Classic Christianity – A New Heart – Part 2 – 10-28-26
~ 1 Corinthians 1:30 — “It is because of Him that you are in Christ Jesus, who has become for us wisdom from God: our righteousness, holiness, and redemption.”
Bob George emphasizes that genuine Christian transformation begins inwardly, with Christ changing the attitudes of the heart rather than merely altering outward behavior. Since actions can be imitated, he says, the renewal of the mind is an ongoing process that should ultimately shape how people live.
He describes spiritual rebirth as a new creation from God, distinct from physical birth. In his teaching, believers are made righteous, holy, and complete through Christ—not through their own efforts, appearance, or behavior. He connects this assurance to the belief that those who are in Christ are secure in Him and need not fear death.
Bob also explains his view of the church as the body of Christ: the true church consists of born-again believers joined to Jesus, while local congregations may include both believers and nonbelievers. Because believers belong to one another, he says they should speak truthfully and make the church a place where people can share struggles without fear of condemnation.
Using an anecdote about a man named Sid, Bob argues that substance use and other destructive behaviors can reflect deeper heart needs and misplaced dependencies. He presents salvation as turning from reliance on those things to reliance on Christ, who gives life and changes people from within.
He closes by describing the Gospel as more than acknowledging Jesus’ existence or seeking forgiveness alone: it is trusting in Christ’s death and resurrection and receiving His Life. The closing prayer invites listeners to place their faith in Jesus and receive the assurance of becoming children of God.
Here are the main Scripture passages quoted, cited, or alluded to in the radio program. Some references are clear; others are likely alluded to rather than exact citations.
Here are the Scripture passages quoted or alluded to in the transcript. Some are paraphrased, so references are likely rather than always exact.
Clearly referenced or closely paraphrased
- Ephesians 4:22–25 — Putting off the old self, being renewed in the attitude of the mind, putting on the new self, and speaking truthfully as members of one body.
- 2 Corinthians 5:17 — “If any man be in Christ, he is a new creation.”
- Genesis 1:26–27; Genesis 5:1–3 — Humanity created in God’s image; Seth born in Adam’s likeness.
- 1 Corinthians 1:30 — Christ becoming believers’ righteousness and holiness.
- Hebrews 10:14 — By one offering, Christ has made believers complete/perfect while they are being made holy.
- 2 Corinthians 5:8 — “Absent from the body” and “present with the Lord.”
- Acts 2:42, 46 — The early believers devoting themselves to teaching, fellowship, prayer, and meeting together.
- Matthew 15:11, 17–20; Mark 7:15, 18–23 — What comes from within, rather than what enters the mouth, defiles a person.
- John 1:12 — Those who receive Christ are given the right to become children of God.
- Luke 23:34 — Jesus’ words, “Father, forgive them,” while on the cross.
Others:
Colossians 3:1 or Hebrews 1:3 — Christ raised and seated at God’s right hand.
Ezekiel 36:26 (also Ezekiel 11:19) — God giving a new heart and replacing a heart of stone.
Romans 12:4–5 and 1 Corinthians 12:12–27 — Believers as members of one body.
John 1:29 and 1 John 2:2 — Christ taking away sin and being the sacrifice for the sins of the world.
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Pray to God:
Do you really want to know the WHOLE Truth of what is going on today?
Now if any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to him. James 1:5
Lord Jesus, teach me the truth of the world today and give me the wisdom to know the truth and identify the lies of the devil. Thank you God.”
Bible Study Booklets
Announcer 0:13
Welcome to Classic Christianity Radio with Bob George Bob’s clear, timeless teachings on the complete forgiveness and unconditional love of Jesus Christ will transform your life as you learn about God’s amazing grace. Let’s join Bob as he teaches us from God’s Word.
