Tag Archives: born again

GOD’S WORD IS THE SEED – 2

Bible Study, ,

‭1 Peter 1:23-25 NLT‬
[23] “For you have been born again, but not to a life that will quickly end. Your new life will last forever because it comes from the eternal, living word of God. [24] As the Scriptures say, “People are like grass; their beauty is like a flower in the field. The grass withers and the flower fades. [25] But the word of the Lord remains forever.” And that word is the Good News that was preached to you.”

Let’s gaze, for a moment, at Peter’s next gem of truth. Like a seed sown in good soil, that produces new life, so God’s Word sown in a believing heart, will bear the fruit of eternal life because His word cannot fail. Peter endorses Paul’s explanation of the way of salvation in Romans 10…

‭Romans 10:8-9 NLT‬
[8] “In fact, it says, “The message is very close at hand; it is on your lips and in your heart.” And that message is the very message about faith that we preach: [9] If you openly declare that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.”

… But Peter takes a step backwards. He adds the truth that the seed of God’s Word is the agent of our salvation. The message of Jesus is the seed we have received, and will always accomplish its mission. As Isaiah’s prophecy declared,

‭Isaiah 55:10-11 NLT‬
[10] “The rain and snow come down from the heavens and stay on the ground to water the earth. They cause the grain to grow, producing seed for the farmer and bread for the hungry. [11] It is the same with my word. I send it out, and it always produces fruit. It will accomplish all I want it to, and it will prosper everywhere I send it.”

Peter’s words, then, put our salvation into the category of certainty and security. Since God’s Word is the beginning of our salvation, the seed that produces the growing ‘plant’ of wholeness in the believer, we have the assurance, again, that God will finish what He started.

The Holy Spirit plants the seed of our salvation securely in our hearts when we believe and receive the message of Jesus. God’s ‘power pack’ is in the seed, guaranteeing its fruitfulness despite all odds. The seed in us also secures the end result of our faith, the holiness and likeness to Jesus that gives us our place in God’s heavenly kingdom forever.

As we rely on God’s promises, so we persevere in this life of faith through the trials and tests we face, with determination to endure to the end.

‭1 Peter 1:6-7 NLT‬
[6]”So be truly glad. There is wonderful joy ahead, even though you must endure many trials for a little while. [7] These trials will show that your faith is genuine. It is being tested as fire tests and purifies gold—though your faith is far more precious than mere gold. So when your faith remains strong through many trials, it will bring you much praise and glory and honor on the day when Jesus Christ is revealed to the whole world.”

‭Romans 5:3-5 NLT‬
[3]” We can rejoice, too, when we run into problems and trials, for we know that they help us develop endurance. [4] And endurance develops strength of character, and character strengthens our confident hope of salvation. [5] And this hope will not lead to disappointment. For we know how dearly God loves us, because he has given us the Holy Spirit to fill our hearts with his love.”

To crown all the reassurances that we will safely reach our destination because God’s promises can never fail, is His priceless gift of the Holy Spirit. He journeys with us because He is in us. He keeps us on track, monitoring and guiding us through every thought, choice, decision, and action, and calling us back when we wander off the path. He reassures us that we are chosen, called, greatly loved and highly favoured, children of God who are being groomed for an indescribably wonderful future.

God’s seed plays a powerful role in us on every level. His seed produces eternal life in us, reproduces the fruit of His Spirit in our thoughts, attitudes, and behaviour, and protects us from a life of sin.

The Greek word for ‘seed’ is ‘sperma’, meaning ‘something sown’. Imagine that! God has sown His sperma in us!

‭1 John 3:9 NIV‬
[9] “No one who is born of God will continue to sin, because God’s seed (sperma) remains in them; they cannot go on sinning, because they have been born of God.”

It is God’s ‘sperma’ that produces life in us. This life of God in us, given to us through the work of His Spirit, raises us from death caused by sin, and continues to work life in us by protecting us from the sinful ways of our past. His Word, through the Spirit, alerts us when we sin, arouses our conscience, and leads us back to the path of obedience to Jesus.

