Born Again?

The NEW BIRTH is also known as being BORN AGAIN. While the Word of God has been careful in describing the NEW BIRTH as a spiritual birth performed by the Holy Spirit, folks still have some misconceptions concerning it. It would be improper to describe the NEW BIRTH as being “REBORN.” This was Nicodemus’s error in John 3:4, when he said, “How can a man be born when he is old? Can he enter the second time into his mother’s womb, and be born?” One thousand rebirths without the availability of the New Birth would yield the same sad results. This is why the goal of reaching perfection through Hindu reincarnation is an illusory dream. The natural man (the nature which all men receive at birth) is basically self-centered, in a fallen corrupt state, and declared by God to be lost (unimprovable). “Now this I say, brethren, that flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God; neither doth corruption inherit incorruption.” (1 Corinthians 15:50, see also 1 Corinthians 6:9-11) Yes, the natural man can do noble, heroic, charitable, and benevolent deeds, but these all become tainted by pride and can never rise to perfection. The prophet Isaiah declared, “But we are all as an unclean thing, and all our righteousnesses are as filthy rags; and we all do fade as a leaf; and our iniquities, like the wind, have taken us away. (Isaiah 64:6, see also Romans 10:1-4) The first birth places all of us in the family of fallen Adam, but the NEW BIRTH places us in the family of the victorious Christ. In John 1:11-12, we read, “He came unto his own, and his own received him not. 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.” In John 1:13 we are told three things the NEW BIRTH is not, “Which were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.” (1) It is not of blood (flesh & blood). In other words, it is not of natural lineage. (2) It is not of the will of the flesh. It is not by mere abstinence of denying the flesh (asceticism) or the power of one’s will, as Jesus said, “Which of you by taking thought can add one cubit unto his stature?” (Matthew 6:27). (3) Nor is it by the will of man. No man can save you by pronouncing you clean, saved or born again by mere ritual or proclamation, whether he be a guru, holy man, seer, priest or minister. Being BORN from above involves two parties alone: God and the sinner. Jesus said three times in John Chapter 3 that the NEW BIRTH was a necessity. The phrase BORN AGAIN found in the chapter could also be translated ‘BORN FROM ABOVE,’ or “… born of the Spirit” (John 3:8). One essential of the New Birth is that without it you cannot face ETERNITY. Even Heaven could not satisfy the hunger of an insatiable nature. 2 Corinthians 5:17, “Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.” As a poet once said, “Heav’n above is softer blue, Earth around is sweeter green; Something lives in every hue, Christless eyes have never seen.” Dear friend, one of the great tragedies of a suicide is that a person tries to get away from all their emotional distresses, the sufferings that can significantly impact an individual’s mental well-being, only to find that by death they have been made permanent! How can you be BORN AGAIN, you ask? John Chapter 3 and 1 Peter 1:23-25 tells us it is by the Holy Spirit using the Word of God that one gets BORN FROM ABOVE / NEW BIRTH / BORN AGAIN. 1 Peter 1:23-25: “Being born again, not of corruptible seed, but of incorruptible, by the word of God, which liveth and abideth for ever. For all flesh is as grass, and all the glory of man as the flower of grass. The grass withereth, and the flower thereof falleth away: But the word of the Lord endureth for ever. And this is the word which by the gospel is preached unto you.” The promise of God must be believed in the HEART. The HEART (the soul) is the fertile soil, the fertile egg. “For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.” (Romans 10:10) O, I love to hear His voice, Saying, “You belong to Me, You are not your own, With a price you’re bought, And you’re Mine, eternally.” And I love to hear Him say, “I have saved you by My grace.” And when I get to glory it will then be grander still, For I shall see His face. If you are not yet BORN AGAIN, please do not leave this life just as you are right now. Eternity is forever!MDH, September 2026