Breathing New Life

READ: ROMANS 6:1-11

Sometimes I watch the seasons progress with awe. Everything looks dead in winter, and then suddenly one day in the spring, daffodils start popping up, and soon after the trees blossom and turn green. God has a pattern of bringing new life.

In the beginning, God created everything, including people. Adam was nothing more than dust before God gathered up that dust, formed it, and breathed life into Adam. He gave Adam and Eve the calling to rule over the creatures of the Earth, giving dignity and purpose to what was once nothing but dust (Genesis 1:26-30). Similarly, God blessed Sarah’s 90-plus-year-old womb and gave her and Abraham a baby: Isaac. In this way God fulfilled His promise, and through Isaac He brought forth the whole nation of Israel (Genesis 17:15-19; 21:1-7).

Generations later, Jesus called His followers to a new life. When Jesus called Peter and Andrew, two ordinary fishermen, He said, “‘Come, follow me…and I will send you out to fish for people.’ At once they left their nets and followed him” (Matthew 4:19-20). When Jesus called Levi, a tax collector who would’ve been considered a traitor to His own people, Jesus simply said, “Follow me” (Mark 2:14), and Levi got up from his tax collector’s booth and followed. These disciples left everything behind because Jesus called them to a new life. They went on to be leaders of the early church and served a great purpose as Christianity was just starting out. They became willing to endure terrible suffering and hardship because of Jesus.

And Jesus Himself rose from the dead to new life. Jesus’s miraculous resurrection aligns so well with the character of God. Of course Jesus was resurrected into new life, and of course God invites us into that new life. That’s what He does! We see it all throughout God’s story, we see it in the beautiful world He has created, and we see it in our own lives. • Naomi Zylstra

• Where have you seen God breathing new life in and around you? If nothing comes to mind, you can ask God to help you see how He has been working.

• Do you have a favorite story from the Bible where God gave new life and purpose to something or someone that was dead (either literally deceased or otherwise hopeless)?

• When Jesus returns, He will raise us to new life, and everyone who has put their trust in Jesus will live with Him forever! If you want to know more, check out our "Know Jesus" page.

Then the Lord God formed a man from the dust of the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living being. Genesis 2:7 (NIV)