“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.” (John 3:3)
“Marvel not that I said unto
thee, Ye must be born again.” (John 3:7)
Jesus is very clear in what
He offers mankind with regard to salvation. He says we must be born again, not
just “turn over a new leaf,” but “born again,” a new person.
Although Nicodemus was a
Pharisee and member of the Sanhedrin, he was having trouble understanding this.
Satan is still hard at work confusing mankind about Jesus’ words in this
passage.
People down through the
centuries and in our day are plastering Band-Aids in critical areas of their
lives, thinking this will square them with a holy God. None of us will enter
Heaven because a Band-Aid was used to supposedly make us righteous. Let me
explain.
People commonly believe that
if they just fix that problem in their lives God will be pleased and welcome
them into Heaven with open arms. If they just live a good life, God would never
refuse a good person, but God says,
“As it is written, There is
none righteous, no, not one:
There is none that
understandeth, there is none that seeketh after God.
They are all gone out of the
way, they are together become unprofitable; there is none that doeth good, no,
not one.
Their throat is an open
sepulchre; with their tongues they have used deceit; the poison of asps is
under their lips:
Whose mouth is full of
cursing and bitterness:
Their feet are swift to shed
blood:
Destruction and misery are in
their ways:
And the way of peace have
they not known:
There is no fear of God
before their eyes.” (Romans 3:10-18)
Someone may say, “Oh, but I’m
not like that at all.” However, Jesus told us in the Sermon on the Mount
(Matthew 5-7) that even though we may not commit an act of murder (for
example), if we have unjustified anger in our heart toward someone, we have
committed murder in our heart. The same is true with adultery (for example). We
don’t commit the act, but we lust. Therefore, we have committed adultery in our
heart.
At our very best, we can
never satisfy what God requires to be saved; i.e. absolute righteousness.
“But we are all as an unclean
thing, and all our righteousnesses are as filthy rags; and we all do fade as a
leaf; and our iniquities, like the wind, have taken us away.” (Isaiah 64:6)
We must be righteous, even as
He is righteous.
“For he hath made him to be
sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in
him.” (2 Corinthians 5:21)
The Apostle Peter says, “Being
born again, not of corruptible seed, but of incorruptible, by the word of God,
which liveth and abideth for ever.” (1 Peter 1:23)
We must be born again from
above, and that can only come by truly believing in Jesus. That means we
believe and accept who Jesus says He is and what He has done. We must realize
that only Jesus can cause us to be born from above, thereby becoming a child of
God.
Sometimes folks prefer to
self-diagnose their physical ailment, and then attempt to cure themselves with
home-made remedies. We might try that physically and get away with it, but it
will never work spiritually. If we continue to “do it our way,” we will die in
our sins, regardless of how good we think we are. We will meet Jesus on judgment
day as our Judge, and He will say, “… I never knew you: depart from me, ye that
work iniquity.” (Matthew 7:23)
Thousands, perhaps millions
of people call themselves “Christian” thinking a change of character will save
them, turning over a new leaf (which never lasts), but God says there must be a
transformation from old to new.
“And that ye put on the new
man, which after God is created in righteousness and true holiness.” (Ephesians
4:24)
“And have put on the new man,
which is renewed in knowledge after the image of him that created him:”
(Colossians 3:10)
Born again Christians are no
longer Jew or Gentile, but a new people, made possible solely by faith in Jesus
Christ.
“Having abolished in his
flesh the enmity, even the law of commandments contained in ordinances; for to
make in himself of twain one new man, so making peace;” (Ephesians 2:15)
[This translation may be
clearer: “He did this by ending the system of law with its commandments and
regulations. He made peace between Jews and Gentiles by creating in himself one
new people from the two groups.” (Ephesians 2:15 NLT)]
One final thought, if we are
born again and are thereby a new creature in Christ, why do we still sin as a
child of God? The Apostle Paul explains.
“Knowing this, that our old
man is crucified with him, that the body of sin might be destroyed, that
henceforth we should not serve sin.” (Romans 6:6)
[This translation may be
clearer: “For we know that our old self was crucified with him so that the body
ruled by sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves to
sin” (Romans 6:6 NIV)]
We still sin because our new
nature still resides in unredeemed flesh. When we are resurrected by Jesus
Christ our old flesh (body and old sin nature) will be gone forever and we will
be given a new body that corresponds with our born again spirit.
The Apostle Paul said, “Examine
yourselves, whether ye be in the faith; prove your own selves. Know ye not your
own selves, how that Jesus Christ is in you, except ye be reprobates?” (2
Corinthians 13:5)
If we have examined
ourselves, as Paul stated, and found ourselves to be wanting, let us throw away
the Band-Aids and rely on the only cure for our soul, Jesus Christ, God’s Son.
“Jesus saith unto him, I am
the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.”
(John 14:6)
Grant Phillips
Email: grantphillips@windstream.net
Pre-Rapture Commentary: http://grant-phillips.blogspot.com
Rapture Ready: http://www.raptureready.com/featured/phillips/phillips.html
