The most important question in this discussion is this, "What happens to our soul or personality at the moment of salvation?" One way of looking at this question is to consider another one. How much must we change to qualify to become Christians? Well obviously we don't have to change at all. God, through the miracle of His grace takes us just the way we are so that He can clean us up and transform us into His image. "But God demonstrates His own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us." Romans 5:8 This means of course that we enter the Kingdom in a sorry state, broken, bleeding, wounded with deeply damaged personalities from all the years that we have spent in Satan's kingdom. God accepts us as we are, damaged goods, "factory seconds."

It is possible then, to be a new Christian and still be bound in sinful habits and attitudes, with dysfunctional relationships, deep personality scars, addictions and compulsions. In other words, a new Christian can still have a very active and contaminated old nature which wreaks havoc in their mind even though their spirit now belongs to God. This old nature is actually the bag that I referred to earlier which is part of our soul. Prior to salvation the bag is accumulating pain and scars that Satan is putting into the bag to mold us into his image. After salvation, we are still carrying the bag since it is so much part of our former or old nature. This bag will continue to hurt and paralyze us until the Holy Spirit so fills our life with God's new nature that the chain holding us to the bag of our old nature is cut.

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"Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is, His good, pleasing and perfect will."
Romans 12:2

It is God's desire to free us from that bag of pain, clean us up and give us His new nature. He wants to empty the bag, heal all those wounds and scars and set us free from our sinful habits and thought patterns. God wants our new nature in Christ to control our soul and personality so that the old sinful nature is overcome and disposed of. These two natures are always in conflict.

"For the sinful nature desires what is contrary to the Spirit, and the Spirit what is contrary to the sinful nature. They are in conflict with each other, so that you do not do what you want."
Galatians 5:17.

This process of emptying the bag and healing the wounds is called sanctification and it is accomplished through the actions of the Holy Spirit.

Where do you think the bag of our old nature is located? Where do you think this battle between our new and old natures takes place? Well, it's actually located between your ears. There is a surprisingly large amount of space there for this battle to take place. You see, the battle is actually for your thoughts and for who will control them. As long as your old nature is unhealed and active, then your thoughts will be controlled and contaminated by your sinful and painful past. When the old nature is healed and cut away from you then your thoughts will be full of God's nature.

There is a lot of room between our ears to carry the bag of our old nature.

Your thoughts are really the rudders of your life. Whatever spiritual force controls your thoughts, will control your life. That is why there is such a battle between the forces of Light and Darkness to control your mind. Satan desperately wants to influence and control your thoughts by keeping your old nature alive and your new nature suppressed. God wants to set you free from that old nature so your mind will be free to think His thoughts and walk out of the bondage of your past into your new nature in Christ.

Next month we will look at the bag of pain that we all carry.

This article is excerpted from "Emotionally Free" by Dr. Grant Mullen

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