The Divine Exchange
Part Two
John Hoole - October 17, 2010
(CREDIT: Much of this lesson can be found
in Derek Prince's book, Bought With Blood)
( Click on charts, maps and photos for larger version)
In our last lesson, we began looking at what is called the Divine Exchange. This is a phrase that I have taken from the writings of Derek Prince. Consider what is written in Isaiah 53:
Isaiah 53:4-6 NKJV
4 Surely He has borne our griefs and carried our sorrows; Yet we esteemed Him stricken, smitten by God, and afflicted.
5 But He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our iniquities; The chastisement for our peace was upon Him, and by His stripes we are healed.
6 All we like sheep have gone astray; We have turned, every one, to his own way; And the Lord has laid on Him the iniquity of us all.
What is the problem of the human race? What have we all done? We have all gone our own way. The Bible describes this as INIQUITY. In our last lesson we defined "iniquity" as something broader that just the sinful act that it represents. The Hebrew word that is translated "iniquity" is: AVON [Pronounced AH-VONE]. This Hebrew word is used 230 times in the original Hebrew text.
When you look at the ways this Hebrew word is used, we find it broad enough to represent the sin, but also the consequences and punishment. When Moses writes the statement of Cain, in Genesis 4:13, which reads: "My punishment is greater than I can bear," the word translated "punishment" is the Hebrew word, AVON.
So the word AVON includes the sin or rebellion, the punishment for rebellion and the evil consequences of rebellion. So when we turn back to Isaiah 53, we understand that the Lord laid on the suffering Servant the rebellion of us all, including the punishment of our rebellion and its consequences.
This leads to a fundamental truth - a key, that unlocks all the treasures of God's provision on the Cross. Look at our passage in Isaiah 53 again.
Isaiah 53:4-6 NKJV
4 Surely He has borne our griefs and carried our sorrows; Yet we esteemed Him stricken, smitten by God, and afflicted.
5 But He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our iniquities; The chastisement for our peace was upon Him, and by His stripes we are healed.
6 All we like sheep have gone astray; We have turned, every one, to his own way; And the Lord has laid on Him the iniquity of us all.
Do you see the "Divine Exchange?" Do you recognize that what was due to happen to us was transferred to Christ?
• He bore our griefs.
• He carried our sorrows.
• He was wounded for our transgressions.
• He was bruised for our iniquities.
• He was punished so we could have peace.
• He took on himself the stripes in his body for our healing.
Verse 6 sums it up with the statement: The Lord has laid on Him the iniquity of us all.
What we just read in Isaiah 53 clearly shows the Divine Exchange. But it doesn't not include all the exchanges that God has made for our benefit. With that, let me, once again, list for you nine aspects of this Divine Exchange. I will just list them here.
As I list these nine aspects of the Cross, take note of the opposites.
1. Jesus was punished that we might be forgiven.
2. Jesus was wounded that we might be healed.
3. Jesus was made sin with our sinfulness that we might be made righteous with His righteousness.
4. Jesus died our death that we might share His life.
5. Jesus was made a curse that we might receive His blessing.
6. Jesus endured our poverty that we might share His abundance.
7. Jesus bore our shame that we might share His glory.
8. Jesus endured our rejection that we might enjoy His acceptance.
9. Our old man died in Jesus that the new man might live in us.
We have identified nine aspects of what is called The Divine Exchange. This exchange was conceived in the heart and mind of God from eternity and brought to completeness in Jesus on the cross. The cross was no accident. It was not a dismal mishap forced on Jesus. This did not catch God by surprise, but was ordained by Him.
The cross was a marvel ordained by God from the beginning of time. The plan was to have Jesus to be the Priest, who would offer Himself to God as the sacrifice. By this one sacrifice He made provision for all the needs of the whole human race in every area of our lives for time and for eternity.
1. Jesus was punished that we might be forgiven.
Isaiah explained, "The chastisement [or punishment] for our peace was upon Him." The NIV renders it: "The punishment that brought us peace was upon Him." Here is the first exchange.
Jesus was punished with our punishment that we might be forgiven.