Bob George 0:29
So you see, outward action is one thing, but inward thoughts and inward attitudes are another. Now Christ came to change the attitudes of our hearts, and He said those attitudes will change your actions, but don’t ever think that actions cannot be duplicated or imitated.” And in the final analysis, folks, isn’t it really true? Just in the final analysis, everybody’s got all this emphasis on outward action. In the final analysis, how many people, in your experience, really know what you’re like. How many? If you’re married, your mate, they know what you’re like. Your kids know what you’re like. Outside of that, folks, hardly anybody knows what you’re really like, do they? And so, can we not become performers because it’s just kind of for a short while, and then you get home and kick your shoes off and say, “Praise God! Now I can be myself.” Start knocking everybody in the head. So, folks, you see why God wants to change the attitudes of our hearts, because this outward can be changed, it can be faked, can’t it? That’s why people are getting married. Man, you don’t know somebody get married, do you? Now, how many can testify to that one? Yeah, yeah. And you say, why is that? I thought I knew him. Yeah, but you didn’t live with him. Say, well, yeah, we live together. That that’s not the same. That’s not the same, and I’m not going to ask if anyone’s experienced that. But I’m just saying that is not the same. And so what we have to come to to realize is not a whole lot of people really know what we’re really like, and that’s why he’s saying that we are to be made new in the attitudes of our mind. So until our attitudes have changed. Nothing’s going to change, and so he says that we’re taught to put on this new self that was been created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness.
Now, folks, there again, you were born a mom and dad, but you were created by God. Do you realize that? How many of you? When it says that man was created in the image of God. Is that true? No, that isn’t. true, man was created in the image of Adam. Remember that fifth chapter of Genesis, when Adam and Eve had Seth. Seth was born in the image of Adam. Adam and Eve were created in the image of God, Seth was born in the image of Adam. So God created only two men, two people, created by the hand of God. From that point on, man was born out of man and out of woman. Are we together on that? So when you and I were born again, what is that? A birth? It’s called a new birth, but what is it? A new creation. If any man be in Christ, he is what? A new creation. Why? Because spiritual birth comes from God, and so because it comes from God, not from mom and dad. Your physical birth came from mom and dad. Spiritual birth comes from God, called a new creation. So we’re told that we have now been not born but created, brand new, to be like God in true righteousness and holiness. Now, what does that mean? If I’m created to be like God, does that mean? Let’s just stop there and say, “Well, you’re created to be like God.” Try that one on, precise. To be like God. How can you be like God? God’s spirit. So, how am I going to be like a spirit? But he says we’re created to be like God in true righteousness. So, do we have any righteousness of our own? So, if I’m going to have true righteousness, where’s that righteousness going to have to come from? From Him, and that’s why that it is because of Him that we are in Christ Jesus, who has become for us our what? Righteousness. So, I have been recreated by God to live in His righteousness and in His holiness. How many of you are righteous in the sight of God and holy in the sight of God? Okay, now let me ask you a question. It is because of him that you have become in Christ Jesus, who has become for you your righteousness. So, who is your righteousness? Christ. Do you have any of your own? No. But are you righteous in the sight of God? Why are you righteous in the sight of God? Because he gave you his righteousness. So, how many of you are righteous in the sight of God? How many? Let’s see your hands. How many of you know that you’re righteous in the sight of God? Okay, that’s better.
Now, by that one offering, he made forever perfect in the sight of God all of you whom he has made holy. So, how many of you are complete? That’s what perfect means: complete in the sight of God. And how many of you are holy in the sight of God? How many of you can say that without without exception? Believe it by faith. Now, again, where does your holiness come from? God. So, is holiness predicated on your acting holy, is your holiness predicated on how you look, whether you have your hair short, long, and a bun, any other way? No. So, now how many people have tried to make themselves holy by looking strange? I’m going to be set apart from the world, and everybody’s going to know it. You say you sure are, and we should get more set apart from the world. They make themselves so ugly they go to the beach and the tide won’t even come in. We have to realize that that is not what holiness is. That you and I have been set apart because of the change of attitudes in our minds. Now, should that thinking result in different behavior? Are we together there? Absolutely. Does that take time to spell itself out? Yes, it does, guys. And we are in the process of continually being renewed in the newness of attitudes of our minds. That’s a process that God has us in, and and that process we will be in that process until the day that we’re absent from the body and present with the Lord.
