently.

20:28 All right, you can already see which direction we're going to go. When God saves you, he changes your behavior. Now, if God does the changing of behavior, then everyone should know the logical question. Well, if God changes the behavior, then we should be perfect because a God changed behavior would be a perfect behavior because God's doing the changing and God is omnipotent, he's holy, he's omnipresent, he's omniscient. Right, so our behavior, if God does the changing of the behavior, it should go from sinful to holy because does God change behavior? Only? Five PRIs so now? And again, if God is the one changing the behavior, any lack of change would then beyond God's part, not my part, because God is the one who does the changing of the behavior. Like, these are questions. I don't understand why the Church never wants to have these very uncomfortable discussions. If God changes the behavior, the behavior should be perfect. And if the behavior is not perfect, then the issue is on God because God's the one doing the changing. So then how do we get out of it? Well, if God, if the behavior is not changing, then you're not saved. So then immediately start throwing people out. And again, it's so weird.

21:43 A non Catholic form of Christianity, which supposedly believes we are say by an imputed righteousness, connects salvation to changed behavior. Let me make it very clear. Imputed righteousness doesn't change behavior. It takes someone who's a sinner in behavior and declares them to be perfect in their position. Their behavior is not impacted by an imputed righteousness. Imputed righteousness does not change behavior. Imputed righteousness does not change behavior. Imputed righteousness does not change behavior. Infused righteousness changes behavior. That's Roman Catholicism.

22:33 And then if we start talking about well the heart is changed, well, wait a minute. If you go to Ezekiel about a new heart, that's not referring to us, that's referring to Israel and the restoration of the nation of Israel and the salvation of Israel. Now, of course reform people will go there and say, well, Israel's not Israel, that's referring to the Church. And then we get into a major hermeneutical issue. So already we know where this is starting. Behavior behavior, behavior, behavior behavior. For many, Christianity is nothing more than behavioral modification, and it's behavioral modification. Supposedly accomplished by God. Well, if God is accomplishing behavioral modification, then we shouldn't be hearing about all the sin that pastors are committing, church members are committing. We shouldn't be reading a Bible filled with stories of churches where there's all kinds of sin. Now, I guess the only thing you can do is then go and say, well, they weren't saved, they weren't saved, they weren't saved. They weren't saved, They weren't saved, they weren't saved, and somehow convince yourself that your behavior, I guess, has changed enough. So is it a fifty percent change that convinces you you're saved?

23:41 But if God's changing the behavior, why would he only change it at fifty percent. The Jesus who used to be irrelevant to us, the Jesus who used to be detestable to us, the Jesus who used to be a crutch for weak minded people, like everyone else, is now precious, is now beautiful, is now the object of my hope. And this morning we're gonna be in Second Corinthians five, Verses sixteen and seventeen, and Paul is going to show us that part of the change that God always does in the lives of his people when he saves them is he gives them a new perception of Christ. Second Corinthians five. I'm going to read verses twelve through twenty oneth We're going to focus on verses sixteen through seventeen. Second Corinthians, Chapter five, starting in verse twelve. For we do not commend ourselves again to you, but give you opportunity to boast on our behalf, that you may have an answer for those who boast in appearance and not in the heart. For if we are beside ourselves, it is for God, or if we are of sound mind, it is for you.

25:01 For the love of Christ compels us, because we judge thus that if one died for all, then all died, and He died for all, so that those who lived should live no longer for themselves, but for Him who died for them and rose again. Therefore, from now on we regard no one according to the flesh, even though we once knew Christ according to the flesh, Yet now we know him thus no longer. Please pay close attention to that verse. Wherefore, henceforth no we know we have no Okay, hang on, let me read this again. Wherefore, henceforth know we no man after the flesh. Wherefore henceforth know we no man after the flesh.

25:52 We no longer as a Christian. We don't look at other Christians after the flesh. We don't see them and their fleshly standing or their practical standing. We now see others in their positional standing. I see a professing Christian. I see them based off their positional standing, which is, they are declared perfect and holy by imputed righteousness. I think that's this is where the verse. Always people seem to start messing up. We know, it's about how we see others. It's how we perceive people. Not after the flesh. Yet now henceforth know we him know more. This is now speaking of Christ. We have known Christ after the flesh, Yet now henceforth we know him no more. Now Immediately he goes into verse seventeen with the word therefore that therefore is based off verse I think sixteen. But let's see how he handles it.