As long as our sin is not forgiven, we cannot have peace with God. God will not make peace with sin.
Last week I showed you that the Book of Isaiah divides into two parts. Part one contains chapters 1 to 39 - Part two includes chapters 40 to 66. The 27 chapters of Part Two is easily divided into three sections, nine chapters each. And we noted that each section ends with a statement that God will not compromise with sin. Sin has to be dealt with. The message of God's mercy and this first divine exchange is that iniquity has been dealt with directly on the Cross. The wages of sin is death (Romans 6:23), but Jesus paid the penalty for us at Calvary.
And what is the result of this exchange? Look at Romans 5:1 NKJV.
1 Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ,
We have peace with God. The chastisement (or punishment) for our peace was place on Jesus. Once our iniquity has been dealt with in God's way, the result is peace with God.
If Jesus had not been punished with our punishment, we could never have peace with God. We see this truth even more vividly in Colossians 1:19-22, which speaks about Jesus on the cross.
Colossians 1:19-22 NIV
19 For God [the Father] was pleased to have all his fullness dwell in him [Christ],
20 and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether things on earth or things in heaven, by making peace through his blood, shed on the cross.
21 Once you were alienated from God and were enemies in your minds because of your evil behavior.
22 But now he has reconciled you by Christ's physical body through death to present you holy in his sight, without blemish and free from accusation—
That result could never have been achieved any other way except by the sacrifice of Jesus. We would not have peace with God if we were still in our sins.
Another Scripture on this theme is Ephesians 1:7.
Ephesians 1:7 NKJV
7 In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of His grace
Redemption comes only through the forgiveness of sin. How can we be forgiven? We can only be forgiven because of the first Divine Exchange.
Jesus was punished with our punishment that we might be forgiven.
2. Jesus was wounded physically that we might be healed physically.
Isaiah 53:4 NIV
4 Surely he took up our infirmities [literally: sicknesses] and carried our sorrows [pains],....
This is the second exchange: Jesus was wounded physically that we might be healed physically.
The Hebrew text uses two different verbs in this verse. When is says he "took our infirmities," the Hebrew means He carried our sicknesses away. When it says He "carried our sorrows," the Hebrew means He endured our pains. Jesus has, therefore, carried our sicknesses away and has endured our pains.
To see the result, you only have to read the end of the next verse - verse 5. "By His stripes [his wounds] we are healed." It is interesting that when the Bible speaks about atonement, it never puts healing in the future. It is finished! As far as God is concerned, healing has already been obtained.
Someone might say, "I'm not sure of your rendering of Isaiah 53." But you cannot argue with Matthew, Peter and the Holy Spirit. Both Matthew and Peter were New Testament Jews who were inspired by the Holy Spirit. And they both quote Isaiah 53.
First look at Matthew 8:16.
16 When evening had come, they brought to Him many who were demon-possessed. And He cast out the spirits with a word, and healed all who were sick,
First, notice that in the healing ministry of Jesus, there is no hard distinction between healing the sick and casting out evil spirits. All the way through His ministry, they go hand in hand. Why did Jesus minister this way? The next verse - verse 17 - tell us.
Matthew 8:17 NKJV
17 that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by Isaiah the prophet, saying: "He Himself took our infirmities and bore our sicknesses."
Notice how Matthew quotes Isaiah 53. He makes it totally physical in referring to infirmities and sicknesses. Its outworking, as noted in the previous verse - verse 16 - says, Jesus "healed all who were sick." Not some, but all. There should be no question that Matthew is giving Isaiah 53 a totally physical application.
The second New Testament passage that quotes Isaiah 53 is 1 Peter 2:24.
1 Peter 2:24 NIV
24 He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, so that we might die to sins and live for righteousness; by his wounds you have been healed.
Again, like Matthew, Peter's emphasis is on Jesus and what He has done. In both passages, sin is the central issue. When sin is dealt with, everything else can be taken care of. Notice the last phrase. It is not, "we will be healed." Nor is it, "We are healed." But rather as: "...by whose wounds you have been healed." As far as God is concerned, it is a done deal. When Jesus said on the cross, "It is finished!" it was finished.
