An Exposition on Regeneration or Being Born Again Christian.
Joh 3:3 Jesus answered and said
unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a
man be born again, he cannot see the
This is a vital subject as this is the basis of salvation.
Yet there is so much confusion on this doctrine. When I was in the
For us to understand better let me give a simple
illustration. Suppose there is a law passed in the
As we continue in this illustration, the Chinese man will
say, I am going to change my face to an American, I have the name Kennedy and
now I will have a plastic surgery on my face, which I will look just like an
American. When he applied for the federal job, he was rejected again as the law
required to be US born to get a federal Job. In the same way there are many of
you not only call yourself as a Christian but looks like a Christian as you
attend Church on Sundays and say a prayer. But that does not mean that you are
truly born again.
Joh 3:6 That
which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is
spirit.
We will continue in our illustration. Now the Chinese man
will say, I changed my name to Kennedy, I changed my face and I look real
American, now I will learn the language and manners so good that I will have
the true American accent and everyone will know that I am an American. When he
applied for the federal job, still he was rejected as he looks just like an
American and talks like one yet he is not born in
Many are longing to come to
Some may have a flood of tears of sorrow but not true
regeneration.
Ge 27:38 And
Esau said unto his father, Hast thou but one blessing, my father? bless me, even me also, O my father. And Esau lifted up his
voice, and wept.
Ge 27:41 And
Esau hated Jacob because of the blessing wherewith his father blessed him: and
Esau said in his heart, The days of mourning for my
father are at hand; then will I slay my brother Jacob.
Heb
17 For ye know how that afterward,
when he would have inherited the blessing, he was rejected: for he found no
place of repentance, though he sought it carefully with tears.
1. There are some who will seek God daily and delight to know his ways yet they are hypocrites not truly born again.
Isa 58:2 Yet they seek me daily, and delight to know my ways, as a
nation that did righteousness, and forsook not the ordinance of their God: they
ask of me the ordinances of justice; they take delight in approaching to God.
(Read Isa 58:2-7)
1Pe
1Jo 3:9 whosoever is born of God doth not commit sin; for his seed remaineth in him: and he cannot sin, because he is born of God.
How do you know that you are born again?
Some believe that the priest sprinkled some water at birth
and the baby is regenerated, or was baptized as an adult and the person is
regenerated. Some say, they made a decision in coming forward to an altar call
and they are regenerated. . Regenerate
means to be born again. It is the second birth. There is a big contrast between
the first birth and the second birth.
The first birth is
from our natural sinful parents and in their likeness or image. The second
birth is of God and in his image. The first birth is of the corruptible and the
second birth if of the incorruptible seed. In the first birth we are born
sinners and slaves to sin, the children of wrath who loves the pleasures of
sin. In the second birth we become holy, hate sin and there will be a true
change.
We were all born
sinners. In regeneration there is a change. The change is of nature, sinners
are converted to saints. This is a supernatural real change of the whole man.
This real change happens by hearing the word of God and by the word of God. The
word of God is called the incorruptible seed. There is power in the word of God
that can change the nature of a sinner to a saint in Christ Jesus.
Eph 2:1 And you hath
he quickened, who were dead in trespasses and sins;
2 Wherein in time
past ye walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince
of the power of the air, the spirit that now worketh
in the children of disobedience:
3 Among whom also we
all had our conversation in times past in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling
the desires of the flesh and of the mind; and were by nature the children of
wrath, even as others.
4 But God, who is
rich in mercy, for his great love wherewith he loved us,
5 Even when we were
dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ, (by grace ye are saved;)
6 And hath raised us
up together, and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus:
7 That in the ages to
come he might shew the exceeding riches of his grace
in his kindness toward us through Christ Jesus.
8 For by grace are ye
saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God.
Regeneration is
expressed by being quickened. Previously we were dead in Christ while we live
in this body, morally dead, dead to the word of God. There was a metamorphous
as the God infused to us the spiritual life and suddenly we are raised from
death of sin to life of grace, passing from death to life, just like God
breathed into Adam he became a living soul and we became alive to God in
regeneration.
Regeneration is of God.
When you are born of
this earth from your physical parents you will die and to earth you are buried
but when you are born of the Spirit of God from above in heaven then when you
die you go to heaven.
Ac 16:14 And a certain woman named Lydia, a seller of
purple, of the city of Thyatira, which worshipped God, heard us: whose heart the Lord opened, that she attended unto the things
which were spoken of Paul.
15 And when she was baptized, and
her household, she besought us, saying, if ye have judged me to be faithful to
the Lord, come into my house, and abide there. And she constrained us.
Who opened the heart of Lydia? Did
Lydia opened by herself? No it was God alone.
Salvation is of grace alone.
Joh 1:13 Which were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh,
nor of the will of man, but of God.
