Old and New Man: Understanding Spiritual Transformation in Christ

Old and New Man is a chapter from my E-Book: Buddhist Monk Saved by Jesus. You can download it for free on my Home page ⟶ Buddhist Monk Saved by Jesus

From Death in Adam to Life in Christ

Every person born into this world is born in Adam — spiritually dead, separated from God, and without the Holy Spirit.
Ephesians 2:1–3 says, “You were dead in trespasses and sins, in which you once walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air.”
This is the state of every unbeliever — spiritually dead, following the wisdom and desires of this world, which is ruled by Satan, the god of this age (2 Corinthians 4:4).

But when a sinner hears the Gospel of Salvation (1 Corinthians 15:1–4) — that Christ died for our sins, was buried, and rose again the third day — and believes it from the heart, something miraculous happens.
God saves that person by His grace through faith (Ephesians 2:8–9), sealing him with the Holy Spirit of promise (Ephesians 1:13–14).
By one Spirit, the believer is baptized into the body of Christ — not into water, but into Christ Himself.
1 Corinthians 12:13 says, “For by one Spirit we were all baptized into one body — whether Jews or Gentiles, whether bond or free — and have all been made to drink of one Spirit.”

This spiritual baptism places the believer into a completely new identity — in Christ.
Jesus Christ is the Head, and every saved believer becomes a member of His body (Ephesians 1:22–23; Romans 12:5).
This is not a visible or religious act — it is a divine operation of God, done the very moment one believes.

The New Man: Created in Righteousness and True Holiness

Old and new man: when we are saved, God does not repair or improve the old man; He creates something entirely new.
2 Corinthians 5:17 declares, “If any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.”
This new creature is the inner spiritual man, created by God in righteousness and true holiness (Ephesians 4:24).
The new man is not the flesh; it is the Spirit-born nature that lives by faith, desires to please God, and is alive unto righteousness.

At the same time, the old man — our carnal nature inherited from Adam — remains present in our physical body.
Romans 6:6 says, “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.”
God counts our old man as dead — crucified with Christ — so that sin no longer has dominion over us.
This truth must be believed by faith, even though our flesh still tempts us and struggles against the Spirit (Galatians 5:17).

Many believers who do not understand these spiritual truths try to live sinless by the law and flesh, relying on themselves rather than the new man God created in Christ. As Paul warns, those who received the Spirit but continue in the flesh have fallen from grace (Galatians 3:3, 5:16–17). True victory over sin comes from walking in the renewed mind and new mindset of the new man, established by God according to the gospel of grace (Ephesians 4:22–24, Colossians 3:10).

Crucified and Raised with Christ

The new man lives because of Christ’s resurrection life within us.
Romans 6:4 tells us, “Therefore we are buried with Him by baptism into death: that like as Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life.”
We did not crucify or raise ourselves; God did it when we believed.
Colossians 2:12 confirms this spiritual operation: “Buried with Him in baptism, wherein also you are risen with Him through the faith of the operation of God, who hath raised Him from the dead.”

The believer’s identification with Christ’s death and resurrection is the foundation of the new man’s life.
We are no longer “in Adam,” under condemnation, but “in Christ,” justified freely by His grace (Romans 8:1).
This new identity is spiritual, unseen, and eternal — created by God, not by human effort or religious works.

Walking in the Spirit, Not in the Flesh

The Conflict Within the Believer

Even after salvation, every believer experiences a conflict between the flesh and the Spirit.
Paul wrote, “The flesh lusts against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh: and these are contrary the one to the other, so that you cannot do the things that you would” (Galatians 5:17).
The inner/new man, created new in Christ, desires to live a holy and righteous life; but the old man, still present in our mortal body, resists this and seeks to fulfill sinful desires.

If a believer tries to live righteously by keeping the law or through self-effort, he soon finds frustration and guilt.
When he fails, he condemns himself and assumes that God also condemns him.
But Scripture declares: “There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit” (Romans 8:1).
Our peace with God is secure, not because we never sin, but because Christ has already paid the full price for every sin (Romans 5:1; Colossians 2:13–14).

Walking in the Spirit is not a spiritual state, it is not an exercise, it is not our actions, and it is not our feelings or emotions, but spiritual truth, it is the word from God that we must understand so that it can work in us. When we understand who we are in Christ, the Holy Spirit produces in us the work of faith. If we do not know this, we fall into error – back under the yoke of the law and human science. Paul warns: “For freedom Christ has set us free; stand firm therefore, and do not be entangled again with a yoke of slavery” (Gal. 5:1). This slavery is false systems that want to trap you back into works, self-correction and struggle in your own strength. But the truth of the gospel teaches us; “in Christ we are already free, righteous, holy and perfect, that is, in the new man.”

Grace Is Not a License to Sin

Paul clearly anticipated the objection that grace encourages sin:
“What shall we say then? Shall we continue in sin, that grace may abound? God forbid. How shall we, that are dead to sin, live any longer therein?” (Romans 6:1–2).

God’s grace does not free us to sin, but frees us from sin’s dominion.
The old man was crucified with Christ (Romans 6:6); therefore, we no longer live under the power of sin or the fear of the law.
Grace changes the heart.
When we truly understand what God has done for us in Christ — forgiving us, indwelling us by His Spirit, and creating us anew — our motivation to live godly no longer comes from fear of punishment, but from gratitude, love, and spiritual transformation.

Titus 2:11–12 says, “For the grace of God that brings salvation has appeared to all men, teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly in this present world.”
Grace itself teaches us holiness — not through threats, but through the power of new life within.
The Spirit leads us to walk in righteousness because this aligns with who we are in Christ.

Renewed in the Spirit of the Mind

The key to daily victory is not striving to reform the flesh but renewing the mind with the truth of who we are in Christ.
Ephesians 4:22–24 tells us:
“Put off concerning the former conversation the old man, which is corrupt according to the deceitful lusts; and be renewed in the spirit of your mind; and put on the new man, which after God is created in righteousness and true holiness.”

This renewal happens through the Word — by learning and believing sound doctrine from Paul’s gospel.
As we grow in knowledge of grace, our thoughts, desires, and actions begin to align with the Spirit.
We walk in the new mindset of the inner man, knowing that our life is hidden with Christ in God (Colossians 3:3).
Walking by the Spirit is not a mystical feeling but a life guided by the Word rightly divided, depending on the Spirit’s strength and truth.

Walking Worthy of Our Calling

Because we are already accepted in the Beloved (Ephesians 1:6), we now walk worthy of the calling we have received (Ephesians 4:1).
We no longer live to earn God’s approval — we already have it in Christ.
Instead, we live out of that approval, showing forth the new life God has placed within us.
Even though our flesh remains weak and imperfect, the Spirit produces fruit that reflects Christ’s character:
“But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, long-suffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance: against such there is no law” (Galatians 5:22–23).

Our goal is not sinless perfection but spiritual maturity — learning to walk according to who we already are in Christ.
We are being transformed, not by rules and fear, but by the renewing of our minds and the work of the Spirit. (Romans 12:2; 2 Corinthians 3:18)