But again, does God want you to know all the ramifications of your of your inheritance? In other words, to say you have an inheritance from God. That sounds good, but what would be the most logical next question? What is it? What is it? One is he made you holy. He’s already set you apart. Now, if he set you apart, can you set yourself more apart? No, absolutely not. I got another question for you. Can you make yourself less righteous? No, because your righteousness is not yours; it’s His. If he gave you life, can you get more life? Can you get less life? No. You are in Him. You have been raised from the dead. You are secure in Him. And when you fall into that grave, you are going to be absent from the body and immediately present with the Lord. Folks, this issue of death is a much bigger issue than what many of us think about as Christians because we kind of forget about that.
But as knowledgeable as you can get, the answer is: What are you going to do when that heart stops beating? Where are you going to go? And folks, that’s a question everybody’s got to. Ask themselves: Do I know where I’m going to go when I die? Because if I’m not prepared to die, I’m not prepared to live. If I’m afraid of dying, I’m afraid of living, because every day that I’m living, I’m afraid of dying. And it’s only until you can settle that issue to know that I am in Christ, and I am in Christ. Thank God, not because of what I do or what I think, but I’m in Christ because of who He is, and because of what He came to do in and through me. I didn’t deserve one ounce of salvation. I just received His offer of salvation to say, Bob, you’re a mess, and I’ll clean you. I’ll give you a new heart. Your heart is stony. I’ll give you a new one of flesh. You’re lost. You’re dead. I’ll give you life. And the only motivation behind any of that was love. And every one of us sitting in this room today who is saved responded to one thing, we responded to love, didn’t we? We heard God loved you, and we responded to that. But because of that, I have an assurance that I know beyond a shadow of a doubt that when I this body falls in the ground, I’m going in the presence of God, absent from the body, present with the Lord, and because I have no fear of death, I don’t like the process. None of us like the process. I don’t like the process of thinking about getting sick or that type of thing. I just soon die in my sleep. I put that request into the Lord, or die teaching. That’d be fun for me. It’d be a little shock to you, but I have no fear of death at all. Why? Because I know I’m going to a better place to live with Him eternally in heaven, to see some of my loved ones, and to someday wait on the rest of of my loved ones. And so, there’s no fear in death in Christ. Now, folks, that is unexplainable. I can’t sit down and explain that, and I don’t think there’s anyone who can. That’s just something you know to be true, and because I’m prepared to die, I’m prepared to live. Not because of being good, not because of being neat, not because of any of that stuff, just because of being saved in Christ Jesus.
So he says that that you and I have been taught to put off that old self. We don’t have to think any more like a lost person. To put on this new self and to be made new in the attitude of our minds, and and to put on this new self that’s been created to be like God in true righteousness and in true holiness, and that means in His righteousness and His holiness. And therefore, now because of this, each of you must put off falsehood and speak truthfully to his neighbor. For now, here’s the other assumption: we’re all members of one body. Now again, if you and I are sitting in this room today, as born again Christians, then we’re a part, are we not, of the body of Christ? And that’s what happened to us at spiritual birth. Was the Spirit of God came to live within us and then placed us into His body, and that’s the true body of Christ. The true body of Christ is not the church down on the corner of walk and don’t walk, because in that building you can have lost people and saved people, just like you can in any assembly. But the true church, the true ekklesia is the Greek word that we’ve translated church ekklesia called out ones is only born again believers. The only true ecclesia are people who are joined to Jesus at the head and joined down here to His body, and that’s the only church that God recognizes. That’s the only church that He’s dealing with.
