“You must be born again”

“Make a tree good and its fruit will be good, or make a tree bad and its fruit will be bad, for a tree is recognized by its fruit.” Matthew 12,33 (NIV)

“There was a man of the Pharisees named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews. This man came to Jesus by night and said to Him, “Rabbi, we know that You are a teacher come from God; for no one can do these signs that You do unless God is with him.” Jesus answered and said to him, “Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.” Nicodemus said to Him, “How can a man be born when he is old? Can he enter a second time into his mother’s womb and be born?” Jesus answered, “Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God. That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit.  Do not marvel that I said to you, ‘You must be born again.’ The wind blows where it wishes, and you hear the sound of it, but cannot tell where it comes from and where it goes. So is everyone who is born of the Spirit.” (John 3,1-8 NKJV)

It is evident that Nicodemus was intrigued by Jesus. He acknowledged that Jesus was a ‘teacher’ come from God. He came to Jesus at night, maybe for fear of his fellow Pharisees. Nicodemus was looking for something: a message; maybe something new, something he had never heard of, something he did not know, something Jesus could teach him. If that was the expectation, Jesus surely met that expectation. Jesus told him of being born again, being born from above.

The redemption plan of God includes salvation and the new birth experience.

Salvation from sin and from all that has come on mankind because of it: death, corruption, sickness, separation from God, guilt, shame, everything bad we can think of.

Because of the blood Jesus shed on the cross, we have the forgiveness of sin. He paid the price for our peace, our peace with God. We have been reconciled with God. Jesus removed what caused separation between man and God.

Even though all that is good, God added something extra: a change of heart and a change of life. The new birth gives man the ability to live the life of God Himself. (John 10,10)

The resurrection of Jesus Christ availed a newness of life. The sinful man died and a new man came to life: a man born of God.

“Unless one is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God”.

I believe, here, Jesus refers to the kingdom of God as the realm of God: where God reigns.

In this realm, believers are kings and priests to the Most High God.

In this realm, believers are children of God and heirs of God.

And this realm is the ultimate reality, the true reality.

“having been born again, not of corruptible seed but incorruptible, through the word of God which lives and abides forever” 1 Peter 1,23 NKJV

The experience of the new birth was only made possible after the sacrifice of Jesus on the cross and His resurrection from the dead. All those who believed in the One and only true God before Jesus’ physical coming on earth will still be with Him in heaven. The person of Jesus Christ was alive way before He came in the flesh: He was the Word, He was with God and He was God (John 1,1)

But here we are, we are in the age where Jesus says: ^"Do not marvel that I said to you, ‘You must be born again’”. When we hear the word 'born', we immediately have this picture of a baby, just like Nicodemus. But born means come to life, come to existence.

And what has come to life? It is the spirit of the man. This is the new man born of God; God producing His kind in the human being. This is where the Holy Spirit of God comes to dwell, in their spirit.

But how does it happen? Jesus said it is by the water and the Spirit.

1 Peter 1,23 has revealed to us, just like Jesus used the word 'water' to refer to the word of God or to the truth (John 17,17) (Ephesians 5,26), the water by which we are born is the Word of God. It is the Word of God that someone has heard and believed that makes them come to life by the power of the Holy Spirit, the other actor by which we are born again.

We have such a story with Cornelius. Cornelius was a devout and God-fearing man. Heaven itself testified of him and said to him: “Your prayers and your alms have come up for a memorial before God.” (Acts 10,4). However, something was lacking. And God, in His great love, sent his angel to him and told him: “Now send men to Joppa, and send for Simon whose surname is Peter. He is lodging with Simon, a tanner, whose house is by the sea. He will tell you what you must do.” Peter was to preach the good news to Cornelius by which he became born again immediately, receiving the Holy Spirit and His baptism.

This is the message Peter preached: “how God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and with power, who went about doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil, for God was with Him. And we are witnesses of all things which He did both in the land of the Jews and in Jerusalem, whom they killed by hanging on a tree. Him God raised up on the third day, and showed Him openly, not to all the people, but to witnesses chosen before by God, even to us who ate and drank with Him after He arose from the dead. And He commanded us to preach to the people, and to testify that it is He who was ordained by God to be Judge of the living and the dead. To Him all the prophets witness that, through His name, whoever believes in Him will receive remission of sins.” (Acts 10,38-43 NKJV)

Who Jesus is has to be a personal revelation. And this revelation has the power to change someone’s life. Christianity was never meant to be a religion. True Christianity is not a religion but it is 'life in Christ'.

Beloved of God, it does not matter what you did or what happened. God, through His Son Jesus, is offering you newness of life. Life forever. Life eternal.

“the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees Him nor knows Him; but you know Him, for He dwells with you and will be in you” John 14,17 (NKJV)

Born from above