26:48 Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. Old things have passed away. Behold, all things have become new. Now all things are of God, who has reconciled us to himself through Jesus Christ, and has given us the ministry of reconciliation. That is that God was in Christ reconciling the world to himself, not imputing their trespasses to them, and has committed to us the word of reconciliation. Now, then we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God was pleading through us. We implore you, on Christ's behalf, be reconciled to God, for He has made him who knew no sin, to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in him.

27:45 Let's pray. Father. We just sang from the Psalms about how when we want peace, we live in a world where we are still at war, and even though we desire peace, it seems like they're strife all around us. And Lord, what a privilege it is to know that is your people. Christ has taken the hostility that existed between us and God, and He has made a way for us to have peace, not just with each other, but with you. And Lord, as we open your word and we see that Christ is the great savior of the world. He is the only savior of the world, we pray that the peace we now have with you through him will bring you much glory, as it's proclaimed.

28:36 Lord. We also praise you for your saving work in Jim's life, and we praise you that we get to be part of a baptism today where we watch the element of baptism and as we celebrate the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus and Jim in his union to him. And we praise you for this in Jesus's name. Amen. So our passage for this morning is verses sixteen and seventeen, And I want to look at that under three main points, and I think you'll see we're going to work through it backwards. We're going to actually look at verse seventeen before verse sixteen, and I think you'll see why in just a minute. Three things we're going to see. First, we're going to see conversion involves a change of the entire person. We'll see that in verse seventeen, conversion involves a change of the entire person. And then in verse sixteen we'll see conversion involves a change towards Christ. Then the final thing we'll see is that conversion involves a change towards others, also in verse sixteen.

29:46 So immediately we know where this is going. This is this is going to look at Second Corinthians five seventeen, not as speaking about our positional standing. If I'm in Christ, I'm a new creature. Whole things have passed away, hell things have become new. Why because in Christ, his perfect righteousness is imputed to me. So I stand perfect, holy and transformed. That's why verse twenty one. He made him to be sin for us who knew no sin, that we might be made the righteousness of God and Him. How am I made righteous? I am made righteous by faith. I am not made righteous in practice. I am made righteous in my position because imputed righteousness is accredited to my account. I'm declared to be that which I'm not.

30:28 I'm declared to be holy when I'm not. I'm declared to be righteous when I'm not. That's the entire non Catholic understanding is we're not infused with it. We are imputed with righteousness. It's accredited to my account. It's a sometimes refer to it philologically, a forensic justification. It's a legal declaration. I'm legally declared to be that which I am not because Christ has provided to me to my account his perfection, his obedience, and his holiness. So I stand new, even though in practice the old is very much present. For some weird reason, Evangelical Christianity has abandoned the imputed idea even though they still claim it, and then look for an infused idea, and then everything becomes about behavioral modification.

31:28 So conversion involves a change of the entire person. Conversion involves a change toward Christ, and then conversion involves a change towards others. But let's begin noticing how conversion involves a change of the entire person. Look at seven verse seventeen one more time. It says, Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. Old things have passed away. Behold, all things have become news. You look at both verse sixx and verse seventeen. I think it's important to know they both start with the word therefore. That should tip you off that Paul's even though the way we usually preach at our churches we take a couple verses a week, and sometimes we move really slowly, and when we do that, it's easy to forget that the two verses we're looking at are part of a much bigger section, a much bigger argument, and the words therefore should tip us off that we're not starting a new theme this morning. What Paul's doing is he's drawing some necessary conclusions from what he said last week in verses fourteen and fifteen. So Verses fourteen and fifteen say, the love of Christ compels us because we judge thus that if one died for all, then all died, and He died for all, so that those who live should no longer live for themselves, but for Him who died and died for them and rose again.

32:58 We saw last week that Paul conduct did his ministry. Paul conducted his life being driven by the love of Christ, the love that Christ showed him in dying for his sins and rising from the dead. And Paul told us all about the doctrine of union with Christ. It was for us and it's in Christ that all of these things happen. And the big idea is that Christ died in Christ rose in our place. He died and rose again as are we saw last week our federal head, our representative, who was doing for us in his death and resurrection everything we need.

33:39 And that's what Paul told us last week. But now what he's doing is he's drawing coclusions from that, and he's drawing this conclusion in verse seventeen by creating an if then statement. If then statements are a way of saying, if primise A is true, then the necessary logical conclusion has to be premis b. We use if then statements all the time. We use them in parenting. If you clean your room, you can have dinner tonight. You guys think I'm a parent. If you do your chores, you can.

