DCLM Higher Everyday 11 January 2023 — A brand new you
DCLM Higher Everyday 11 January 2023 Devotional by Pastor W. F. Kumuyi — A brand new you
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TOPIC: A BRAND NEW YOU
TEXT: 2 CORINTHIANS 5:17-20.
18And all things are of God, who hath reconciled us to himself by Jesus Christ, and hath given to us the ministry of reconciliation;
19To wit, that God was in Christ, reconciling the world unto himself, not imputing their trespasses unto them; and hath committed unto us the word of reconciliation.
20Now then we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God did beseech you by us: we pray you in Christ’s stead, be ye reconciled to God.
MEMORY VERSE: Therefore if any man be in Christ is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold all things are become new” (2 CORINTHIANS 5:17).
MESSAGE:
Before Augustine became a Christian in the late 300’s AD, he was a wild and immoral young man. Walking in a street one day, a prostitute called out to him, but he kept on walking. She caught him, turned him around and said, “Augustine, don’t you know who I am?” Then he replied and said, “I do.” He further said, “But you don’t know who I am. The Augustine you knew is dead.” Augustine made the lady to know that he was dead to sin and couldn’t commit it any longer, being a new creature in Christ.
When God forgives a person, He changes his life entirely. The proof of our encounter with God is a complete transformation from sinful ways to a life that is holy and morally upright. You too can experience a brand-new life. You can move from addiction to freedom, from bondage to liberty, from dullness to brilliance, from shame to fame. God’s promise for you is a new life devoid of sin. A song writer said, “If you say, you love the Saviour…Prove it by the life you live”.
In the Old Testament, when King Solomon completed the temple in Jerusalem, the glory of God filled the whole place at its dedication. Just as King Solomon painstakingly ensured the provision of the best materials for God’s temple, so are we wonderfully made by God for His dwelling. We must preserve and present our bodies as holy temples for His use.
As God’s temples, we are peculiar people because He resides in us. God is holiness personified. Knowing this makes us to keep away from sin as it does not glorify Him. As youths, nothing pleases God more than seeing us live a life of holiness as this qualifies us for heaven. The way you talk, the things you eat or drink, what you put on, and what you do with your body show whether you honour God or you are toying with His temple. The question today is: Are you defiling the temple of God or are you keeping it holy for His glory? Let people see Jesus in you.
QUOTE: Move from addiction to freedom
CHALLENGE: Possess a brand new life for the New Year.
PRAYER FOR TODAY: Oh God, give me a brand-new life, in Jesus’ name.
1. Admit that you are a sinner. "For all [humans] have sinned, and comes short of the glory of God....[and] the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord" (Romans 3:23)
2. Repent now. "Repent ye therefore, and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out ...[for] if we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness " (Acts 3:19, 1 John 1:9)
3. Believe that God loves you and Jesus died for you. "God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet Sinners, Christ died for us" (Romans 5:8)
4. Invite Jesus into your life through prayer of faith. Jesus says, "Behold, I stand at the door, and knock: if any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with me" (Revelation 3:20)