Let me again remind you of a Greek word we looked at last week. That is the word, SOZO - pronounced Sode-Zoh. This is the primary word for "save" All the other words for salvation are derived from the same root - SOZO.
In a significant number of passages in the New Testament, the verb sozo is also used to indicate physical healing. It is also translated as "to make well" or "make whole."
SOZO is the perfect answer for the Hebrew word AVON, which is translated, iniquity. AVON is more than the sinful act, and includes the consequence and punishment of the sin. SOZO is more than the removal of our sin. It includes physical healing and casting out demons and more. Eighteen times, this Greek verb, SOZO, is tranlsated HEALED.
Mark 6:56 (NIV) reads:
56 And wherever he went — into villages, towns or countryside — they placed the sick in the marketplaces. They begged him to let them touch even the edge of his cloak, and all who touched him were healed [SOZO].
Take a look at the woman that had an issue of blood, who touched the hem of Jesus' garment.
Matthew 9:21 NKJV
21 For she said to herself, "If only I may touch His garment, I shall be made well."
What she was actually saying was, "I shall be saved."
In Luke 8, we find the record of the man with a legion of demons. When Jesus cast them out, he became perfectly normal.
We have learned:
1. Jesus was punished that I might be forgiven.
2. Jesus was wounded that I might be healed.
I pray that none of us will neglect the physical aspect of God's great salvation.
3. Jesus was made sin with our sinfulness, that we might be made righteous with His righteousness
In this divine exchange we will look at Satan's attempts to make Christians feel guilty, and how we can overcome our accuser. Our victory is based on the third Divine Exchange. As with all the Divine Exchanges, this takes place on the cross. Many Christians have been robbed of this truth as part of our spiritual inheritance.
First, we must distinguish between sins (plural) and sin (singular). Sins (plural) are the sinful acts we have committed. Jesus was punished so those sinful acts could be forgiven. That was the first Divine Exchange we looked at today. Sin (singular) is the evil power, or evil nature that causes us to commit sins. Until that evil power of sin has been dealt with, our deliverance is not complete.
So, again, we turn to Isaiah 53.
Isaiah 53:10 NIV
10 Yet it was the Lord's will to crush him and cause him to suffer, and though the Lord makes his life a offering for sin, he will see his offspring and prolong his days, and the will of the Lord will prosper in his hand.
In my life I have heard many sermons and class lessons on the Resurrection of Christ. But I don't remember any that included this verse. This verse is one of the most clear predictions of the resurrection of Jesus. Here we are told that the LORD made His life an offering for sin. That took place on the cross - at the crucifixion.
After He had been made an "offering for guilt," Scripture says this suffering Servant would "see His offspring [NKJV=seed], He shall prolong His days, and the will [NKJV=pleasure] of the LORD shall prosper in His hand." That absolutely could not happen if Jesus remained dead.
Now let's turn to the New Testament.
2 Corinthians 5:21 echoes Isaiah 53:10, but adds a very imp0ortant element in this Divine Exchange.
2 Corinthians 5:21 NKJV
21 For He made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.
What is the opposite of sinfulness? In a word, righteousness. Here then is the Divine Exchange: Jesus was made sin with our sinfulness, that we might be made righteous with His righteousness.
This is a staggering thought! - but it is Scriptural. We will never attain the righteousness of God by simply trying to be good. There is only one way for us to apprehend the righteousness of God: - by faith! We have to believe what, in the natural, is unbelievable. That is, that Jesus was made sin with our sinfulness that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.
Another verse in the Book of Isaiah reveals how beautiful this divine exchange is.
Isaiah 61:10 NKJV
10 I will greatly rejoice in the Lord, My soul shall be joyful in my God; For He has clothed me with the garments of salvation, He has covered me with the robe of righteousness, As a bridegroom decks himself with ornaments, And as a bride adorns herself with her jewels.
The writer does not say, "I will be moderately happy." Rather, he says "I will greatly rejoice." The word for rejoice in Hebrew is SOUS. And when you want to really be emphatic, you repeat the verb - SOUS ASEES. Literally, that is, I will "rejoice, rejoicing" in the Lord.