34:23 Have your allowance. We use it in all of life. If the stock market continues on the trend, it's going I'm going to be forced out of retirement and have to get. A new job. We use if then statements all the time to say, if this happens, then this necessarily has to happen. And what's Paul doing? In verse seventeen, what's the if then that Paul is presenting us with. He says, if there's the first. Condition, if anyone is in Christ. What is it? Now? This is why you see comments when someone falls into sin, some scandalous sin, Well, if they were saved, then they wouldn't be committing that act. Because if anyone is in Christ, he's a new creature. Old things will pass away. All things have become new. So this is why this verse literally becomes a baseball bat right and you walk around, Oh oh, you committed that sin. Well, if you were a Christian, you wouldn't because you would be a new creature.

35:23 The old things would be gone, everything would be new. Smack you in the head. You are lost. Boom, get out of Christianity. You heretic it basically becomes a weapon, or you could read it. If anyone is in Christ, then this is true of us positionally, because everyone knows it's not true practically, because if it was true practically, then nobody would sin. Okay, and you can hear my frustration, because we would be a new creature. The old we've gone. Everything would become new. That would be the eradication of the old nature. Everyone would be sinless, or at least have no sin nature. So sinlessness would be not only possible, it would be probable. That seems to be the direction he's about to take this. I'm hoping I'm incorrect.

36:19 Mean to be in Christ. That expression in Christ is one of Paul's favorite ways. It's one of the ways he most. Frequently talks about our relationship to Jesus. It's an expression he uses over one hundred and sixty times in. All of his writings. It's an expression he uses six times in the Book of Second Corinthians. And when Paul talks about being in Christ, he's talking about how we are united to Christ by faith. And so what happens is at conversion, when a person hears the Gospel, they. Believe into Jesus.

37:00 We don't just say I believe that what Jesus says is true. We actually believe into Jesus, which means that our faith, created by the Spirit of God, unites us to the person of Jesus, so that everything that the Bible says about Christ, apart from his divinity, we don't become God, but everything that Christ is, in everything that Christ does, he is and does for us and in our place, and so we get brought into the spiritual spatial realm of Jesus. So, David Garland writes, union with Christ represents solidarity with Christ, so that what Christ experiences becomes part of the believer's actual experience and existence. So the expression in Christ is the Bible's way of communicating to us that if Jesus is the.

38:00 Object of our faith. We are actually united to him, everything that he is, everything that he has done, he is and has done for us and in our place. And we now have a new identity. My identity is no longer Jim Christiansin. My identity is no longer all of the sin that I. Used to do. My identity is now wrapped up in Jesus. Now very true. Now did you hear? My identity is no longer the sin I used to do. See, that's the whole No, my identity is now in Christ irregardless of the sin that I still do. It's not that I stop doing the sin. It's now that I am in Christ by faith, and now I am declared to be sinless. And my position it has nothing to do with whether I'm committing this in or not committing the sin.

38:59 It's that I'm in Christ by faith and now I'm declared to be righteous, even though I am not righteous. That's literally the entire Protestant Reformation. But maybe now he did mention identity, So maybe he's going to leave this in the realm of our identity, our position, and he's going to acknowledge the absolute conflict of our position with our practice. Let's see if that's what he does. But what's the consequence of being in Christ. Paul says, if anyone is in Christ, and then he goes on to say, here's the then therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. Old things have passed away.

39:43 Behold all things have become new. If you have a Bible with you actually look down at verse seventeen, and as you do, notice you have a couple words in verse seventeen that are in italics. When there's words in your Bible that are italicized, that's the translator's way, the people that translated your Bible from Greek or Hebrew into English. That's their way of communicating. We're adding some words that weren't there in the original to try to make it communicate more clearly. And that's generally helpful here, I don't think it is. The reason that's important is because verse seven literally reads, therefore, if anyone is in Christ, a new creation, old things have passed away, Behold all things have become new. So your Bible probably says if anyone is in he is a new creation, and it actually, in the original language doesn't say that it just says if anyone is in Christ, New Creation, And so the question becomes, is Paul telling us that if we are in Christ, we as personal individual rules have become new creations?

41:03 Or is he telling us that if we are in Christ, we have been brought into what Jesus is doing, the New Creation. I think it's most likely that Paul actually doesn't describe which one he means, because he wants that ambiguity to force us to ask the question. If you're at all familiar with the story of the Bible, you know God initially makes man, and he puts mankind in a garden. There's no sin, there's no shame, there's. No death, there's no separation from God. Man lives in the garden, naked and unashamed, in the presence of God, and it's awesome. But then man falls into sin, and sin affects everything. Sin doesn't just affect Adam and Eve. Sin brings the entire.

