Rebirth Series

Being a father today is not easy because there’s a lot of pressure on dads to be in the delivery room. I’m not discounting the importance of being involved in this way because I certainly wanted to be there…I just wasn’t sure if I could handle it. I think my dad had it easier in the 60s when he just paced the floor in the waiting room.

When Emily was born, I was totally into the Lamaze training. Beth and I took classes together, and I had my role down cold. I did well in the delivery room, but the room started spinning and a nurse had to find a chair for me. I don’t understand why women say giving birth is hard – it’s pretty tough on us dads, too.

When Beth was expecting Lydia, I took a much more laid-back approach. No birthing classes for me. I knew what to do. It was no big deal. When Beth went into labor, I just called her a cab so I could go back to sleep…just kidding.

When we got to the hospital, Beth settled into her comfortable bed while I sat next to her in a hard, uncomfortable chair. See, it’s tough on us fathers, isn’t it? I looked around for the remote control and started channel surfing. I finally settled on a good show but had to keep turning the volume up every few minutes when Beth would get a contraction. Finally, she grabbed my hand and said, “Give me that remote!”

You know, there’s nothing like the birth of a baby. I will forever remember the births of each of our four daughters – though I hope Beth forgets how I acted in the delivery room.

We’re continuing in our series called, “Re.” Last weekend, we were challenged to resolve to live convictionally without compromise from Daniel 1.

• Build your convictions on God’s Word.

• Behave respectfully toward others.

• Believe God will make a way.

How well did you do at putting the action steps into practice?

• Cultivate your convictions ahead of time.

• Expect incessant opposition from our ungodly world.

• Draw a line in your soul.

I want to add one more biblical conviction to last week’s list. We’re reminded in Genesis 1:27 that everyone is created in the image of God and therefore has great worth, value, and dignity: “So God created man in His own image; in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them.” Physical differences, racial background, and ethnic distinctions are secondary to being made in the image of God.

James 3 prohibits all prejudice, especially in the church. The gospel is the answer to racism, and we must stand against this sin in every form. The insidious evil exhibited last Saturday in Buffalo when a white man targeted and intentionally murdered 10 black people is abhorrent. Last Sunday, there was a California church shooting motivated by hatred for Taiwanese people. This week, Dallas police arrested a suspect in an attack on three women of Korean descent.

We gather together no matter our skin color or background. We grow together because we can’t grow alone. We give to each other because of what we’ve been given. And we go with the gospel to all people even if they are different from us because as Ephesians 2 teaches, the dividing wall of hostility between the races has been knocked down by the gospel. Here’s the bottom line: Grace must affect how we look at race.

Today we’re going to look at what Jesus said about another kind of birth. Our topic is Rebirth, which is defined as, “being born again from above, having a new or a second birth.” We see this concept in several passages of Scripture.

• 1 Peter 1:3: “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! According to His great mercy, He has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead.”

• 1 Peter 1:23: “Since you have been born again, not of perishable seed but of imperishable, through the living and abiding word of God.”

• Galatians 6:15: “For neither circumcision counts for anything, nor uncircumcision, but a new creation.”

• Titus 3:5: “He saved us, not because of works done by us in righteousness, but according to His own mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewal of the Holy Spirit.”

• 1 John 5:1: “Everyone who believes that Jesus is the Christ has been born of God, and everyone who loves the Father loves whoever has been born of him.”

• John 3:3: “Jesus answered him, ‘Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God.’”