BORN AGAIN?
SCRIPTURE: I Peter 1:23 Being born again, not of corruptible seed, but of incorruptible, by the word of God, which liveth and abideth for ever.
INTRODUCTION:
Billy Graham tells of a time early in his ministry when he arrived in a small town to preach at a meeting. He had arrived a little bit early to finish writing a letter for back home. As he finished the letter, he asked a young boy standing on the sidewalk of the location of the town post office. When the boy had given him the directions, Mr. Graham thanked him and said, “If you will come to the Baptist church this evening, you can hear me tell everyone how to get to heaven.” “I don’t think I will be there.” The little boy replied, “You don’t even know your way to the post office, let alone how to get to heaven.”
What does “being born again” mean? Are you born again? Can you understand or explain how to be born again?
If someone should ask you, “What must I do to get to heaven?”, what would you tell them? Would you tell them to stop lying, to stop drinking, to stop smoking, to stop stealing, to stop cursing?
Jesus told Nicodemus, “You must be born again.” John 3:7
Many people speak of a new birth without any definite idea of just what the new birth is. As a result, they are never sure whether they themselves have been born again or not. R.A. Torrey The Answer p 59
I. PHYSICAL vs. SPIRITUAL
A. Physical, Non-living objects:
1. I can disassemble a car engine such as a V6 or V8. I can understand and explain basically how it works. I can put it back together, but it may not work.
2. I can disassemble a personal computer. I can understand and explain basically how it works. I can put it back together, hopefully it will work.
These are non-living, physical machines which man has made. They are composed of many parts that function together to perform a function.
B. Physical, Non-living organisms:
1. Biology students can dissect an organism and describe the structure and function of the various organs that make up that organism.
2. Doctors, medical students, forensic scientists, etc. dissect non-living, human bodies in the process of study or investigation.
C. Physical, Living Humans
Doctors, nurses, and medical students do surgical procedures on living, human bodies with hope of solving a medical problem or curing an illness affecting a living body.
They want the human body to continue to live.
D. Spiritual Aspects of a Physical Body
1. However, when they remove the brain of a man, whether non-living or living, they do not find the mind inside. We know that humans reason, but how? It’s just three pounds of flesh.
2. When they take out the internal organs of a man they do not find the soul of man.
3. When the organ called the heart is removed, the emotional part of man that we refer to as the “heart” is not found.
4. They can separate every muscle, bone, internal organ, etc. and they will not find the spirit of man. Why? It is spiritual in nature.
James 2:26 “For as the body without the spirit is dead,”
5. Man is a physical being; man is a spiritual being.
E. Flesh vs. Spirit
1. “That which is born of the flesh is flesh;” John 3:6
2. “That which is born of the Spirit is spirit.” John 3:6
3. There is:
(a) the flesh of man and
(b) there is a spirit of man and
(c) there is a Spirit of God.
4. Man’s spirit, though fully functioning in the natural sense, is “dead” as far as the Spirit of God is concerned.
Ephesians 2:1 “And you hath he quickened [made alive], who were dead in trespasses and sins;”
5. Sin, from the fall of man, has separated us from God. We are born with a corrupted nature.
Romans 5:12 “Wherefore, as by one man sin entered into the world, and death by
sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned:”
6. We are carnal --> fleshly, of the human nature.
Romans 8:7 “Because the carnal mind is enmity against God: for it is not subject to the law of God, neither indeed can be.”
7. To experience the spiritual aspects of God, man’s spirit must be born again, through and by the Spirit of God.
John 3:3 “Jesus answered and said unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.”
8. With a corrupt nature and a carnal mind, we cannot “see” the kingdom of heaven.
II Corinthians 4:4 “In whom the God of this world hath blinded the minds of them which believe not, lest the light of the glorious gospel of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine unto them.”
In the natural, we cannot partake of the kingdom of God by way of understanding it or by way of experiencing it, not in this world, nor in the world to come. Why?
Ye must be born again!!!!!!!
“And it becomes every man, as in the presence of a holy God before whom he must soon appear, to ask himself whether he has experienced this change, and if he has not, to give no rest to his eyes until he has sought the mercy of God, and implored the aid of his Spirit that his heart may be renewed.” Albert Barnes
II. RELIGION vs. SALVATION
A. The Value of:
1. Religion can be good or it can be evil as determined by the definers and the subscribers.
Religion may cause a man to strap a bomb on himself, walk into a crowd of people, and blow himself into an eternal hell.
