2 Corinthians 5:17 meaning

In 2 Corinthians 5:17, Paul describes his spiritual perspective of being in Christ.

As he writes this letter of 2 Corinthians to the church he established in Corinth, Paul is still a Jew, he is still a religious leader, he still is a teacher, but he now looks at Jesus in a totally different way. In light of this new perspective, Paul has chosen a mindset rooted in Christ’s love and sacrifice for the world, Paul says: Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creature; the old things passed away; behold, new things have come (v 17).

Through his physical eyes in his flesh, Paul looked at Christ and Christians as a threat to his power and privilege, so he persecuted them. Now Paul has a completely different view. He views each person through spiritual eyes and sees each person who has believed on Christ as a new creature. Since Jesus died for all, that means that every single human has the potential to become a new creature.

As with verse 16, the Therefore in verse 17 comes in light of the conviction that Christ “died for all, so that they who live might no longer live for themselves, but for Him who died and rose again on their behalf” (v 15). This compelling conviction shows that Paul believed and taught that anyone can be in Christ. It did not matter nationality, ethnicity, economic status or gender, all are welcome at the cross, and all are one in Christ (Galatians 3:28).

Thus, Paul confirms his own belief and experience of the words of Jesus in John 3:16, “that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life.” Anyone (“whoever”), if they believe, can become a new creature through being in Christ.

The Greek noun “ktisis” translated in verse 17 as creature is commonly translated as “creation.” For Paul, then, this new creature, or “new creation” follows the thread of God’s creative activity and initiative throughout the biblical narrative of history.

In Genesis 1:1 we read, “In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.” We see that His creative power comes from His word, with the spoken phrase “Let there be” running throughout the creation narrative.

When the angel Gabriel came to Mary to tell her the Messiah would come into the world through her, she asked, “‘How can this be, since I am a virgin?’ The angel answered and said to her, ‘The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you’” (Luke 1:34-35). This is the same creative activity we see in Genesis 1:2, “and the Spirit of God was moving over the surface of the waters.” The Holy Spirit, the breath and wind of God created with the words “Let there be.”

Jesus follows this creative thread in His conversation with Nicodemus, as recorded in John 3. In response to Nicodemus, Jesus says, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God” (John 3:3). The phrase “born again” can also be translated as “born from above” and Jesus sums this up in 3:8 by saying, “so is everyone who is born of the Spirit.”

The one who believes on Jesus is the new creature, or creation, that Paul is describing. Just as physical birth brings a new physical person into the world, spiritual birth brings a new spiritual person into the world. Peter also describes this “new birth” in 1 Peter 1:23, “for you have been born again not of seed which is perishable but imperishable, that is, through the living and enduring word of God.”

Paul boldly declares that being in Christ is transformational, the old things have passed away; behold, new things have come. We might appropriately ask, what are the old things and what are the new things? Paul has laid the groundwork for this understanding in 2 Corinthians 3:6, when he says that we are in Christ, we are “servants of a new covenant, not of the letter but of the Spirit.” This infers that the old things are the religious rules of the law written on stone and the new things are the law of Christ written on our hearts (2 Corinthians 3:3-7).

Jesus speaks to this truth in John 3:6, “That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is Spirit is spirit.” Remember, Paul was a Pharisee, dedicated to keeping what he calls the “ministry of condemnation” (2 Corinthians 3:9a). Now, however, being in Christ, he can embrace the “ministry of righteousness” (2 Corinthians 3:9b).

This “new birth” or “birth of the Spirit” was not just a creed, doctrine, or prayer, but a transformation that brought:

• a new fear and new confidence looking forward to the judgment (2 Corinthians 5:10),
• a new urgency in his life to persuade men regarding the judgment (2 Corinthians 5:11),
• a new motive and conviction through Christ’s love (2 Corinthians 5:14, 20),
• a new worldview/perspective regarding humanity (2 Corinthians 5:15-16),
• a new mental model/perspective of himself and other individuals (2 Corinthians 5:17),
• a new understanding of what God is doing in the world (2 Corinthians 5:19),
• a new message and a new ministry (2 Corinthians 5:18-19), and
• a new calling (2 Corinthians 5:20).

Underlying this new reality is a new definition of prosperity. God wants us to be healthy, wealthy, and prosperous not merely in a temporal way, but in a way that lasts. Were we to live forever in this world, we would be condemned to death, somewhat like the mythical zombies, since the world is fallen.

When God exiled Adam and Eve from the Garden of Eden it was in part an act of mercy, preventing this negative outcome (Genesis 3:22). The means to true, lasting prosperity is life gained through death.

Death is separation. Gaining the greatest fulfillment in life begins with setting aside/separating from pride, and receiving a new birth by faith, that we might be a new creation who will receive a resurrected body (John 3:14-15, 2 Corinthians 5:17). To gain the greatest possible fulfillment as a new creation in Christ, then, comes through obeying Jesus’s instruction in Matthew’s gospel,

“If anyone wishes to come after Me, he must deny himself, and take up his cross and follow Me. For whoever wishes to save his life will lose it; but whoever loses his life for My sake will find it. For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world and forfeits his soul? Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul?” 
(Matthew 16:24-26)

This is a fundamental shift in mindset from pursuing rewards/treasures from the world to seeking rewards/treasures from the Kingdom of God. To “take up” the cross of Christ daily is to suffer as He suffered, enduring the rejection of both worldly and religious institutional leaders.

But this is the way to gain life. To love others, by faith, as Christ loved them leads us to know Christ, and to know Christ leads to our greatest experience of life (John 17:3). As Paul stated in his letter to the Romans, when we suffer as Jesus suffered, He promises to share His inheritance with us in the age that is to come (Romans 8:17b).

Being in Christ might be called many things, but it is important to recognize that what it is called is not as important as what it is. Being in Christ is a new reality for anyone who believes. It is who we are. We are a new creature or “new creation” in Christ Jesus. We are now a part of His spiritual body (1 Corinthians 12:27).

We are in Christ, but He is also in us (Colossians 1:27). Because He is in us, we have the power to live as He lived (Galatians 5:16, 1 John 4:17). This new perspective/worldview/mental model leads to a completely different view of what constitutes “prosperity” or “winning” at life. It slants everything toward investing in riches toward God and laying up treasure in heaven through loving and serving others.