We hear this word “Born Again” being used by Christians. Some people put that tag in their bridal search, some use when they talk in general with fellow believers. Typically ‘Born Again’ refers to someone who has gone thru a spiritual transformation in their faith.
But is this really the mark of a Born Again ? What Bible says about this ?
We read an incident where a rich ruler comes and asks to Jesus, what must I do to inherit eternal life ? After talking to him Jesus says, you still lack one thing. Sell everything and give to poor and you will have treasures in heaven, then come follow me. The disciples were astonished and asked Jesus “Who then can be saved ? ”. Read Luke 18-30 to get a full detailed view of incident. Given here some excerpts of verses for the context of this writing..
Luke 18:18,22-23,26,28 'A certain ruler asked him, “Good teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?” When Jesus heard this, he said to him, “You still lack one thing. Sell everything you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me.” When he heard this, he became very sad, because he was very wealthy. Those who heard this asked, “Who then can be saved?” Peter said to him, “We have left all we had to follow you!”'
Jesus replied this to his disciples
Luke 18:29-30 ' “Truly I tell you,” Jesus said to them, “no one who has left home or wife or brothers or sisters or parents or children for the sake of the kingdom of God will fail to receive many times as much in this age, and in the age to come eternal life.”'
When we are Born Again - We leave our old life that was filled with pleasures of the world to follow and live a life for Jesus. Promise to the born again is said by Jesus Luke 18:29-30
So as a new believer and born again there is enthusiasm to follow Jesus as he has touched you in a situation in life or cured a illness or done a miracle or any thing that you benefited you from God’s touch. the outcome of this can be a spiritual blessing or material blessing or a combination of both. But that spirit starts to mellow down after few months / years and slowly backslide to our old ways.. still many call them with the tag of Born again even after the zeal for God not being there..
Born Again in God’s Love
1 John 4:7-8 'Dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God. Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love. '
The first mark of a born again is to Love “Everyone who loves has been “born of God” and knows God”
The love we have after born again comes from God “for love comes from God” . Our own self loves only us, it’s self centred. Never loves others.
This love for God full-fills his 1st Commandment that he said in Matthew 22, Jesus sums up the 2 commandments in his talk on Love - Matthew 22:36-38,40 '“Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the Law?” Jesus replied: “ ‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’ This is the first and greatest commandment. All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.”
Love for God plays a critical role to have this zeal run for longer time, it also plays a critical role to have a fear for God.
But Jesus goes one step to say how to Love in his first Commandment Love God with our heart, soul and mind- Matthew 22:37 Jesus replied: “ ‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’
When we love God with our heart - We long to hear from him with the heart out of Love for God, once you have this, next what you do you hear his love thru the Word of God.
The Word of God strengthens the Love we have for God
The Love matures when we speak to God (Prayers) and we hear his voice. From the prayers we have the Peace of God, it refreshes our soul that we have no more condemnation of sin, this makes us Love God.
The Holy Spirit helps give us the feeling of 1st love of husband and wife 1 John 4:13-14 'This is how we know that we live in him and he in us: He has given us of his Spirit. And we have seen and testify that the Father has sent his Son to be the Savior of the world.
When we love, the soul convicts us of the sins and makes our life live a life pleasing to God. Love of God does not condemn, it convicts the person of their sins and remove the sins from his life.
Love turns to fullness of God
1 John 4:10-11 'This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins. Dear friends, since God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. '
The love for God comes from him. He lived a blameless and sinless life but he went to cross like a lamb to shed blood for our sins..
Thru his love we get the fullness of God - Ephesians 3:17-19 'so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the Lord’s holy people, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge—that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God. '
What is the fullness of God mean ? We inherit the qualities of love in God. We love the unloving. We love the spiritual gifts more than the earthly gifts, we love the manna from father more than our earthly food, We love to become holy in God as he is holy.. this fullness of God is a work in progress thats done by God every day in our life till the last breath.
The day when we go to heaven he will remove the other impure things of us to make us pure “white as snow” Isaiah 1:18 '“Come now, let us settle the matter,” says the Lord . “Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they are red as crimson, they shall be like wool. '
How do we know we have love for God
This is where when we start we are good, over years passing by we loose the zeal. The word of God gives a clear outline
1 John 4:15-16 If anyone acknowledges that Jesus is the Son of God, God lives in them and they in God. And so we know and rely on the love God has for us. God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in them.
A born again acknowledges “Jesus is the Son of God” there is no shying to say what God has done in your life..
There is a relationship between God and the new born, like how a parent / child relationship “God lives in them and they in God”
When you Love God - You obey him. The Word convicts us to obey him. Makes our soul and heart better every day. Like how a obedient child listens to his father.
The Love for the world is gone, every thing is secondary compared to God’s love, you give God the first priority than any thing else.. You don’t work for two masters.. Matthew 6:24 ' “No one can serve two masters. Either you will hate the one and love the other, or you will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and money.'
He gives us Grace to overcome sin - This is given to us out of his love for us. Romans 5:18-21 'Consequently, just as one trespass resulted in condemnation for all people, so also one righteous act resulted in justification and life for all people. For just as through the disobedience of the one man the many were made sinners, so also through the obedience of the one man the many will be made righteous. The law was brought in so that the trespass might increase. But where sin increased, grace increased all the more, so that, just as sin reigned in death, so also grace might reign through righteousness to bring eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.'
You approach the throne of Grace to ensure the grace given to you was out of his precious work in Cross, you approach God with this attitude Hebrews 4:16 Let us then approach God’s throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.
We are perfected in his Grace to make us better and we have the confidence to see Jesus in the day of Judgement, where we are like Jesus 1 John 4:17 This is how love is made complete among us so that we will have confidence on the day of judgment: In this world we are like Jesus.
Self Examine
Revelation 2:4-5 ' Yet I hold this against you: You have forsaken the love you had at first. Consider how far you have fallen! Repent and do the things you did at first. If you do not repent, I will come to you and remove your lampstand from its place. '
Don’t forget the first Love we have had with Jesus, it has to be the same after many years of walking.
When we fall of the Love of God, we are like the church of Ephesians who loved God but have backslides further..
Only repentance in him can bring us back. Acts 2:38 Peter replied, “Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.
Ask God to examine you to show if you have this first love of born again in you daily.. Many times the love of world can make us back slide.. Thats why washing in his blood daily make us retain this love for ever.
Remember God's love does not change, it's our love to God thats lost. Nothing can separate his love for us Romans 8:38-39 'For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.'
Don’t assume you are Born again ask God to examine you and confirm you if you are really born again like how David asked God Psalms 26:2 Test me, Lord , and try me, examine my heart and my mind;