As I began speaking about this divine exchange, I mentioned that this exchange deals with Satan's attempt to make Christians feel guilty. This is one of his primary weapons against us.
When the Holy Spirit convicts of sin, He says, "You did this. It was wrong. You need to repent and put it right." He then helps us know how to do that. Once you and I have confessed and repented and done whatever is necessary to make restitution, the matter is closed. There is nothing further that you should or should not have done. But when we are plagued with guilt, you never quite know if you have done enough. When Satan throws these thought in our face, it is different than the Holy Spirit's conviction. Guilt never ends - it goes on and on. Nothing we can do is ever sufficient.
We need to keep Isaiah 54:17 in mind.
Isaiah 54:17 NKJV
17 No weapon formed against you shall prosper, and every tongue which rises against you in judgment you shall condemn. This is the heritage of the servants of the Lord, and their righteousness is from Me," says the Lord.
This is great news. Nothing the devil devises as a weapon against you will succeed. And this verse ends with, "And their righteousness is from Me, says the Lord." In place of our sin is His righteousness.
It doesn't matter what angle the devil approaches you. All he can see is the righteousness of Christ covering you. This is summed up in Romans 8.
Romans 8:1 NKJV
1 There is therefore now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus, who do not walk according to the flesh, but according to the Spirit.
Romans 8 is the picture of the Spirit-controlled life.
Verse 1 is the entrance into that life, and it is marked no condemnation.
Once again, the third divine exchange is: Jesus was made sin with my sinfulness that I might be made righteous with His righteousness. Thank You, Jesus!!!
4. Jesus died our death that we might share His life
So far we have covered three vital aspects of the divinely ordained exchange that took place when Jesus died on the cross. Now we turn to the fourth aspect of the exchange, which is simple and yet powerful:
"Jesus died our death that we might share His life."
Loren Cunningham tells a story about a woman who went to a portrait studio and had her photograph taken. Later, when she went back to look at the proofs, she did not like what she saw. "These pictures don't do me justice!" she exclaimed to the photographer. He looked at her and said, "Madam, you don't need justice; you need mercy." I don't know if the story is true or not, but I use it to make a biblical point.
From time to time, I say to myself, "Lord, it's not your justice I need, but your mercy." Mercy is the alternative to justice. If you decline your wages of sin, you qualify to receive the free, unearned gift of eternal life. It is available because Jesus accepted the wages of sin that were due to us, receiving them Himself in our place.
Hebrews 2:9 tells us that Jesus "was made a little lower than the angels that He, by the grace of God, might taste death for everyone." He tasted death for you and for me.
5. Jesus was made a curse that we might receive His blessing
Now let's look at the fifth aspect of the exchange at the cross - moving from curse to blessing. This exchange is stated in Galatians 3:13-14.
Galatians 3:13-14 NIV
13 Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us, for it is written: "Cursed is everyone who is hung on a tree."
14 He redeemed us in order that the blessing given to Abraham might come to the Gentiles through Christ Jesus, so that by faith we might receive the promise of the Spirit.
Jesus was actually made a curse in our place, that we might receive "the blessing of Abraham." In what ways was Abraham blessed? Genesis 24:1 reveals the answer.
Genesis 24:1 NKJV
24 Now Abraham was old, well advanced in age; and the Lord had blessed Abraham in all things.
The blessing of Abraham, then, covers every area of our lives. And the verses we read in Galatians 3 tells us that this blessing was made available to us through faith in the exchange that took place when Jesus was made a curse for us on the cross.
The cross is where Jesus defeated Satan and his kingdom.
Colossians 2:15 (NKJV) reads:
15 Having disarmed principalities and powers, He made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them in it.
Satan can never undo the defeat he received through the cross. But his cunning strategy is to keep Christians from realizing what was accomplished there.
If you think about the picture of Jesus dying on the cross, you would not want to be under a curse. On the cross He hung in shame and agony, rejected by His own people. Even His disciples had forsaken Him. He had absolutely nothing in this world, and under supernatural darkness, He uttered a cry of agony. That is the full outworking of the curse.