What a treasure to lay hold of in a dark and threatening world!

HAVE YOU BEEN BORN AGAIN?

Gospel, ,

HAVE YOU BEEN BORN AGAIN?

“In reply, Jesus declared (to Nicodemus- author’s note). ‘I tell you the truth, no one can see the kingdom of God unless he is born again.4 “How can someone be born when they are old?” Nicodemus asked. “Surely they cannot enter a second time into their mother’s womb to be born!”
5 Jesus answered, “Very truly I tell you, no one can enter the kingdom of God unless they are born of water and the Spirit. 6 Flesh gives birth to flesh, but the Spirit gives birth to spirit. 7 You should not be surprised at my saying, ‘You must be born again.’ John 3:3-7

Humans have the strange compulsion to reduce everything to formulae so that we can apply what we understand better. Our attempts at evangelism are no different. We approach people with the “Four Spiritual Laws”, Evangelism Explosion and even “The Born Again” message.

However, when we watch Jesus’ way of interacting with people, He was different. He treated every person as unique. To the woman at the well He offered water that would satisfy her thirst to be truly loved. To Zaccheus, He was the one who freed him from dishonesty and greed, which Jesus called “salvation”. To the woman caught in adultery, He showed mercy by not stoning her, and He delivered her from guilt. To the woman who was bleeding, who touched the tassels of His prayer shawl and was healed, Jesus said, “Go in peace. Your faith has made you whole.” To the paralysed man whose friends let him down through the roof, Jesus responded to their faith and forgave his sin. Now how can we turn any of that into a formula?

Where did the “born again” idea come from? Nicodemus was a Pharisee, a man schooled in the religion and practice of Judaism. He understood what it meant to be “first-born”. In Hebrew culture, the firstborn son in every family stood in the position of privilege and responsibility. He represented his father in making decisions and taking responsibility for his younger siblings’ actions. Hence it was Reuben, Jacob’s firstborn, who tried to protect Joseph from his brothers’ murderous intentions because he was responsible for him. Adam was God’s firstborn son and, as the firstborn, he was responsible for his wrong choice and the sin of the whole world. According to the Apostle Paul, then, “In Adam, all die.”

All the other children in the Hebrew family were “second born”. Because the firstborn took their judgment, they received mercy. It is equally true that, since Jesus was the firstborn of the Father, as a human being, he received justice. He is also called the “second Adam”, so that, in Him, people receives mercy.

Nicodemus knew that, in Adam, he was subject to God’s justice for his sin. Hence, as a Pharisee, he tried to keep the Law of God as best he could. Jesus explained that it took a supernatural act of God’s grace to move him from firstborn in Adam to second-born in Christ so that he would receive mercy and not justice. He could not earn mercy by keeping the rules. He could only receive it by faith in the one who would be lifted up like the serpent in the wilderness.

By an act of grace through faith in Jesus, we are moved from justice to mercy by being “born again.” It’s not a formula but a fact. (LAC)

JESUS DID NOT SAY THAT WE MUST BE BORN AGAIN

Apologetics, ,

JESUS DID NOT SAY THAT WE MUST BE BORN AGAIN

Jesus replied, “Very truly I tell you, no one can see the kingdom of God unless they are born again.” John 3:3

Here’s another misunderstanding that has been turned into a doctrine. In fact, it has become more than a doctrine. It has become a category – as though it were one of three categories of Christians. You get Christians; then you get “born-again” Christians; and then you get “born-again, Spirit-filled” Christians. Have you ever heard people using these distinctions? Of course, it all depends on the stream of the faith to which you belong.

I wonder what Jesus would think about this!

From where does the expression “born again” come? “From Jesus, of course!” you retort. Yes, He did use it once, on a specific occasion to a specific person, but I wonder whether He meant it to be used as a category for believers or did He have something else in mind?

Let’s examine the circumstances of His use of the words, “born again”.

