English (United States) 
"Walking in Newness" from the 2022 Spring Vision Newsletter
Salvation is eternal fellowship with the triune God. The possibility of this lofty completion was opened by the life, sacrifice, and resurrection of our Savior, Jesus Christ. Yet, as humans, we are prisoners of sin. To save us, God makes things new:
- the incarnate Son of God is the new Adam, a man in every respect consistent with God’s will;
- He establishes a new covenant with mankind, no longer based on the Law of Moses and circumcision, but on faith in Jesus Christ and mutual love (John 13:34–35);
- He gives us a new goal - it is no longer a matter of a peaceful existence on this earth, but of eternal fellowship with Him in His kingdom;
- Through the rebirth of water and the Spirit, He has made us a new creature in Christ. The Holy Spirit is working to make us into the image of Christ, the new Adam;
- God is creating a new people, made up of believers, living and dead, from all peoples and all walks of life.
Renewal in Christ is essential for entering into fellowship with Him. Like Jesus’ contemporaries, we must abandon old conceptions to follow Christ - And no one puts new wine into old wineskins; or else the new wine bursts the wineskins, the wine is spilled, and the wineskins are ruined. But new wine must be put into new wineskins (Mark 2:22).
Let’s look at a few of these old notions:
- Salvation is a reward for good works.
- This is not true! Salvation is a grace that no one can earn, as the Lord showed in the parable of the workers in the vineyard (Matthew 20:1–16).
- God’s blessing is measured by earthly well-being.
- This is not true! Blessing is about our relationship with God. His blessing allows us to remain united with God no matter what happens.
- Salvation is reserved for a chosen few, the others are condemned.
- No! We are chosen to serve God, called to contribute to the salvation of all mankind.
- Unity implies uniformity.
- No! We will always be different from one another, but Christ’s love allows us to overcome our differences. Where this love is absent, differences breed division.
- God’s perfection can be measured by human standards.
- No, it cannot! Jesus Christ fulfilled His work on earth when mankind thought He had lost everything. God’s power is fulfilled in weakness (2 Corinthians 12:9). Let us trust Him!
God is making new things, do you notice?
Let us not allow human imperfections to cloud the great things accomplished by God in the Church. May we always recognize the high value in that by forgiving our sins, God allows us to make a new start. What a grace! By forgiving and reconciling with love, God shows us a new way to get closer to others. The Holy Spirit continually gives us fresh impulses and access to new knowledge. Let us never reject what does not suit our way of thinking. Let’s first check whether what is shown to us is according to the truth of the gospel.
Changes brought about by the Spirit help to bring us closer to Christ - let us embrace them!