Those Confusing Church Words Series Ezekiel 36:25-27 What Is That "Born Again" Stuff"
Today I’m going to talk about a word that many of you might not be all that familiar with: Regeneration.
It’s a word that most unchurched people have never heard of.
In fact, many Christians have only rarely, if ever, heard the word.
The word itself is only found in two places in the Bible - Matthew 19:28 and Titus 3:5.
And, to make matters worse, it doesn’t appear in the New International translation at all.
So why am I going to talk about a word that nobody knows about?
It’s because of what that word means, and the impact it has on all our lives.
Let me give you a definition:
Regeneration is a secret act of God in which he imparts new spiritual life to us.
We call it being "born again."
I. When was the last time you remember somebody telling you he or she was born again?
Most people who go to church will freely tell you they are saved, but not too many will tell you they are born again.
Now, is that really a big deal?
If you know what it means to be born again, then yes, it is a big deal.
Let me give you an example.
If somebody tells me he is saved, I usually ask him to tell me about it.
And here’s how it goes: "I asked Jesus into my life and because I did that I am saved."
I might ask them to share a testimony with me, and it might go something like this: "Once upon a time I was a real dirtball and I did this bad thing and I did that bad thing. Boy, I was really a mess and I asked Jesus to come into my life and he did and now I am a really good person and I live for Jesus."
Did you notice how many "I’s" were in that conversation?
When you listen to most people’s testimonies you get the impression that they did a great job of bailing themselves out of sin.
Listen to me: we don’t regenerate ourselves.
We can’t.
We don’t have a role in regeneration at all.
It’s the work of God and God alone.
Do you see what it says in our passage?
God says, "I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you will be clean; I will cleanse you from all your impurities and from all your idols. I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you; I will remove from you your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh. And I will put my Spirit in you and move you to follow my decrees and be careful to keep my laws."
Only God can give us new birth.
II. There’s another interesting thing about regeneration I want to share with you.
It comes before saving faith.
I believe that some Christians might have a problem with unconfessed pride.
Here’s why.
Do you know any people who want to make sure you know that they "chose" Christ?
We don’t chose Christ, he chooses us.
Our part is to respond to his call. Part of what God does in the process of regeneration is that he gives us the spiritual ability to respond in faith.
The Bible says in Ephesians, "For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith; and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God..." (Ephesians 2:8)
Look at that "...and this not from yourselves..." part.
Grammatically, that phrase refers back to faith.
Isn’t it refreshing that God even gives us the faith to believe?
Does that mean we don’t have a choice? No.
God doesn’t force any of his gifts on us.
Grace is a gift; salvation is a gift; faith is a gift.
Can we still harden our hearts?
Yes, we can.
And we do all the time.
When you don’t recognize the need for a savior you harden your heart.
My father attended a Unity church.
They don’t believe in Jesus, they don’t believe in sin, they don’t believe in hell.
To them, all that’s required to go to heaven is to be a good person by their own standards.
They go to church Sunday after Sunday and hear 1001 ways to feel better about themselves and how to be a good person, but they have not experienced regeneration.
They are not born again.
They are not going to heaven.
III. Human beings tend to be results oriented, so we tend to focus on the results of regeneration rather than the spiritual act of God that causes us to change.
You can fake the results for a little while, but at some point your sin will be exposed.
Listen to what the Bible says, "No-one who is born of God will continue to sin, because God’s seed remains in him; he cannot go on sinning, because he has been born of God." (1 John 3:9)
If you have experienced true regeneration, you will not continue to sin.
Why?
Because the spirit of God has given you a new heart and a new spirit.
God himself has given you His spirit and continues to move you to follow his decrees and his laws.
This doesn’t mean you’ll live a perfect life.
What it means is that you will not live a life of continual indulgence in sin.
Others will see the results of your regeneration over the long haul.
What are some of the results of being born again?
1. Christlike love - unconditional love
2. Overcoming the world - Regeneration gives us the ability to overcome the pressures and temptations of the world that would otherwise keep us from obeying God’s commands and following his paths.
3. Protection from Satan - The Bible says, "No temptation has seized you except what is common to man. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can stand up under it." (1 Corinthians 10:13)
These are all necessary results in the lives of those who have been born again.
If there is genuine regeneration in a person’s life, he or she WILL believe that Jesus is the Christ.
He or she WILL refrain from a pattern of continual sin.
He or she WILL love his brothers and sisters.
He or she WILL overcome the temptations of the world.
He or she WILL be kept safe from ultimate harm by the evil one.
Other results of regeneration are found in the book of Galatians, Chapter 5: But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law. Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the sinful nature with its passions and desires." (Galatians 5:22-24)
It is impossible to exhibit all of these results of regeneration for any long period of time.
The interesting thing is this: Once you have been born again, these results keep getting fine tuned.
You keep getting better at them.
That’s because you become like clay in the potter’s hand...God is always perfecting his creation.
Being born again starts the process and we make our pilgrimage of life constantly being refined by God.
Have you been born again?
