READ
2 Cor. 5, 2 Cor. 5:17
“Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation, the old has passed away and see, the new has come”
REFLECT
You know what I love is a brand new pair of shoes! There is nothing like sliding them on for the first time. The softness of that new insole, the new tight laces, the scuff-free outer appearance and that new shoe smell (which we have to admit is much better than what our old kicks were kickin…). Think about your last “new” pair of shoes. You might be wearing them right now.
How did it make you feel? Maybe you got a new pair of lifters and the first time you put them on you new it was going to be PR kind of day! And as a Crossfitter, we can identify other Crossfitters by their shoes. It gives us an identity, and maybe that is a new identity for you. Paul speaks very clearly about this and what a new identity means and looks like.
In 1 Cor. 13 Paul talked about how when were children (unbelievers) we sought after childish things, selfish things to make us happy. But what happens when those things fail to make us happy anymore? What happens when our WOD times are not satisfying to us anymore? Or our Olympic lifts began to fail and we are not hitting the numbers that gave us an identity? We need to begin to look at where we are placing our identity and what things are letting identify us.
Thankfully our heavenly Father has a solution. 2 Cor 5:17 says, “Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation, the old has passed away and see, the new has come.” Did you hear that?!?! That means that we let Jesus take the reigns, my old self, those nasty old shoes that I’ve been wearing, are suddenly replaced with brand new, scuff-free, good-smelling self! The old is gone, the new has come and is here to stay. Praise Jesus for his sacrifice on the cross to make this all possible.
DISCUSSION
- Have you traded in those old smelly shoes for the good smelling pair?
- What are some obstacles that you face in making that decision
- What have been some ways that you have seen the change from your old self to the new creation Paul talks about in 2 Cor. 5:17?
SKILL WORK
If you are still wondering about becoming a new creation, reach out to someone that can have that discussion with you. If you know someone that is searching for those new pair of shoes, sit down with them and share the good news of 2 Cor. 5:17.
