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How to be Born Again
And Exactly What Jesus Meant by It!
by Pastor John Hamel
“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.
Nicodemus said unto him, How can a man be born when he is old? Can he enter
the second time into his mother's womb, and be born?” (John 3:3,4)
In the Bible, Jesus told a man named Nicodemus that the only
way for a human being to enter into God’s Kingdom is to be “Born Again”.
Nicodemus responded by asking, “So what do I do? Crawl back into my
Mother’s womb and be born again?” This good man meant no
disrespect. His mind was simply boggled by Jesus’ profound
statement.
Many people today are “blown away” by this idea of being “Born
Again.” I was too, until I actually experienced what Jesus was
talking about. Although God will not tolerate
anyone mocking this work of the Holy Spirit, He understands, respects and accepts sincere human
questioning.
Jesus responded to Nicodemus’ foolish, yet sincere question by
saying, “That which is born of the flesh is flesh: and that which is
born of the Spirit is spirit…” (John 3:6) I would like to
translate Jesus’ explanation into more modern terms as follows.
Jesus was actually saying, “Nick, let me put it to you this
way. The first time you were born, you were born of the flesh.
You entered into the NATURAL, physical world through a natural, physical
door. That door was your Mother’s womb. The second time you are
born, or “Born Again”, you enter into the SPIRIT world through a spiritual
door. That door is Me and only Me.
It’s just that simple.” (John 14:6)
Jesus made this even clearer later when He told His disciples …
“I am the DOOR [into the spirit world]: by Me, if any man enter in, he shall be saved.” (John 10:9) So, no
one should be confused about what it means to be “Born Again”. Jesus
made it easy to understand.
Someone asked, “Does this mean that I have to leave my
Denomination?” Not necessarily. The Denominations of the world
have many Born Again people as members. God will show you where He
wants you to go to Church.
What this does mean, however, is that you must be Born Again to experience
Eternal Life in Heaven.
God is not going to be looking for Denominational ties at the
time of your death. He is going to be checking the “Book of
Life.” If your name is not in it, you’ll be denied access to Heaven.
(Revelation 20:15) If your name is in the “Book of Life,” you’ll
enter into Eternal Blessing. The Bible says, “…at that time thy people
shall be delivered, everyone that shall be found written in the Book!”
(Daniel 12:1) Your name is only recorded in the “Book of Life” if you
are “Born Again.”
The “New Birth” or
being “Born Again” occurs by simply stating, “Jesus, You’re my choice
as Lord and Savior.” (Romans 10:13) It’s simple, yes, yet very, very
profound. God did it this way on purpose. It’s at the very same
moment that you say, “Jesus, You’re my choice” that you become a “new creation” in Christ.
(2Corinthians 5:17) It all happens supernaturally, inside of you. (Luke 17:21)
It really is just
that simple. Why not do it right now and make sure that your name is
recorded in the “Book of Life”? Until you are “Born Again” you have
no assurance of tomorrow. Don’t wait until it’s too late. Mercy
is being offered on this side of the grave only. The Bible says,
“It’s appointed unto man once to die. Immediately after that, he
faces judgment.” (Hebrews 9:27)
Just so I know I’m
making myself clear, I’m going to repeat it again. Mercy is being
offered to you on this side of the grave only. Judgment alone will be
offered on the other side of the grave.
Which Judgment will you face?
Will it be the Judgment of Punishment? Or will it be Almighty God’s Judgment of Reward? The only way to
be ready to face Almighty God on the other side of the grave is to be “Born
Again” before departing planet Earth.
Now you know what
Jesus meant by you must be “BORN AGAIN.”
Now I’m satisfied
that I’ve clearly told you.
Be blessed … John
and Barbara Hamel
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