| If the "Old Man" is Dead?.... |
| .....then why does he seem so alive? |
by David A. DePra |
| Christians know, by reading the Bible, that there is an "old |
| man" in Adam, and a new man in Christ. There is an old creation |
| and a new creation. Futhermore, our Christian walk in victory |
| depends on knowing that our "old man in Adam" is dead. Yet so |
| many of us have trouble with this "old man." In fact, if there is |
| one thing which seems ALIVE, it is this "old man." He is always |
| there to torment us. Why, if this "old man" is dead, is he able to |
| exert such influence? Why does he seem so alive? |
| The Old Man IS Dead |
| To get at the root of this issue, we first must establish that the |
| "old man" of sin, which is in Adam, is dead. There can be no |
| doubt left about it. Gladly, the Bible makes this Truth perfectly |
| clear. Paul the apostle says it outright, in his epistle to the |
| Romans: |
| Know ye not, that so many of us as were baptized into Jesus |
| Christ were baptized into His death? (Rom. 6:3) |
| Knowing this, that our old man is crucified with Him, that the |
| body of sin might be destroyed, that henceforth we should not |
| serve sin. For he that is dead is freed from sin. (Rom. 6:6-7) |
| Likewise reckon ye also yourselves to be dead indeed unto sin, |
| but alive unto God through Jesus Christ our Lord. (Rom 6:11) |
| These, and many other passages, prove conclusively that our |
| "old man in Adam" is DEAD. Past tense. He isn't dying, or in the |
| process of dying. He IS dead, just as surely as Christ was |
| crucified. For our "old man" was actually crucified with Christ. |
| Now, we have to get that. It is easy to avoid being definite |
| about it, because our old man seems so alive. But notice it |
| again: If our "old man" was crucified in Christ, then the death of |
| our "old man" is just as certain as the death of Christ. Indeed, |
| you cannot say you believe Christ was crucified for you and |
| continue to treat the "old man" as if he is alive! No, if Christ |
| died, then your "old man" died. The two are inseparable. |
| The death of Jesus Christ was the death of sin, for "He was |
| made to be sin for us." (II Cor. 5:21) Our salvation depends |
| it. Christ did not die to bear our "punishment," or to appease the |
| wrath of God. He died to bear our sin, and to take upon Himself |
| everything which was of the "old man" in Adam. Only then could |
| this "old man" die. Only then could we be raised a "new man in |
| Christ." This IS redemption. |
| I Am Carnal |
| Now, for someone who is irrevocably DEAD, this "old man" is |
| sure able to cause a lot of trouble. And the trouble is real. It is |
| not imagined or avoidable. It is a normal part of the Christian |
| experience. The reason we know this is Romans 7. Therein, the |
| same Paul who wrote the above passages proclaiming the |
| certainty of the death of the old man, there laments the fact that |
| his "old man" constantly causes him problems. |
| But I am carnal, sold under sin. For that which I do, I allow not. |
| For what I would, that do I not. For what I hate, that do I. If then |
| I do that which I would not, I consent unto the law that it is good. |
| Now it is no more I that do it, but sin that dwells in me. (Rom. |
| 7:14-17) |
| Paul tells us here that he cannot make his flesh behave. He |
| does many things which he hates: He sins. He has some bad |
| attitudes and habits. Paul also wants to do good, but can't seem |
| to perform. No matter how hard Paul tries to yield himself to God |
| he continues to fail. Truly, he cannot make his flesh, his "old |
| man of sin," behave. He cannot make flesh obey God. |
| Notice the duality in Romans 7. Paul speaks of himself as if |
| he is TWO people. On the one hand, there is the "old man" who |
| does what Paul hates, and cannot do what Paul loves. But there |
| is the other "man," "the new man" who WILLS to obey God, and |
| often does. But he is nevertheless constantly in conflict with the |
| "old man" who cannot obey God. |
| Paul makes a clear distinction between these "two men." The |
| new man in Christ always WILLS to do God's will. But the "old |
| man" sometimes prevents him from doing it. Why? Because the |
| "new man" is presently "incased" in a carnal body, which is sold |
| under sin. Consequently, this "new man" starts from a position of |
| having to overcome what was controlled by the old. He must try |
| to obey God hidered by this carnal body, with it's damaged |
| mind, emotions, and soul. This, Paul says, is difficult. It often |
| renders him unable to do what he really wants to do. |
| The Real You |
| Paul says that if you WILL to do the will of God, then it is no |
| longer "you" who fails. It is your "old man of sin" -- it is HE |
| which cannot carry out what you -- the REAL you -- desire. |
| (see Romans 7:17 and 7:20) The REAL you WILLS to obey God. |
| And you are what you WILL. |
| Rebellion and self-ownership are matters of the will. So if we |
| WILL to do good, we ARE obeying God. We ARE believing Him. |
| Choosing to believe and obey is what God is after. So despite |