41:57 Created order under a curse. Gether Dad. I don't know why I thought of this, but it was weird. I was watching an antelope run across the road the other day and it hit the fence and it tripped. And I was like, you only did that because the. Fall everything about the world is under a curse. But Christ coming into the world actually does something for the. Entire created order. Christ doesn't just come into the world to save people from their sins. He does that, but he comes into the world to reverse the effects of the Fall and to bring all of creation back into subjection to the image of God.

42:40 We call it the Kingdom of God. It's the restored Heaven and the restored Earth, brought back under the dominion of King Jesus. And in one sense, that is our future escatological hope. We as God's people, wait for and we long for the day when Christ comes back and he makes all things new, and takes everything that's broken, everything that's under the curse, and makes it what it should be. John actually prophesied about that in Revelation twenty one, verses one through five, when he said, now I saw a new Heaven and a new Earth. For the first heaven and the first Earth passed away, and.

43:25 There was no more sea than I. John saw the Holy City, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of Heaven from God, prepared like a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from heaven, saying, behold, the Tabernacle of God is with men, and He will dwell with them, and they will be his people. God himself will be with them, and He will be their God. And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death, no sorrow, no crying. There will be no more pain for them. Things have passed away than he who sat on the throne said, behold, I am making all things new. And he said to them, write these words, for they are true and faithful. So, if you're a Christian, your hope is that God is making all things new. Your hope is that there's a new creation that is coming, and it is going to be consummated at the second coming of Christ. And at that moment, every effect of sin that touches your world will be done away with and everything will be made right.

44:42 And that's not now, okay, So that has nothing to do with now. That's all what will happen. And I am complete agreement that there is coming a time there will be no more pain, no more suffering, no more death, no more sin. Everything will be made new. There will be a new everything, a new heaven, new earth. We have new bodies. Yes, that is not now. That is not now we are, that is we do not even even we can only read and imagine that reality. The reality around us now is the complete opposite of that. But there's also a sense in which Christ is not only going to make all things new. Our text says us new creation. He's not just going to do that.

45:34 He is doing that. He is making all things new. He's already started the process. He's inaugurated the new creation by coming into the world in the person of Christ and redeeming his people, saving them from their sins, and progressively through sanctification, renewing the image of God in them so that they are becoming like their Savior. Now, wait a minute, okay, watch for kind of a you know, a bait and switch here. Okay, wait a minute, Wait a minute. No, it says if any man be in Christ, a new creature, he just now is reading it.

46:15 If anyone is in Christ, he's slowly becoming a new creature, slowly, progressively. So that means I'm not a new creature. It means I'm becoming one slowly. Now, if I'm only becoming one slowly, how slowly, And if I'm not one yet then that means sin is inevitable and is going to be around us. So do I? Am I slowly becoming? One percent per year, five percent per year, ten percent per year? And is God the one slowly making me a new creature? Why is God doing it in a progressive slow way? Why does if God is the one doing or am I doing? It?

46:59 Is my doing or God's doing? If God is doing it, then why is he slowly making me a new creature? Because in any area I'm not new, then that would be on God because God has not done it yet? Or am I responsible? Is it God? Or is it me? Now? We've now he just he just now took a verse that says we are to a verse that says you are becoming. And so we believe. He teaches a church that the Kingdom of God and the new Creation are already. And not yet. God is already doing his restorative work in his creation.

47:41 He is making all things new, but we are not yet. I remember he said that this involves all of creation. God is already changing creation. Now, God is already restoring creation. Where is God restoring creation? Where? And the countries where there is starvation and drought and famine and plague, and a country where there is in a world where there is cancer and disease and hurricanes and tornadoes and blizzards and like. So God is doing that now that I'm perplexed.

48:27 So God is currently redoing the creation. Now, right, let's see where this goes. Entirely living there. Yet. Now you're probably going, what in. The world does all of that have to do with Two Corinthians five seventeen. Well, remember, Paul simply says if anyone is in Christ new creation, And we're answering the question, why does he say new creation rather than saying he is a part of the new creation or he is a new creation. Why doesn't Paul put a pronoun or a verb in front of new creation. I'm making the argument that Paul intentionally doesn't tell us that because he wants us to think about both realities at the same time.

49:17 Namely, that Jesus. Has already inaugurated his kingdom through his life, through his death, through his resurrection. He's already started to restore things and make them new. And when he saves a person, when he regenerates a person, they become not just individuals who are made new, They become a part of that much bigger program. David Garland writes, translating the words literally new creation without inserting a pronoun or a verb and adding an exclamation point would allow for both options, since the eschatological reality of the new creation affected by Christ's first advent makes possible the subjective change in individuals who become new creations in Christ. This is the Christian doctrine of regeneration.

