The Gospel

“Tossing Out Your Old Life”

by Spencer Camp

1 Peter 2:24 “He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, that we might die to sin and live to righteousness. By his wounds you have been healed.”

There is nothing like the straight-up Gospel for one’s refreshment. It’s like a sip of chilled (insert your favorite beverage here) on a hot Summers day. I’m feeling that there is no better truth than that Jesus died for our sins, and rose again!

Only here (look above), Peter travels much deeper beyond the surface of the Gospel, stating that when Jesus died, He ‘bore’ or ‘took on’ our sins. The combined punishment due for all of our sins, past, present, and future, were opened upon Jesus that day in his painful crucifixion on the cross. Wow, Jesus died—for me! “Jesus paid it all, all to him I owe, sin has left a crimson stain, and He washed it white as snow.” (I love that song (:).

Peter then asserts that Jesus’ death was a picture of our death to sin, and rebirth to righteousness. In other words: when we repent. Jesus layed down his life for us, so we would be able to “die to sin and live to righteousness.” That simply means we lose our life to gain a new life in Christ Jesus. “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the old has passed away; behold, the new has come”(1 Cor. 5:17).

For this, I would like to avoid confusing anyone, and ‘water down’ the truth, as many do these days. So I am going to stress this, death to sin and life to righteousness, a little further so I’m more accurate:

I’m sure that you have heard or have maybe seen, certain individuals, hopefully you aren’t one of these people, who ‘walk’ into Christianity with casual ease, which sometimes this person believes to be the church doors. Upon question, his or her Testimony usually starts out with the first day he or she attends church, or some camp, and ends there. Usually you would be hard-pressed to find out this person’s Christianity, unless they went out and told you. Some even insist that becoming a Christian is merely an addition to one’s life and does not require a full commitment (this is often implied by the way they live). All this is not true! The heart of the Gospel, the Only way to Salvation, the one way which God has graciously designed for our redemption, I’m afraid to say, costs much more!

And this is the cost: Jesus requires a toss of our old life into the trash, and a pick up of a new life founded in Him. In fact, the old life becomes the object of our hatred! “…whoever hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal life”(Jn. 12:25). A person must put an end his or her old life and establish a new life that is Any Thing, Any Place, Any Time, for the Lord God, the new Commander (Lk. 9:23). A new Master must be designated, and for those who are Christians their lives they lay down, just as He has, and they take up a new life ruled by the Lord.

To be a Christian is to be ruled by Christ (go figure). His edict is for us to be Any Thing, Any Place, and Any Time for His will. Far too many people are trusting in the Gospel of Jesus, when they have already missed the point! Jesus is clear, “For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will find it.” (Matt 16:25).

My prayer is that Christians would be true Christians and lose their life for Christ, so that they could find a new one in Him.

All for the glory of my Master!