Reborn Again

Reborn: having new or stronger religious beliefs, regenerated or revived. -(Miriam-Webster Dictionary)





(After Ted implores the citizens of Thneedville to change their ways, the town agrees to plant a seed and start anew. - from The Lorax)

Nicodemus came to Jesus sometime in middle of the night. Was possessed him to do this? Was it because it was also a dark night in his soul? Maybe, sometime in the quiet of the night, when a person has time to really think deeply about such things; he'd begun to question what he had been taught since childhood.

What if his religion wasn't working for him anymore? He longed for a deeper and warmer relationship with God. He had heard about Jesus and had respect for him. Now, upon seeing Jesus in the shadows of the oil lamps, he addressed him as rabbi--no mean title for a Jew.

What Jesus shared with Nicodemus seemed impossible. "You must be born again." (John 3:7) How can this even be possible? Can a man return to his mother's womb and be reborn? "No," says Jesus, "you must be reborn in the spirit." Nicodemus went off into the dark night, and we never here from him again. Unfortunately, even today, it is easy for people to turn away from these words.

We might say things like: "I'm a church member, why should I be reborn?" "I'm already giving my time and money to the church; why should I the idea of spiritual rebirth a second thought?" Let me suggest what being spiritually reborn can involve. I hope that when we know the promise and the joy of Jesus' invitation we won't turn away from it.

The beginning of a new spiritual life is realized in those moments when you say to yourself: "I give up. I can't fix this relationship on my own. I can't fix my life without help. I need a source of power and strength outside of myself." Maybe a sense of guilt is gripping you. Maybe a feeling of failure is beating you down. Maybe you feel that others don't value you, respect you, or love you. Maybe your self-esteem is shot. Maybe you're doubting beliefs that you've held all of your life.

Wherever your life is crumbling is the right point to say, "God, I give up. You take charge of my life.

Dear friends, the new birth Jesus promises you is not a passing, fleeting moment. I am telling you that dramatic conversions may happen in the climate of emotion. People say that a heavy load has been lifted from their shoulders. But, this isn't the end of it. Conversion that goes the center of our very being and makes us do a complete turnabout is a matter of commitment. And, commitment is a commitment of the will.

Emotion may or may not figure in the experience. However, the important thing is not what you feel, but what you commit yourself to. Therefore, do you need to be reborn again? We all do. The point of conversion comes when you begin to say: "I can't do it alone. I need God's help." And the test of the genuineness of your religious experience is your lasting commitment to him.

Scripture: John 3:3; 1 Peter 1:23; Ephesians 2:8-9; Acts 22:16; Acts 2:38

Prayer: Dear Lord, thou hast promised to regenerate us by water and the Holy Spirit and hast given us forgiveness of all our sins: strengthen us, we beseech thee, with the Holy Spirit, our comforter, and daily increase in us thy manifold gifts of grace. Amen

-special thanks to R.Ralph Nichols

May God bless you always!

Amy Lynn