Posted on 12/23/2003 9:25:31 AM PST by P-Marlowe
WHAT DOES THE BIBLE SAY ABOUT....HOW TO BE BORN AGAIN?
What's Wrong With This World?
Everywhere in this world we find heartache, strife, sickness, poverty, injustice and a host of other ills. Why can't men live in peace and enjoy the good things in this earth? The Bible (God's book to mankind) gives us the answer to these questions and tells us how to be born again and what that means. He tells us in His Book that all the troubles in the world are due to either my sin or someone else's. All of mankind is sinful, thus separated from the holiness of God.
"For all have sinned and come short of the glory of God" (Romans 3:23).
"For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord" (Romans 6:23).
What exactly is sin? If you asked ten different people, you might get ten different answers. Some might say that sin is "doing something wrong or breaking the law", while others might say that sin is "hurting another person or taking an innocent life." Still others might deny the very existence of sin, saying that there is no such thing as right or wrong-- in short, that there are no real absolutes in this world. However, most people agree (regardless of culture) that there are certain actions that are wrong, and should be punishable by fines, imprisonment or even death.
Even the person who "doesn't believe in right or wrong" would have a hard time observing a maniac rape and murder a small child, and say that what happened to them was not a crime.
Sin is a terminal disease that eats away at the very heart of this planet. It destroys individual people, families, cultures, even the earth itself. Our world is defiled by it, yet most people cannot even give a definition of the word, or grasp the true gravity of the situation. What is sin? Surely sin is more that ten different opinions from ten different people. Is there any final authority on this subject?
The Bible says that sin is a heart condition. It is a condition of rebellion against God, which stems from pride. The Bible even refers to pride as "original sin." The Hebrew definition of the word sin means "to miss the mark." God created us to be like Him, but our pride and rebellion make us fall far short of that purpose. Our actions, though they may be "sinful" are really only the fruit of our rebellion against God. Our outward actions merely mirror our true inner condition. It is our true inner condition that God is concerned with. He knows the "real you" better than you yourself do, because he sees "the inner man" and all your secret thoughts and motives.
"Nothing in all creation is hidden from God's sight. Everything is uncovered and laid bare before the eyes of him to whom we must give account." Hebrews 4:13 (NIV)
"If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us." 1 John 1:8
Though one may lead a "good life" on the outside, God looks on the heart. It is the nature of man to look on the outward, but outward appearances can be deceiving.
"Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye are like unto whited sepulchres, which indeed appear beautiful outward, but are within full of dead men's bones, and of all uncleanness. Even so ye also outwardly appear righteous unto men, but within ye are full of hypocrisy and iniquity." Matt. 23:27-28
We cannot deal with our sin by "cleaning ourselves up" the outside, when our problem is a heart condition. "Verily, verily, I say unto you, Whosoever committeth sin is the servant of sin." John 8:34 We are all slaves to our sinful nature, and we can only be cleansed from within.
Since sin is the root cause of all our troubles, we must deal with our sin first if we want less troubles in our lives. How do we get rid of sin? God tells us in His Word that by nature we are "...dead in trespasses and sin;" (Ephesians 2:1) and that we are "...alienated from the life of God..." (Ephesians 4:18). Just as a body without physical life is declared physically dead, so anyone who is separated from God is described in the Bible as spiritually dead. As long as we remain spiritually dead, we cannot know God.
We all need a new life. We need to be cleansed from sin and it's penalty (which is death) and restored to fellowship with God who made us all. That is what Jesus Christ (God's Son) meant when He said we "must be born again" (John 3:7). "...Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God" (John 3:3). Without the experience of the "new birth" we have no hope of enjoying the glories of heaven nor escaping the terrors of hell. Have you been born again?
The "new birth" is not a religion, not living up to a creed, not a set of rituals, nor joining a church or denomination. It's a transformation. Our old nature is changed and we receive a new one. Old things pass away and all things become new in Christ. We receive a new heart, new desires, new ideas, and a new direction because of this new nature. A birth is the coming into being of a new life which has the nature of its parents. When you were born the first time, you were made a partaker of the nature of natural man. When you are born again, you become a partaker of the divine nature (II Peter 1:4). God can become your heavenly Father.
The greatest attribute of God is that He is a God of love. He loves you and me. He loves all sinners and wants to save every one of us from hell and the terrible results of our sin. His Word tells us, "But God commendeth His love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us" (Romans 5:8). "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" (II Corinthians 5:21). God hates sin because of what it produces-- war, sickness, poverty, etc., but God loves the sinner.
