John 3 — The New Birth

by Ken Pullen

Scripture used is from the King James Version

ACP

Tuesday, April 28th, 2015

I have been drawn to read, reread, meditate upon, pray upon, and then further read and study John 3:1-21.

Far too many have spoken with their lips, “I’m a born again Christian!” and not known. Not been renewed, born anew of spirit and mind. I was one of those years ago — I know whereof I write and speak. Merely saying one believes in Jesus the Lord, Saviour, and Messiah as the Son of God does not make one once-saved-always-saved, nor does it mean one is automatically, truly born anew. The devil himself knows and believes Jesus is the Son of God. He knows that truth deep within his dark evil lying heart — that is the one truth he cannot refuse. The devil is not saved and going to live for eternity in heaven with God, Jesus the Lamb of God, the Elders, and the heavenly hosts, the multitudes of truly saved souls who not only believed but were born again —

This past Sunday was my wife’s physical, earthly birthday.

We, people in general, make far too much of physical earthly birthdays. It’s fine and dandy from about age one on up through about age 18, or 21, but even then the hoopla and emphasis are out of proportion to reality and the facts.

Anyone can die at any time and unless they are born of the Spirit of God they will not see heaven. Once they come to an age of awareness, which is much, much younger than the majority of people think it is, they will not see eternal life in the presence of God and Jesus the Lamb of God.

It was my wife of over 28 years earthly birthday — Not long ago someone from my past when I made more errors than anything else contacted me through this website. This person knew me intimately from my youth when I was previously married in my beginning 20’s, and had joined my parents church because my first love and attraction was a young woman who was a member there over my being in love and attracted to God, Jesus, or being a true disciple, a true born-again believer and follower of the word of God. This person who knew me during that time at first protested and wrote “I know you were converted!” or words to that effect. I replied I knew my motivations, my true heart, my intent, my condition, and while I worked at putting on a good front and performing “good” and working at “living good” and what was the expected norm — I was not truly born-anew, not truly renewed of spirit and mind. Because my first attraction, my main motivation for going to and joining the church was in grave error. I was a foolish man about age 21 at the time. I knew little or nothing. I was excommunicated from the church I have mentioned numerous times frequent visitors and subscribers to “A Crooked Path” will be familiar with — I can understand why the person who knew me intimately over 40 years ago would contact me and be angry at what I wrote. It was bare hard truth which did not make anyone involved appear in a good light. I understand that. We often fear the truth do we not? Even though the truth truly does set us free! I had to be open and honest at this point and place in my life. I cannot hide or deny the fact I once mistreated God and the Lord Jesus so terribly in professing I was a “born-again Christian” when in truth I was not. I had not been REGENERATED! I had not been RENEWED! I was the same lustful, worldly guy I had been only appearing in lightly improved through constant effort packaging! The person from this church of my past, my past life, did not approve of or like the fact I stated I had joined the church I did first and foremost out of desire for an attractive young woman who was a member there — and knowledgeable readers of these events will recall the only way one could marry someone within the church membership was to become a church member. There was no marrying outside of church membership in this particular church. The person who contacted me was very upset I stated what I had in previous postings here on ACP stating I had not been born anew; not  been renewed of mind and spirit at that time in my life. It made them look bad. It made the church look bad. It made the woman in question look bad. It made me look horrendous — and I was. Because I was just a “church goer” still of the world while professing with my lips I believed in Jesus, I believed in God, and I believed in the Bible — but I lacked the wisdom and depth and knowledge to DISCERN WISELY and take to heart and live the words of the Holy Bible!

I thought being born-again meant you cleaned up your act. Got baptized. Lived a good life. Didn’t curse, didn’t get drunk, didn’t go to places you ought not to be — and it does mean all those things but not in a legalistic you can do this but not this way — it means, if truly born-again and truly renewed of mind and spirit your love and dedication to the Lord, the Holy Spirit indwelling and working within you removes all desire for those worldly things from your life. You become so focused upon the word of God and living a truly renewed life in mind and spirit you lose all desire for those things most people crave and say they cannot imagine living without!

When I was 21, 22 years of age — there was no TRUE REGENERATION within me at that time. I will discuss more about regeneration after the first enclosed Scripture in this posting.

About five years ago now there was TRUE REGENERATION within me — a true renewing of mind and spirit, a true birth of a spiritual nature not of my own doing because such a thing can only come from the Spirit of God!

But — back about 41 years ago I went around saying, “I’m a born again Christian!” when in truth I was not. I was ignorant and ill-informed at the time as to what that TRULY meant. I had witnessed a people who lived and acted and spoke a different way. Among the people I was around it was like any other group of people in truth — there were some who were truly genuinely reborn in spirit and living godly lives; there were some very lukewarm and mingling worldliness — carnality with spirituality and going to church. Speaking and doing that which they imagined was “the right way” in front of those of the church and putting on a good front. Then there was the portion who imagined godliness and being spiritual being primarily legalistic and putting on appearances.

Not unlike any assemblage of human beings in a group. The true, the doers, the few — the bulk, the mediocre and just treading water getting through each day not really knowing or doing that which they pretended to know and do — and then the radical fringe who appearances and acting a certain way take priority over any depth of truth.

