Old Rejected, New Accepted
The old passport can’t take you anywhere—but the new one grants full access. In Christ, your new identity opens the gates of life.
Devotional Credit: Abide Above
Photo Credit: Unsplash
Today’s reading from Miles Stanford takes us deep into the spiritual principle at the heart of resurrection life: the necessity of death. Just as a seed must die before it bears fruit, so too must we embrace our co-death with Christ in order to live in His resurrection power.
This isn’t about morbid introspection or continual self-denial—it’s about positioning ourselves by faith in the truth of what God says has already been accomplished. We were united with Christ in His death (Romans 6:5), and therefore we are also united with Him in His risen life. The old life is not rehabilitated—it is rejected, dead, and buried. The new life is not a spiritual hobby or lifestyle—it is the very life of Christ now expressed through us.
But this is not automatic. We don’t stumble into resurrection life by accident. We must intentionally reckon ourselves dead to sin and alive to God (Romans 6:11), not based on how we feel, but on what is true. Our new identity is experienced only to the degree that we embrace the death of the old. It is the resurrection life of Christ in us—not our best efforts—that bears witness to the world of a living Savior.
Personalized Journal Entry – Voice of the Holy Spirit Through Scripture
You were crucified with Christ, and it is no longer you who live, but Christ who lives in you. Consider yourself dead to sin but alive to Me through union with My Son. I have not called you to patch up the old man or reform your flesh—I put it to death. And if I have buried it, why exhume what I have already condemned?
You were set free from the tyranny of sin and became Mine—joined to righteousness, raised to walk in newness of life. My power in you is not a future promise but a present reality. When you surrender your very self to Me as one alive from the dead, My life shines through with clarity and power.
This life you now live in the body, live by faith in the One who loved you and gave Himself for you. Faith isn’t about trying harder—it is about standing in the truth of what I have already done. As you share in My Son’s death, so you share in His resurrection. This is not an exchange of behavior, but of source—My life for yours.
Do not return to the grave to dress up what I’ve already buried. Step into the light. You are alive in Christ. Walk in Me.
(Scripture references: Galatians 2:20; Romans 6:5, 11, 13, 18; Romans 8:2; Colossians 3:1-4)
Real-Life Analogy
Imagine you're holding your old, expired passport. It once granted you access, but now it has no power, no value—it's been replaced. Yet, for some reason, you keep trying to travel with it. It doesn’t matter how sentimental you feel about it or how many stamps it carries—it’s no longer valid. You’ve been issued a new passport that reflects your new citizenship. Only when you present the new one can you walk freely through the gates. That’s how it is with the old and new life in Christ. The old you has been canceled. You’re accepted now on the basis of your new identity—fully alive in Christ.
Prayer of Confidence
Father, I rejoice that I am no longer bound to the old identity that died with Christ. I have no need to resurrect what You have already crucified. Thank You for the truth that I am fully accepted—not because I try harder, but because I am united with the risen Christ. I stand firm in what You say is true: I am dead to sin and alive to You. I trust You to live Your resurrection life through me, moment by moment. In every word, every step, and every breath today, may the mark of Your risen Son be seen.