Now there was a Pharisee, a man named Nicodemus who was a member of the Jewish ruling council. He came to Jesus at night and said, ‘Rabbi, we know that you are a teacher who has come from God. For no one can perform the signs you are doing if God were not with Him.’

Jesus replied, ‘Very truly I tell you, no one can see the kingdom of God unless he is born again.’ (John 3: 1-3)

“There you have it. Jesus did say that we must be born again,” you declare. Ah, but once again we must examine the context.

First, who was Nicodemus? He was a Pharisee, a strictly religious Jew who was a stickler for obeying, not so much the letter of Torah, as the letter of the myriad interpretations added to Torah by the ancient rabbis who had sh’mikah. They were acknowledged to have authority to make pronouncements about the meaning and application of the Law, which were not necessarily an expression of God’s original intention.

Like all the religious leaders of the Jews, Nicodemus believed that his adherence to the Law, which included all the additions, qualified him to be “righteous” before God. However, when he was confronted by Jesus, he realised that there was something missing both in his belief system and in his life. He was honest enough to admit, unlike his fellow Pharisees, that Jesus was more than a man because of His works. No one could do the miracles Jesus did unless His power came from God. Nicodemus was not foolish enough to attribute Jesus’ power to the devil.

Jesus cut him short. No explanations. Just a bald statement of fact. As a member of humanity, not just the privileged class of Pharisees, Nicodemus was under divine judgment for his sin like everyone else. No amount of rule-keeping qualified him for exemption. If he wanted to experience life in the kingdom of God – the life Jesus exemplified by His words and works – he would need a brand-new start.

This was not about being “born again” as a new status. This was about “seeing” the kingdom of God. The Jews of Jesus’ day, including Nicodemus, misunderstood what Jesus meant by “the kingdom of God”. They were obsessed with the passion to get rid of the Romans and to re-establish the glorious kingdom of David. Many thought that Jesus would do this – overthrow the Roman occupation and set up their own independent kingdom once again.

Nicodemus needed to understand that God’s kingdom was not about the restoration of David’s kingdom, but the restoration of God’s rule in his heart. That would take much more than a new ruler in Israel. It demanded a brand-new start through the power of the Holy Spirit. To “see” the kingdom of God was to have insight into what it was and how it worked. This was not possible while he, Nicodemus was still in the “flesh”.

Being “born again” was not a title or a status – it was a qualification for new life under the rule of God in the heart. It demanded a divine intervention through the Holy Spirit. It required a change of heart and nature to have the ”eyes” of the Spirit and to understand and walk in God’s ways. No amount of religious status or rigmarole could awaken him out of the death of sin.

But because of His great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, made us alive with Christ when we were dead in transgressions – it is by grace you have been saved. And God raised us up with Christ and seated us with Him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus. (Eph. 3: 4-6)

To describe people as “born again” is meaningless unless they are born again into an understanding and experience of life in the kingdom of God. Far too many who claim the title know nothing about living under God’s rule or even being true disciples of Jesus. A disciple is one who follows Jesus so closely that he becomes a replica of his Master, not just a casual adherent to a church or denomination. He is one who submits to Jesus as Lord and lives in obedience to His word.

To the Jews who believed in Him, Jesus said, ‘If you hold to my teaching, you are really my disciples. . . (John 8: 31)  

No, being born again is neither a title not a category of religious persuasion, but a drastic and dramatic work of the Holy Spirit. In response to faith in Jesus, He raises the dead spirit to life, transfers the believer in Jesus from Satan’s dominion of darkness to the kingdom of God, changes the heart and nature from selfishness and greed to unselfishness and generosity, and patiently refines the character until the believer begins to resemble his Master by becoming a true son of God, which he is.

The expression, “born again” is used only twice in Scripture, by Jesus to Nicodemus in John 3, and by Peter in his first letter. Look at the context.

