Summary: To be born-again is an act of faith from realizing our human weakness and being convicted of our profound sin against God. He has taken away the fear of condemnation and has provided a once and for all sacrifice through the atonement of His Son Jesus Christ, making provision for all who are willing to freely approach His mercy seat.
When we are drawn to God by the Holy Spirit and convicted of sin, we can repent and receive new life in the Spirit by His mercy and grace. We then are to “go and sin no more” (John 8:11). The Holy Spirit empowers us to do this, but until Christ returns, we are to go through the healing and sanctification process of regeneration, changed from the inside-out, being conformed in the image of Christ as salt and light (Matthew 5: 13-16) to those who have yet to come to the true knowledge of His salvation.
What does it mean to be born-again? We are born naturally into the physical world, and what we have experienced of life so far is all we know of it to be. God is Spirit, and in order to worship Him it must be done in Spirit and truth (Jn. 4:23-24). After learning the truth about how all humanity has fallen into sin (Rom. 5:12), which was inherited from Adam’s original sin when he gave in to the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life; and the Lord’s provision of salvation, realizing He is the one true living God, worthy of all glory, honor and praise (Rev. 4:9-11); we can be restored to newness of life in Him and made righteous by receiving the presence of the Holy Spirit to dwell within us (Rom. 3:22-23). To receive the Holy Spirit is to say you desire to worship God alone, to forsake your self-dependent life in exchange to fully depend on His power to live in righteousness and victory (Eph. 4:24; Gal. 2:20) over our sinful disposition.
We were born on this earth spiritually separated from God, dead in our trespasses and sins, for sin cannot dwell with Holiness, evil is not compatible with Holiness (Eph. 2:1-3). Think of how different the physical realm is to the spiritual realm, the visible and invisible. They are like two completely different worlds, like the earth is to the sea. You couldn’t live under the sea unless you became a fish, a whole different compatible creature made to survive in that environment. To no longer live by the influence of immorality but instead live by the power of the Holy Spirit is like stepping out of the physical realm and into new life in the spiritual realm (Rom. 8:5). We are still physically here on the earth, and our body is still subject to temptations, physical death and decay (Matt. 26:41; Rom. 8:10-11; 2 Cor. 4:16). It is our soul that God restores and makes alive when we receive His Spirit to live forever with Him, and we will receive a new glorified body in the future (Phil. 3:20-21). But for now, we can be made spiritually alive in God’s eternal Kingdom (Jn. 11:25-26), in which we are submissive to the Holy Spirit, the source of life and the seal of our salvation (Eph. 1:13) who can live in us and daily bring us through the process of sanctification and renewing our mind of the moral character of God (Eph. 4:23-24). It’s as if we have gained a new sense of awareness of the reality of the spiritual realm, faith to believe even though we can’t see it (1 Peter 1:8).
If we don’t receive the free gift of eternal life from God, then there is nowhere else to go but hell, where there is eternal punishment for those who despise God (Jn. 3:36); how else can we live if we don’t have the True source of life (1 Jn.5:12)? Because right now we are in the process of physically dying, and that started the moment we were born. We inherited this fallen disposition of Adam and Eve when they disobeyed God and suffered the consequence of dying like He said they would (Gen. 2:17). When we take our last breath here on earth, where does our soul go? We are not qualified to enter the gates of Heaven
without being clothed with the Robe of Righteousness, which is the righteousness of Christ in you, the hope of glory (Mat. 22:12; Is. 61:10).
