I wrestled just a little bit with the Lord on this one today. It was not a long wrestling match.
We’ve been talking about seeds, pregnancy, and new birth. {you might want to go read the two previous posts of mine before you begin this one if you have not already}
For all the religious jargon that gets tossed around out there and has for years, certain terms and expressions can get lost in the muddy waters of a fallen world where people are in such dire need and looking for a genuine rescuer or savior.
Jesus came into this dark and fallen world…Not to condemn or destroy…but to save and deliver.
He came to rescue a fallen humanity. There was not a righteous one among us as we were All fallen…and All sinners. (Romans 3)
His message was direct and to the point. Repent…the kingdom of heaven is at hand…and unless you are born again, you will not be able to enter.” (Matt 4:17; John 3:3)
When you are the captain of the rescue ship, you get to make the rules. What fool would argue with the One who is your only way of escape?
And what was the root and source of our plight and wretched condition?
Sin was and is. All had/have sinned. So if sin was the issue that got us into this mess, and God sent a rescuer to deliver us, it would seem to me that He would want to deal with this problem head on.
And He did.
You probably have tangled with your computer at home, office, or even your phone at one time or anther and thought the thing was possessed…and after getting on the phone with the IT guy, you know what you are told to do 99 out of 100 times when you call? Reboot the device.
Ha. Guess what Jesus is telling us in ‘modern’ terminology? Time to reboot. Time to be ‘born again’.
As I mentioned yesterday, if you thought natural human birth was a miracle, you have not seen anything yet. The angels have been peering over the banisters of heaven for ages to watch what God had planned.
And just like the process of natural conception takes place, so it is with spiritual conception and new birth. It just doesn’t happen because you go through some motions. The conditions need to be …right. “Not everyone who says ‘Lord, Lord’,…enters in.
Religion has for centuries offered a diluted ‘formula’ that produces a ‘form of godliness’ but denies the power. (2 Tim 3:5)
Sadly, we have become all too comfortable and familiar with this ‘form of godliness’ and since that is what everyone else around us seems to be content with, we settled as well. Seems to me that Jesus talked about a wide path that the majority of crowds were journeying down that led to a less than desirable ending…but that the true path to everlasting life was narrower and not nearly as many people traveled on it.
We are also warned in scripture about widespread deception…that would carry many people away to destruction.
Yes, destruction. Jesus warned that ‘many’ would come in His Name and deceive many. Can’t say He didn’t warn us now, can we? (Matt 24)
Deception is such a tragic thing because deceived people don’t know they are deceived. And let's not forget that deception is always woven around a thread of 'truth', which is what makes it so deceiving.
So continuing along the line of new birth and pregnancy, let me ask you this: Have you ever read or heard of or maybe even known of a case personally, where a woman, not in her right mind, was convinced that she was pregnant, but was not?
Often times, that story ended up with a really bad ending, not only for them but for other innocent people.
As I shared yesterday, when conception truly takes place, many will take a pregnancy test. I even suggested that there was a ‘spiritual pregnancy test’ that Paul encouraged us to take in 2 Cor 13:5 -“Examine yourselves to see whether you are in the faith; test yourselves. Do you not realize that Christ Jesus in in you – unless of course you fail the test? (Also see Rom 8:10)
Are you ready for this? Let me state up front, this is going to be like a kick to your stomach. Some will most likely ‘click’ off this post and never return.
Others will sense something rise up inside and immediately refute what I’m going to share. (Remember how the devil comes immediately when the word is sown and we don’t understand it and he snatches it from our heart? Matt 13). Others may get just downright mad at me and label me as a heretic. I can handle it. Not worried about a thing here. Basically it is only because what I am going to share are not my words, but His. And if you think you are mad after you read what I post next, let me tell you now that HE is REALLY mad…that this is not being taught, preached and shared with His sheep on a regular basis.
Let me cut you off mid-sentence when you want to ask: “Wait, are you saying…”
Nope. I’m not saying.
God is.
For example, here are just a few statements in Your bible:
“Whoever has been born of God does not sin, for His seed remains in him; and he cannot sin, because he has been born of God.” ( 1 John 3:9)
“Whoever abides in Him does not sin. Whoever sins has neither seen Him nor known Him.” (1 John 3:6)
“Little children, let no one deceive you. He who practices righteousness is righteous, just as He is righteous. ( 1 John 3:7)
“He who says he abides in Him ought himself also to walk just as He walked.” ( 1 John 2:6)
“ Jesus answered them, ‘Most assuredly, I say to you, whoever commits sin is a slave of sin. And a slave does not abide in the house forever, but a son abides forever. Therefore if the Son makes you free, you shall be free indeed.” (John 8:34-36)
“Shall we continue in sin that grace may abound? Certainly not! How shall we who died to sin live any longer in it?” (Rom 6:1-2)
…. I’ll wait until you stop hyperventilating.
I do believe I saw some birds fly overhead just now to snatch God’s words out of the hearts of some of you who just can’t see it. And I heard the slithering of a serpent whisper in to the ears of others : “Has God really said?…that’s Not what God meant!”
And yet…for some of you, I heard you ponder the same question that Nicodemus and Sarah…and Mary asked within themselves…”How can these things be?”
I will not apologize or shy away from saying what God said. It’s in your bible. You have a few options here.
You can get some scissors and go cut those passages out.
You can get a sharpie pen and blot them out.
You can run to some thick commentary on your shelf and read where somebody told you that is not what those verses meant.
You can just skim over and not read those anymore and run to your pet doctrine that tells you all is well and Jesus loves you and find security in ‘another gospel’.
Or.
You can take a step back and agree that those (and many other verses) are in your bible and God must have put them in there for a reason. I don’t know about you, but if God is saying we can be set free…completely…from all sin…I want to know more.
I bet there are folks out there who are hurting that need to know this is not only possible for them as well, but it is truth that can and will set them free.
Like the husband who has no control over his anger and berates his family regularly. Like the choir member who is captive to ‘secret sins’ that have tormented them for years and they live in a prison of darkness and despair. Like the young person (as well as old) who are convinced they can never be set free of sexual sins. I could go on and on here.
You don’t have to settle for a lie that has told you “You are always going to sin in this world! …Everybody will.” It’s as if we have bought into a lie that says we all have a few little lingering sins within us and that seems to be ok with everyone.
What does the bible say about a ‘little leaven’? (1 Cor 5:6; Gal 5:9)
This thought occurred to me the other day: “We spend more time excusing our sins than we do overcoming them.”
So let me end this posting this morning with a question & a statement God posed to those like Sarah and Mary and Nicodemus who asked in bewildered sincerity upon hearing such an incredibly outrageous claim…
“Is there anything too hard for the Lord?” & “With God nothing will be impossible!"
Do come back tomorrow.
This really is some Good News!
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