TO BE BORN AGAIN

Religion is the greatest hindrance in understanding the spiritual reality behind the material world and temporal life.  What needs to be understood is the uselessness of religion and the crucial need for a relationship with our Creator.    

I don’t know if the following is necessary but first of all, a relationship with God naturally and logically requires belief in Him.  In our so-called scientific and ‘enlightened’ era, belief in God has become unfashionable to say the least yet the laws of science (in point of fact they are God’s laws) demand a beginning and a design to the universe.  Such laws, i.e. of thermo dynamics, of probability, of design, and the law of cause and effect are fascinating in that they prohibit the ‘unscientific’ theory of evolution and ‘prove’ the existence of an omnipotent and omniscient ‘First Cause’.  As the Apostle Paul wrote, “Ever since God created the world, his invisible qualities, both his eternal power and his divine nature, have been clearly seen; they are perceived in the things that God has made. So those people (evolutionists and others) have no excuse at all.” (Romans 1:20).

 

Mankind is part of God’s creation and has been created with sensibility and will (volition) the attributes that are the image of God and which result in the ability to choose, and the freedom of choice.  The parents of humanity chose against God’s perfect will and subsequently became less than perfect; a state that quickly degenerated into the moral and spiritual ills history so regularly records.  But even against all the influences of that degeneration mankind has retained a belief in divinity, whether personal (the desire for immortality) or impersonal (a belief in God or gods). 

Religion is mankind’s attempt to reconcile himself with the Divine and in that attempt he fashions gods of his own making; we need only look around the world to see the multiplicity of religions, the multiplicity of gods.  Religious Westerners tend to associate their concept of God to the context of Judaism and Christianity, but because of an innate religious thinking they mould the God of the Bible into whatever image suits them.  Generally what suits them is a god who allows them to continue on in their own ways.  This is religion, it is not ‘Biblical’ Christianity.  Over the centuries religion has infiltrated and distorted Christianity into what one might call ‘Christendom’ and a great deal of Christendom has been and is hypocritical and ugly because of it.

God is the omnipotent, omniscient being who brought the material universe into being by the power of his will.

He is absolute in every aspect of being and therefore beyond the comprehension of imperfect and mortal beings.  To think that we can offer some invention of our flawed nature to satisfy perfection is the height of egotistical pride and yet it is the rationale of the religious.  It is these works of ‘self-righteousness’ that make men religious. 

Christianity (as the Bible portrays it) is not a religion but a personal relationship with God brought about by God when the individual does no more than accept that which God has done for them in the person and work of the Lord Jesus Christ.  What Christ did was to die, to pay the penalty of sin on behalf of all mankind so that all mankind might be reconciled to God through (by means of) him.  To try to come to God by any other means is to be classed as a thief and a robber (John 10:1).

The result of coming to God through belief in Jesus Christ is to be ‘born again’; something that Christ himself tells us is an absolute imperative (John 3:3-7).  He also, and at the same time, revealed the means of this rebirth: A man must be born, not of water only, but of water and of the Spirit if he is to enter into the kingdom of God. 

Being born of the Spirit can be contrasted to being born of the flesh (John 3:6), for as ‘born of the flesh’ refers to physical birth (or natural generation) resulting in a family relationship between parents and child, so being ‘born of the Spirit’ refers to spiritual birth (regeneration) and a subsequent family relationship with God.  This is not some indefinable event; it is not some form of self-hypnosis but is an actual event, which God accomplishes by taking up residence within the one believing in Christ.  The Bible calls it the indwelling of the Spirit (John 14:17; Romans 8:11; 1Corinthians 3:16, 1Corinthians 6:19; 2Corinthians 5:16; Ephesians 2:22).