To be Spirit-filled is a whole other way of life, for we have agreed to “die” to our “old self” influenced by our fallen human nature (as if we buried it in the grave) and submit our immoral sinful impulses to the power of the Holy Spirit in us (Rom. 6:4), and by doing so, we can now begin to live eternally as new creations in Christ. Because He has forgiven us of our sin and appeased (satisfied) the wrath of God by taking the punishment that we deserved upon Himself (Rom. 5:8-9; Is. 53:4-6), and because He was sinless (2 Cor. 5:21), He was able to be resurrected from the dead (1 Cor. 15:20; Acts 2:24; Rom. 4:5) and therefore enabled us to stand righteous before God by receiving His righteous presence in us by the filling of the Holy Spirit (Tit. 3:4-7). We have become a new creation in Christ by receiving the righteous presence of Christ in us (2 Cor. 5:17). So, we will no longer pursue to live according to our unregenerate fallen condition which is rebellious and desires to be independent of God as Lord of our life, but rather we can now live in peace with God by depending on the guidance and inspiration of the Spirit of Christ who lives in us when we become born-again (Col. 1:10-11).
Our new life in Christ starts at that moment of our agreement to accept Him as our Lord and Savior here on earth. It’s as if we are starting life all over again only this time by the power of the Holy Spirit; it’s like being born a second time, into the invisible kingdom of God, which is why it is called being “born-again” (Jn. 3:3). We have become reconciled, renewed and restored to the source and giver of life by repenting of our sin and desiring to glorify God as Lord. A good illustration of this is a butterfly. It starts out as a caterpillar, bound to the earth, goes through metamorphosis in its cocoon, and then emerges as a whole different insect, given new wings and freedom to fly and exist in a completely different realm.
If you are ready to make this commitment to the Lord, I hope you realize you are about to make the most profound, literally life changing decision you will ever make. Here is a brief scriptural review of becoming born-again:
Who sinned?
Romans 3:23 “for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,”
When the Original Sin took place:
Genesis 3:11 “And He said, “Who told you that you were naked? Have you eaten from the tree of which I commanded you that you should not eat?”
The result of Adam’s sin and how it affected us:
Romans 5:12-14 “Therefore, just as through one man sin entered the world, and death through sin, and thus death spread to all men, because all sinned—13 (For until the law sin was in the world, but sin is not imputed when there is no law. 14 Nevertheless death reigned from Adam to Moses, even over those who had not sinned according to the likeness of the transgression of Adam, who is a type of Him who was to come.)”
1 John 5:19 “We know that we are of God, and the whole world lies under the sway of the wicked one.” (Satan became our master.)
Romans 8:6-8 “For to be carnally minded is death, but to be spiritually minded is life and peace. Because the carnal mind is enmity against God; for it is not subject to the law of God, nor indeed can be.” (There is a difference between human standards and God’s standards.)
2 Corinthians 4:4 “whose minds the god of this age has blinded, who do not believe, lest the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine on them.” (We became blinded of God’s ways.)
God’s provision for our salvation, the promised Messiah:
Genesis 3:15 (God speaking to the serpent) “And I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your seed and her Seed; He shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise His heel.”
1 Peter 1:20 “He indeed was foreordained before the foundation of the world, but was manifest in these last times for you…”
Why we need salvation:
Romans 6:23 “For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.”
Our fallen condition:
Romans 3:10-18 “As it is written: “There is none righteous, no, not one; 11 There is none who understands; There is none who seeks after God. 12 They have all turned aside; They have together become unprofitable; There is none who does good, no, not one.” 13 “Their throat is an open tomb; With their tongues they have practiced deceit”; “The poison of asps is under their lips”; 14 “Whose mouth is full of cursing and bitterness.” 15 “Their feet are swift to shed blood; 16 Destruction and misery are in their ways; 17 And the way of peace they have not known.” 18 “There is no fear of God before their eyes.”
We have fallen from God’s grace and became subject to a new immoral spiritual ruler and immoral behavior:
Ephesians 2:1-3 “And you He made alive, who were dead in trespasses and sins, 2 in which you once walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit who now works in the sons of disobedience, 3 among whom also we all once conducted ourselves in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, just as the others.”
There is only one way to be reconciled back to our heavenly Father:
John 14:6 “Jesus said to him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.”
