Born Again
"Jesus declared, 'I tell you the truth, no one can see the kingdom of God unless he is born again.'"
(JOHN 3:3)
The Bible gives us word pictures to grasp how we are a part of God's family. The first image we'll look at is rebirth. Nicodemus pictured Jesus' words graphically: a grown man crawling back up the birth canal and into his mother's womb. What a disturbing and impossible image! If seeing the kingdom of God depends on that kind of human act, no one will ever make it.
For a long time I understood salvation the way Nicodemus did, that it depended on some effort of my own. I longed to be a different kind of person, but no matter how I tried, I failed. My goodness wasn't consistent enough; my will-power wasn't strong enough. At best, I was frustrated; at worst, despairing.
Jesus listened to Nicodemus and said, "I tell you the truth." He was describing a very different kind of experience, one of spiritual birth, done by the Holy Spirit Himself. Nicodemus misunderstood, yet in a way, he was right: no man can give himself new life. But God can, and it's a life far greater than the one that happens in the flesh.
About the writer:
Days 1-10 of this issue are by Rhonda Telfer, mother of four and former missionary in Eritrea, writer and piano teacher. Days 11-20 are by Rebecca Clowney Jones, full-time volunteer for truthXchange, mother of seven, and former missionary in France. The final ten days are by Kathy Daane, mom of two, former teacher and current editor. All three pastors' wives are glad to share in the family of God.
INSIGHT
WHAT GOD HAS DONE FOR YOU IS MORE AMAZING THAN YOU CAN IMAGINE, AND BEYOND ANYTHING YOU COULD ACCOMPLISH ON YOUR OWN.
READ THROUGH THE BIBLE IN A YEAR
Jeremiah 39-40
Psalm 121
1 Corinthians 15
John 3:1-8
New International Version (NIV)
Jesus Teaches Nicodemus
3 Now there was a Pharisee, a man named Nicodemus who was a member of the Jewish ruling council. 2 He came to Jesus at night and said, “Rabbi, we know that you are a teacher who has come from God. For no one could perform the signs you are doing if God were not with him.”
3 Jesus replied, “Very truly I tell you, no one can see the kingdom of God unless they are born again.[a]”
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[b] gives birth to spirit. 7 You should not be surprised at my saying, ‘You[c] must be born again.’ 8 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.”[d]
Footnotes:
a. John 3:3 The Greek for again also means from above; also in verse 7.
b. John 3:6 Or but spirit
c. John 3:7 The Greek is plural.
d. John 3:8 The Greek for Spirit is the same as that for wind
THE LIFE OF GEORGE WHITEFIELD
He has been described as the greatest preacher in the English language, and that was quite a compliment coming from Charles Spurgeon. His one theme was everyone's need to find new life in Christ.
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