The true Christian is one who has been ‘born again’, but is likened to an earthen vessel, imperfect and fragile yet one who has been given all the treasures of eternal life (2Corinthians 4:6-7).  To receive the ‘new’ birth, one does no more than believe and accept Jesus of Nazareth as Saviour, for salvation is by grace, through faith, and not of works.  If it were of works, imperfect man would boast of some equality with God and God in turn would have to admit some measure of imperfection.  But God has no imperfection therefore imperfect men/women can only come to him by his gracious gift of forgiveness of sin through the avenue of faith; faith in the one who bore our sins in condemnation and judgement, Jesus of Nazareth the Christ and Son of the Living God.        

YE MUST BE BORN AGAIN

“There was a man of the Pharisees, named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews: The same came to Jesus by night, and said unto him, Rabbi, we know that thou art a teacher come from God: for no man can do these miracles that thou doest, except God be with him. Jesus answered and said unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God. Nicodemus saith unto him: How can a man be born when he is old; can he enter the second time into his mother’s womb, and be born? Jesus answered, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God. That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. Marvel not that I said unto thee, Ye must be born again. The wind bloweth where it listeth, and thou hearest the sound thereof, but canst not tell whence it cometh, and whither it goeth: so is every one that is born of the Spirit.”   John 3:1-8

In using the words ‘except a man’ be born again and ‘you must’ be born again, the Lord Jesus is giving, not only Nicodemus but every member of the human race an imperative; none of us can see the kingdom of God except we be born again.  It is not an option but an absolute necessity.  As Albert Barnes the 19^th century compiler writes: -

‘Except a man’ is a universal form of expression designed to include all of mankind. Of “each and every man” it is certain, that unless he is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God. It includes, therefore, men of every character and rank, and nation, moral and immoral, rich and poor, in office and out of office, old and young, bond and free, the slave and his master, Jew and Gentile.

It is clear that our Saviour intended to convey to Nicodemus the idea, also, that “he” must be born again. It was not sufficient to be a Jew, or to acknowledge him (Christ) to be a teacher sent by God, that is the Messiah; it was necessary, in addition to this, to experience in his own soul that great change called the “new birth” or regeneration.

To use Barnes line of thought and make the issue relevant to our present generation, and especially to those who are religious, it is not sufficient to be a “Christian” in its nominal sense, as one who belongs to a group who call themselves Christians; it is not sufficient to profess with the lips a belief in Jesus or even to acknowledge him as Christ; it is necessary in addition to this to experience in one’s own soul that great change called the “new birth” or regeneration.  This is a real experience as many can testify.  Regeneration is accompanied with differing experiences, for some it is a gradual awareness, others immediate and emotional but the end result is the same; people know with a certainty that they are “born again” that they have experienced the “newness of life” Romans 6:4; 2 Corinthians 5:17; Galatians 6:15.

In today’s religious climate it is not acceptable to quote the above passage or even to mention the name of Jesus Christ for he makes this and other dogmatic statements, which in effect denounce all forms of religion as false.  An example; “I am the way, the truth and the life, no man comes to the Father but by me” John 14:6. 

Christ Jesus has made these statements however and they are recorded for all men and for all time, and because it is Jesus Christ who has made them mankind should sit up and take notice.

In truth Christianity is not a religion, but any belief that expects the God of heaven to accept the efforts of men as the means of appeasement and conciliation is, and this includes many who claim to be Christian.  This includes all and any acts that are initiated by man, carried out by man and offered to God for this purpose. People attend church, they pray, they give, they are baptized, they go on pilgrimages and some even scourge their bodies; all to gain points with God, and yet these are nothing more than acts of ‘religion’.  This is in contrast to and distinct from biblical Christianity where we see God doing the initiating and reconciling men to himself through nothing more than their simple genuine trust and acceptance of his Anointed Saviour.  “For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast.” Ephesians 2:8-9

Nicodemus recognized in Jesus a divine authority, for though he himself was a leader of the Jewish people he sought out Jesus to hear our Lord’s teaching more perfectly.  Jesus did not beat around the bush and went to the very heart of his need.  In spite of his knowledge and his religious beliefs, Nicodemus, as with all of mankind, must be born of the Spirit.

