Be Born Again
Scripture Reading: John 3:5–7
“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. That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. Marvel not that I said unto thee, Ye must be born again.”
Be Born Again
Nicodemus asked Jesus, “How can a man be born when he is old? Can he enter the second time into his mother’s womb, and be born?,” John 3:4. Many still ask this question today and the answer, because it is truth, is valid for all time. The Lord Jesus is talking about a spiritual rebirth, a recreating and transformation of the person by receiving a new spirit. It comes to those who repent of their sin, turn to God, and place personal faith in Jesus as Lord and Saviour. The one who is born again is then set free from the bondage of sin, and receives spiritual desire and disposition to obey God and to follow the leading of the Holy Spirit.
One who is born again cannot make sin a habitual practice. Those who follow the world’s ways, whatever they profess, demonstrate that they are still unregenerate in spirit and therefore not yet born again. There must be a manifest spiritual change that results in an unmistakable leading of the Holy Spirit to speak, think, and do God’s good pleasure.
Pray that God will regenerate your spirit with the Holy Spirit. Pray that Jesus will hold you up in the new birth with his Holy Spirit and give you the assurance of eternal life when your time here is spent. Ask God to give you the grace to manifest the fruit of the Holy Spirit as listed in Galatians 5:22–23.
The new birth cannot be equated with physical birth; for the relationship of God with the believer is a matter of spirit rather than flesh. It is voluntary and our membership in God’s family remains conditional on our faith in Christ throughout our earthly existence, demonstrated by a life of sincere obedience and love towards God. The Holy Ghost must come upon you, and the power of the Most High must overshadow you. This will happen when you invite Jesus to come into your heart.
When He comes into your heart, He disciplines your senses, purifies your thoughts, and causes your soul to experience regeneration by the power of the Holy Spirit and His Word. Thus you begin a born- again lifestyle and a progressive walk into eternity in heaven.
Is heaven your destination, or is it hell by default of rejecting salvation? Where precisely are you facing right now? Every inhabitant of earth today is a pilgrim since he is in transit to a final destination in eternity. The born again Christian’s destination is heaven, a place of eternal bliss. Since it is certain that we are just passing through this planet as pilgrims, it is necessary to keep to the narrow path as our Lord Jesus commands, because it leads to heaven. There are many distractions on the way. To name a few as listed in the Christian classic by John Bunyan, you will meet the spirits such as Mr. Obstinately, Mr. Pliable, Mr. Worldly-wise, Mr. Legality, and Mr. Civility. You will meet the formalist and hypocrite.
Ignore them. Meddle not with them, when they entice you. Consent not. Let the assistance of the confession of your sins, salvation, pardon at Calvary, sobriety, vigilance, discretion, truth, walking in Christ’s righteousness, faith, and hope take you to the promised heaven.
Pray that God will give you a true revelation of where you are at present in relation to eternity. If you are heaven bound, ask Him to minister to you personally if you are distracted by any of the distracters listed above. Ask that the grace of God and that the Holy Spirit give you all the necessary assistance to run the race that is set before you. Pray for the ability to be vigilant, faithful, sincere, holy, and hopeful, and to reach your goal in the name of Jesus. Ask for the grace to ignore your praise singers and your deriders during your pilgrimage. Look only unto Jesus who is the author and finisher of your faith, who is the only one who can give you the blessing of entering heaven in due time.
Prayer Points:
Pray that the grace of God will carry you from spiritual rebirth to eternity in heaven on His appointed path for you. If you are not born again, ask the Lord to come into your heart now and bless you with spiritual rebirth in Him. May His love grant us all the blessing of making heaven in Jesus’ name, Amen.