The problem today is that the majority of Christians have no clear concept of what a curse is. We don't understand how it operates or even how to recognize it. If we are sick, we usually know we are sick. If we are sinning, we probably know we are sinning. But when we are under a curse, we may not understand either the nature of the problem or how to deal with it.
Yet this is what was accomplished by this fifth divine exchange. We can be redeemed from the curse because, on the cross, Jesus was made a curse, that we might be redeemed from the curse and come into the blessing of Abraham, which covers every area of our lives.
Let me end this divine exchange with a verse from Revelation.
Revelation 22:3 NKJV
3 And there shall be no more curse, but the throne of God and of the Lamb shall be in it, and His servants shall serve Him.
6. Jesus endured our poverty that we might share His abundance
As we have seen thus far, the death of Jesus Christ is a complete, perfect, all-sufficient sacrifice that covers the needs of every human being for time and for eternity. What Jesus provided for us cannot be earned. As we read in Ephesians 2:8, the grace of God covers everything Jesus did on the cross. Now we explore another facet of this divine exchange.
It is found in 2 Corinthians 8:9 (NKJV)
9 For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though He was rich, yet for your sakes He became poor, that you through His poverty might become rich.
Do you see the exchange Jesus made for us? Simply put, "Jesus endured our poverty that we might share His abundance."
There are some Christians who practice voluntary poverty. I respect their convictions. But in most cases poverty is enforced not by choice but by necessity. I do not believe it is a mark of spirituality for a Christian to drive a Cadillac or Mercedes, or to live in a house with a swimming pool. I don't say that to disparage anyone who has those things.
I do believe, however, that God offers us abundance. That means having enough for our own needs and something left over to give others. That is the level of God's provision. In 2 Corinthians 9:8, Paul sums up the level of God's provision for His servants.
2 Corinthians 9:8 NKJV
8 And God is able to make all grace abound toward you, that you, always having all sufficiency in all things, may have an abundance for every good work.
This is an amazing verse! In the original Greek the word ALL occurs 5 times. The word "abound" or "abundance" occurs twice. That is the level of God's provision for His servants. But notice that it is received only through grace. It is not something we can deserve or earn. It is receive purely by faith on the basis of Christ's sacrifice for us on the Cross.
There are three levels of provision - insufficiency, sufficiency, and abundance. Insufficiency means not having enough for what you need. Sufficiency means having just what you need. Abundance means having more than you need. Abundance comes from a Latin word meaning "a wave that flows over." God has no favorites. He provides abundance that we may not only receive, but also give, and when we do, we will receive an even greater blessing.
Acts 20:35 NKJV
35 I have shown you in every way, by laboring like this, that you must support the weak. And remember the words of the Lord Jesus, that He said, 'It is more blessed to give than to receive.'"
Before closing this divine exchange, let me add a word of caution or balance. If all your wealth consists only of your house, your stock portfolio, your Cadillac or your cottage by the lake, remember one thing - When you die, you will take nothing with you. You will step out into eternity a naked soul.
There is a higher order of riches. In Proverbs 8:17-18, wisdom is speaking - that is, the Wisdom of God.
Proverbs 8:17-18 NKJV
17 I love those who love me, and those who seek me diligently will find me.
18 Riches and honor are with me, enduring riches and righteousness.
Note the word enduring. Nothing we have in this world is enduring. We cannot take it with us. So what are enduring riches.
First of all, whatever we give to the Kingdom of God will endure. In Matthew 19:29, Jesus said,
29 And everyone who has left houses or brothers or sisters or father or mother or wife or children or lands, for My name's sake, shall receive a hundredfold, and inherit eternal life.
What we give out of our substance to the Lord becomes enduring riches. Enduring riches are the lives we bless with the truth of God's Word and the power of the Holy Spirit. Consider one more verses.
Proverbs 13:7 NKJV
7 There is one who makes himself rich, yet has nothing; And one who makes himself poor, yet has great riches.
God's provision is abundance. But do not focus merely on the material realm. To those whose priorities are right, God offers greater and more enduring riches.
