Born Again? I'm Starting To Get It
"He saved us, not because of the righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy. He washed away our sins, giving us a new birth and new life through the Holy Spirit." (Paul's letter to) Titus 3:5 (written in the first century)
Born Again Series
If you do not get it, then you need to read the first part of this message -- "Born Again? I Don't Get It".
Now if you want to take the next step, then let's continue below.
Prelude
Science teaches us that there are some things that are just beyond our capacity to understand much less explain. One such thing is something happening out of nothing.
Before everything begun, there would have been something eternal -- the Source, the Supreme Being, Prime Mover, Intelligent Designer, or whatever else people call Him. We could call Him God.
The Creator God made (spoken) into existence what we see existing -- the sky, the sun, the moon, the stars, the earth, land, plants, animals and humankind.
The bible teaches us that God made humankind in His own image -- eternal. Humans die like everything else. How so? The bible also has something on that (this will be a point to talk about in succeeding portions of this series).
The Beginning
This "start" of things, that happened a long long time in the past. But just about every tribe in every civilization anywhere in the world throughout recorded history had a belief in a Source -- a God of the universe. Each one had just no real idea who He was or what He was really like.
Fast forward to a little over 20 centuries ago...
City of Bethlehem, First Century
A baby was born in Bethlehem, in a manger. Shepherds visited Him. Later wise men from the East also paid Him a visit. They presented Him with gifts fit for a King. The baby's parents brought the baby to Egypt to escape death.
They came back to Judea and settled in Nazareth. In this area they lived a quiet life until the time when He (at about 30 years of age) started teaching about the Kingdom of God.
The man we now know as Jesus of Nazareth, is that man, born of Mary, cousin of Elizabeth.
For three years, Jesus went up and down the Judean countryside with His followers. The written accounts of these events were recorded by those closest to Him -- Mark, Matthew, Luke and John. Luke also wrote an account of what happened after Jesus was taken up to heaven (after He laid down His life, was buried and rose back from the grave).
Gospel
Together, these books form the gospels (or the Good News) and the Book of Acts.
John, James and Peter, also wrote letters to those who became followers of the Jesus (the Way) in the first century, along with many other letters written by Paul who was "born again" in a Damascus Road experience after Jesus came back from the grave.
These recorded accounts and letters form the New Testament Bible. This has now been translated to almost every language and has been taught to every tribe, every nation for the last 2,000 years.
One Step At A Time
The gospels tell us (who weren't there) about the story of Jesus -- the One written and prophesied about for hundreds of years before He was even born. These were recorded in the Old Testament Bible and Old Jewish traditions.
First century Roman historians wrote about Jesus and His followers (among them Senator Tacitus, Governor Pliny the Younger, and Suetonius).
Son of God
Jesus claim to be the Son of God -- Creator of heaven and earth. He is the Word of God who became flesh. 300 prophecies written about Him long before He was born was fulfilled through His birth, His life, death and resurrection. And He backed up who He said He was.
He came to be that missing piece to answer humankind's question of who God is. He also came as a ransom paid to purchase our freedom and to give us kinship into our heavenly kingdom and eternal life with Our Heavenly Father.
Today, one has to read, listen or be taught the gospels to start to understand.
Faith
The Apostle Paul (one of the first persecutors of Jesus) in writing to the first believers in Rome said "So faith comes from hearing, that is, hearing the Good News about Christ."
It is like a seed planted in your heart, and it will take some time to grow and mature and bear fruit.
It cannot be forced or faked but will change you from the inside out (like it did the first followers of Jesus).
And it starts with a rebirth, a regeneration of the spirit (that eternal part of us) -- being "born-again".
How To Be Born Again?
It is not a complicated process, even a little child would understand it. In fact, Jesus said "unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of God".
Childlike Faith
Childlike faith is all we need. Now this is not blind faith. No, but rather like a child, a little boy or a little girl, who (by natural instinct) trusts, and (mostly) obeys their father or mother.
Jesus taught us that our Creator is our Father -- the eternal God of the universe. Now after becoming estranged or separated from Him, and not knowing who we are... Jesus came to re-establish that Father-son or Father-daughter relationship, and brotherhood and sisterhood with one another through Him.
How? By standing on the words He has taught, believing Him and cultivating that longing and hunger to learn more, day by day.
Lost, Need Help
And it starts with us accepting we do not know everything (with our human limitations, we never can), and that we are lost, we do not know who we really are, where we came from, where we're going and why we are here for.
Then understanding that we have missed the mark and realizing that there is a void in our heart that couldn't be filled or satisfied by anything else in this perishing (non-eternal) world.
We need help.
And God has given Him to us -- a living, breathing answer. And He lived among us, He is Jesus of Nazareth. We can put our trust in Him. We could place our faith in His words. And finally we could have access to our Heavenly Father in His Name and through His Spirit (by being born-again).
Do you want to (be born again)?