Salvation is inherently good, because the recipients thereof are “looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith;” (Hebrews 12:2). Salvation will cause you to love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you; (Matt 5:44)
2. By religion, man tries to make his way to God. By salvation, God makes His way to man.
3. By religion, man works to be righteous.
Romans 10:3 “For they being ignorant of God’s righteousness, and going about to establish their own righteousness, have not submitted themselves unto the righteousness of God.”
By salvation, righteousness is imputed to those who “believe on him that raised up Jesus our Lord from the dead;” (Romans 4:24)
B. The Morality of:
1. Religion is when a sinner regulates, or eliminates from his or her lifestyle, that which he or she determines to be sin. When they fail, they start the life of works over.
Salvation is when a saint is lead by the Spirit of God to shun the very appearance of evil. When a saint fails, they have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous. (I John 2:1)
C. The Results of:
1. Religion
a. A sinner continues to struggle with sin.
(1) A gambler will continue to gamble even though his credit card is maxed and his checking account overdrawn.
(2) A drunkard will continue to drink, even though he knows his family has no food on the table at home.
(3) A drug addict will continue to stick a dirty needle in his veins knowing he might get AIDS [or hepatitis].
(4) A thief will continue to steal knowing he will get caught someday and face prison. (Niles Lloyd from sermoncentral.com)
b. A sinner is overcome by the trials and temptations of the world.
2. Salvation
a. A born again Christian has victory over the power of sin.
Romans 6:18 “Being then made free from sin, ye became the servants of
righteousness.”
I John 3:9 “Whosoever is born of God doth not commit sin; for his seed remaineth in him: and he cannot sin, because he is born of God.”
b. Victory will replace vices.
Ephesians 4:28 “Let him that stole steal no more: but rather let him labor, working with his hands the thing which is good, that he may have to give to him that needeth.”
William P. Barker tells of a machinist at Ford Motor Company in Detroit who became a Christian. He responded to the invitation and was baptized. As the Holy Spirit began renewing this man he became convicted of his need to make restitution for some parts and tools he had stolen from the company prior to becoming a Christian. So the next morning he brought all the tools and parts back to his employer. He explained how he had just been baptized and asked for his foreman’s forgiveness. This was such an amazing turn of events that Mr. Ford, who was visiting a plant in Europe at the time, was cabled with the details of the matter and asked his response. Mr. Ford immediately returned a cable with his decision: “Dam up the Detroit River, and baptize the entire city.”
c. The born again Christian overcomes the world.
I John 5:4 “For whatsoever is born of God overcometh the world: and this is the victory that overcometh the world, even our faith. 5:5 Who is he that overcometh the world, but he that believeth that Jesus is the Son of God?”
D. The Acquisition of:
1. Religion requires you to:
a. Turn over a new leaf.
b. Make a New Year’s resolution.
c. Join a church.
d. Be baptized.
e. Go to a Christian college and study for the ministry.
f. Pray, fast, tithe, adopt a holy lifestyle.
Luke 18:9 - 14 READ
2. Salvation requires you to:
a. Fall down on your knees and admit that you are a worthless sinner.
b. Repent: Admit, confess, and forsake your sins.
c. Accept the work that Christ has done on Calvary.
d. Believe that Jesus Christ, is the Son of God, who
(1) died in your place
(2) arose from the grave and presented himself to God the Father as the sinless sacrifice to substitute for you sins
(3) will impute righteousness to you
Ye must be born again!!!!!!!
John 1:12 “But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name: 1:13 Which were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.”
I John 2:29 “If ye know that he is righteous, ye know that every one that doeth righteousness is born of him.”
I John 4:7 “Beloved, let us love one another: for love is of God; and every one that loveth is born of God, and knoweth God. 4:8 He that loveth not knoweth not God; for God is love.”
I John 5:1 “Whosoever believeth that Jesus is the Christ is born of God: and every one that loveth him that begat loveth him also that is begotten of him.”
I John 5:18 “We know that whosoever is born of God sinneth not; but he that is begotten of God keepeth himself, and that wicked one toucheth him not.”