God sent Jesus Christ, His only Son, so that we might have new, everlasting life. The Bible tells us, "For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life" (John 3:16). By His death and resurrection, Jesus paid for our salvation. He broke the power of sin and death, making it possible for us to have everlasting life. The life of God raised Jesus from the dead and He was the first born Son into the kingdom of God.
"Giving thanks unto the Father, which hath made us meet to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in light: Who hath delivered us from the power of darkness, and hath translated us into the kingdom of his dear Son: In whom we have redemption through his blood, even the forgiveness of sins: Who is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of every creature: For by him were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are in earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones, or dominions, or principalities, or powers: all things were created by him, and for him: And He is before all things, and by Him all things consist. And he is the head of the body, the church: who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead; that in all things he might have the preeminence" (Colossians 1:12-18).
Jesus Christ, the Son of God, was nailed to a cross by ungodly men for no sin of His own. He was an innocent man-- the only man who was ever perfect and sinless. He never sinned, yet He took your sins and mine by taking an unjust death. Because He did this willingly, He was raised from the dead by His Father and given life and authority over the powers of darkness. God now imparts that same life and authority to all those who come receiving His provision for their sin. "...the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from all sin" (I John 1:7)
We must accept God's Word that says we all are sinners and know that it is sin that separates us from God and repent or "turn away" from that sin. Until we each acknowledge, and ask forgiveness for our own guilt, we will never be free from it. It will eventually lead us right into hell.
"The Lord is...not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance" (II Peter 3:9)
God wants to give us His power over sin. We cannot conquer sin without that power. God wants to give us life for death, beauty for ashes, health for sickness, joy for grief, peace for strife, love for hate. God's Word says, "...I am come that they might have life and that they might have it more abundantly" (John 10:10). Do you want abundant life? This abundant life comes only as we are born again and as we follow on and receive all that God promises us.
It isn't always easy following God, but nothing worthwhile ever was. You may be ridiculed and persecuted. You will face many temptations to fall back into your old nature. But you can be assured that God is with you, and He will give you power to overcome every one of them.
"But what things were gain to me, those I counted loss for Christ. Yea doubtless, and I count all things but loss for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord: for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and do count them but dung, that I may win Christ, and be found in him, not having mine own righteousness, which is of the law, but that which is through the faith of Christ, the righteousness which is of God by faith." Phil 3:7-9
You can pray right now and ask God to come into your heart and receive the new birth. Simply talk to Him as you would talk to another person. You might pray a prayer similar to this:
God, I do not know you personally, but I want to know you. I believe that
Your Word, the Bible is true. I repent for hardening my heart toward you,
and delighting myself in things you hate. I don't want to go to hell; I really
want to be free of my sin. Come into my heart and cleanse me of the guilt
of my sins and give me the power to overcome those sins. I want to be Your
child and learn of Your ways. Keep me from evil and save my soul. Amen
If you said that prayer and meant it from your heart, you are now a child of God. You will need to do four things faithfully every day so you will grow in God.
1. Read God's Word daily.
You need to read and study God's Word (the Bible) every day. This is how you will learn about God's ways and how to overcome your problems and troubles. His Word brings strength to your spiritual nature. If you do not have a Bible, make your first prayer request to God to supply you with one.
"Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth." (II Timothy 2:15).
"But thou hast fully known my doctrine, manner of life, purpose, faith, longsuffering, charity, patience, persecutions, afflictions, which came unto me at Antioch, at Iconium, at Lystra; what persecutions I endured: but out of them all the Lord delivered me. Yea, and all that will live godly in Christ Jesus shall suffer persecution. But evil men and seducers shall wax worse and worse, deceiving, and being deceived. But continue thou in the things which thou hast learned and hast been assured of, knowing of whom thou hast learned them; And that from a child thou hast known the holy scriptures, which are able to make thee wise unto salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus. All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness: That the man of God may be perfect, thoroughly furnished unto all good works" (II Timothy 3:10-17).
2. Pray to God daily.
We must fellowship and talk to God if we are to hear His guidance and learn of His nature. We are promised that all of our needs shall be met if we will only ask the Father in the name of Jesus.
"And whatsoever ye shall ask in my name, that will I do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son If ye shall ask any thing in my name, I will do it. If ye love me, keep my commandments." (John 14: 13-15)
"Seek ye first the kingdom of God , and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you" (Matthew 6:33).