50:13 What is regeneration? Our Church's Confession of Faith says that regeneration is a change of heart wrought by the Holy Spirit, who quickens the dead and their trespasses and sins, enlightening their minds spiritually and savingly to understand the Word of God, renewing their whole nature so that they love and practice holiness. Okay, so supposedly, now and salvation, you're going to practice holiness. You're going to understand the Bible. Okay. Well, if that's the case, then how come after two thousand years nobody can agree on the Bible. If the Holy Spirit now gives us the understanding of the Bible, and if instantaneously at salvation we practice holiness, so does God instantaneously, So change our heart therefore we no longer have a sinful heart, so we now have what a perfect heart, a pure heart.

51:19 So therefore then we shouldn't be there, we should be sinless. Right, So once again I'm confused, Like, Hey, God's already started changing creation, but I mean not really, I mean because creation is still a mess. So okay, But so it is, but it not okay. I can understand the idea of what it will be, but it's not yet all right, So but then when it comes to us, we will be changed. So we're not changed, but at the same time we are changed. I don't know are we changed or not changed? Can we just need to be dogmatically assert what is the case? Are we changed? If we are changed, then there is no changing occurring because we've already been changed. So either we are in the price of being changed. Therefore, I'm not a new creature. I'm becoming a new creature. Or I are you saying that I am a new creature but I'm becoming a new creature.

52:09 So I am positionally and I'm becoming one practically. Well, if I'm becoming one practically, then I'm not yet one practically, So stop telling people that you are one practically. You're only one positionally, not practically, and I'm becoming one. And if I'm becoming one, who's the one causing it to occur? Now? You just said in regeneration. Now boom, I get a new heart, Boom, I understand the Bible. Boom, I understand practicing holiness. That sounds like I've been absolutely changed. So am I changed? Or am I not changed? I just need it to be stated clearly. It is a work of God's free and special grace alone.

52:51 Titus three talks about the same thing, and Titus three four through seven it says, but when the kindness and the love of God, our Savior, towards men appeared, not by works of righteousness that we had done, but according to his mercy He saved us how through the washing of regeneration and renewing of the Holy Spirit, who He poured out on us abundantly through Jesus Christ, our Savior. Then, having been justified by his grace, we should become heirs according to the hope of eternal life. So what happens when a person that's being saved by God here's the gospel, and puts their faith in Christ. They're part of a much bigger work that God is doing when He is restoring and recreating and renewing and making a live everything that is broken by sin. What happens every time God lovingly saves someone by uniting them to Christ. They personally experience a microcosm of what God is doing all over the world world and what he will finally do when Jesus returns.

54:04 They become a. Part, a partaker of the new creation. That's exactly exactly what Ezekiel prophesied about in Ezekiel thirty six twenty six. Ezekiel has about Israel. Okay, all right, so God is changing creation, but he's not really changing. So I'm very confused here because he makes it sound like, hey, all of creation is broken, but God's already changing it. God's not changing creation. Ladies and gentlemen, look at the world around you. Death, disease, famine, hunger, starvation. I mean, come, no, it's not happening now, it will It's not happening now. Now.

54:45 If you want to say, well, he's changing people, well, is he changing people? And if God's doing the changing, then it's God? Then why aren't we just changed? So are we changed or not changed? Well? You say we will be changed, but we're currently being changed. Well, if we currently are being then I'm not new now, I will be new currently, I'm in the process of changing. But then if God is doing the changing, then why does God do it progressively? And if he's doing it progressively, any lack of change is then on God, not on the people. He can't blame the people if God is the one doing the changing, that they're not changed. So the only way we get out of that is to say, the reason you're not changed enough is because you're not saved. But how can you determine what is enough change or not enough change? If God is the one doing the changing.

55:33 He said, I. Will give you a new heart and a new spirit. I will put in you, and I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh, and. I will give you a heart of flesh. But what does this creative and regenerative work of God look like when it starts showing up. In absolutely cannot stand when someone quotes Ezekiel thirty six twenty six and absolutely rips it so far out of its original context that it no longer even means anything. Ezekiel thirty six literally starts in verse one, And thou son of Man, prophesy into the mountains of Israel, and say, ye, mountains of Israel, hear the word of the Lord. Thus says the Lord God, because the enemy hath said against you. Aha, even the ancient high places are are in possessions. This is about Israel. They'll look at verse four. Therefore, ye mountains of Israel. Just look at verse eight. But ye, o, mountains of Israel. This is Israel, Israel, Israel, Israel. And if you don't believe me, he just read twenty six.