Now that you have purified yourselves by obeying the truth so that you have sincere love for each other, love one another deeply from the heart. For you have been born again, not of perishable seed, but of imperishable, through the living and enduing word of God. (1 Peter 1: 22-23)

Sincere love for each other? That takes a miracle of God’s grace and a brand-new start!

Scripture taken from THE HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

JOURNEY TO WHOLENESS

Bible Study, ,

JOURNEY TO WHOLENESS

“Jesus answered, ‘Flesh give birth to flesh, but the Spirit gives birth to spirit. You should not be surprised at my saying, ‘You must be born again.’ The wind blows wherever it pleases. You hear its sound, but you cannot tell where it comes from or where it is going. So it is with everyone born of the Spirit.'”  John 3: 5-8 (NIV).

That’s it! It’s a mystery — a secret finally revealed.

Every other religion has a set of beliefs and a set of rules to which its devotees subscribe the  origin of which is in the mind of man and the outcome is the best or worst that man can produce. The only authority religion has is force applied from the outside or persuasion based on lies. It cannot produce life or change a human being’s basic nature.

Jesus, the Son of God, however, was sent from the Father to remove the barrier between Himself and His human offspring and to return the Holy Spirit to those who believe in Him and receive Him. The Spirit’s work is to restore in us what He intended us to be from the beginning.

This interaction between God and human beings through the Holy Spirit is very different from even the best of what religion or philosophy offers. Self-help is useless because it cannot provide the energy to effect anything but frustration and disappointment, or self-satisfaction if you think you’ve arrived!

Jesus explained to Nicodemus that the best that flesh can do is reproduce itself. What is “flesh”? It’s the nature we were born with — self-centred, selfish and self-seeking. I am the centre of my universe and everything revolves around me and is about me and for me. This attitude is the antithesis of everything that God is. It blocks my fellowship with Him and my understanding of Him and His ways. 

I am caught up and locked into a way of thinking and a way of living that shuts me out of His felt presence and keeps me a prisoner to a life of greed, selfishness and self-destruction, and doomed to face God’s justice as a firstborn son “in Adam”. ‘If you want to be free of that mind-set,’ said Jesus, ‘you need a power outside of yourself to release you and give you a new nature so that you can begin again.’

To be made new takes something far greater that “Seven Easy Steps to a New Life”. You can change your ways for a few days, or even weeks, but you will inevitably slip back into who you really are because you still have your unchanged, inborn, selfish nature that holds you in a vice-grip.

It was God’s original intention for human beings to live in union with Him so that they would experience the love, joy and peace that are the essence of who He is. Adam lost that when he chose to go his own way, and dragged all his offspring into lives of misery and chaos. As long as the flesh rules, this can never change.

Nicodemus recognized that there was something so radically different about Jesus that he had to find out what it was. ‘It’s the Holy Spirit,’ Jesus told him. When the Holy Spirit is welcomed by handing the reins back to God, He becomes fused to our spirit, bringing God into the picture once again. The old nature is still there but it is overshadowed by a new disposition, the very nature of God.

Change happens, not self-help change that lasts for a little while, but real, radical change because God, by His Spirit, is now in residence. ‘It’s as mysterious as the wind,’ Jesus said. ‘You can’t see the Holy Spirit, but you can see what He does.’ He changes the heart, the attitude, the disposition, and the outcome is evident by the way we think and the way we treat people.

It happened wherever people responded to Jesus. Zaccheus is a good example. From a self-seeking and greedy tax-collector, he became an honest and generous believer who put his money where his mouth was — literally! Jesus’ response was, ‘Today salvation has come to this house. Zaccheus has begun his journey to wholeness.’

Now that’s real change! Have you started your journey? 

Acknowledgement

Scripture taken from THE HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

JUSTICE OR MERCY?

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JUSTICE OR MERCY?

“Now there was a Pharisee, a man named Nicodemus who was a member of the Jewish ruling council. He came to Jesus at night and said, ‘Rabbi, we know that you are a teacher who has come from God. For no one can perform the signs you are doing if God were not with Him.’ Jesus replied, ‘Very truly I tell you, no one can see the kingdom of God unless they are born again.’

