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Monday, January 14, 2008

What is, being born again

Born again is a term Jesus used while talking to Nicadimous in the third chapter of the gospel of John. Jesus I believe used this term because it best describes what happens when a person accepts Christ into their life.
In the beginning God created man in his own image. God created him a little lower than the angles, and God breathed his breath into man and he became a living soul.
Man was unique, he was earthly like the animals, he could smell the flowers, taste the fruit, see the colors of the trees, feel the warm breezes of the wind, and hear the birds singing. Adam was a man created to live on the earth, and enjoy all that the earth had to offer.
Man was also heavenly like the angles, he had a soul that was alive. He could walk, and talk with God, and he had no problem in his heart comprehending eternity. Man was filled with love, joy, peace, longsuffering, meekness, and temperance. Man possessed all the fruits of the spirit. He had no jealousy, envy, strife, or hatred. Man lived in a very glorious earth, with an open relationship with the spiritual world.
One day when man was walking in the garden, he was tempted by the serpent, Satan, the dragon, or devil. He was asked to disobey God, and he partook of the forbidden fruit. The things that God said would come to pass did, mans soul died. He became totally earthly. He was strong in body, brilliant in mind, but dead spiritually. Seperated from God by sin. Man had chosen the earth.
The second Adam as described in scripture was the Son of God, our Lord Jesus Christ. Jesus was born of the virgin Mary, this is very important to understand Jesus was the son of God, the messiah he was prophesied about in the scripture, and he fulfilled all the prophecies. Jesus soul was untouched by sin, Jesus had an earthly body, but he had the nature of God, which the first Adam had lost.
The time came for Jesus to start his public ministry, he was thirty because this was what the law required at that time. The first thing Jesus did was go to John the Baptist to be baptized. The father spoke and said as Jesus rose up out of the water “This is my son, here ye him.” Immediately after Jesus was baptized Satan met him in the wilderness where Jesus was fasting. Satan tempted him in every way he could with the things of the earth. Trying to bring down Gods creation by causing the second Adam to fall, as he did the first in the garden of Eden. Satan ask him to turn the rock into bread, jump from the pinnacle of the temple, Satan even offered him an earthly kingdom. Jesus withstood, he did not bend, he did not bow, he did not fall, his soul did not die. Jesus did not sin as all men before had, sin had no hold on him, and because sin bringeth forth death, death had no dominion over him.
After the crucifixion Jesus stepped out of the grave, and very calmly walked into the garden. He ministered to his followers with complete authority. Satan had been defeated on his own field. Jesus had made a way through death, and in so doing he made a way for all mankind to be resurrected in him. Jesus made it possible for mans dead soul to live again.
Man from the time of Adam has gone through the same temptations, and each time has failed, this is the nature of man, because of sin. We cannot expect anything more, there is no life in his soul, the earth is all he can see.
Just as sure as we were born of the world, we must be born again in Jesus Christ. Nicodemous asks Jesus what must I do to be saved, and Jesus said you must be born again. Nicidemous expressed that he did not understand, he said, “Must I enter the second time into my mother’s womb?” Jesus answered, “That which is born of the flesh is flesh that which is born of the spirit is spirit, you must be born again of the spirit.” Jesus was expressing that man must see that he is earthly, and he bears the fruit of the earth. We are all sinners, and we must not only admit that, but in turning to Christ we must denounce the jealous, envy, and hatred, and allow Christ through the working of the holy spirit to change our nature, from a sinful nature to a heavenly nature of love, joy, and peace, which is the opposite of jealous, envy, and stiff which is the nature of the natural man.
This point needs to be made very clear. The heavenly nature can be copied by the natural man with a dead soul. He may be able to be kind, or express love, but when you are born again it is your nature to do so.
The Holy Spirit within us leads us, teaches us, guides us, and directs us in all things, just as Jesus promised he would do.
The earthly nature may also be copied by those who are saved, but the Bible calls this being carnally minded, which is enmity against God, because it is not the nature of a Christian to act, or react in this manner. Jesus said, “Be not conformed to this world, but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind.”
The Christian nature lifts us above our burdens so we think on terms of eternity. In the book of Ephesians the second chapter, and the first verse says “He has quickened us who were dead in trespasses and sins, and has raised us together and made us to sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus.”
If we can understand what it is to be born again, and being A new creature in Christ Jesus, we are on our way to understanding what God has in store for us.

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