56:41 A new heart. Also, will I give you and a new spirit I will put within you. And I will take away the stony heart out of your flesh. And I will give you and a heart of flesh. And I will put my spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statues. And you shall keep my judgments and do them well. According to verse twenty seven, if I get a new heart, I'm gonna be perfectly obedient. This is not about progressively. I will be perfectly obedient. Oh he skipped that part. But then look at verse twenty eight. And you shall dwell in the land that I gave to your fathers. That's not you that's not me, that's Israel. Would we for crying out loud? If we're going to be exege eating scripture, can we not read the scripture and acknowledge that that's about Israel. It's not about you or me. Man, I'm so sick and tired of that. It's not even complicated. Now. Are there complications that arise from that interpretation? Yes, but the text screams like what does God have to do? He says Israel like fifty times, and we're like, well, that's not Israel.

57:40 Let me just go reach and grab into that rip theren and say this is you. Everyone. You have a new heart. We'll have have a new heart. Then we should all be obedient. Why are we not obedient. People's lives? Paul gives us two ways that this. New creation in God's people actually expresses itself, and that brings us to our second point. Conversion involves a change towards Christ. We'll give verse sixteen. Verse sixteen says therefore, from now on we regard no one. I'm gonna stop there because obviously we're not going to get any real explanation here. We're not going to get any real explanation. Let me state it for the fiftieth time.

58:31 If any man be in Christ, that's our positional reality. By faith, I am in Christ. There I am a new creature. All things are passed away. Behold, all things are become new. That is because I'm in Christ. This is now my positional reality. I am new. The old is gone, everything is new. Why because Christ's obedience, passive and active, his righteousness is imputed to my account. I stand before God a new creature. The old is completely gone, and all God sees is his son's perfect righteousness and obedience accredited my account. So I stand be perfect before God now and practice clearly, I'm not a new creature, because if I was a new creature in practice, I wouldn't sin. Because I'm completely new creature, new creation. The old is completely gone. That is not true practically, we have to acknowledge that. But Christianity strugg and even there he kind of went back and forth. So we are, but we aren't quite yet. Then he says God is the one doing the change. So God's only doing the change incrementally. So then if God is so, God is turning me into a new creature. I'm not a new creature.

59:54 He's turning. I'm a new creature positionally, but he's God's turning me into a new creature. Okay, if you want to go with that, well, then again, then it's at the same time he said that regeneration, I get a new heart, and I get well, wait a minute, that's not God changing me. That God's instantaneously changing me. So God, is God changing me? Or did he instantaneously change me? He he kind of went with both concepts. He didn't offer any explanation here. So then this is once again, will Christians sit in church and they leave and who knows what the people walk out with, but I can tell you what people they walk out with. The mentality, Well, then oh then we're basically got to be perfect. We got to be we we It's all about behavioral modification, basically being perfect and not doing this, this and this. Well, how do you live in that reality? Here's how you live in that reality. You create a list of the big sins. See, I don't commit these sins. Therefore I'm a new creature. I mean, I commit all these sins.

1:00:50 But that's okay, a new create, a new creator creation can create can commit these sins. We just can't commit these So then what do we do when someone commits a big sin? Well, they probably weren't even saved. Well wait a minute, So I can commit these sins and be saved, but I can't commit these sins and be saved. How do we make that determination? We have to play this little game because Christians are so utterly confused about how to interpret this verse. When you put your faith in Christ, you are a new creation. Positionally, I am to perceive other Christians, and I am to see them based off their faith in Christ, that they are a new creation. I see them based off their positional standing.

1:01:36 I see that before God they're holy and righteous. I acknowledge that practically, what should I see sin? What should we expect to see sin? What should you expect to see in the church sin? What should you should expect to see in the life of those who teach you sin? What should you expect to see in the life of past sin? What should you expect to see in your own life? Sin? Because it's the reality again, how can I you say, Well, but you got to prove it, No, I don't. First of all, just be honest with yourself. Just be honest with yourself, Just be honest with the his two thousand years of church history. Sin sin, sin, sin, sin.

1:02:18 And that's only the big sins. We're not even talking about the never ending reality of just the quote unquote smaller sins. But here's the thing. I can just give you a couple of verses. Love God with all your heart, mind, body and soul. If you even convince yourself you're doing that, your problem isn't your sin. You're delusional. Love your neighbor as yourself. You love yourself more than you love anything on this earth. And you know that deep deep, deep, deep deep down, And in fact, you tend to love other people only because of them get loving you. You're getting something from it. If you weren't getting something from it, you wouldn't keep loving them. You would move on and find someone who you get something from. You know it, and I know it. The Bible says, be holy as God is holy. You have never been holy as God is holy. You never will be holy as God is holy.

