Daily Bread – February 14, 2023 (The Third Day – Genesis 1:9-13) Titus 3:5 – Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to his mercy He saved us by the washing of regeneration and renewing of the Holy Spirit. We were saved from the former way of life through the new birth. Because of what Jesus did for us at Calvary, the whole of mankind were made candidates to be born of the Spirit (John 1:12, 12:32; Titus 2:11-12; 1 John 2:2; 1 Peter 1:2; 2 Thessalonians 2:13). Through the new birth, the former life and conversation was washed away; the old things passed away, and everything became new (2 Corinthians 5:17; Galatians 6:15; Ephesians 2:10, 4:24; 1 Peter 1:23; Colossians 3:3; and John 3:5; Romans 6:4, 8:9). We did not earn any special right to be born of God; rather, it was by the unmixed mercy and grace of God that reached down into our lives and gave us the opportunity to be born of Him. God not only gave us a new heart and a new spirit through this regeneration, He also put His Spirit within us. The new heart we have been given is a heart just like Father’s. Our hearts have been inscribed with His laws, and He has established His ways in our nature (Hebrews 8:10, 10:16; Jeremiah 31:33; Ezekiel 11:19, 36:26-27; 2 Corinthians 3:3; 2 Peter 1:3-4). One of the challenging things for even those who have been regenerated to believe is that all things are new. Too many people hold on to the old and attempt to carry their former conversation and way of life into this glorious new creation. Satan lies against the truth and attempts to convince us nothing has changed. He tries to lay the sin and shame of the past on us. He would demand we carry the hurts and the iniquity of the former life along with us, but this is all a lie! Should we only believe that all the nature and goodness of God has been restored to us, then the faith which is by Christ Jesus would produce a miracle provision of grace, and we would discover that we can live the abundant life of Christ Jesus. If we are to occupy all that God has supplied, then we must walk in the Spirit. The only way we can walk in the Spirit is to live by the Word. Blessings, Pastor Mark Spitsbergen