| any inability to execute our faith and intent through our actions, |
| we are obeying God if we WILL to do so. |
| There is, however, a word of caution here. There are some |
| Christians, who, upon continual failure to make their flesh |
| behave, throw in the towel, so to speak. They say, "Well, it isn't |
| really ME who is sinning. It is my old man." So they allow |
| themselves to settle down with sin, and become comfortable with |
| it. In time, they turn the grace of God into license. They come to |
| be able to excuse anything in themselves, and refuse to take |
| responsibility for it. |
| This is NOT what Paul is doing in Romans 7. He is simply |
| showing us that we are in a process, and in a struggle. He is |
| showing us that if we are born again in Christ as a new creation, |
| we will want to do the will of God -- always. Nothing will alter |
| our desire for God. But he is also showing us that we will, many |
| times, NOT be able to obey God. At that point in our growth, and |
| in our process, we will fail. Rather than construct an excuse to |
| settle for sin, Paul is telling us not to be discouraged by our |
| failures. They are normal, and as we will see, already conquered |
| in the victory of Jesus Christ. |
| What is Death? |
| In drawing a distinction between the REAL man in Christ -- |
| the one who WILLS to obey God -- and the "old man" in Adam |
| -- the one who cannot obey God -- Paul seems to be |
| contradicting himself. How? Well, he has already proclaimed |
| this "old man" dead, in Romans 6. How can a "old man" who is |
| dead cause so much trouble? If he is dead, then why is he so |
| "alive" when it comes to actual practice? How can a dead man |
| keep us from obeying God? |
| It is here that we must understand exactly what death IS. |
| Most of us think of death in terms of what happens to a physical |
| body when it dies. It lays there. It cannot move. It cannot do |
| anything. It is completely void of all power and ability. Death is, |
| as far as this life goes, non-existance. The person is gone. |
| Now, all of that is true. But those traits of death are only |
| applicable to the physical death of a physical body. Death is |
| much more vast than that! |
| Death is a condition. It is a state of being. It is a REALM. |
| Consequently, never think of death as non-existance. It IS |
| existance -- but it is existance apart from God. It is conscious |
| existance, able to function and move. Those who are dead can, |
| and do, WILL and ACT. They function. They operate. They |
| perform. But they do it all in a realm other than that of LIGHT. |
| They do it in the realm of darkness. |
| This is easily proven. The Bible tells us that we were dead in |
| sin before we received Christ. But we existed. We had a will -- |
| howbeit captive to sin. We were able to think and to function. |
| Yet we were dead in Adam. We had no life in us. |
| This tells us that DEATH is quite functional. Death is actually |
| quite dynamic and powerful. It is able to exist and move. And it |
| has many characteristics. They are familiar to all of us: Fear, |
| condemnation, a false knowledge of God. And more. These are |
| all of the realm of death and darkness. They are REAL. But they |
| are all part of DEATH. |
| Herein we are able to now see why our "old man" can be |
| totally dead, yet exert such influence over us. The influence he |
| exerts, through fear, condemnation, sin, and error, IS death. |
| Those influences ARE traits of death. Consequently, rather than |
| indicate that our "old man" is still alive, all of the terrible traits of |
| the "old man" are nothing more than proof that he is dead. The |
| "old man" is simply acting the way a dead man acts. |
| We have had this backwards. We have thought that when our |
| flesh won't behave, that our "old man" is alive. We think he has |
| somehow been temporarily resurrected or something. So we say |
| things like, "I must put my old man to death," etc. But this is not |
| what is happening. When our flesh won't behave, it isn't the old |
| man alive all over again. No. He is once for all DEAD! Just as |
| surely as Christ died. And he cannot be raised up out of the |
| death of Christ! Rather, when the old man won't behave, or |
| influences us with fear and darkness, it IS his "deadness" |
| manifesting itself. It IS death -- residing in the old man, acting |
| like death acts. |
| Victory in Christ Jesus |
| Now that we have seen that the dead old man of sin can |
| function and move -- and that this functioning and moving IS |
| death -- where does this leave us with regard to victory over |
| him? It leaves us with complete victory over him. How so? |
| Because despite the fact that the old man of sin does not behave |
| very well, and often makes it difficult for us to obey God, it is |
| nevertheless a fact that he no longer has dominion over us. |
| Through the resurrection of Christ, we have been given victory |
| over him! |
| Note the words of Paul: |
| Likewise reckon ye also yourselves to be dead indeed unto sin, |
