Click for Chapter 22
In our last lesson, which was on identification with Christ, we studied the steps whereby God brought forth a New Creation in Christ.
After Christ was made alive out of spiritual death, in His identification with fallen man, He was raised up the firstborn of many brethren.
Romans 8:29 "For whom He foreknew, He also foreordained to be conformed to the image of His son, that He might be the firstborn of many brethren." He was the firstborn of many sons of God.
He was the firstborn from the dead. Hebrews 1:5-6 "For unto which of the angels said He at any time, thou art my son, this day have I begotten thee and again, I will be to him a father and He shall be to me a son and again when He bringeth the firstborn into the world, let all the angels of God worship him." He was the first man in all the ages of human history to be born out of spiritual death into the realm of life.
Colossians 1:18 "And He is the head of the body the church, who is the firstborn from the dead that in all things He might have the pre-eminence." He is the head of the New Creation. He is the head of the new species, the third race, a new type of man.
He is the head of a creation of men, who are free from the dominion of Satan. Whenever a man accepts this Son of God as Saviour and Lord, he passes out of death into life.
John 5:24 He Himself is made a new creation. "Wherefore if any man be in Christ, he is a New Creature; the old things have passed away; behold all things are become new" (2 Corinthians 5:17).
This New Creation in Christ, a spiritual creation, is just as much a reality as the creation in Adam. In this study, we are going to compare the two.
The creation of the Universe and the creation of man - the crown of creation, point us to an intelligent, omnipotent creator. Only a man whose mind is blinded by a determination not to believe God, will believe otherwise.
We will give just a brief summary, showing what a man must believe, if he refuses belief in an intelligent creator.
The first fact that man faces is this: he exists. Here at least his knowledge is certain. He is, but how did he come to be. He lives in a world that teems with life, but how did life begin? To say that man is a descendant though numbered by innumerable generations merely puts the difficulty back.
From where did the first man come? How did life begin? To the present day, science has been able to offer no answer. The only answer which science can make is that life sprang out of death, out of nothing. The scientist who rejects God must accept as a very foundation of his belief, a theory that is not only void of proof but a contradiction to all our present day knowledge upon the subject. Every scientific experiment has proven that life cannot be generated independent of antecedent life, that inanimate matter cannot become living except under the influence of matter already living, and that life is produced only by life.
The man who rejects a creator answers that although we cannot prove spontaneous generation has ever taken place; it may have taken place billions of years ago. He also says that only one germ of living matter would have to be necessary. This primeval life germ he must take for granted. But he must believe that it has inherent within it all the possibilities for the development of life in every realm.
Which is easier to believe? Can an honest man believe more readily that there happened a living germ of matter which possessed the capacities for development of the universe with its highly complicated and intelligently organized forms of life more readily than he can believe in an intelligent creator? Can he believe that an intelligent conscious being as a man who thrills with a desire for immortality, could have been developed from an unintelligent unconscious matter?
NO! The creation of man points to an intelligent creator. The creation of man in Adam points to an intelligent creator of the most tender love and care for man.
As we study the creation, either through a most powerful telescope which reveals that the planets, the stars, and the comets all perform according to a schedule of order and law, or through the most powerful microscopes, that reveal the same law and order prevail in the most infinitesimal forms of life. We find that the utmost painstaking care thought and design have been lavished upon all forms of life.
The same creator who has with marvelous skill painted a sunset, a rainbow, has touched with the most brilliant colors each feather in the wing of a bird. Because the creator knew that man would become curious and study life under the most powerful artificial lenses in care and thoughtfulness. He delicately and beautifully made every minute form of life. Some forms of life are so small that twenty of them can be found in a single drop of moisture. Yet each one of them exquisitely and beautifully designed.
We ask to what purpose this care and thoughtfulness we see manifested in all creation. The answer is, Man!
Every step in creation points to man as the goal. The earth with its deposits of coal and minerals, and oil; its fields, fruits, vegetables, its forests, its cattle, its beauty is all for man. We find that in preparing this home for man, the creator gave His personal attention to every particle of dust as well as to every star. What care -- what thought -- what love is manifested in His provision of the man He created, -- created in His own image to rule creation, and to have dominion over everything God had made. Man was created to be God’s under-ruler (Genesis 1:26).
The creation in Adam, the first creation, reveals the infinite love of the creator for man and the place man held in His plans. But now let us turn to this new creation in Christ to see what it reveals to our hearts, of our creator.
We have seen in our past study that a catastrophe has blighted this creation and the life of man created in the image of God (Genesis 3). In their condition of spiritual death, and consequent alienation from God (Genesis 3:1-5, Romans 5:12-18, Ephesians 2:1-5), men have looked upon this sin cursed creation and thought that God, if there is a God, has been inactive, just a spectator upon the world’s affairs. The forces of nature that are so benevolent toward man are at the same time so destructive, so indifferent toward human life. It seems that in every element there is a blessing and a cursing. The sun, the winds, and the water, and the fires bring oft times death and suffering.
But during the reign of spiritual death brought about by the fall of Adam and Eve, the creator has been far from inactive. He has been no more inactive or thoughtless toward man than He was in His preparation for man’s advent into this world.
Down through the ages of human history, every step, every dealing of God with man has been toward one goal: a new creation, a spiritual creation of man that would free man completely from spiritual death and its consequent satanic dominion.
No less thought, no less care, no less love, has been lavished upon the preparation for the new Creation than was poured out upon the old creation of man. If the first creation reveals the love of the creator for man, how much does the new -- the NEW CREATION! If the first creation gives to us a glimpse of the place man held in God’s plan for man, how much more does the new creation in Christ! No creative power alone could bring forth the New Creation. It could not be created in paradise.