3. Seek Water Baptism and Fellowship with like believers.
(1.) Seek out a good Bible-believing church and share your decision to follow Christ with the body of believers there and ask to be water baptized. This will seal your commitment to Christ (See BIBLE ANSWERS for more about water baptism).
Ask the Lord to show you the people you are to pray and fellowship with on a daily basis. He does not want you to be alone in your Christian walk. We all need one another's prayers, encouragement, and love to grow in God.
"And let us consider one another to provoke unto love and to good works: Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some is; but exhorting one another: and so much the more, as ye see the day approaching" (Hebrews 10:24-25).
4. Keep your heart pure before the Lord daily.
Ask God to cleanse you of all sin and impure thoughts and motives. Satan, our enemy, will try to break our fellowship with God by getting us back into sin or trying to get us angry at God. Guard against this by resisting the devil daily.
"Keep thy heart with all diligence; for out of it are the issues of life" (Proverbs 4:23).
"Submit to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you" (James 4:7).
If you received the Lord into your heart, welcome to the family of God! If you need help in this new life, e-mail us at ChristUnlimited@bible.com, or write us at:
It's been a while, but I think it all began when a few members of the swarm mentioned their theologial degrees as if simply hav ing a pece of paper somehow made them an authority on the Bible. I then stated the fact that some of the smartest people on a number of subjects studied those topics as an avocation rather than a vocation.
I believe I also mentioned that when one attends any particular institution, they are going to received a biased view that reflects the particular theological bent of that institution; and that one ought to keep that in mind when discussing a particular point.
Actually, I have done quite a bit of reading on psychology/psychiatry; and when I went to see a couselor after my ex left me, and reading the DSM-IV, I am clearly not a narcissist. As for your suspicions that I am somehow into self-agrandizement, I can assure you that is not the case. It is hardly self-agrandizement when one readily recognizes that one has been blessed in particlar areas and giving thanks for it. In fact, it is much healthier than one who goes around belittling themselves. How would that glorify God. I certainly have no problem recognizing gifts and abilities that God has given others which I admire. I also know how to give compliments to others and to simply say 'thankyou' when receiving them.
Something else about ADDers. We tend to know a lot about a lot of topics, because we are generally very curious and retain information well.
I hope this gives you a bit of a different perspective.
Somebody has been comparing notes with White Mountain.
Where does "God's assistence" end?
And as for "God's unseen ways," as a pastor I bet you clearly see the ways He assists you every day.
I unavoidably ran over something large this morning, had a catastrophic blow-out in the rear tire, and just now I am looking at a receipt for nearly $700 in new tires.
Funny thing though, last night I dreamed about buying tires... (the old ones were getting rather slick)
No snow in the south, though!
[Paitiently waiting for wisecracks about God's foreknowledge about today's posting antics and predestining the tire blow-out.]
Actually it can be a No and Yes question (part a:No, part b:Yes) in the same way that we do not know the date of Christ's return, yet we do know the circumstances.
"If God would have painted a yellow stripe on the backs of the elect I would go around lifting shirts. But since He didn't I must preach `whosoever will' and when `whosoever' believes I know he is one of the elect" - C.H. Spurgeon
(One would think that the "anti-grace" crowd would come up with some new arguments, this one is "long in the tooth".)
the_Doc is a learned, righteous, take-no-prisoners Calvinist whom, it's been said, was used by God (along with a couple other GRPL brethren) to facilitate RnMom's conversion from Arminian to stalwart Calvinist.
It would be nice to think He has that in mind for others on these threads.
I think you missed my point. You have just done it again. I'm not saying that you should go around putting yourself down. I'm just saying that it is generally better to let someone else praise you, and not yourself. It's not because what you say makes me feel in any way inadequate, because I am quite comfortable in my own skin, with who and what I am, and what God has blessed me with. I just don't feel the need to tell everyone else about it, as though they wouldn't be able to notice it unless I said something. It looks like fishing for compliments. Anyone who is around me for any appreciable period of time would be able to see it, and whether or not they were to verbally acknowledge it is entirely up to them. I purposely avoid speaking about myself as much as possible, precisely because I don't want to be seen as arrogant, self-centered, or vain. I can't claim credit for that which God has given me, and My Bible says my gifts will make room for me, and place me before Kings, if that's God's Will.