7. Jesus endured our shame that we, in turn, might share His glory
The next two aspects of the divine exchange has to do with emotional healing. Jesus provided a divine exchange for the wounds of shame and rejection. We have, over the course of the last several lessons, looked at Isaiah 53:5." "By His stripes [wounds] we are healed." This is not only true in the physical realm - but also in the emotional realm.
First, let's deal with SHAME. On the cross, Jesus endured our shame that we, in turn, might share His glory."
For a Scriptural basis for this, we turn to Hebrews 2:10.
10 For it was fitting for Him [God the Father], for whom are all things and by whom are all things, in bringing many sons [that is, you and me] to glory, to make the captain of their salvation [that is, Jesus] perfect through sufferings.
God permitted Jesus to endure those sufferings that we might come into His fullness. Notice God's purpose: "to bring many sons to glory." If you are a believing child of God, you are bound for glory. On the cross Jesus endured your and my shame that you might share His glory.
Hebrews 12:2 also brings out the theme of Christ enduring our shame.
We are told to keep.... "looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has set down at the right hand of the throne of God."
On the cross Jesus endured shame - such shame as we can hardly imagine. He focused on the joy that was set before Him, and endured the shame of the cross. On the cross, passersby mocked Him. What Jesus endured is summed up in the word SHAME. He endured the shame because He knew that, through it, He could bring us to glory.
Psalm 69 is one of those Messianic psalms. From verse 7, we read: "For Your sake I have borne reproach; shame has covered my face." Have you notices that people who suffer shame find it hard to look you in the face? Shame covered the face of our suffering Lord
On the cross, Jesus suffered all the shame that could ever happen to any one of us. He bore it on Himself. He took it out of the way.
8. Jesus endured our rejection that we might have His acceptance
Rejection can be described as the sense of being unwanted or unloved. You are always on the outside looking in. Other people get in - somehow you never do.
Isaiah 53:3 (NKJV) gives us a prophetic picture of the cross 700 years before it happened.
3 He is despised and rejected by men, A Man of sorrows and acquainted with grief. And we hid, as it were, our faces from Him; He was despised, and we did not esteem Him.
Our Lord was "rejected by men." The apostle John says, "He came to His own, and His own did not receive Him" (John 1:11). His own brothers, His mother's children, rejection Him. Psalm 69:8, a Messianic Psalm, says:
"I have become a stranger to my brothers, and an alien to my mother's children."
All of us who have experienced this kind of rejection need to realize that Jesus Himself experienced it, too. His own family and His own people rejected Him. Only a lonely little group of three women stood by Him to the end. But that was not the final act. To be rejected by men was painful, but to be rejected by His heavenly Father was the ultimate rejection.
Matthew 27:45-46 NKJV
45 Now from the sixth hour until the ninth hour there was darkness over all the land.
46 And about the ninth hour Jesus cried out with a loud voice, saying, "Eli, Eli, lama sabachthani?" that is, "My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?"
No human being has ever experienced such total rejection as Jesus experienced on the cross. For the first time in the history of the universe, the Son of God prayed and there came no answer from the Father. Why? Because Christ had been made sin with our sinfulness, and God had to deal with Him as He deals with sin. God had to reject Him - to refuse to accept Him, and so He died not of crucifixion, but of a broken heart.
Notice what is written in Ephesians 1.
Ephesians 1:3-4 NKJV
3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ,
4 just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before Him in love,
Don't overlook the phrase, "He chose us." But also notice that this choice is not ours but God's. And then look at the verses that follow.
Ephesians 1:5-6 NKJV
5 having predestined us to adoption as sons by Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the good pleasure of His will,
6 to the praise of the glory of His grace, by which He made us accepted in the Beloved.
He has made us accepted in the Beloved. Surely this is the ultimate acceptance. We belong to the best family in the universe. We have nothing to be ashamed of. We are not second class nor unwanted. We are accepted.
9. The old man died in Jesus that the new man might live in us
Until now we have been dealing with what the cross has done for us. Of course, people are glad for this, but many Christians stop here. All their praying is asking for more and more and more! As a result, their Christianity become shallow and unsatisfying, because that is not the end purpose God has in mind for you and me.
