John 3:1-21
"You must be born again"
Nicodemus was one of the rulers of Jews, a Pharisee. He comes to our Lord in the night. This shows that already early on in our Lord's ministry that the Pharisee's would not be happy to see one of their own seeking counsel from Jesus. But Nicodemus by a gift of the Holy Spirit knew that Jesus was from God and was trying to understand His teachings.
Jesus explains to Nicodemus that you must be born again. This little statement "born again" separates a many within the Church of Christ today. Is it that you have to believe something or say a certain prayer in order to be "born again"? Martin Luther teaches in the Small Catechism, that we can not believe in Jesus Christ on our own, but the Holy Spirit calls us by the Gospel. We cannot believe so God gives us faith and trust as a gift so that we can see Jesus for all that He has done and we can trust in Him alone and not in any work of ours. What does it mean to be born again and how does one become born again? Let's approach this from the what the Scriptures themselves state that Jesus said regarding this. So,
1. You must be born again or you cannot see the kingdom of God. (John 3:3)
2, Unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God. (John 3:5)
So to be born again means to be born again of water and the Spirit and then you can enter the kingdom of God.
You are born again in the waters of the Sacrament of Holy Baptism. In this mighty Sacrament it is not just water, but water with the Word of God that effects the change in the person. In Baptism, God creates a new heart in you so that you are born again. You have been given by grace that which by nature you can not receive, the gift of everlasting life. It is not that the Sacrament does this, but it is the Word of God (Jesus Christ) that comes to you in this Sacrament. In Baptism you are buried with Christ so that you can rise to newness of life. (Romans 6:1-8) Christ has forgiven your sins and you are now an adopted child of God and made an heir of kingdom. It is not something that you earned by believing or saying the right prayer. It is the gift that is given to you based solely on grace and faith in the perfect life, death and resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ.
Your old man, made after Adam, must die so that new man in Christ can rise. This is what happens in Baptism and it is not just once and done, but daily we come back to our Baptism as we wrestle with sins in our life. We must remember that we have a promise from God Himself that He has given us new life and forgiveness of sins through this Sacrament and remember that you are Baptized child of God and He will never leave on account of His Son Jesus Christ.
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