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Bob George 14:38
So the church isn’t called Baptist or Methodist or Presbyterian, the church is called the ecclesia, the called out ones, those who are in a relationship with the Head, who is Jesus Christ. Now, do we all understand that? So, the true universality of the church, are born again believers, all. All over the world, and every place you go in the world, you run into born again believers who were saved just like you, have the same experience that you did, come to know the Lord the same way, have no fear of death. All these things that we’re talking about identical all over the world. Wherever you meet born again believers, regardless of their nationality, their color or creed, they’ve all gone through the same experience. That’s God’s church. Now we gather together because it’s a little hard to meet all together, all over the world at one time. So people started meeting together locally. And when you’re talking about the church of Ephesus, the church of Philippi, you’re not talking about a bunch of churches all over Philippi, in the little community of Philippi, believers met together. In the church of Colossae, believers met together, and that was called the church of Corinth because it was just one group of born-again believers. It wasn’t the thing to do. It wasn’t nice for your children because they didn’t have Sunday school back then. And in the early ecclesia, it said that the believers met daily for the apostles’ teaching and for fellowship and prayer. So there was a daily assembly. It was easy to do because there was one little community. You go into Corinth today or any of those places, real easy to to get someplace. They were not huge communities. As a matter of fact, those cities were walled in, so they weren’t huge in nature. And so it was very easy to get together with the Church of Ephesus or whoever it might be. And that’s what church was. It wasn’t this denominationalism that we have today. It wasn’t the activity center. It wasn’t the place where you go so that you can get entertained. It was a place that you went to learn. And when you go into the synagogues in those days, you have a little room and a little pulpit type deal, and and some little benches around. That was it. Why? That’s where you went to learn. That’s where you went to study the scriptures, because that’s what church was back in those days was studying the scriptures. And so we’re told that because we are a part of this body of Christ, that we should be honest with each other and speak truthfully to one another. And the reason that we should speak truthfully to one another is because we belong to one another, and we’re a part of the same body. And we would not think of one part of our body lying to another part of our body. Our body is very much in harmony with each other, isn’t it? You know, you’re not sitting there and your nose is itching, and and and some other part of the body says no, it didn’t. Your whole body says it’s itching, and so the body isn’t lying to each other. It’s it’s all a part of one another, and that’s what it’s saying here in regard to this, to the members of the body of Christ, and that’s why we should be truth tellers to one another. Now, what’s the problem with telling truth? Is there a fear sometimes in telling truth? What’s the fear that if I tell the truth, this person may not love me or accept me. And folks, I think it’s a tragedy that today in the average church, that’s the last place you would go if you had a real problem, a real sin problem. Now you can go with sickness and that kind of stuff, but I’m talking about something you’re struggling with in the flesh. So I have people call me and say, “Bob, man, I’ve been to your seminars and I’ve been here and this and this, but boy, I’m really having a sin problem. There’s something inside of me that says, “Thank God that you got the freedom to call me, knowing I’m not going to judge you, because that’s what we’re looking for, isn’t it?
Person calls in, whatever it might be, people in this congregation, the same type of thing. You’re not going to get judged. You’re not going to get judged for a sin problem that you may have. Why? Well, there ain’t nobody to judge you. God isn’t judging you, and neither am I, and neither should we. And the last place in the world where you ought to find judgment and condemnation is in the body of Christ, and yet most of us would be petrified of letting somebody know that we have a problem because we’re afraid. Why? We be judged. So what do we do? Well, we lie, and we lie to each other by not saying something, and we lie to each other by saying everything’s great when it really isn’t, and so to me it’s a tragedy that many times we have become so enamored with the being socially acceptable to one another that the church is a group of people; it’s very socially acceptable that we do not want. Anybody to know that we’ve got some failures? Well, we all have them, don’t we? You see, if you have a failure, as we all have them, it’s not a big deal. We all have them. It’s called flesh, and all of us have desires of the flesh. And one person’s desires may be strong in one thing, but not strong in another.
