Lets see how this resurrection life, or the new creation is brought about by Christs resurrection. Lets go to Ephesians 2: 4-6. Paul teaches that "God who is rich in mercy, who has loved us so much, that even when we were dead in our sins has raised us "together" with Christ, and having raised us up together, has made us sit in heavenly places in Christ Jesus. The resurrection life is very much the way the apostle Paul describes the New creation, the risen life, the born again life. Paul relates our conversion experience to being directly related to Jesus' physical resurrection from the dead. In Ephesians 2:5 Paul speaks of us who were dead in our sins and trespasses, have been raised "together" with Christ, and has raised us up together and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus. Paul is directly linking what has happened in the believers conversion experience into life, resurrection life. To the physical resurrection of Christ Jesus. He explains that by us being joined together with Christ in vs6 we sit in heavenly places with him even now. This language describes us as already partaking of the powers of the age to come, Now!!!, Because we are in Christ Jesus. So us partaking of the resurrection life is in a sense a 1st fruit and shows that to be raised from death is for the power of God that raised Jesus from the dead, to be at work in the lives of those who have been joined to Jesus, by grace through faith. I guess this is part of what it means to be in union with Jesus. The same language is being used In Collosians 2:11-15 Except that Paul brings in the circumcision of the heart and the cross. Paul is talking about us being complete in Christ. Paul tells us that we have been circumcised with he circumcision made not by hands, but by the putting off of sins by the circumcision of Christ. This circumcision of the heart is what the Torah in Deuteronomy 30 spoke of to happen, and later in Ezekiel 36 so that by loving the Lord with all our hearts and minds we would be pleasing to God, so we wouldn't suffer exile and alienation from Yhwh again. The people with circumcised hearts are promised restoration and an Edenic land of Israel, where they will dwell under the safety and goodness of their King. This is the work of God and can only come about by God joining us to the New covenant. But for people to be experiencing the promises of recreation as found in the New covenant means that the time of the New Creation has started to break through. So what we are reading are the promises made to Israel concerning her restoration . Here in Jesus, we find that the Jews and gentiles are partaking of these promises together by being joined to the resurrected King of Israel. If these promises of restoration are coming to pass, then the time of the Kingdom has begun in the ministry of Jesus. If the new creation has begun then we are in the time of the Kingdom. Yes, now and not yet. The new creation is a 1st fruit of the finished work of the New creation which comes when the Kingdom is established. For Ezekiel 36 for sees that the recreated people of the New Covenant are the ones who return to the recreated land of Eden. This is connected to our sins been blotted out. It is described in terms of a criminal prosecution charge sheet, been removed and found not guilty, This results in all our trespasses being forgiven. Notice he says all, so let all be just that, all. All our sins and trespasses are nailed to the cross. Here we have all the ingredients that Moses and the prophets spoke of for Israel to be restored. The circumcision of the heart, the resurrection and forgiveness of sins through the sacrifice of Jesus. They are all the experience of the Christian "Now!!!!" And will be completed on the day of Christ Jesus, to be joined to the new creation of all things.
Vs&13 speaks the language of Ephesians 2 and describes that when we put our faith in him and the power of God, to raise from the dead,we were effectually raised with him in His resurrection. So just as we will be raised from the dead if we are not alive when Jesus returns. The hope of Israel was to be raised from the dead at the last day (John 11) to partake of the New creation, which is the Kingdom of God. When raised they would as New creations be sinless righteous people, completely pleasing to Yhwh. Rather God has already begun to do this, the New creation people have begun to be Torah observant, before the great events of the New creation which must still take place. The law of Yhwh is written on their hearts, and Yhwhs' Spirit in them causes them to walk in righteousness. This is the beginning of the awaited work of God making everything new. Paul puts it in one sentence in 2Corinthians 5:17 "Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creation, old things have passed away, all things have become new. Parallel this with Revelation 21:1 where the same language is used. It talks of the first creation passing away and in vs4&5 it speaks of the former things been passed away and vs5 speaks of "behold I make all things new." The language used to describe the Kingdom of God "then" is used of us who are in Christ "now".
Romans 6:4 is another place where Paul describes the New man in Resurrection language of being. We are raised just like Christ now and in the future resurrection.. Praise His name forever!!! Hallelujah!!!
