The New Birth
This week we wrapped up our Wednesday evening study of the doctrine of the new birth. What follows is a summary of that teaching.
The New Birth is a Necessary Birth
All are in Adam and have inherited the same sinful nature and the same sinful standing as Adam: spiritually dead in sin in trespasses. This condition affects all humans in every land and every period of history. The reality of our spiritual death—our separation from God—necessitates that we receive a new birth in order to have new life. Just as sin is universal to mankind, the need for the new birth is also universal. Thankfully, because of the perfect work of Jesus Christ, the new and better Adam who lived without sin and died in the place of sinners, we can be reconciled to God by faith in Christ (Rom 3:9-18; 5:1-2, 12-21)
The new birth, not family background, national heritage, church attendance, serving in ministry, nor anything else is necessary to enter into the kingdom of God. You cannot be born physically into Christianity by being born in a Christian home. Your citizenship in a so-called Christian nation will not make you a Christian. You cannot do enough good deeds to gain access to heaven. You cannot see or enter the kingdom without the new birth. The new birth is a must! (John 3:3, 5, 7)
It is a Sovereign Birth
Only God can produce the new birth. We cannot choose to be born again; God chooses us. Just as we did not contribute to our physical birth, we cannot contribute anything to our spiritual birth.
Remember that all three persons of the Trinity are at work in our salvation. For some of us, we only think of the Holy Spirit when it comes to regeneration. But we must see that the new birth is a sovereign work of the Triune God whereby the Holy Spirit applies the work of Christ according to the will of the Father. Your Heavenly Father, for example, delights in his mercy to cause us to be born again! (1 Pet 1:3; Eph 2:4-7). See the Trinity at work here: Titus 3:4-6; John 5:21; James 1:18.
It is a Spiritual & Supernatural Birth
Whereas our first birth was physical, our second birth must be spiritual. The new birth cannot be manufactured by the will of man or any natural means. The new birth can only be produced supernaturally. The new birth is entirely outside of our hands and entirely in the hands of God! (John 1:12-13)
It is a Bible Birth
The Bible is the instrument of the new birth. God uses the Scripture to unlock the human heart with the message of the gospel! Every Christian's testimony has this in common: the hearing of the gospel. Faith comes by hearing the word of Christ (Rom 10:17). The good news about this (pun intended) for the believer is that the instrument is Scripture, not us. We are weak in faith at times and are sometimes unable to articulate the gospel as clearly as we would like. But God uses a perfect Bible in the hands of imperfect people to save sinners. Get the word into the hands of the people and God will get the word into their hearts. Pray over, plant, and water the Word then leave the rest to God! (1 Peter 1:23; James 1:18)
It is an Instantaneous Birth
The moment one places his faith in Jesus Christ, he is instantly born again. All the rights and privileges of Christianity become the immediate and eternal inheritance of the Christian at the moment of the new birth. (Eph 1:3)
It is a Cleansing Birth
When born again, the sinner is immediately washed in the blood of Jesus Christ, fully cleansed as white as snow. (Acts 15:8-9; Titus 3:5)
It is a Transforming Birth
Each person goes through a genuine transformation when becoming a Christian. The new birth thoroughly transforms the believer in every way. It is an all-encompassing transformation. The desires of the heart, the deeds a Christian does, and the defenses the believer now has against Satan's attacks are evidences that there has been a renewal and transformation of the person. The person's nature is forever changed. Jesus uses the metaphor of fruit trees to illustrate how the new nature results in new fruit. You cannot get thistles from fig trees. (Matt 7:16)
It is a Surgical Birth
God cuts out the old heart, spiritually dead in sin, when he regenerates a sinner and replaces that heart with a new heart of flesh. This metaphor is sometimes described as the circumcision of the heart. God gives the Christian a new heart that is sensitive to God's grace as well as to the struggle against sin. (Eze 36:22-32; Deut 30:6; Rom 2:28-29; Col 2:9-15)
It is an Everlasting Birth
Those who are born again gain eternal life, the promise of dwelling with God in the new creation forever. The new birth cannot come and go; it is an everlasting birth. (1 Pet 1:3-7)
It is a New Birth
Some of us struggle to think of ourselves as entirely new creatures in Christ. Our past haunts us. Our sins shame us. Our struggles sometimes make us feel like we have one foot in the world and one foot in Christ. Dear Christian, if you are in Christ, you are entirely new! The old you is entirely gone! Just as God created the first world and the first man "very good," the Christian is a new creation, brought about by the same creative power and wisdom of God, "created after the likeness of God in true righteousness and holiness." (Eph 4:24) "Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come.” (2 Cor 5:17)
It is a Transferring Birth
The Christian is taken out of one realm and brought into another: from death to life, from the flesh to the Spirit, from Adam to Christ, from darkness to light, from law to grace, from earth to heaven, from sin to righteousness. The new birth transports every believer into a new realm. (John 5:24; 1 Pet 2:9-12; Rom 5:12-21; 6:14-15; 8:5-11; Eph 2:4-6; Col 1:13-14)
It is a Verifiable Birth
Finally, God wants you to know if you have been born again. He does not want you to be in the dark about your standing before him. The gospel is an invitation for all to be born of God into his family. It's our responsibility to turn to Christ by faith but how do you know that you are walking with him? First John is written for this purpose.
"I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God,
that you may know that you have eternal life."
(1 John 5:13)