Thus far we have studied the steps whereby the New Creation was brought forth. Only the Son of God by taking our place in spiritual death, by taking our penalty, and paying it, could make the New Creation a possibility. Has the God of Creation been inactive during the ages of human woe and misery? No, He, the Creator, has assumed the liabilities of man, sin. The son of God, the one who existed on an equality with God has not only been touched with his suffering of spiritual death but has assumed it, borne its penalty, and suffered in humanity’s stead, so that man need not suffer.
The first creation was brought forth in paradise, fresh from the hands of the creator. The New Creation in Christ was brought forth from the cross, the death, and literally Hell. Let us not forget what we read in Psalm 16:10 - "Thou wilt not leave my soul in Hell," had reference to Christ. Hell had been prepared for Satan and his hosts, and to this place, the place of departed spirits, Jesus descended to work out our emancipation, breaking the Lordship of Satan, meeting the claims of justice and righteousness. When all was paid, He was made alive out of the thralldom of death and we were made alive with Him in a vicarious way, or in a legal way. The emancipation He secured becomes vitally ours when we accept Him as our Saviour. Ephesians 2:5 "Even when we were dead through our trespasses, we were made alive together with Christ."
This was the place where the New Creation was legally brought forth. It was here that spiritually dead man when he had been justified was legally conformed to the image of God’s son.
Romans 8:29 "For whom He foreknew, He foreordained to be conformed to the image of His son that He might be the firstborn among many brethren."
And Christ arose the firstborn of many brethren, because we on account of Christ taking our place, had been declared righteous (2 Corinthians 5:21). Romans 4:25 "Who was delivered for our trespasses and raised on account of our being declared righteous."
Acts 2:27 "Because thou wilt not leave my soul in Hell." Acts 2:31 "He foreseeing this spake of the resurrection of Christ, that neither was His soul left in Hell nor His flesh see corruption." Acts 2:24, "Who God has raised up having loosed the pangs of death." When God made Christ alive, He was loosed from the "pangs" of death or from the intense agonies that He suffered in His condition of spiritual death.
This was the birth of the New Creation in Him. The first creation had been created in the image of God, as the crown and climax of all creation.
Genesis 1:26-27 The New Creation was brought forth out of the thralldom of death, alienation, and suffering to be conformed to the image of God’s own son, and as joint (equal) heirs with Christ. This is the price that Almighty God paid for the New Creation. It is doubtful that we will ever fathom the love of God for the Christian. Words cannot give an adequate estimation of what the New Creation means to our heavenly Father.
Thus far we have been dealing with the legal side, that side which reveals what God did for man in Christ. A man enters into it vitally and actually by receiving Christ personally as Saviour and Lord (John 1:12, Romans 10:9-10), and by confessing Him as Lord of his life. When a person does this he becomes a New Creation in Christ (2 Corinthians 5:17).
In the framework of such a relationship, let us now study our heavenly Father’s attitude toward the New Creation, today, right now. Is this creator today indifferent toward the New Creation in Christ? His inheritance is in the New Creation. (Ephesians 1:18 "And what the riches of the glory of His Inheritance in the saints.") Every dream, every plan for man finds its fulfillment in the New Creation.
Let us now study what God has said about the New Creation. He declares that the New Creation has been made righteous. Romans 5:1 "Being therefore declared righteous by faith." (Lit. Trans.) He also declares that Jesus, His own son, is the righteousness of those who have become a New Creation in Him.
"But of Him are you in Christ (this is a description of the new creation begotten of God in Christ) who made unto us wisdom from God and righteousness and sanctification and redemption." (1 Corinthians 1:30)
However these statements cannot describe the righteousness of man, this new man in Christ which He has brought forth. He can say nothing more when He says: the New Creation has become the very righteousness of God in Him.
2 Corinthians 5:21 "Him who knew no sin He made to become sin on our behalf, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him."
The New Creation is as free from satanic dominion as is Christ Jesus Himself. The New Man in Christ has been delivered absolutely out of the authority of Satan.
Colossians 1:13 "Who delivered us out of the authority of darkness and translated us into the Kingdom of His son."
Hebrews 2:14 "That through death He might bring to naught him that had the authority of death that is the devil."
Satan is the Father and Lord of natural man, and ruler of the dominion of death (2 Corinthians 4:3-4). But to the New Creation, the Lordship of Satan has been broken (Mark 16:17, 1 John 3:8, Acts 26:18).
Romans 6:1-13 shows that the New Creation is as free as Christ is from the dominion of sin and Satan. The first man was God’s under-ruler, but the New Man is a joint (equal) heir with Jesus Christ.
Romans 8:14-16 "The spirit Himself beareth witness with our spirit that we are the children of God, and if children then heirs; heirs of God and joint heirs with Christ."
Our heavenly Father looks upon the New Creation as He looks upon Jesus. The new man does not belong to the world and has no more part in our relation to Satan than Christ had.
John 17:16, Jesus speaks and says, "They are not of the world even as I am not of the world." Our heavenly Father loves the new creature in Christ, even as He loves Christ.
John 17:23 "That the world may know that thou didst send me and lovest them even as thou lovest me."
The Father in heaven hears the requests of the New Creatures in Christ even as He heard Christ, because the New Creation has been instructed to pray in the name of Jesus. This new man can bring the omnipotent creator to action on his behalf by using the authority of the Name of Jesus.
John 16:23-24 "Verily, verily, I say unto you, if you shall ask anything of the Father, He will give it you in my name." How limitless in power and authority is the life of one who has been made a new creation in Him.