There is only one method of being reconciled back to our heavenly Father:
John 3:3 “Jesus answered and said to him, “Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.”
We must become born again because because when we were born the first time, we inherited Adam’s sin, who is head of the physical human race, and sin cannot dwell with the holiness of God. When we dedicate our life to Christ who is head of the spiritual human race, the Holy Spirit will cleanse us from all sins, making righteous and therefore restored back to God:
John 3:5-7 “Jesus answered, “Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God. 6 That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. 7 Do not marvel that I said to you, ‘You must be born again.’”
1 Corinthians 15:47-49 “The first man was of the earth, madeof dust; the second Man is the Lord from heaven. 48 As was the man of dust, so also are those who are made of dust; and as is the heavenly Man, so also are those who are heavenly. 49 And as we have borne the image of the man of dust, we shall also bear the image of the heavenly Man.”
When the Holy Spirit convicts us of our sinful human nature, that is great news because that means our great God has finally arrived on the scene to fulfill His promise made in Eden to provide the Messiah who will save us. Knowing God loves us and desires to restore our relationship with Him, we can now recognize our sin fearlessly, and turn away from its control over us; and with joy, look forward to receiving God’s provision and power to live in victory over sin and death:
Matthew 3:1-2 “In those days John the Baptist came preaching in the wilderness of Judea, 2 and saying, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand!”
Here’s what we have to look forward to when we turn away from our sin and turn to being dependent of God:
Acts 3:19-21 “Repent therefore and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, so that times of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord, 20 and that He may send Jesus Christ, who was preached to you before, 21 whom heaven must receive until the times of restoration of all things, which God has spoken by the mouth of all His holy prophets since the world began.”
God’s love is like no other:
Romans 5:8 “But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.”
Why God saved us:
John 3:16 “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.”
Here is what you do if you desire to forsake your sin and worship God, knowing who Jesus is and why He came:
Acts 16:30-31 “And he brought them out and said, ‘Sirs, what must I do to be saved?’ 31 So they said, ‘Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and you will be saved, you and your household.’”
Romans 10:9-11 “If you openly declare that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. 10 For it is by believing in your heart that you are made right with God, and it is by openly declaring your faith that you are saved. 11 As the Scriptures tell us, “Anyone who trusts in him will never be disgraced.” (NLT)
When you make that commitment to the Lord, that is an invitation for the Holy Spirit to now come and abide in your body. Like the wind, you can’t see it but you can see its effects; so with the spirit – you can’t see it but will know it’s there as you grow in the Lord and become sensitive to His voice, and produce the fruit of the Spirit as a result:
John 3:8 “The wind blows where it wishes, and you hear the sound of it, but cannot tell where it comes from and where it goes. So is everyone who is born of the Spirit.”
Galatians 5:22-23 “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness, self-control. Against such there is no law.”
Here is a summary of the born-again experience of what God has done for us:
Titus 3:4-7 “But when the kindness and the love of God our Savior toward man appeared, 5 not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to His mercy He saved us, through the washing of regeneration and renewing of the Holy Spirit, 6 whom He poured out on us abundantly through Jesus Christ our Savior, 7 that having been justified by His grace we should become heirs according to the hope of eternal life.”
We are now in the world but not of it, destined to spend eternity in our heavenly home:
Ephesians 2:5-7 “But God, who is rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, 5 even when we were dead in trespasses, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved), 6 and raised us up together, and made us sit together in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, 7 that in the ages to come He might show the exceeding riches of His grace in His kindness toward us in Christ Jesus.”
Romans 6:14 “For sin shall not have dominion over you, for you are not under law but under grace.”
We are now Royalty, new creations in Christ, children of God:
John 1:12-13 “But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, to those who believe in His name: 13 who were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.”
