Living a Holy Life with a New Heart
“You were taught to leave your old self—to stop living the evil way you lived before. That old self becomes worse, because people are fooled by the evil things they want to do. But you were taught to be made new in your hearts, to become a new person. That new person is made to be like God—made to be truly good and holy.” — Ephesians 4:22-24
Do you really know how it feels to get a second chance? Maybe, it was a second chance by having a "good" bloodwork result, or if someone we hurt forgave us or if we survived a heart attack. These events can change us. We feel grateful that we get another chance in life. Hopefully, these life changing events should make us want to live a life that pleases God. He is the one who gives us another chance to change and be different. According to Ezekiel 36:26, we can be different with God’s help. He does it by:
“Putting a new way of thinking inside you. I will take out the stubborn hearts of stone from your bodies, and I will give you obedient hearts of flesh.”
With the new heart and help from the Holy Spirit, we can live a different life. We get another chance to act and think differently than before. We can live a holy life and live how the Scriptures teach. We can be obedient with another chance God gives us by giving us a new heart. The new heart helps us to turn from our evil desires and turn to God for forgiveness. We are made a new creation; being a new creation means all of our old and sinful ways are changed (2 Corinthians 5:17). We will still sin, but our sins are forgiven and are forgiven if we are truly sorry and confess to God what we have done (1 John 1:9, Daniel 9:9). It is pretty simple.
The good news is that God made it all possible by Jesus’ death (Romans 6:23). His death on the cross cleanses us from our unrighteousness and makes us right with God (1 John 1:9, Romans 3:22). It is through this kind of grace that we are given another chance in life and it is a life that pleases God and gives Him glory.
Prayer of the day:
Dear heavenly Father,
You are a great God. You have showed your greatness by giving people a new heart and a second chance in life. We have a new heart that pleases You. With this new heart, we can be obedient. When we listen to what the Bible teaches, we can do good for others in Your holy name. Your name is holy; therefore, we want others to know You by our changed heart and by our actions. All glory and honor belong to You. In Your Son’s holy name we pray, Amen!
