The Joy of Being Born Again

Devotional Reading: Jesus answered and said unto him, Art thou a master of Israel, and knowest not these things? John 3:10 KJV

Nicodemus was a highly educated man in religious matters, yet he didn’t have the slightest idea what Jesus was talking about when Jesus told him, “Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God” (v. 3).

Nicodemus’ relationship with God was purely academic He knew a lot about God, but he didn’t personally know God. Being the Son of God, Jesus had a uniquely intimate relationship with the Father that intrigued Nicodemus. He sought to understand it, and Jesus told him that this same kind of relationship was available to him through being “born again.”

Of course, Nicodemus asked in verse four, “How can a man be born when he is old? can he enter the second time into his mother’s womb, and be born?” Jesus explained that being one with God spiritually happens only when a person’s spirit is reborn and regenerated by the indwelling power of the Holy Spirit. He said, “Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God. That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit” (vv. 5,6).

The number-one thing that sets Christianity apart from religion is the born again experience. We don’t just have a sure way to get to heaven; we have been born from above. We have God’s Holy Spirit living in our spirits, and we are in constant communion with the Father, Jesus, and the Holy Spirit. Our eternal life is not just after our physical bodies die; it is the quality of life and spiritual blessing that we live in from the moment we are born again.

Prayer and Confession
I’m glad I am saved. I rejoice in this truth that I have a Father who will never leave me.

Further Reading: John 3:16, 1Peter 1:23
Reading through the Epistles: 1Corinthians 4-6