God creates a new nature in the person who is in Christ - old things pass away and all things become new.
Les Feldick teaches that being a new creation is God's work of creation, not merely a reformation of the old life. A person in Christ receives a new divine nature that is set opposite the old Adamic nature. This does not mean the old Adamic nature is immediately gone; God considers it dead, but the believer still experiences its presence. The new creation therefore calls the believer to live for Christ, not for self.
2 Corinthians 5:17 — The key verse that declares a person in Christ is a new creature/creation.
Ephesians 4:22-24 — Explains putting off the old man and putting on the new man created in righteousness and true holiness.
The key verse is 2 Corinthians 5:17. The King James Version reads, 'Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.' The context shows why this is true: Christ died for all, so those who live should not henceforth live unto themselves but unto Him who died for them and rose again (2 Corinthians 5:14-15). Ephesians 4:22-24 adds the practical picture. Believers are told to put off the old man, which is corrupt according to the deceitful lusts, to be renewed in the spirit of their mind, and to put on the new man, which after God is created in righteousness and true holiness.
Les Feldick takes 2 Corinthians 5:17 as the defining verse for the new creation. He says the King James word 'creature' is better translated 'creation,' because our salvation is a work of God's creation. At the moment we believe, God does a creative work and places a new nature within us - a divine nature set over against the old Adamic nature (Clips 1, 2, 7). At the same time, Les is careful not to say the old nature has vanished. God considers the old Adam dead and crucified, but in the believer's actual experience the old Adam is still present. That is why Paul tells believers to put off the old man and put on the new man, and why the new man is created in righteousness and true holiness (Clips 6, 7). Les also connects the new creation with reconciliation: all things are of God, who has reconciled us to Himself by Jesus Christ and has given us the ministry of reconciliation (Clip 4). The practical result is that grace is not license. Because Christ died for all, those who live should live for Him, and the new divine nature begins to affect the believer's daily walk, producing growth in grace and knowledge (Clips 0, 3).
Les Feldick says yes - the old Adam is still with us. Positionally, God considers the old man crucified and dead, so the believer does not have to let him rule and reign. But in actual experience the old Adamic nature remains, set in contradiction to the new divine nature. The believer is therefore instructed to reckon the old Adam dead, put off the old man, and put on the new man.
Les says the King James word 'creature' in 2 Corinthians 5:17 is better translated 'creation.' His reason is that salvation is a work of creation - it is a work of God's power and creative ability. When a person believes, God creates a new nature within him, making old things pass away and all things become new.
Les draws from 2 Corinthians 5:14-15 to say that Christ's death for all means those who live should not live to themselves but to Him who died and rose again. He emphasizes that grace is not license: forgiveness, justification, redemption, and reconciliation do not mean we may live as we please. The new divine nature begins to influence the body, and the believer grows in grace and in the knowledge of God.
Les points to 2 Corinthians 5:18 to show that the new creation is part of what God has done for us. All things are of God, who reconciled us to Himself by Jesus Christ, and He then gave us the ministry of reconciliation. The reconciled believer is not just changed inwardly; he is given a responsibility to share this reconciliation with others.
Living for Christ, Not Self
Les explains that being forgiven, justified, redeemed, and reconciled is not permission to live as we please; Christ died for all so that those who live would live for Him.
New Creation as God's Creative Work
Les says the King James word 'creature' is better translated 'creation,' because at salvation God does a work of creation and creates a new nature in the believer.
New Creation and Our Position in Christ
Les ties being 'in Christ' to being a new creation, showing that salvation is a work of God's power and that old things have passed away.
New Divine Nature and Christian Growth
Les describes the old sin nature becoming a new divine nature that connects the believer with God and begins to affect daily Christian living.
New Creation, Reconciliation, and Ministry
Les connects the new creation to the believer's heavenly position and to reconciliation: God reconciled us and gave us the ministry of reconciliation.
New Birth and Transformed Mind
Les says being a new creation is part of the new birth; God creates a transformed mind within the believer.
Put Off the Old Man, Put On the New
Les applies the new creation practically: since the old Adam is dead positionally, the believer must put him off and put on the new man created in righteousness and true holiness.
New Nature Set Against the Old Adam
Les describes the new nature as divine and set in direct contradiction to the old Adamic nature, which remains present in experience even though God considers it dead.
2 Corinthians 5:14: For the love of Christ constraineth us; because we thus judge, that if one died for all, then were all dead:
Shows why those who are in Christ no longer live for themselves.
2 Corinthians 5:15: And that he died for all, that they which live should not henceforth live unto themselves, but unto him which died for them, and rose again.
Declares that Christ died for all so that those who live would live for Him.
2 Corinthians 5:17: Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.
The key verse defining the new creation in Christ.
2 Corinthians 5:18: And all things are of God, who hath reconciled us to himself by Jesus Christ, and hath given to us the ministry of reconciliation;
Links reconciliation with God to the ministry of reconciliation.
Ephesians 4:22: That ye put off concerning the former conversation the old man, which is corrupt according to the deceitful lusts;
Instructs believers to put off the old man.
Ephesians 4:23: And be renewed in the spirit of your mind;
Calls for renewal in the spirit of the mind.
Ephesians 4:24: And that ye put on the new man, which after God is created in righteousness and true holiness.
Describes the new man created in righteousness and true holiness.
Les Feldick says the King James word 'creature' is better translated 'creation.' He explains that our salvation is not just a change in behavior; it is a work of creation. When a person believes, God creates a new nature within him (2 Corinthians 5:17).
According to Les, the old Adamic nature is still present in the believer's experience. God considers it dead and done with, but the believer must reckon it dead, put off the old man, and put on the new man. The new divine nature is set opposite the old nature.
Les emphasizes that grace is not license. Because Christ died for all, those who live should no longer live for themselves but for Christ who died and rose again. The new divine nature begins to affect the believer's life and leads to growth in grace and knowledge.
Watch the Teaching: What Does It Mean to Be Crucified With Christ?