WHAT IT MEANS TO BE BORN AGAIN

The phrase be (Being) Again, can only be found in three places in the whole of the 66 books of the Bible.  Two, from John’s gospel and one from Peter’s epistle.

John 3:3 KJV

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.

John 3:7 KJV

Marvel not that I said unto thee, Ye must be born again.

1 Peter 1:23 KJV

Being born again, not of corruptible seed, but of incorruptible, by the word of God, which liveth and abideth for ever.

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Jesus Christ told Nicodemus that the only way to get into the kingdom of God is by being born again. Nicodemus couldn’t grasp that, and so Jesus Christ had to break it further:
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. John 3:3
Jesus answered, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God. John 3:5

Thus, to be born again is to be born of WATER and of the SPIRIT. Here’s another figurative expression.
Jesus Christ went on by saying,

Clarifying Nicodemus question,

Flesh gives birth to its kind; flesh. So also with the Spirit; spirit.

How can one be born of this Spirit?

John 1:12 KJV

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:

John 1:13 KJV

Which were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.

To be born of this Spirit is by receiving Jesus and believing on his name. This sounds really awkward, right? But Jesus Christ calls this a mystery:

John 3:8 KJV

The wind bloweth where it listeth, and thou hearest the sound thereof, but canst not tell whence it cometh, and whither it goeth: so is every one that is born of the Spirit.

But before Jesus Christ called it a mystery, he said that we shouldn’t be surprised when (not if) he said, “YOU MUST BE BORN AGAIN” John3:7.
Don’t be surprised, it is a MUST; mandatory; obligatory; compulsory. Why?  Because that is the only way to get into the kingdom of God. Understand this, Jesus Christ isn’t forcing anyone to receive him and believe on his name.  No, but this can be likening to this scenario: English Language and Mathematics are WAEC compulsory subjects. Some people hate Mathematics, few people do not attend Mathematics classes at all, because of the fear or hatred they have for that subject. Yet, it’s compulsory in WAEC, it is inevitable. And if you do not attempt the subject or you fail it, you will have to re-sit for it next year.
So it is in the case of Jesus’ statement. It’s the only way (that’s why it is compulsory), to get into the kingdom of God.
Now, back to the theme: BORN AGAIN-BORN OF WATER AND OF THE SPIRIT
What do these mean? First, let’s start with WATER.

Ephesians 5:26 KJV

That he might sanctify and cleanse it with the washing of water by the word. 

Another instance is in John 15:3, which a cross-reference in John 13:10 and 1 Peter 1:22, 23

John 15:3 KJV

Now ye are clean through the word which I have spoken unto you.

John 13:10 KJV

Jesus saith to him, He that is washed needeth not save to wash his feet, but is clean every whit: and ye are clean, but not all.

Now, with all these, we can say assuredly that the WATER is the WORD OF GOD. And the WORD OF GOD is Jesus Christ himself. How do we know this? The Bible said it. And the Bible says, “… in the mouth of two or three witnesses shall every word be established.” 2 Corinthians 13:1. And we are not going to see two or three scriptural verses, but four.

John 1:1 KJV

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.

John 1:2 KJV 

The same was in the beginning with God.

John 1:14 KJV

And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth.

We noticed that the WATER comes before the SPIRIT. This is not an accident but divine. Christ has to be received firstly before the Holy Spirit can be received. The WATER has to clean the heart before the SPIRIT can dwell in. The WATER, which is the WORD OF GOD, has to be heard, before faith may come. Faith is the evidence of things not seen (Hebrews 11:1). This faith is what causes us to believe in an unseen (yet real) God. How does this faith work? By the spirit of God, which also causes our regeneration, our new birth. And remember that Jesus called it mystery.

STEPS ON HOW TO BE BORN AGAIN

STEP ONE: Hearing

Romans 10:14 KJV 

How then shall they call on him in whom they have not believed? and how shall they believe in him of whom they have not heard? and how shall they hear without a preacher?

Romans 10:17 KJV 

So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.

The Word of God has to be preached to the hearer before faith can come.

STEP TWO: Believing

Romans 10:9 KJV

That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved.

Romans 10:10 KJV

For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.

This one comes after hearing, and from this point, the Holy Spirit is at work in that individual, convicting him of his sins and making the unseen God real to him.

STEP THREE: Confession
Acknowledging your sins before God (Romans 3:23).
Forsaking your sins and repenting of them (Acts 3:19).

STEP FOUR: Transformation and Regeneration
This is the final stage, done by the Holy Spirit. And the way he does it, is a mystery. But we can know that he has done it. From the peace and joy that fills our heart.

ASSURANCE OF YOUR SALVATION

1. The Holy Spirit’s restriction (Romans 8:14).
2. The spiritual war between our old carnal flesh and the new spirit man (Galatians 5:17).
3. When the devil brings guilt and accusation before you (Romans 8:1).
4. His Word has said it; we should believe it, for that settles it. Therefore, study the Word of God so that you could get more assurance of your salvation, and confidence in the home eternity.

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