So that since someone is in Christ, a new creation (κτίσις), archaic things have passed away, behold, all things have become new – 2 Corinthians 5:17
This is a very important verse when it comes to understanding what God did in the resurrection of Christ and the creation of the Church, yet, due to very poor translations is often completely misunderstood. Frequently “he is” is inserted into the translation, even though there is no support for its addition. Other translations change the word from creation to creature. κτίσις is creation (Mark 10:6), κτίσμα is the result of creation – a creature (1 Timothy 4:4). By misrepresenting the words used in the original language and adding in additional words, many translations imply that we become either a new creation or a new creature. However, Scripture states that the Christ is the new creation.
It was Christ who died for all so that we who live should live not for ourselves but for Him who died and rose again on our behalf (2 Corinthians 5:15).
The Christ is God’s new creation in which Christ is the head and the Church is the body.
For just as the body is one and has many members, but all the members of the body, being many are one body, thus also is the Christ – 1 Corinthians 12:12
For He Himself is our peace, the one making both one and tearing down the partition of the wall, the enmity in His flesh, having rendered ineffective the law of commandments in ordinances, in order that He should create of the two in Himself unto one new man, making peace – Ephesians 2:14-15
And put in subjection all things under His feet and gave Him to be head over all the Church, which is His body, the fullness of the one filling all things in all – Ephesians 1:22-23
There are two important aspects of this new creation we are in. Since we are in Christ, we are no longer under the condemnation that Adam brought upon all humans (Romans 5:12; 8:1). Therefore, we are free from slavery to the sin nature and are now slaves to righteousness (Romans 6:18). The other facet is the fact that we of the Church are part of a new creation, we do not become a new creature or creation. This new creation unites us as one body and through this we are to have the type of relationship with each other that expresses love – seeking the best for other Christians – along with caring for each other. For when one part of the body mourns, so does the other parts, and when one part is joyous so is the rest of the body.
For I myself am not ashamed of the Gospel of the Christ, for it is the natural ability of God unto salvation to all the one’s believing, both Jew first and Gentile. For God’s righteousness in it is revealed out from faith into faith, just as it is written, “The righteous out from faith will live”. – Romans 1:16-17
