A New Start

The new year reminds us that throughout life, we experience many new beginnings. One of the most defining is when we first start the job. Beginning probation as a first responder is intense. Fire and police academies give us a glimpse of what to expect, but nothing can truly prepare a person for the reality of the job until they live it. We don’t fully understand the life of a first responder, and we don’t truly grasp the expectations of our departments until we step into the role. Everything is new.

As our careers begin, we are tested, not by controlled scenarios, additional smokehouse drills, or simulated firearm training, but by real-life situations that demand everything we have. Each day we are called to remember our training and apply it in moments that matter. Every shift we show up, every call we respond to, the job shapes us.

As first responders, our new beginning officially starts on day one. We bring ourselves, and our past lives, into this career with us. We don’t lose who we are; we simply step into the calling we desired to fulfill. We don’t truly change, we adapt. At our core, we remain the same people, even as our job experiences shape the way we see the world around us, others, and sometimes even ourselves. However, when it comes to a new beginning as a believer, God’s plan of salvation is profoundly different.

As new believers, our rebirth isn’t a simple improvement of who we once were, it is a complete transformation. Scripture tells us that we spiritual must die to our old selves and be made entirely new creations (2 Corinthians 5:17). Before salvation, we are spiritually dead, enslaved to sin (Ephesians 2:1–3). But God, rich in mercy and grace, rescues us. Through the power of the Holy Spirit, we are brought from death to life by the message of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. The Gospel itself is the power of salvation for all who believe (Romans 1:16).

Being born again is a real spiritual resurrection, going from death to life. Yet there are many false messages that tell people another message, “Just clean yourself up, make yourself good, and then God will love you.” This deception assumes the goal is to improve the old self, as if we are merely spiritually sick and just need God added to our already existing life to make us better.

“But God is not an accessory. Simply adding God to our old life does not bring new life. God calls us to die to our old self and be made new in Him.”

Becoming a new creation is entirely the work of God. When we are saved, we are truly set free, completely forgiven by the finished work of Jesus Christ. When we are born again, we are given a new heart of flesh, and the old heart of stone is removed (Ezekiel 36:26). Faith leads to faithfulness, and faithfulness produces steadfastness. As born-again believers, we must recognize that we are not yet perfect. Though we are spiritually new, we still live in broken flesh. We will stumble. We will sin. But because we have been given new hearts and new desires, we no longer continue in the same direction. We don’t celebrate sin; we repent and turn from it. 

Knowing Jesus not only as Savior but also as Lord changes us. Though our flesh may still desire sin, it now spiritually grieves us. Our hearts stand in opposition to what once ruled our lives. A truly born-again believer will never be content living in unrepentant, celebrated sin.

Being born again is not symbolic or allegorical, it is a reality the Christian should know to be true. Starting over in Christ is not something to take lightly. And nowhere in Scripture are we promised that this new life will be easy. We are not promised health, wealth, or prosperity.

What we are promised in this new beginning is something far greater: true relationship. God Himself becomes our Father. We are adopted into His family, into a love that is imperishable and can never be taken from us. We are not spared from hardship or suffering, in fact, we are promised that trials will come. But rooted in Christ, He sustains us, suffering and hard times become situations where God reveals to us where our true reliance lies. We are given the greatest gift any human could receive: Jesus Himself. 

In our new start Jesus is our foundation, and He promises to never leave us or forsake us, no matter how hard things become (Hebrews 13:5). Jesus alone grants us peace, everlasting hope, and unshakable assurance in a world filled with emergencies and uncertainty. 

What does a “new start” born again Christian life look like?

• We are born again, brought from death to life by the power of the Holy Spirit.

  • “But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ, by grace you have been saved.” (Eph 2: 4-5)

• We are completely new creations.

  • “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come.” (2 Cor 5:17)

• We are created and have new desires to do the will of God.

  • “Live for the rest of the time in the flesh no longer for human passions but for the will of God.” (1 Pet 4:2)

• We follow Christ daily and not the world.

  • “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me.” (Luke 9:23)

Do you need a new start? Feel free to comment or contact us to talk more.