beginning your journey......

The New Birth

Now there was a man of the Pharisees, named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews;

this man came to Jesus by night and said to Him, "Rabbi, we know that You have come from God as a teacher; for no one can do these signs that You do unless God is with him."

Jesus answered and said to him, "Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God." - John 3:1-3

Nicodemus was probably one of the first people recorded to ask this question. Why must I be born again? What must I do to be born again? What does it mean to be born again? What indeed......

Our eternal, loving God has preplanned everything for us. He has provided the answer to those questions, through His only Son. Our Father provided mankind a solution to the problem of sin. Sin has separated us from our God. What is sin? Sin is rebellion against God. Sin is anything done that is immoral or wrong and the ten commandments provide a starting point for the definition of what is immoral or wrong. Contrary to popular opinion there are no little white lies, it is all sin. There are no little or big sins, anything that is immoral or wrong is sin.

Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden brought sin into the world by the eating of the forbidden fruit. This brought sin into the world and mankind as a whole, down through the ages, has been born into sin and separated from God spiritually.

Therefore, just as through one man (Adam) sin entered into the world, and death through sin, and so death spread to all men, because all sinned-- Romans 5:12

The result of sin was spiritual death, first for Adam and Eve and through them all mankind. What does it mean to be born again? It means that when a person is born again, that person is no longer spiritually dead, but spiritually alive. The penalty of disobedience to God's law and morality is spiritual death and separation from God, but now after being born again that person is alive spiritually.

For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord. -Romans 6:23

The wonder of our God and in His incomprehensible way, He has provided a way out of our spiritual death. This way out is free and for all who accept it. This way out is what gives us our spiritual rebirth. Mankind has sinned and God Himself provides the restitution. How can anyone refuse such a gift?

For Christ also died for sins once for all, the just for the unjust, so that He might bring us to God, having been put to death in the flesh, but made alive in the spirit. -1Peter 3:18

What was the restitution that God paid, what did He do to provide the means to bring us out of eternal spiritual death and bring us to eternal spiritual life? What indeed........