After Ezekiel 36:26 says that God gives us a new heart, it says that God also puts a new spirit in us. Thus, not only does regeneration cause us to have a new heart; it also causes us to have a new spirit.
What is a new spirit? A new spirit means that our dead old spirit has been renewed and quickened. Just as the new heart is the old heart made new, so the new spirit is the old spirit made new. The old heart, when it is renewed, is softened; while the old spirit, when it is renewed, is quickened. This is because the trouble with our old heart is its hardness, whereas the trouble with our old spirit is its deadness. Therefore, when God regenerates us, just as He renews our hard old heart by softening it to become a new heart, so He renews our dead old spirit by quickening it to become a new spirit.
The created spirit of man originally was the organ for man to contact God. Man had fellowship with God and communed with God through and by his spirit. Later, because of man’s fall, his spirit was damaged by the defilement of sin. Thus, the human spirit lost its function toward God and became a dead spirit. Because it was dead, it was therefore old. When we are regenerated, because the blood of the Lord Jesus cleanses the defilement which our spirit suffered, the Spirit of God then puts the life of God, which is the element of God, into our spirit and quickens it (see Col. 2:13). In this way, our dead old spirit is renewed and becomes a living new spirit.
Our spirit originally was an old creation; there was no element of God in it. Later, not only did it have no element of God, but it was further defiled by sin; thus, it became old. There are two reasons for anything being a part of the old creation: one is that it was without the element of God during creation; the other is that it is defiled and corrupted by sin and Satan. It is also due to these two reasons that our spirit became an old spirit. Hence, when God regenerates us, in order to renew our old spirit and make it a new spirit, He works from two sides. On one hand, He uses the blood of the Lord Jesus to cleanse away the defilement of our spirit, so that our spirit becomes clean. On the other hand, He uses His Spirit to put His life into our spirit, so that our spirit may have His element. Thus, He renews our old spirit and makes it a new spirit. His renewing of our old spirit and making it a new spirit means that He puts a new spirit in us.
Since at the time of our regeneration God has already given us a new heart, why does He proceed further and put a new spirit in us? It is because the heart can only desire God and love God; it cannot contact God or touch God. Therefore, it is not sufficient for God to give us only a new heart; He must also put a new spirit in us. If God only gives us a new heart, He can only cause us to desire Him and love Him; He cannot enable us to contact Him. Therefore, He must put a new spirit in us so that we may contact Him and fellowship with Him.
We have already mentioned that the heart is the organ of our inclination and love. Therefore, the function of the heart toward God is to incline toward Him and love Him. The Bible says that the heart pants after God, the heart thirsts for God (Psa. 42:1-2). The heart can pant after God and thirst after God, but it cannot contact God or touch God. The heart has only the function of loving God and thirsting for Him; it does not have the ability to contact God or touch God. That which can contact God is not the heart, but the spirit. The heart is only good for us to love God, but the spirit is good for us to contact God and to fellowship with God.
For example, suppose I have here a good pen. My heart likes it very much; but my heart cannot contact it or take possession of it, for my heart does not have such ability. Such ability belongs to my hand. The hand illustrates the spirit. Although our heart loves God and thirsts deeply for Him, it can neither contact God nor fellowship with Him. Only our spirit can do that. Therefore, when we are regenerated, God not only gives us a new heart, He also puts a new spirit within us.
With a new heart, we can desire God and love God, and with a new spirit we can contact God and touch God. Our new heart enables us to have new delight and inclinations, new feelings and interest toward God and the things of God. Our new spirit enables us to have new contact and insight, new spiritual ability and function toward God and the things of God. Formerly, we neither loved God nor liked the spiritual things of God; moreover, we were not able to contact God or understand the spiritual things of God. But now we have a new heart and a new spirit; therefore, we not only can love God and the things of God, we can also contact God and know God and the things of God. Formerly, we had no feeling toward God and no interest in God; we were weak and without any ability whatsoever toward God and the things of God. But now, with a new heart and a new spirit, we not only have feeling and interest toward God and the things of God, but we also are strongly able to contact and understand them. Hence, once our heart loves God, our spirit touches Him; once our heart delights in the things of God, our spirit understands them. This is the intention of God in giving us a new spirit in addition to a new heart.