| but alive unto God through Jesus Christ our Lord. Let not sin |
| therefore reign in your mortal body, that you should obey it in the |
| lusts thereof.... For sin shall not have dominion over you. For |
| you are not under the law, but under grace. (Rom. 6:11-14) |
| Here we see the essence of the CHANGE which has taken |
| place within one who is born again. Before Christ, we were the |
| "old man," completely bound to obey darkness and death. After |
| Christ, we are a new creation. The "old man" cannot make us do |
| anything. He no longer has dominion over us. We do not have to |
| yield to him! We are free to walk with Jesus Christ. |
| But don't misunderstand. The old man is not changed. He is |
| not redeemed. Neither is he gone from our presence. No. Not |
| one place in scripture does God ever say that the "old man" has |
| been changed into a new creation. We are never told that God |
| saves the old creation in Adam, and imparts to it the ability to |
| obey God. But what does God say? He says that we are set free |
| from the old man. In other words, through Christ, God severs the |
| grip which the old man had upon us. |
| In Jesus Christ, we are born into a new realm, as a new |
| creation. This is completely separate from the old realm, where |
| the power of death and darkness can move. Therefore, the old |
| man in Adam really has no power over us at all! He has NO |
| ability, as he did before Christ, to govern us. |
| Then why DOES he govern so many Christians? Because we |
| don't believe the Truth just mentioned. (Or, worse, don't WANT |
| to believe it.) We don't really believe the old man is dead in |
| Christ. We don't believe his power is gone. We believe he is |
| alive, and that it is up to us to get victory over him. We believe |
| this because the old man is still hanging around our necks. And |
| we think that the influence which the realm of darkness exerts |
| through him is evidence he is alive. It isn't. It is evidence of |
| death. |
| Deception is the only power the enemy has over the Christian. |
| Since the enemy has already been totally defeated by Christ, his |
| only device is to deceive us into thinking he hasn't been |
| defeated. But if we believe this lie, how can we possibly ever |
| walk in Christ's victory? By definition, we will have denied it. We |
| will spend our energy and faith trying to win a victory over an |
| enemy who is already defeated! |
| There are many Truths in the Bible which are vital. But the |
| foundation of Christianity is the most important. And it states that |
| Jesus Christ has won all victory. He hasn't left any victories for |
| US to win. That is the basis of all faith. It is the basis of walking |
| in victory. Without this, we have no salvation by grace. We |
| cannot overcome. We cannot grow. We really have no access |
| to God. We MUST believe this Truth and grow to walk in it. |
| Reckoning and Obeying |
| Now, here is where the conflict occurs. We have been |
| spiritually birthed into a new realm -- that of Light, Truth, and |
| LIFE. We have been set free from the realm of darkness. But at |
| this stage of God's purpose and plan, we continue to reside |
| within a body of sin which is subject to the influences of death. |
| Our physical bodies, with it's damaged soul realm, is not born |
| again by the Spirit of God. It continues to MISbehave. We are a |
| living spirit incased in a dead body. And we must overcome this |
| condition through Jesus Christ. |
| How? By turning upon the dead old man and beating him |
| back? No. By believing that what God says is true: He is dead. |
| So I treat him like he is dead. I say, "I know you are making a lot |
| of noise, and making me feel like you are alive. But you are not. |
| You are dead." So I ignore -- mortify -- the pulls of the old |
| man. I refuse to allow him to convince me he is able to control |
| me. |
| But I can't stop there. All of that is merely negative and |
| passive -- howbeit necessary. I must fill up the void. How? By |
| yielding to God. Rather than be occupied with fighting a dead |
| man, I need to be occupied with Christ. If I will turn away from |
| trying to win a victory which is already won, and begin standing |
| IN victory, through faith and obedience, I will see that the old |
| man has no power over me. I'll see that God was telling me the |
| Truth. |
| The only way to walk in victory is to stop trying to win a |
| victory. I must move forward by faith -- faith that the victory is |
| already won. I believe and obey. I yield myself to God in every |
| way God makes clear. When the old man tries to pull me down, |
| I combat him, not by fighting him, but by turning to God and |
| yielding to Jesus Christ. |
| Make no mistake. God isn't going to do this for us. God WILL |
| reveal to us the Truth, and show us how it works in practical |
| living. He'll show us how all this works on the "inside of us." But |
| He cannot yield for us. We must do that. We must walk in that |
| light. |
| Now, if we will believe and obey, we will SEE that what God |
| says is true: The old man cannot govern us. We DO have the |
