To Encourage You

John 3:7 “You must be born again.”

One of the things everyone reading the above sentence has in common is that there was a time when they were born. Each one of us entered this world suddenly. We personally had nothing to do with it. We had no say in the matter. We didn’t decide what color hair we would have, how much we would weigh, or how long our bodies would measure. We had no role in determining our temperament, our genetic makeup, or our natural likes or dislikes. These things were just “born into us,” part and parcel of who we are. And then there were many other things that came to us just because we were born. There were certain things determined for us that we had no say in, but because we were born, they were true of us. We would breathe, eat, drink, and move – some more than others, obviously, but we would all participate. We would feel pain. We would get sick sometimes. We would age, and sooner or later, we will die. From a spiritual, emotional, and moral standpoint, we would have the capacity to love, hate, trust, grieve, doubt, fear, become angry, and experience such wonderful things as joy, peace, and hope. And we would find ourselves, from time to time, doing things and saying things that others would find offensive. We would do hurtful things. We would lie, steal, curse, and covet. These capacities are also part and parcel of who we are, as time and situation has proved over and over again.

So, is that all there is? Is that what birth, and life, is all about? Are we just a mass of protoplasm functioning as our DNA has determined, and then the end? To this question the Bible speaks, and the message is clear: No – that is not all there is! Being born physically to do nothing more than fill whatever time we’ve been given with the physical realities of life and then die – isn’t what living is all about. There’s more, much more, and God has told us so for we need, more than anything else, to know this.

You see, just being born isn’t what life is all about. Some are born to privilege and wealth, some to poverty and hardship. Some live long lives, and some never live a full day. Some experience “everything life has to offer.” They live lives filled with pleasure, travel, rewarding careers, wonderful families and friends. Others will never see, hear, or say anything for they have been severely handicapped from their birth. But to all of us, no matter the circumstances of our birth, Jesus has told us, “You must be born again.”

Notice He doesn’t’ say “you can be born again” or “you should be born again” but “you must be!”

So, what was He talking about? As Nicodemus, the man to whom Jesus spoke these words, replied “How can a man be born when he is old? Can he enter a second time into his mother’s womb and be born?” And to this Jesus said, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God.” Here Jesus was telling Nicodemus, and everyone else for that matter, that a spiritual birth was needed if anyone every hoped to enter the kingdom of God. Unless a person is born of water (i.e., cleansed by a spiritual “washing”) and the Spirit (i.e., reborn spiritually into the kingdom and family of God), he or she will experience the common elements of physical birth – including sin and it’s ultimate consequence, death – without any of the common elements of spiritual birth (i.e., eternal life, and the love, joy, and peace that only the children of God can or will ever know). As Charles Spurgeon, the famous British preacher of the 19th century, noted in one of his sermons “If we are born only once, we must die twice—but if we are born twice, we die but once—and after that one death which is not really death, we enter into eternal life!”

To be born once and to die twice, i.e., physical death followed by eternal spiritual death separated from God for all eternity in Hell, will be the destiny of those who have never been born again. This is a message that is so urgent that Jesus came from the kingdom of God to become one with us through His own physical birth to tell us, in so many words, “This birth is not all there is! You must be born again – for you will never enter the kingdom of God from which I came if you are not! I know who’s there, and I know who will enter there, and it is never the once born – it is only those who are born again!” And then He gave His life on the cross so that whoever would believe on Him could be born into the family and kingdom of God.

So, what about you? We all know we’ve been born once. But do you know what it means to be born again (Read John Chapter 3 to know how)? For you must be if you ever hope to enter the kingdom of God.