Becoming Like a ChildPrøve

Being born again “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God.” (John 3:3) Entering God's Kingdom radically changes your life. Hence, Jesus describes this step as a new birth. This new beginning is necessary for every human being. Even a baby must be “born again”. For this new birth is not a repetition of the natural birth process, whereby we start our lives all over again and hope to do better than we did the first time. No, Jesus is talking about a spiritual rebirth that makes us substantially different from the way we were. We have to be “born of God.” And that happens through faith in Jesus Christ (John 1:13; 1 John 5:1). When you are born of God, you are a child of God. Then you carry eternal life within you. You become substantially different from people who do not believe in Jesus Christ. As a child of God, you belong to His family and, therefore, His kingdom. In some people, this new birth happens quite suddenly and is clearly visible. In others, it is a longer process. We cannot understand this in detail. Jesus compares this process with the wind: we cannot tell where the wind comes from or where it goes. But we can hear the wind blowing and notice its effect. Has your life changed? Have you been born again?