| freedom, in Christ, to refuse him and obey God. But we will only |
| experience this freedom AS we walk out in it. God isn't going to |
| come upon us and make us "feel like we are free" so that we can |
| believe we are. No. In fact, we'll probably NOT "feel" free. It is |
| only AS we believe and then obey that our freedom becomes |
| real, and part of us, by experience. |
| Overcoming |
| "To overcome' never means to turn back upon our old man of |
| sin, and try to kill him. It never means to try to fight or try to win a |
| victory over the old man. "To overcome" means to reckon AS |
| true what God says IS true -- that the victory over the old man |
| is finished. And then it means to STAND in that Truth and MOVE |
| FORWARD. I must go on to put my reckoning into inward and |
| outward action. |
| God says that there is absolutely nothing which a Christian |
| cannot overcome in the victory of Jesus Christ. That victory is |
| ALREADY won. It is already given free of charge. But WE must |
| believe it. And WE must obey it. Otherwise it won't do us much |
| good. |
| So where does this leave us? It leaves us in a process. It |
| leaves us, yes, beset with an old man of sin who won't behave, |
| and who constantly tries to convince us that we must obey him. |
| But it also leaves us with the Truth: The old man is lying. God |
| has set us free. Therefore, as we believe this, and then act like |
| we believe by obeying, we will grow. The process will carry us |
| more and more out of our old patterns and conform us to Jesus |
| Christ. |
| Christians never overcome by fighting sin. They overcome by |
| believing sin is dead in Christ. And then by acting like it. The |
| overcoming is complete when I cannot be moved by lies any |
| longer, but am able to stand fast in the finished victory of Jesus |
| Christ by faith and obedience. |
| Here we see that spiritual warfare is totally within the realm of |
| faith. The enemy will try to make me believe that my failures and |
| sins are proof that the victory isn't already won. But I must stand |
| by faith in His victory and refuse to be moved. I must move |
| forward in faith and obedience, leaving behind my failures. |
| The Resurrection Life in Christ |
| Often we focus on the death side of the redemption. We |
| focus in on the fact that we are forgiven our sins, and delivered |
| from sin itself, through Christ. We use this great and wonderful |
| Truth to combat the fear, condemnation, and the false guilt |
| which the enemy, working through the old man, tries to bring to |
| us. And it is right that we do so. We should always speak these |
| Truths in our hearts. |
| This, however, should not be the beginning and end of our |
| Christian experience. In fact, we should realize that the death of |
| Christ -- in and of itself -- doesn't even SAVE us. Really? |
| That's right. The Bible tells us that we are actually saved by His |
| resurrection. |
| For if, when we were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the |
| death of His Son, much more, being reconciled, we shall be |
| saved by His life. (Rom. 5:10) |
| The death of Christ delivered us from the realm of death and |
| reconciled us back to God. It severed us from the old man of sin. |
| But death itself never imparts life. In order for life to be imparted |
| to us, we needed to be raised up a new creation. |
| When God raised Jesus Christ from the dead, He was the |
| first-born of a new creation. Get that. There was, at that point, |
| something in existance which never existed before: A new |
| creation in Christ Jesus. It wasn't the old creation repaired, or |
| renovated. It was a brand new creation. And when we are |
| raised up in Him, we are co-heirs with Him. In that new life and |
| new creation is salvation and life eternal. |
| This new life has one characteristic which no other life or |
| mode of existance has ever possessed. Do you know what that |
| is? It is VICTORY over death. Note that. NOT simply a life void |
| of death in the sense of never having experienced it. But victory |
| OVER death. Jesus Christ experienced and tasted the fullness of |
| death for every person and DEFEATED it. He didn't side-step it, |
| avoid it, or ignore it. He conquered it. |
| In His resurrection, we are also more than conquerers. We |
| are absolutely free from death. It cannot govern us. To the |
| contrary, we are able to reign and rule over all things in Christ. |
| How? By making our flesh behave? By making the old man |
| behave? No. We've already seen we can't do this. We do it by |
| yielding our members to God as new creations. In other words, |
| we refuse to obey the old man, and yield ourselves to God. And |
| because we have victory over death, there is nothing which can |
| stop us. |
| As mentioned, this involves a process. It is a process which |
| takes time and experience. We must learn and we must grow. |
| We must have our minds renewed and our lives adjusted. But as |
| Paul said, "Who will deliver us from this body of death? Thank |
| God through Jesus Christ." He has already won the victory. |