2 Corinthians 5:17 “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new.”
Until we receive our glorified bodies, the ruler of this temporary fallen world can still tempt you to sin, especially if you are a new Christian. Thankfully, God knows our heart and has a remedy for this:
1 John 1:9 “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.”
It’s important to know that in spite of our shortcomings, our salvation was permanently sealed when we made the initial commitment to worship God alone. We didn’t earn our salvation, so we can’t un-earn it either. It is purely a free gift from God:
Romans 11:29 “For the gifts and the calling of God are irrevocable.”
Romans 8:38-39 “For I am persuaded that neither death nor life, nor angels nor principalities nor powers, nor things present nor things to come, 39 nor height nor depth, nor any other created thing, shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.”
Here is a motivational reminder to keep our eyes focused on our Heavenly Father God, moving us forward every day in the process of sanctification while we remain in this temporary fallen world to testify of His love for us to those who are not yet saved:
Philippians 1:6 “…being confident of this very thing, that He who has begun a good work in you will complete it until the day of Jesus Christ;”
Ephesians 2:8-10 “For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, 9 not of works, lest anyone should boast. 10 For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them.”
1 John 4:11-12 “Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. No one has seen God at any time. If we love one another, God abides in us, and His love has been perfected in us.”
The decision to follow Christ will have no lasting or life changing effect if is not based on the work of the Holy Spirit to convict and enlighten each person of sin, righteousness, and judgment. Only the Holy Spirit has the power to bring people to Christ and enlighten their spiritual senses to the reality of the spiritual kingdom of God (Jn. 16:7-11). The true gospel of Christ is hard to face, and the life He requires us to live, even though it is through His power, is a constant battle between the “old man” (the whole human race in Adam, the old creation in its fallen condition) and our “new man” (the whole body of believers, the whole new creation in our restored, redeemed relationship in Christ) that we now live by faith in the Spirit (Gal. 5:16; Eph. 4:22-24); but our continuous growth in the knowledge of the love of God gives us incentive to “finish the race” until He returns (Rom. 8:12-13; Heb. 12:1-2).
As you pray to God and make your commitment to worship Him, just be your natural and honest self and simply acknowledge in your own words that you are a sinner and no longer desire to live self-sufficiently, separated from Him and subjected to the immoral fallen human nature. Thank Him for His forgiveness and for the salvation provided by His Son Jesus Christ in whom you now desire to make Lord of your life and then receive the presence of the Holy Spirit that will enable you to live by His power of holiness: “Lord, I now receive the Holy Spirit to give me new life and power to live according to Your will.” “Now hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out in our hearts by the Holy Spirit who was given to us.” (Romans 5:5).
You have just received forgiveness that cost the life of God’s only Son, who suffered the punishment that we deserved. As you let this reality sink deep within you, healing starts to take place from all of the wrong you have done and from hurt you have received by others. The more you realize the profoundness and finality of His forgiveness, the less fearful you should become in confessing your sins to Him. This will take a lot of weight off of your shoulders, giving you a sense of indescribable peace; and it will clear your conscience of any lingering guilt, leaving no trace left for the “Accuser” to taunt you with. And what is even more amazing about this experience is that you will find yourself able to forgive others freely as He has forgiven you.
Psalm 51:1-2 “Have mercy upon me, O God, according to Your lovingkindness; according to the multitude of Your tender mercies, blot out my transgressions. 2 Wash me thoroughly from my iniquity, and cleanse me from my sin.
Revelation 12:12 “Then I heard a loud voice saying in heaven, “Now salvation, and strength, and the kingdom of our God, and the power of His Christ have come, for the accuser of our brethren, who accused them before our God day and night, has been cast down.”
After you receive the Holy Spirit, you will be able to sense His still, small voice (like your inner voice) lovingly, gently ministering to you and guiding you in your new life in Christ. The more you understand the Bible, the more you will come to know the ways of God and therefore discern His voice from your own and the devils’ (Jn. 10:27).
Here is an informative website that describes becoming born-again well:
https://www.gotquestions.org/born-again.html