Let us now go to God’s word and use the Scriptures as our source of nourishment and truth in what it means to be truly “born again” and renewed of mind and spirit;

John 3:1-21

Jesus and Nicodemus

1There was a man of the Pharisees, named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews: 2The same came to Jesus by night, and said unto him, “Rabbi, we know that thou art a teacher come from God: for no man can do these miracles that thou doest, except God be with him.” 3Jesus answered and said unto him, “Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again (1), he cannot see the kingdom of God.”

4Nicodemus saith unto him, “How can a man be born when he is old? can he enter the second time into his mother’s womb, and be born?” 5Jesus 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. 6That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. 7Marvel not that I said unto thee, Ye must be born again. 8The wind bloweth where it listeth, and thou hearest the sound thereof, but canst not tell whence it cometh, and whither it goeth: so is every one that is born of the Spirit.”

9Nicodemus answered and said unto him, “How can these things be?” 10Jesus answered and said unto him, “Art thou a master of Israel, and knowest not these things? 11Verily, verily, I say unto thee, We speak that we do know, and testify that we have seen; and ye receive not our witness. 12If I have told you earthly things, and ye believe not, how shall ye believe, if I tell you of heavenly things? 13And no man hath ascended up to heaven, but he that came down from heaven, even the Son of man which is in heaven. 14And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of man be lifted up: 15That whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have eternal life.”

For God So Loved

(Genesis 22:1-10; Romans 5:6-11)

16″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. 17For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved. 18He that believeth on him is not condemned: but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God. 19And this is the condemnation, that light is come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil. 20For every one that doeth evil hateth the light, neither cometh to the light, lest his deeds should be reproved. 21But he that doeth truth cometh to the light, that his deeds may be made manifest, that they are wrought in God.”

In verse 3 of the above Scripture Jesus the Lord and Messiah says to Nicodemus, “…except a man be born again he cannot see the kingdom of heaven.”

This is fact. From the very mouth of God. God come to earth in the form of man, the Sacrificial Lamb of God! Jesus the Redeemer, Jesus the Lord and Saviour!

Except a person be REGENERATED and surrender themselves to God and the Lord and the complete inerrant word of God, and place God and Jesus where They ought to be placed in a persons heart and life — except a person be REGENERATED they cannot ever see the kingdom of heaven.

Clear, concise, plain, and truthful. And the foundation and key to everything. EVERY THING. For it leads us either to eternal life with God and Jesus in heaven — or to eternal damnation in the fiery pit due to our disobedience and our unbelief.

Verse 3; REGENERATION — the necessity of the new birth grows out of the incapacity of the natural man or woman to “see” or “enter into” the kingdom of God. However gifted, intelligent, moral — supposedly living as a “good person” — or refined, the natural man or woman is absolutely blind to spiritual truth. The natural man or woman are impotent to enter the kingdom of God; for they can neither obey, understand, nor please God [see John 3:3-6 — Psalm 51:5 — Jeremiah 17:9 — Mark 7:21-23 — 1 Corinthians 2:14 — Romans 8:7-8 — Ephesians 2:3 — Matthew 6:33].

The new birth, the renewing of mind and spirit — being BORN AGAIN, BORN ANEW — is not a reformation of the old nature [see Romans 6:6], but a truly creative act of the Holy Spirit [see John 1:12-13 — John 3:5 — 2 Corinthians 5:17 — Ephesians 2:10 — Ephesians 4:24].

The condition of the new birth is faith in Christ crucified [see John 3:14-15 — Galatians 3:24].

Through the new birth he believer becomes a partaker of the divine nature and the life of Jesus Christ Himself [see Galatians 2:20 — Ephesians 2:10 — Ephesians 4:24 — Colossians 1:27 — 1 Peter 1:23-25 — 2 Peter 1:4 — 1 John 5:10-12].

I have lived and truly know the vast difference between merely going through the motions and professing with ones lips and thinking they can “reform” themselves and “be good” and become a “Christian” — and knowing and living REGNERATED by the gift and power of the indwelling Holy Spirit, born anew, living with and for Jesus the Lord, Redeemer, Saviour, and Messiah!

That is why I am now here doing what I do.

I do this for the Lord out of an endless flow of thankfulness for His never giving up on me, never turning from me although I severely turned from Him and used Him for my own goals and desires. Shameful!

I have endless flowing thanks for His patience, His love, His mercy, His grace — His forgiveness of my sins.

And I now know — no matter who says what, or who might question me — I now KNOW and live to be the salt of the earth, a light upon the hill for the Lord. To His honor, His glory, for His name’s sake!

I truly know the difference between going to church and thinking you’re a “Christian” and actually being a true believer and disciple of the Lord’s. And the difference is as vast as the darkest moonless night — and the brightest cloudless day!

I pray no one reading this is a “lukewarm” believer.

I pray no one reading this did what I once did and used the Lord to get close to someone else.

I learned my lessons the very difficult, lonely, fearful, and tiring way.

Do not repeat my mistakes. Do not make more of your own than necessary.

Turn to the Lord thy God and learn and become fluent and knowing the vast difference from being merely a Bible carrying “church goer” saying they are this or that — and becoming, allowing the Spirit of god to work within you — to truly become born anew, renewed of mind and spirit, to truly become BORN AGAIN!