 Adam Clarke 1831, in his commentary on the New Testament tells us that the Jews (and therefore Nicodemus) supposed every baptized proselyte was “like a child new born”.  This birth was of water, as was the baptism of John the Baptist, but the birth that Jesus referred to was anothen, from above or by implication - anew.  Therefore ‘you must be born from above -born anew or – again’.

Clarke continues: - “Every man must have two births, one from heaven, the other from earth—one of his body, the other of his soul: without the first he cannot see nor enjoy this world, without the last he can not see nor enjoy the kingdom of God. As there is an absolute necessity that a child should be born into the world, that he may see its light, contemplate its glories, and enjoy its good, so there is an absolute necessity that the soul should be brought out of its state of darkness and sin, through the light and power of the grace of Christ, that it may be able to see, to discern, the glories and excellencies of the kingdom of Christ here, and be prepared for the enjoyment of the kingdom of glory hereafter. The Jews had some general notion of the new birth; but, like many among Christians, they put the acts of proselytism, baptism, etc., in the place of the Holy Spirit and his influence: they acknowledged that a man must be born again; but they made that new birth to consist in profession, confession, and external washing…”

The strong language used by our Lord makes the necessity of the ‘new birth’ clear; Adam Clarke’s illustration of the distortion placed upon the phrase by those who are ignorant of its spiritual emphasis shows a need for that emphasis to be explained.  This spiritual emphasis is revealed by the words, anothen, from above, which instantly requires us to relate it to God and therefore to the realm of the Spirit.  That emphasis will be understood when the structure of New Testament salvation is comprehended.

This structure not only involves regeneration but also justification and sanctification.   In relation to this, Adam Clarke writes: Sin must be pardoned, and the impurity of the heart washed away, before any soul can possibly enter into the kingdom of God. As this new birth implies the renewing of the whole soul in righteousness and true holiness, it is not a matter that may be dispensed with: heaven is a place of holiness, and nothing but what is like itself can ever enter into it.

Sin itself must be overcome, and since human beings cannot undo past sins, and cannot control their nature, sin will always prohibit a relationship between God and mankind, unless God himself undertakes on our behalf.  At this point it is probably a good idea to expound a little on the question of sin.  What is it and why is it so disastrous to a relationship with God? 

In the scriptures sin is seen as a ‘missing of the mark’, a falling short of a standard, and is most clearly seen in Romans 3:23 “For all have sinned and come short of the glory of God”.  The fact that all have sinned is not only stated in God’s word, but will quickly be verified to those who are willing to make an honest appraisal of themselves.  The question is not… am I a better person than my neighbour, but, am I as good as God?  Do I come up to the standards of God’s glory, God’s perfection?  Am I perfect as He is perfect? 

The answer is self evident and we can only acknowledge that we have come short of his glory.  It is by our imperfect or inglorious thoughts and actions that we sin.  Jesus said that sin is not only in the action of murder, but in the anger and contempt we have for our fellow man, not only in the act of adultery but also in lustful thoughts.  Not only in an angry rejection of people, but in a lack of forgiveness in our hearts.

It is the reality of personal sinfulness that is difficult for so many to accept.  To compare oneself with others in an attempt to justify oneself is a fruitless exercise, for in the matter of sin we are not accountable to others but are accountable to God.  God cannot accept anything less than perfection therefore our imperfection separates us from him.  It is in separating himself from sinners that God judges and condemns us and it is in this separation that we find ourselves lost.  God is perfect and cannot lower his standards because an imperfect god ceases to be God. 

This is a logical conclusion and one that demands the separation of perfection from imperfection, holiness from sin.  Therefore our sin remains a barrier that we cannot remove or overcome; we are lost in the most awful sense of the word.  Being ‘lost’ to God is to be separated from all that is perfect and eternal.  Love, joy and peace in their fullest sense are not now part of the human experience, for the sorrows, regrets, strife and discords of life tarnish them almost to the point of exclusion.

