.  Living Hope Fellowship Church....Sermons by the Pastor 

BORN AGAIN

by Pastor Kevin Badgley

BORN AGAIN

Nicodemus came to talk to Jesus.  John 3:3 says, “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.”  Verse 6 says, “That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit.”

John 3:8 says, “The wind bloweth where it listeth, and thou hearest the sound thereof, but canst not tell whence it cometh, and whither it goeth: so is every one that is born of the Spirit.”

The Pharisees believed in resurrection, angels, and spirits, and devils.  The Pharisees knew the scriptures, and Nicodemus was of this group, but he did not understand about being born again.  Nicodemus knew the Word of God, but when the Word of God Himself manifested, he did not know Him.

In John 3:2 Nicodemus said,   “. . . for no man can do these miracles that thou doest, except God be with him.”  Before he could ask how Jesus did the miracles, Jesus interrupted him and told him he had to be changed.  He started telling him about going from natural carnality into the Spirit.  Nicodemus did not understand the separation between carnality and spirituality.

Jesus was amazed at the ignorance of Nicodemus concerning the things of the Spirit and how to be saved.  The very basis of our salvation is on the fact that we have an experience with God.  You can KNOW to come to an altar and get saved, but that doesn’t save you. You can WANT to get saved in your mind, but if you have no draw or influence by the Spirit of God, it is only head knowledge.  You aren’t born again.

When the Spirit of God convicts you, it makes you feel miserable because you are here and God is way up there.  You become hungry and thirsty for God.  God draws you, and you know you have to have something from God.  Then you can be born again.

The Word of God is our standard for living.  If you lower the standard enough, it takes away discernment between righteousness and wickedness.  It makes a shield for sin.  When you drop the standard of truth for what it takes to walk right and live for God, people compare you to themselves and there is not enough difference for them to make the transition and become born again.  They say they don’t need it, because they already have what you’ve got.

Instead of wrestling with the Word of God, we need to let Him change us.  You have to be born again.  You are different.  You have not lost the potential to sin, but God wants to get us to that place.  God wants us to cease from sin and get to the place we can’t sin.  1 John 3:9 thrills me.  It says, “Whosoever is born of God doth not commit sin; for his seed remaineth in him: and he cannot sin, because he is born of God.”  We have the potential as a child of God to become a son of God and cease from sin.  It allows God to move in your life in a greater fashion than ever before.

We wrestle against our own flesh and blood, and we wrestle against principalities and powers, but if there isn’t a driving force in your soul to go away from sin, I wonder if you are truly born again!  The Spirit of God should be in your soul talking to you, leading you like a shepherd.

Nicodemus was an upright man, and he knew the description of the Messiah who was to come.  Israel looked forward to that day, but not one soul knew who He was UNTIL the Spirit of God revealed it.  You have to have an experience with God to know who God is.

You must have sin revealed also.  For example, drinking booze, smoking, cursing, and carrying on is sin, but you have to confess your sins.  Get these things under the blood of Jesus.  1 John 2:1 says, “. . . we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ. . . .”

1 John 1:9 says, “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.”

He cannot forgive us until we come to God with the fact that we have got problems.  Some people are not born again.  Because they come to church and talk in tongues, or come to the altar and cry, does not make them born again.  Matthew 12:33 says, “. . . the tree is known by his fruit.”  You will know if the fruit is like the vine Jesus Christ.

When you are born again, there are some things you aren’t even going to consider, let alone do, because the Spirit of God moves you inside where you can’t stand sin.  If you have Christ, the devil STINKS to you.  If you are vexed, maybe you need to get a real blood bought salvation experience.  Many of your vexations will leave automatically.

There is only one place for the sinner to get born again.  They have to come to Jesus and get holiness without which no man shall see the Lord!  If you came, but you didn’t get anything, GO AGAIN!  Ask again.  Maybe you need to SEEK.  Maybe you will have to go to KNOCKING.  (See Matthew 7:7.)

A person can have a high position in the church and still go to hell.  Just knowing about the deep things of God does not give you insurance about going to heaven.  You have to have an experience with God and you have to keep that experience fresh or you won’t keep your relationship long.

Are you scarcely saved?  Could be there is a reason for a lot of your troubles.  Are you constantly plagued with thoughts that are contrary to the Word of God?  Are you divisive in your heart about getting around the things of God?  We need a fresh experience with God.  Many act like they want to give up, but they need to pray through.  Job 13:15 says, “Though he slay me, yet will I trust in him. . . .”  Let’s pray through!