It's time to consider the idea of being born again. In John 3, (as always, if you are reading this, go read the passage to refresh your memory) Nicodemus approached Jesus with a couple questions. Jesus tells him he must be born again in order to see Heaven. This concept confuses Nicodemus because he does not hear the implication of spiritual birth in the comment.
The concept of spiritual birth is astonishing to me. Its as if to say, we are not even truly alive until we allow the Spirit of God to create in us a brand new existence. II Corinthians 5:17-21 says we are actually a new creation when we are in Christ. This is not symbolic or otherwise allegorical. Everything about us is new. One thing we are newly made to be when we are born again is Ambassadors for Christ, pleading - as though God was speaking through us - with the world, imploring them on Christs behalf to be reconciled to God (v. 20)
The call to salvation is a call to ministry. The two are inextricably bound. One cannot truly be said to be born again, that wondrous new creation, without struggling to save as many as possible, lost in the overly twisted world.
II Corinthians 6:4-10 tells how we must approach our role as ministers of God. Let nothing deter or discourage us, but always persevere seeking to do His work.
I'm keeping this one short, but hopefully you find it helpful. The more I explore the role of sharing the faith in the life of the Christian, the more I am convinced the two are inseperable. The Bible truly seems to demonstrate over and over that if a person truly wants to consider themself a follower of Christ, there is no way they can keep quiet about their faith. True Christianity requires crying out to those around us. Only by trying to offer the direction of salvation to our family, friends, neighbors and strangers can we possibly live the full Christian life as Jesus expected us to.
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“Have you been born again?” the Fundamentalist at the door asks the unsuspecting Catholic.
ReplyDeleteYes, they believe in Jesus. And yes, they try to live Christian lives. They probably have some vague awareness that Fundamentalists think being “born again” involves a religious experience or “accepting Jesus as your personal Lord and Savoir.”
The Catholic Church has always held, being “born of water and the Spirit” refers to baptism, and then it follows that being “born again” or “born from above” means being baptized.
Clearly, the context implies that born of “water and the Spirit” refers to baptism. The Evangelist tells us that immediately after talking with Nicodemus, Jesus took his disciples into the wilderness where they baptized people (John 3:22).
Great post, thanks. It doesn't make a lick of sense to keep the good news to ourselves after we've been born again. Jesus commands us to make disciples.
ReplyDeleteTo Mr. Gormley (comment above): You wrote "Clearly, the context implies that born of “water and the Spirit” refers to baptism." That's not necessarily so. "born of water" may very well refer to physical birth from your mother. The amniotic fluid is commonly called water, and this may be what is meant. It would make much more sense in both the immediate context and the whole of Scripture.