Core Reality of the Christian Faith

“Therefore, if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.”

2 Corinthians 5:17

The essential reality of the Christian faith is not an inherited religious confession or a doctrinal statement of beliefs.  The core reality is an experience with God that changes the course and direction of your life, that brings healing and wholeness to the entire human being.  

The word salvation that we get from the New Testament is from a Greek word that essentially means healing.  He saves us.  That is, he takes what is broken in us and restores it.  He forgives us and cleanses us from sin.  But not only that, he gives us a new nature.  And a new relationship forms that makes you a child of God.  You have a new nature, new desires, hurts and pains are healed, and peace is given to you.  You are made new.

This experience comes to us when we believe in what God has done for us through his Son, Jesus Christ.  Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the living God is the foundational revelation that the apostle Peter was given by the Heavenly Father.  Upon this rock the church is built. (Matthew 16:16-18)  And when the claims of Christ are accepted, the Spirit of God comes into our lives and makes us new. (Romans 10:9)  Christ washed away our guilt through the blood that he shed on the cross.  Jesus takes our broken lives and makes us new.  He comes to us through the work of the Spirit of God and gives us a new life and a new start.

Many of the teachings of the New Testament form around these basic experiences that we have with God. Who God is, who Jesus is, who we are in Him, the Spirit of God’s work, baptism, predestination, and all the things we learn about God and his plan are so that we can know him personally in our lives today and know our hope for the future.  He wants to be real to us now in our life, present tense, and to display himself to us in a way that we can intimately know Him.  He heals us, he provides for us, he gives us wisdom and leads us in life’s decisions.  We can talk to him and he talks to us.

Romans 8:14 says, “For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God.” To be a son of God means to have a relationship with God.  It is not merely a title, when you are a son in good standing with your father you have a relationship with him.  To be led by the Spirit of God means that you hear from God and he directs your footsteps.  This is not just an impersonal thing, but this is a very personal relationship where you find direction specifically for you.  Truly all things are NEW!