“….that you put away, as concerning your former way of life, the old man, that grows corrupt after the lusts of deceit; and that you be renewed in the spirit of your mind, and put on the new man, who in the likeness of God has been created in righteousness and holiness of truth.”

Ephesians 4:22-24

The old life they had before, they were taught by the Spirit to get rid of it. This is a deliberate act of abandonment, and cast yourself on God, in repentance and faith. The old, empty, selfish, ungodly life has gone, and we deliberately walk in the way of the new life in Christ. This old life is corrupt and getting more and more corrupt because it panders to the desires of the flesh, which trick us into thinking that we are doing well. The old life must be out away and constantly out to death so that the new life can grow and develop in Christ. This putting off the “old man” is a daily duty and one that we find most difficult. It is to do with our former way of life as sinful people, and therefore is not relevant or necessary any more.

Those who teacher others the way to God, have an awesome responsibility, and we all need to be sure about the truths of God when we speak to other people. The message of God tells us to put off the old sinful person and put on the new person. It could be like a coat. We put off the old ragged sinful coat, and put on the righteous coat given by Christ.

This constant putting off the old and putting on my the new, should be a delight to us, unless we are particularly cold towards the Lord, which cannot be, in the life of the Christians. We can find ourselves wrestle it with particular besetting sins that trouble us, but we fight on to be holy, for the Lord is holy. Indeed, he commands us to be holy.

“But as he which hath called you is holy, so be ye holy in all manner of conversation; Because it is written, Be ye holy; for I am holy.”

1 Peter 1:15-16

“….to be made new in the attitude of your minds;”

When the Christians at Ephesus walked away from their old lives, God made them new. He gave them new minds and new attitudes. The mind is a crucial key in believing and thinking and doing. If we carry on with our old darkened sinful minds, we will be led astray. We will think we are satisfied, but only in the things of this world.

God must make us new. Unless the work of salvation comes from Him, it is futile and not real. If we have other Christians, ministers, church leaders trying to convince us we are new in Christ, we need to be careful. Salvation is of the Lord, and the work in a soul must be His work, if it is to last for eternity. Every Christian must be clear about their life in Christ. It is wise to test out our salvation. To go around the memory and experiences and make sure we do really belong to God. Our daily experience of God should tell us that we are born again and belong to the household of faith. We should have a love for the Lord which makes it easy for us to obey. Often our love is weak and feeble, so we fan into flame the desires to follow Him, through the reading of the Word and prayer.

A Christian really does have new attitudes, outlook and ways of thinking. Our minds are renewed and made like the mind of Christ. This should exhibit itself in our daily life and people should know we are Christians and therefore very different from this world. We may not necessarily fit in either, since our mindset is so different and therefore our behaviour also.

“….and to put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness.”

When a person comes to Christ, they put on the new life and way of life. The new life is eternal life, which is a quality of life fit for heaven and as we walk with God. The way of life, is the change in our behaviour and tastes, which set us apart from the people of this world. The new-self, is the person we are meant to be. We are forgiven and at peace with God. We can be bold and courageous, because God’s Holy Spirit rules within. There is a living faith that need never fail. I become a righteous person, who delights to know God and has endless love for others. This is given by the power of the Spirit, from the mighty God. There is no other way to live this life, than to deny self and follow God relentlessly. There is no other way to please the Lord, than to walk exclusively with Him, and follow His commands. This is how we know Him and is the backbone of our Christians assurance.

We may have put off the old and put on the new, but still struggle with sin. this will always be a feature fo our