06/02/2026
Dealing With The Shame Of Sin: In What Tense Are You Living?
People often quote the Scripture, but fail to understand its depths. We scratch surface deep and walk away, never having drank from the Well of Salvation that refreshes the Soul. Let's dive head first into the deep today.
Our Text: 2 Corinthians 5:17-21. 17. Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.
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; 19. To wit, that God was in Christ, reconciling the world unto himself, not imputing their trespasses unto them; and hath committed unto us the word of reconciliation. 20. Now then we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God did beseech you by us: we pray you in Christ's stead, be ye reconciled to God. 21. For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him.
We often miss the depths of the Scripture because we ignore the depths of our language. This passage is full of nuances in the English language that when laid bare, provide a bounty to feast upon in meditation. Let's look at three words in verse seventeen that hold such treasure. The first word is found in the opening phrase of the verse: Therefore IF any man be in Christ. The word IF is seen as conditional, but it is also in this usage used to introduce a Qualifying Term or Clause. Everything that follows the opening phrase only applies to the Believer. It can not be applied to any man, woman, boy or girl that has not experienced the new birth. The list man may repeat the verse, but until he experiences the New Birth, he can not understand the Promises that the Scripture contains.
The second word that we must understand is found in the second clause that follows the first; (he IS a new creature). The Word IS, is our keyword. Is is present tense, it literally means BE. So the truth of these two opening phrases, or clauses is based upon the experience of the New Birth and the Immediacy of the New Creature. The New Creature is not something that you become, or will become in the future, but the Authority of the Word of God states that in the New Birth you IS a New Creature. I know that's poor grammar, modern speach would say that the moment you were born again, you are a new creature.
The third word is found several times through out the remainder of our text. ( old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.) The word is ARE. ARE is perfect present tense in this clause. Old things ARE Passed Away, meaning that the Old Things, our Old Ways are dead. When? The moment you are Born Again. Behold, is another word that means now fix your attention upon. Too much of our focus is directed to the Old man, the Old ways, our previous condition being dead in trespasses and sins, in part because God's People are too sin focused, instead of being Christ Focused. Behold, All things ARE become new. Again when? At the New Birth.
Here is where the Power of God can set you free from the shame of Sin. Because of the Completed Work of Jesus Christ, God has Reconciled us unto himself. You can not reconcile yourself, God did the reconciling. Note the next phrase: (NOT IMPUTING THEIR TRESPASSES UNTO THEM). Imputing is an accounting term. Just as reconciling is also an accounting term. We have to ask ourselves who are the THEM, that God does not Impute their Tresspasses to? Those that are in Christ, from verse seventeen. That is you, if you have experienced the New Birth. (Romans 4:7-8
7. Saying, Blessed are they whose iniquities are forgiven, and whose sins are covered. 8. Blessed is the man to whom the Lord will not impute sin.)
Since God keeps the books, and has reconciled us, the Believer to himself, what did He do with our sin? (21.
For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him.) He placed our sin upon Jesus Christ, and the Righteousness of Christ upon the Believer. This is why we deal with the Shame of Sin, and not the act of sin. God has already Judged our sin, at Calvary. Placing it, sin upon Jesus Christ. Satan blinds us in our understanding of Who we are in Christ Jesus, and the benefits of the New Birth. We are beneficiaries of His Rich Mercy, through Jesus Christ, ( Ephesians 2:4-5. 4. But God, who is rich in mercy, for his great love wherewith he loved us, 5. Even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ, (by grace ye are saved;))
This leads to the question; In what Tense are you living? Are you waiting on God to suddenly improve your condition, as you struggle with Grace? Or are you Complete In Christ? (Colossians 2: 10-15.
10. And ye are complete in him, which is the head of all principality and power:
11. In whom also ye are circumcised with the circumcision made without hands, in putting off the body of the sins of the flesh by the circumcision of Christ: 12. Buried with him in baptism, wherein also ye are risen with him through the faith of the operation of God, who hath raised him from the dead. 13. And you, being dead in your sins and the uncircumcision of your flesh, hath he quickened together with him, having forgiven you all trespasses;
14. Blotting out the handwriting of ordinances that was against us, which was contrary to us, and took it out of the way, nailing it to his cross; 15. And having spoiled principalities and powers, he made a shew of them openly, triumphing over them in it.)
In His Image Ministries