1:03:03 So therefore you're in a perpetual state of sin. Jesus said in the Sermon on Them, mout be he perfect as your heavenly Father is perfect. You have never been perfect. You never will be perfect. So just according to those scriptures alone, you're in a perpetual state of sin. Well, how can you be in a perpetual state of sin and at the same time tell everyone if any was in Christ, he's a new creature. Whole things have passed away, all things have become new, and that you've been transformed. You've been transformed positionally, you haven't been transformed practically, And this is why this confusion, this confounding. And then you go to Ezekiel to quote a verse that's not even about us, it's about Israel. Israel, Israel, Israel Israel, and Israel will get that new heart and then they will dwell in the land. This is the restoration, regeneration, and salvation of Israel. So until they're in the land and all the things that happen when they're in the land, as stated in Ezekiel occurs, then that's when that happens that has not happened yet, quoting Oh, I'm so tired of that. So here's the thing. Whenever I go through this, people always get furious with me. Don't get furious with me.

1:04:12 If you believe you're a new creature practically and you basically, no longer sin, then just go live it. Just don't sin. I'm not telling you to go sin. I'm not telling you no. Just go prove to everyone how sinless you are. Go prove to everyone how perfect you are. But here's what I want you to do. When nobody is looking and no one is around, I want you to really have a conversation with yourself. I want you to admit what's really going on when nobody's looking. I want you to think about all the things you are deleting from your Internet history. I want you to think about what you're feeling inside. I want you to think about your feelings and desires. I want you to really think about how much you actually supposedly love God and how much you actually don't. I want you to think about your own sin. I want you to be face to face with your own self. Stop worrying about everyone else, stop arguing with other people. Just be honest with yourself. And in many cases, what you'll find is you're nowhere as a new creature, as much as a new creature as you think you are or as you're pretending to be.

1:05:23 But if you've got it all figured out, then just go show everyone, and you can tell you can raise your hand and tell everyone, look to me. I am the new Creation. I will show you how to be perfect. I will show you now. Of course, immediately you'll push back, go, well, I'm not saying you have to be perfect. If you're a new creation and old things are passed away and all things have become new, and you have a new heart, and the Holy Spirit is doing this and this and this and this and this and this as we sell Christianity. Ladies and gentlemen. You may not be perfect, but you've put yourself in the you've put yourself in a position where you're claiming to be as close to perfect as you can possibly get. So don't sit there in one hand sell it that way and then try to backtrack and say, well, I'm not saying I'll be perfect. No no, no, no, no, no no no. You're claiming basically a complete eradication of the old nature. And if you believe that, that's okay, just go live it. Just go live it. And if you want to throw everyone out of the Kingdom of God, if you want to throw oh well hey, if they were a new creation, they wouldn't do this, and they wouldn't do that. Go ahead, throw everyone out of the Kingdom of God. Throw everyone out, and it can be you and your own little idea of Christianity, and you can be perfect, and you can stand superior to everyone else.

1:06:34 You can condemn everyone else. You can throw everyone else out of ministry, and you can be what you think you are. Go ahead and be that way. But the day is coming. Well, you're going to be confronted with the reality that you're not all that you claim to be. You're going to be confronted one day with the reality that you still have a sinful nature. You're going to be confronted with the reality one day that you're still a sinner. Oh, you may pretend as long as you can pretend. You may try to convince yourself, but I guarantee you other people who know you, other people who live with you, other people who know you, they know the reality that you're a sinner just.

1:07:17 Like I am. But that's okay. You go ahead and pretend to be a other. Go ahead, go ahead, do it. You can stand and judge and condemn everyone and throw everyone under the bus. Go ahead and live your Christian life. Father, walk around with a baseball bat and start smacking people saying you're not saved, you're not saved, you're not saved, you're not saved, you're not safe. Go ahead, if that's the way you want to be. I want no part of your Christianity, But go ahead and be that way. I'm not telling you to stop being that way. Go ahead and be that way. I just can't wait for the day when all of a sudden you're confronted with the reality of who you are, and when you are broken. Just remember the gospel. The Gospel is about us being given and puted righteousness, not an infused We are saved by the obedience and perfection of Christ, and we are declared to be that which we are not. The law every scripture that says do this, do this, don't do this, do this, do this, that's law. All it's therefore is to show you you can't and expose your failure so that you will do what. Run to the imputed righteousness of Christ. And there we are declared to be that which we are not. But Christianity wants to be about we receive some supernatural power so that we can be better than everyone else. We are two thousand years of church history shows the churches never better than everyone else.