“’How can someone be born when they are old?’ Nicodemus asked. ‘Surely they cannot enter a second time into their mother’s womb to be born!'” John 3:1-4 (NIV).

Now here’s an honest Pharisee, if ever there was one! At least he admitted, on behalf of his fellow Pharisees, that Jesus had come from God. I wonder what the others would have said had they heard him. Would they have flatly denied ever saying that, or even thinking it? Or was Nicodemus using the royal “we”?

Nicodemus was honest enough to show Jesus that he had weighed up the evidence and come to the conclusion that Jesus was demonstrating something far beyond the capabilities of ordinary people. Unlike his colleagues, however, he didn’t attribute Jesus’ power to Beelzebub; He connected the dots and came to the conclusion that Jesus and God were doing this together.

What was Nicodemus getting at? In a roundabout way he was asking, ‘Jesus, we are both teachers. What have you got that I haven’t got?’ Perhaps he didn’t get an opportunity to ask his question. Perhaps Jesus cut him short to stop him rambling and get him on the right track.

Jesus’ response was surprising — no explanation, just a bold statement. ‘You’ll never get it, Nicodemus, unless you are born again.’ What did He mean? What is this ‘born again’ idea that Christians bandy about so freely without understanding its meaning?

Throughout the Bible we read that there was special significance in being the firstborn in a family. Firstborn sons, first of all, belonged to God and had to be redeemed by the payment of a sum of money to the high priest. Firstborn animals were sacrificed. Firstborns carried the responsibility for the rest of the family. They received justice for any of their siblings’ wrongdoing while the sibling received mercy.

We see this illustrated in the story of Joseph. It was Reuben, Jacob’s firstborn who refused to kill Joseph but suggested they throw him in a pit… He planned to rescue him from the pit and return him to his father because he would have had to bear the punishment had they killed Joseph.

Firstborn sons also received a double portion of their father’s inheritance. This was to compensate for their responsibility, for example, of marrying a brother’s widow to produce offspring for his deceased brother.

The Bible makes it clear that Adam was God’s firstborn and got justice for his sin. Since we are all “in Adam” we also should receive justice for all our sin. However, Jesus is described as “the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation.” Colossians 1:15 (NIV). Why is this so important? As God’s firstborn Son, Jesus received justice in order that we might receive mercy.

However, I thought you said that in Adam we receive justice? True, but since we are “in Christ” we have received justice “in Him” because He died on our behalf. Now here’s the miracle. Jesus is also called “the last Adam” — second-born in God’s reckoning. Since we are “in Him” we received justice as firstborns but we also received mercy as second-borns! Isn’t that amazing? God is so precise and so just!

Jesus is saying to Nicodemus, ‘If you want to understand what is happening in the realm of the unseen — the kingdom of God — you need a spiritual rebirth from justice into mercy.’ No one can understand or receive God’s mercy until he is transferred from the realm of justice to the realm of mercy on which what God’s way of dealing with people is based. Since God’s justice has been satisfied once and for all through the cross, He deals with us all as second borns — mercy, mercy, mercy!

‘Nicodemus, do you understand that? If you want to experience God’s mercy, you need to be transferred from “in Adam” to “in Christ” and that takes a supernatural act of God. It will never make sense to you until that happens and it won’t happen until you believe that I am the Son of God and that my sacrifice paid your debt and offers you mercy.’

Nowadays, many people think that all they have to do is pray ‘the sinner’s prayer’, to be born again. Jesus assured Nicodemus that it would take much more than a prayer to experience the wonders of God’s kingdom. To see God’s kingdom would take nothing less than a powerful work of the Holy Spirit, the effects of which, like the action of the wind, would be seen though the Spirit Himself is invisible.

Wow! Isn’t that something! And it’s freely available for all!

Acknowledgement

Scripture taken from THE HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.