Yet fullness of love, joy and peace is God’s desire for mankind, he is not willing that any should perish but that all should have everlasting life.  This life is not the life we now live, but an everlasting life - God’s life, where there is love, joy and peace, a life freely given and eternal.  It is a gift because it is something we do not have and cannot earn; as Ephesians 2:8 says, “For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God:”

This everlasting life is the salvation we are given through faith… and not of ourselves, and when we do no more than acknowledge our sin, turning to him for mercy we operate on faith, and God’s perfection (his holiness) is uncompromised.  God being uncompromised means that his perfection is unsullied by our actions, our ‘good deeds’ or our imperfect offerings, and he is then free to give us all things.  We stand back as it were and allow God to do it all.

But what does this all encompass?

First of all, sin, as a barrier between God and man must be removed.  It must be judged and condemned, and if God is to do it all, then it must be he who bears that judgment and condemnation.  Because it was the sins of men that were to be judged and since God is spirit it was necessary that God became a man to bear such a burden.  In the Old Testament there is a progressive revelation of the coming of such a man, a man appointed by God to take away the sin of the world, John 1:29.  In the sacrifice of the Passover lamb (Exodus 12), and all subsequent animal sacrifices, we see a type, a picture of the taking away of sin, and this man, this ‘anointed one’ or ‘Messiah’, in fulfilment of these types, would take away sin by giving his soul as an offering for sin (Isaiah 53:10). 

This passage in Isaiah is the most detailed prophecy of the sufferings of Messiah, or Christ (for the Greek word for anointed is Christos).  It cannot be read and believed without seeing its fulfilment in the gospels of the New Testament and the sufferings of Jesus of Nazareth. 

      

Who hath believed our report? and to whom is the arm of the LORD revealed? For he shall grow up before him as a tender plant, and as a root out of a dry ground: he hath no form nor comeliness; and when we shall see him, there is no beauty that we should desire him. He is despised and rejected of men; a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief: and we hid as it were our faces from him; he was despised, and we esteemed him not.

Surely he hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows: yet we did esteem him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted. But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed. All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and the LORD hath laid on him the iniquity of us all. He was oppressed, and he was afflicted, yet he opened not his mouth: he is brought as a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers is dumb, so he openeth not his mouth. He was taken from prison and from judgment: and who shall declare his generation? for he was cut off out of the land of the living: for the transgression of my people was he stricken. And he made his grave with the wicked, and with the rich in his death; because he had done no violence, neither was any deceit in his mouth.

Yet it pleased the LORD to bruise him; he hath put him to grief: when thou shalt make his soul an offering for sin, he shall see his seed, he shall prolong his days, and the pleasure of the LORD shall prosper in his hand. He shall see of the travail of his soul, and shall be satisfied: by his knowledge shall my righteous servant justify many; for he shall bear their iniquities. Therefore will I divide him a portion with the great, and he shall divide the spoil with the strong; because he hath poured out his soul unto death: and he was numbered with the transgressors; and he bare the sin of many, and made intercession for the transgressors.

It is in the sacrifice of Messiah/Christ where we find the end of sin and the death it brings, for as the apostle Peter wrote, “…because Christ also suffered for us… Who did no sin, neither was guile found in his mouth: Who, when he was reviled, reviled not again; when he suffered, he threatened not; but committed himself to him that judgeth righteously: Who his own self bare our sins in his own body on the tree, that we, being dead to sins, should live unto righteousness: by whose stripes ye were healed. For ye were as sheep going astray; but are now returned unto the Shepherd and Bishop of your souls” (

1 Peter 2:21-25).

In the above passage from Isaiah were it says, “by his knowledge (or knowledge of him) shall my righteous servant justify many”; it is shown that those who do no more than believe in him will be justified: justified as Abraham was when he believed and was accounted righteous because of his belief (Deuteronomy. 15:6).

It is by God’s grace that we are saved, through faith and not of works.