1:08:42 How many times do we have to? And what we see is when we see other people fall, we just say, well, it just shows how And I've saw comments, have all the comments this over the last few days, Well this just shows how messed up the church is. And everyone speaks as if everyone else is messed up, but they are not. Even in the comments, they're all perfect. Everyone else is messed up. Everyone seems to think that they've got it all together and everyone else is a piece of trash. And that mentality within Christianity is a disease. Everyone shows up with their rocks, ready to stone the sinner.

1:09:23 Everyone is everyone oh boo, he's not saved. He's not saved, she's not saved. No, Christians don't act like that, ready to just stone everyone. Someday Jesus needs to show up. And go who whoa, whoa whoa whoa whoa whoa whoa. Let me write something down. Maybe he doesn't write it in the dirt. Maybe he puts it on a whiteboard in front of everyone and he writes your name and he starts listing all of your sins. Maybe you'll drop your rock, Maybe you'll drop your stone. Maybe you'll stop trying to stone and kill people because you realize you deserve to be stoned. Tewod Corinthians five seventeen speaks of a beautiful reality that in Christ and my position, i'm new, the old is completely gone because of an imputed righteousness.

1:10:23 But reality tells me, and he, in a sense, he kind of gave it away. He says, well, God is going to restore and make all creation new. Right, He's not doing it now. He tried to imply that God somehow doing it now, but clearly he's not doing it now, right, So then he kind of forgot the creation part and then tried to come to us. And then he tried to say, well, we're new, but we're not yet new. Okay, Well then all right, that's if you want to go with that idea. Then don't tell people you're new now. Don't talk about how in regeneration you get a new this and no, no, no, no, no no, you just said that we're just becoming new. Well, don't tell me that I'm already new. I'm already a new position. I'm not new practically, And if God is the one that's supposedly making me new practically. Well, then why is God doing it in such a slow way? And if God is doing it in a slow, meticulous, progressive way, you can't condemn someone for sin because God has not yet changed them in that area where they're sinning. So then it would be on God. Oh you say no, no, no, it's on you. So then I'm the one who's changing me. Well, I have to work with God, so then God's changing me.

1:11:29 But I can stop God from changing me, so then I'm more powerful than God. This just becomes a series of unanswerable riddles, and nobody ever wants to take it apart that way. We just want it simple. We just want the concept that when you become a Christian dunt unt to done, you have supernatural power and how you're perfect, and now you can walk around and tell everyone how they're true pieces of trash and they shouldn't be in ministry, and you can kick everyone out of the Kingdom of God. Oh, it's got to be good to be king. Christianity is the story of a holy God saving sinners by imputing righteousness to them even though they're still sinners, and the only hope of those sinners is the imputed righteousness of Christ.

1:12:20 Their salvation is in His work. And then we have the inevitent. We have the impossible task of trying to live out practically what is true, positionally, and it will never come anywhere close to being right. It's going to be a mess. It's gonna be a it's going to be sinful, it's going to be it's gonna be failure. And that's why the world is going to look at us as hypocrites. That's why we have to constantly try to explain to the world. No, no, no, no, no no. I'm declared righteous by an imputed righteousness, not an infused So I am declared to be that which I am admitting to you. I am not. I'm admitting to you I'm still a sinner. I'm admitting to you I still fall short. I'm admitting to you my own lust, my coveteousness, my pride, my arrogance, my gossip, my slander, my false witness.

1:13:08 I'm admitting that all of this is still very much present. I'm sayd by an imputed righteousness. I know that these things are wrong, and I'm seeking to try to live a life differently, but I still have the same sinful nature that I had before. I'm saying trying to explain that to the world. The world we tend to just try to say, I'm not what I was, and therefore I don't do that stuff anymore. Well, you can try to pretend now. You may not do certain things, but even though you're not doing them externally, you may be doing them internally. So today, as I stated in the broadcast when we talked about we're all sinners. Today, write down five sins you've committed in the last twenty four hours.

1:13:53 Not someone else's sin. Don't worry about the famous pastor who has now been removed from ministry. Worry about your own, and then ask yourself, how can I keep committing these sins? If what I am here preached in church, I'm supposedly a new creature. The old has passed away all things that become new, I shouldn't be committing these sins. Well, the reason you're committing those sins is your new Positionally, practically, the old is very much present, and Ezekiel thirty six is about Israel, not for us. Thanks for listening, everyone, Have a great day. God bless