That that truth came to me so vividly very early in my Christian experience, and many of you have read our book. Remember me talking about the guy’s name is Sid, but I think I used maybe another name in in classic. But he was a gentleman that was in his 60s. He and his wife had walked an aisle at one of the Baptist churches. Both of them had been on alcohol since they were in college. They were alcoholics. Why Liz called me at home. It was pretty late at night and said, “Bob, could you come down and talk to Sid? He’s drunk.” And I remember going down to talk to Sid and thinking to myself, “You know, Lord, there’s nothing wrong with you. There’s got to be something wrong with Sid. Something’s wrong in his understanding. And I remember sitting down with him, and sure enough, Liz was right. He was drunk, and he sat there for a little while, and and he said, “You know why I got drunk tonight?” No, I don’t. I don’t know, Sid. You know what my boss and his secretary doing? No, don’t have a clue. They’re in some motel someplace. I thought to myself. I said, Sid, you know, they’re probably sitting in that motel saying, “You know what old Sid’s doing? He’s getting drunk. Now you’re sitting there all hung up for what they’re doing, drunk as a skunk, and they’re they’re over there doing what they’re doing. They’re not drunk, probably criticizing you for being drunk. Now, which which sin is the worst? And that’s when I asked him, “When you came, walk that aisle. Did you accept Jesus, God, or did Jesus the man?” He said, “What do you mean?” I said, “Did you accept the Lord Jesus Christ, who walked on the face of this earth and performed miracles, made the blind to see, the deaf to hear, or did you receive the living Christ, who was raised from the dead today, and seated at the right hand of God as God, ready to give you life. Did you come to Christ for forgiveness, or did you come to Him for life? He said, “I came to Him for forgiveness. I came to Jesus the Man.” I said, “Are you willing tonight to accept Jesus the God?” He said, “Yes, I am,” and got on his knees and accepted the Lord Jesus Christ, the Lord Jesus Christ, as who He is, life, God. His whole life was changing. Stopped drinking that night forever. I’ve known Sid now for 20 some years. After man, I’ve been an alcoholic all his life, but the living God came to take up residence in his life, and it freed him. What was wrong with sin? Had a drinking problem? No, no, no one has a drinking problem. Jesus said that it’s not what a man puts in his mouth that defiles a man, but it’s what proceeds out of his heart that defiles a man.
And so, no one has a drinking problem. No one has a drug problem. You could also say it’s not what a man sticks in his veins that defiles him. It’s what proceeds out of his heart. You don’t have drug problems. You don’t have alcohol problems. We have heart problems, and alcohol and drugs and all those things and all the other things we do are nothing but a great, big, huge, misplaced dependency. We’re dependent upon those things to do for us what only Christ can do for us. And there comes a time in our life where we say, “You know, I don’t need to depend upon alcohol for deadening my mind anymore. I can depend on Jesus to renew it. I don’t need to depend on alcohol to make me bold. I can depend on Jesus to make me humble. I don’t need to depend on alcohol and all of those things to to to make me happy. I have Jesus who will give me joy, and joy is better than happiness.
And so, what happens to us at that moment is a misplaced dependency is exchange for a true dependency on a true living God, and that true living God comes and changes our hearts from within, not from without, but from within. And folks, that’s what true salvation is all about. That’s what salvation is all about. It’s a heart change. It’s coming to the Lord and to be able to say, Lord, I have lived all of my life thinking my own thoughts, doing my own things, and today I want you to come into my life and to take over my life and to be my Lord and to be my Savior and to come to a Jesus who hung on a cross 2000 years ago, and took away the sins of the world, and as the world was there mocking him and beating him half to death, looked down and said, “Father, forgive them. They don’t know what they’re doing.” And that Jesus is the one who took the entire sins of the world upon himself and became the sin sacrifice for the entire world. In order that raised from the dead, he could give you a life called eternal life. And folks, that’s the magnitude of what we have living in us today. Is that Jesus.
Let’s pray together. Father, as we close today, if there be one in this group, or two, or three, or how many others, that have given a belief system to Jesus, acknowledged His existence, but have never gotten in that wheelbarrow, have never exercised faith in casting ourselves upon You, then I pray that that occurs today, that we’re able to say, Lord, I never understood the Gospel before. I understood your death, but not your life. And today I want to accept the fullness of the gospel. I want to thank you for taking away my sins, all of them, at the cross, never to see them again Today, tomorrow, through eternity, they’re gone. And I thank you for being so gracious and merciful that when you were raised from the dead, that you did so, so that I could be raised from the dead. And I now ask you, having recognized my spiritual death, to come into my heart and to give me life, your life, living in me, that will be glory. And I thank you, Father, that you’ve told us that to as many as received you, to them you gave the right to become a child of God, and that I can walk out of this room knowing that I am a child of God.
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Announcer
Thank you so much for tuning in to Classic Christianity with Bob George. We hope you’ve enjoyed today’s program. We truly hope that today’s message has inspired you to walk a life of faith in the Lord. Find more information online at BobGeorge.net. There you’ll also find available CDs, DVDs, and Bible studies available for purchase. It’s through your help, that we are able to spread the good word of Jesus Christ. Until next time, walk in faith, be good to one another, and praise the Lord. Amen.