IQ doesn't really mean all that much, it's just a measure of one's ability to process information, engage in deductive reasoning, and discern order. It is by no means the entire measure of one's intelligence. I read the encyclopedia from cover to cover growing up, when I didn't have anything else to read. Most of what I have learned from that comes under the heading of "little known and even less cared for facts". No big deal, certainly not something to brag about with the intent of making myself look better than someone else in the eyes of a third party or parties. It is what it is.
Let another man praise thee, and not thine own mouth; a stranger, and not thine own lips. (Pro 27:2)
You said it better than we ever could have.... :)
Does God know the date of Christ's return?
By not having your snow tires on yet??? :)
The point I would make is in addition to something on which you were silent:
It is from such as these that God chooses to save some of them, predestining them to salvation by His choice, and they are Elect unto salvation by God's choice, and not by John, Mary, or Bob's choice. Therefore, God's interventions into His creation are foreordained at the time of Creation, by the very fact that He chose to save some at the time He chose to create this creation. If God did not intervene, NO ONE would be saved.Again, I agree with what has been stated.
But you stop with election, and did not address God's biblically commanded co-requisites for salvation.
Note that you also make a point with which I agree in a later post #447:
Not only that, but we are commanded to preach the Gospel to every living creature, which points back to my previous sentence.
We are likewise commanded to obey the Gospel (and the apostles teaching of it): namely to confess a belief and servitude unto Christ, believe in His resurrection, confess our sins and repent, and be baptized.
As you point out and I agree, God in His foreknowledge knows who will in fact make a sincere confession and give his life to Christ and presumably those people were predestined to received God's grace, mercy and be regenerated. I also agree that God is sovereign cause in this, not man.
We can argue about when regeneration happens but we can agree it does happen and minimally the confession, repentence, and baptism are the obedient fruit of that regeneration, and salvation is appropriated for the believer as God has commanded it be done.
The point being that irregardless of to whom and when regeneration happens, fullfilment of the correqusites for salvation is conditioned on man's willful obedience.
An obedience that God 'enables' in the regenerate, but a required free will obedience none the less.
The further point being that absent such obedience, salvation is not yet appropriated (it may or may not be pending), and the indvidual that assumes they are saved without having yet obeyed and approriated their salvation is 'testing God' and in grave danger. Because they do not know if they are ultimately 'elect' (or 'unelect' and never to appropriate salvation because they die in an accident going home from bible study) until they fulfll God's command regarding salvation as written.
God Himself has decreed that election is sovereign to Him alone, yet salvation is conditioned on man's acceptance.
Yes God has predestined election and salvation in such a way that the elect do in fact obey by their free will, and likewise the unelect disobedient are on their own, by their own free will (unregenerate as it is).
But none of us know and can be assured of our election until after the fact. After we (of the free will enabled and given us) appropriate our salvation and make certain by fulfilling what Christ has commanded of us to be saved.
That's a good question to put towards all of Scripture. To quote a friend of mine: "I think we just don't understand yet how it all fits together."
Does He erase what He willed from the foundation of the world? He must be plenty busy with rewrites. Think of all that red ink and piles of eraser crumbs. Whew.
Fighting the comment from the flesh here...
Through the Sacrament of Penance.
Actually I di not miss your point.
I simply stated how the subject of my IQ came up. When some of the swarm attempted to claim that their 'degrees' somehow made them superior to others when it came to interpreting the Bible, it was not at sll unreasonable to point out that a 'degree' may or may not be significant. And as surprising as it may be to you, my thoughts about IQ are pretty much the same. And I totally agree that IQ is at best only an indication of inate ability to process information. I also agree that it is not indicative of the entire scope of ones intelligence; and I never pretended it was.
Like you said, it is nothing to brag about; it is what it is. That others think they can jerk my chain by making snide remarks about it, is not my problem. You see, I don't much care what they think about me. As much as it might surprise them, I have a lot of friends. Part of the reason is that I am 'authentic' and do not try to pretend to be something I am not. Not suprising to me an most other, people are attracted to those who are willing to show there true selves, warts and all. We've all got them, and nothing is a bigger turn-off than someone who puts on a facade of perfectionism or that everything is 'just fine'.
Yet?
Do you envision a time on earth when Scripture will speak more loudly to us than today?
I think it makes more sense to read Scripture in context, all of it. As I see it, you're less likely to limit God when you consider all of His inspired words.
I don't envision a time on earth when we will totally understand all there is to know about God. Do you?
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