[Have You Been Born Again? Read the Book of John, all the way through]
If you do not get it, then you need to read the first part of this message -- "Born Again? I Don't Get It".
Now if you want to take the next step, then let's continue below.
Prelude
Science teaches us that there are some things that are just beyond our capacity to understand much less explain. One such thing is something happening out of nothing.
Before everything begun, there would have been something eternal -- the Source, the Supreme Being, Prime Mover, Intelligent Designer, or whatever else people call Him. We could call Him God.
The Creator God made (spoken) into existence what we see existing -- the sky, the sun, the moon, the stars, the earth, land, plants, animals and humankind.
The bible teaches us that God made humankind in His own image -- eternal. Humans die like everything else. How so? The bible also has something on that (this will be a point to talk about in succeeding portions of this series).
The Beginning
This "start" of things, that happened a long long time in the past. But just about every tribe in every civilization anywhere in the world throughout recorded history had a belief in a Source -- a God of the universe. Each one had just no real idea who He was or what He was really like.
Fast forward to a little over 20 centuries ago...
City of Bethlehem, First Century
A baby was born in Bethlehem, in a manger. Shepherds visited Him. Later wise men from the East also paid Him a visit. They presented Him with gifts fit for a King. The baby's parents brought the baby to Egypt to escape death.
They came back to Judea and settled in Nazareth. In this area they lived a quiet life until the time when He (at about 30 years of age) started teaching about the Kingdom of God.
The man we now know as Jesus of Nazareth, is that man, born of Mary, cousin of Elizabeth.
For three years, Jesus went up and down the Judean countryside with His followers. The written accounts of these events were recorded by those closest to Him -- Mark, Matthew, Luke and John. Luke also wrote an account of what happened after Jesus was taken up to heaven (after He laid down His life, was buried and rose back from the grave).
Gospel
Together, these books form the gospels (or the Good News) and the Book of Acts.
John, James and Peter, also wrote letters to those who became followers of the Jesus (the Way) in the first century, along with many other letters written by Paul who was "born again" in a Damascus Road experience after Jesus came back from the grave.
These recorded accounts and letters form the New Testament Bible. This has now been translated to almost every language and has been taught to every tribe, every nation for the last 2,000 years.
One Step At A Time
The gospels tell us (who weren't there) about the story of Jesus -- the One written and prophesied about for hundreds of years before He was even born. These were recorded in the Old Testament Bible and Old Jewish traditions.
First century Roman historians wrote about Jesus and His followers (among them Senator Tacitus, Governor Pliny the Younger, and Suetonius).
Son of God
Jesus claim to be the Son of God -- Creator of heaven and earth. He is the Word of God who became flesh. 300 prophecies written about Him long before He was born was fulfilled through His birth, His life, death and resurrection. And He backed up who He said He was.
He came to be that missing piece to answer humankind's question of who God is. He also came as a ransom paid to purchase our freedom and to give us kinship into our heavenly kingdom and eternal life with Our Heavenly Father.
Today, one has to read, listen or be taught the gospels to start to understand.
Faith
The Apostle Paul (one of the first persecutors of Jesus) in writing to the first believers in Rome said "So faith comes from hearing, that is, hearing the Good News about Christ."
It is like a seed planted in your heart, and it will take some time to grow and mature and bear fruit.
It cannot be forced or faked but will change you from the inside out (like it did the first followers of Jesus).
And it starts with a rebirth, a regeneration of the spirit (that eternal part of us) -- being "born-again".
How To Be Born Again?
It is not a complicated process, even a little child would understand it. In fact, Jesus said "unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of God".
Childlike Faith
Childlike faith is all we need. Now this is not blind faith. No, but rather like a child, a little boy or a little girl, who (by natural instinct) trusts, and (mostly) obeys their father or mother.
Jesus taught us that our Creator is our Father -- the eternal God of the universe. Now after becoming estranged or separated from Him, and not knowing who we are... Jesus came to re-establish that Father-son or Father-daughter relationship, and brotherhood and sisterhood with one another through Him.
How? By standing on the words He has taught, believing Him and cultivating that longing and hunger to learn more, day by day.
Lost, Need Help
And it starts with us accepting we do not know everything (with our human limitations, we never can), and that we are lost, we do not know who we really are, where we came from, where we're going and why we are here for.
Then understanding that we have missed the mark and realizing that there is a void in our heart that couldn't be filled or satisfied by anything else in this perishing (non-eternal) world.
We need help.
And God has given Him to us -- a living, breathing answer. And He lived among us, He is Jesus of Nazareth. We can put our trust in Him. We could place our faith in His words. And finally we could have access to our Heavenly Father in His Name and through His Spirit (by being born-again).
Do you want to (be born again)?
A good analogy for being "born again" is the "metamorphosis" of a butterfly from a caterpillar, as it emerges from a chrysalis.
[Have You Been Born Again? Read the Book of John, all the way through]
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