All three of the Godhead is
involved in regeneration.
Regeneration is a real change of nature.
2Co 5:17 Therefore if any man be
in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold,
all things are become new.
Man had an understanding of God
but it was darkened because of sin, he had a will but it was contrary to the
will of God. In regeneration there is a new substance created and new qualities
are infused. Once the new qualities are infused there is no darkness but there
is light and light will bring righteousness.
Eph 4:22 That
ye put off concerning the former conversation the old man, which is corrupt
according to the deceitful lusts;
23 And be renewed in the spirit of
your mind;
24 And that ye put on the new man,
which after God is created in righteousness and true holiness.
Regeneration is a supernatural
change.
Joh 3:5 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.
For us to go to heaven our nature
needs to be changed. In regeneration our nature is changed and we become
partakers of his divine nature.
2Pe 1:4 Whereby
are given unto us exceeding great and precious promises: that by these ye might
be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the
world through lust.
Only a supernatural change can be
partakers of his divine nature. Regeneration is solely by God, we who are dead
in sins are made alive unto God and changing into the image of Christ.
Regeneration is a change into the
likeness of God.
Our father was the devil before as
we went after the lusts of the world and our flesh. Before we
bear the image of the devil. Now there is a change into the likeness
that is to the image of God. All that generates will generates alike, what I
mean is the child bears the image of the parent. The ones that are born of God
will bear Gods image.
Regeneration is a not a partly
change but a whole change.
2Co 5:17 Therefore if any man be
in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold,
all things are become new.
Note not some things become new
but all things become new. Original sin infected not a part of man but the
whole of man. In regeneration it effects the whole of
our heart, soul and mind. The man gets a new brain as he will think
differently, his attitude will change, behavior will change, the one who had a
short temper will be long suffering, he gets a new tongue, his conversation
will change, the back biter will not back bite any
more, the one who gossips will not gossip any more. The waters
of the spirit of God runs through the whole body and purify and makes
him fruitful, the old garment is removed and there is a new garment in Christ
as there is a change of heart and life.
Regeneration renews every part yet
not perfectly renewed. No body is fully grown up as a Christian, just like
infants we have all the parts of a man but yet do not have a perfect growth.
The sanctification is gradual.
1Pe 2:2 As
newborn babes, desire the sincere milk of the word, that ye may grow thereby.
In regeneration although the light
of heaven has come down to our soul there is still some darkness of sin in us
as we are still in this flesh our old enemy.
Php 3:12 Not as though I had already attained, either were already
perfect: but I follow after, if that I may apprehend that for which also I am
apprehended of Christ Jesus.
When we die then we will have a
glorious body like Jesus and we will be all perfect, right now there is a
growth in each one of us, there has to be a change and the more we learn and
take the word of God to our heart the more we will change.
Knowledge
of God.
The instrumental cause of regeneration, is the word of God. regenerate persons are said to be "born again by the word of God, which liveth and abideth for ever" (1 Pet. 1:23), and again, "of his own will begat he us with the word of truth" (James 1:18), "though you have ten thousand instructors in Christ", says the apostle to the Corinthians (1 Cor. 4:15),
Eph 5:8 For
ye were sometimes darkness, but now are ye light in the Lord: walk as children
of light.
There are lot
of people who will hear the word of God, how is that some understand the gospel
and truly repents and get converted with a real change in their lives while
others too hear the word of God and no effect? As we see in Ephesians 5, in
regeneration the light will come to our mind and the true believing sinner will
truly understand, the night is over the morning has come with bright sunshine
to the soul.
First thing that happens to him is
that there is a desire to grow in God, which means, there will be knowledge of
God.
Ps 27:4 One thing have I desired
of the LORD, that will I seek after; that I may dwell in the house of the LORD
all the days of my life, to behold the beauty of the LORD, and to enquire in
his temple.
As a deer
pants after the water so my soul pants after thee O God. (Ps 42:1)
Ps 63:1 O God, thou art my God;
early will I seek thee: my soul thirsteth for thee,
my flesh longeth for thee in a dry and thirsty land,
where no water is;
Lu 1:76 And
thou, child, shalt be called the prophet of the
Highest: for thou shalt go before the face of the
Lord to prepare his ways;
77 To give knowledge of salvation
unto his people by the remission of their sins.
Ac 4:13 Now when they saw the
boldness of Peter and John, and perceived that they were unlearned and ignorant
men, they marvelled; and they took knowledge of them,
that they had been with Jesus.
Ro 10:2 For I
bear them record that they have a zeal of God, but not according to knowledge.
Col 3:10 And
have put on the new man, which is renewed in knowledge after the image of him
that created him.
This knowledge is not a prideful
knowledge but the more we learn of him the more we get humbled.