So now we move into another aspect of the work of the cross. I am not talking about what the cross can do for us, but what it can do IN us. Now we are going to examine God's dealing with what is called "The Old Man."
The New Testament speaks of two men - the old man and the new man. They are never named - never called Joseph or Jacob. And yet, they are two of the most important characters in the New Testament.
The Old Man, as I understand it, is the sinful nature we have inherited by our descent from Adam. Every descendant of Adam is born with a rebel within. It does not matter how clever you are, or how young, or how old. There is a rebel inside every descendant of Adam.
The Bible calls this rebel the old man. And God's plan is to replace the old man with the new man. And so this divine exchange might be said this way: "On the cross our old man was put to death that the new man might come to life in us instead."
God has only one remedy for the rebel. He does not send him to Sunday school or church, or teach him the Golden Rule, or even tell him to memorize Scripture. He EXECUTES him. Execution is God's solution.
But the message of mercy is that the execution took place in Jesus on the cross.
Romans 6:6-7 NKJV
6 knowing this, that our old man was crucified with Him, that the body of sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves of sin.
7 For he who has died has been freed from sin.
Anyone in whom the old man has not been dealt with is still a slave to sin. The verses we just read makes that clear. But the person who has died with Christ "has been freed from sin." And now, that you are dead, the law can demand nothing more from you. This is an historical fact.
Now here is the application - found 4 verses later.
Romans 6:11 NKJV
11 Likewise you also, reckon yourselves to be dead indeed to sin, but alive to God in Christ Jesus our Lord.
Now you have the facts and you must apply them. Our old man was crucified - God did that. But you must reckon yourself dead with Jesus by faith - You must do that. Until you do, you will continue to be the slave of your old man.
Look at the picture of the old and new man in Ephesians 4:22-24.
22 that you put off, concerning your former conduct, the old man which grows corrupt according to the deceitful lusts,
23 and be renewed in the spirit of your mind,
24 and that you put on the new man which was created according to God, in true righteousness and holiness.
First, notice that Paul is talking to people who are already saved. And yet, he is telling them to put off the old man and put on the new. That is not something that happens when we are saved. It is something we need to do after we are saved.
In every human life there are two opposing forces at work - deception and truth. The old man is the product of the devil's deception. Adam and eve believed his lie: "You will not die; you will be like God." When they opened themselves up to Satan's deception, it produced corruption within. In verse 22, the word that describes the old man is "corrupt."
The new man, by contrast, is created afresh by God - a new creation in Christ. It is the product of the truth of God's Word, which produces righteousness and holiness. God's remedy for corruption is to crucify the old man that is the product of deception and to create in us a new man that is the product of truth.
To close our analysis of the old man being exchanged for the new man, let's look briefly at the nature of the new creation.
In 1 Peter 1:23, the apostle Peter writes to born-again Christians.
23 having been born again, not of corruptible seed but incorruptible, through the word of God which lives and abides forever,
The nature of the seed determines the nature of the life that comes out of it. The key word in describing the new nature is incorruptible. What is the seed that brings forth the new man, and what causes it to be incorruptible? This verse says it is the Word of God.
Look at James 1:18.
18 Of His own will He brought us forth by the word of truth,...
Notice that the new man is the product of the truth. The truth of God's Word begets in us an incorruptible nature.
Here is a word of caution. Whatever you do, do not try to make the old man behave in a religious way. This does not work - and never will it work. Instead, God's solution is this: My old man - the rebel, the corrupt one - was crucifies with Jesus so that I might be delivered from that evil and corrupt nature, and that a new a new nature might come into me, through the Word of God.
Let us again review the nine aspects of the Divine Exchange that took place on the Cross.
1. Jesus was punished that we might be forgiven.
2. Jesus was wounded that we might be healed.
3. Jesus was made sin with our sinfulness that we might be made righteous with His righteousness.
4. Jesus died our death that we might share His life.
5. Jesus was made a curse that we might receive His blessing.
6. Jesus endured our poverty that we might share His abundance.
7. Jesus bore our shame that we might share His glory.
8. Jesus endured our rejection that we might enjoy His acceptance.
9. Our old man died in Jesus that the new man might live in us.