October 31st, 2004, Sunday Morning
"The Great Discovery"
What it means to be "Born Again"

Guest speaker: Dr. George Harris

OPENING: John 3


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INTRODUCTION: There are things that exist in the world that we do not see but believe in (a definition of faith):

• Issac Newton discovered the law of gravity when apples fell off a tree
  
  
• Albert Einstein discovered the theory of relativity with the advent of nuclear power and the splitting of the atom
  
  
• We cannot see the wind but we feel it, so we believe in and accept it
  
  
• Just because it is unseen doesn't mean it is non-existent

Nicodemus, a Pharisee and ruler of the Jews, met with Jesus to understand what it meant to be "born again"--to believe that which is unseen

• John 3:3: Jesus said plainly, "Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God."
  
  
• John 3:4: Taking Jesus' words literally, Nicodemus asked how a man can enter his mother's womb again
  
  
• To be "Born Again" is to be saved; it means to be first born of the womb (flesh/earthly) and then when you allow God to save you, your spirit is regenerated--hence, born again
  
  
  • When you're born of the womb, your spirit is dead; it must be later regenerated through being saved
    
    
  • To be saved is to be guaranteed entry into Heaven--never to lose that salvation
    
    
  • MISCONCEPTION: "Heaven is for good people, hell is for bad. God's decision of your fate was predetermined at your birth."
    
    
  • TRUTH: Heaven is open to everyone but you must want it (become saved) to enter in

Nicodemus came to understand three great truths:

• #1: WE HAVE A CHOICE (WE DETERMINE OUR ETERNAL FATE):
  
  
  • John 3:14-15 and Numbers 21:8-9: Jesus compares man's freedom of choice to how the people of Israel, under Moses, were saved from fiery serpents
    
    
    • All Israel was destined to die unless they CHOSE to look toward the serpent of brass upon a pole to be physically saved
      
      
    • This is synonymous to Jesus crucified on the cross: we must choose to look to (believe in) Him to be saved
    
    
  • John 3:15-16: To believe in Jesus Christ is enough to be born again (saved)
    
    
    • James 2:17: Doing good deeds and works for others is not required to enter Heaven (as opposed to Catholicism and Jehovah's Witnesses); however, it is required to prove your faith (obedience to God's commandments in the Bible)
  
  
• #2: YOU DISCOVER A NEW (SPIRITUAL) WORLD
  
  
  • All Nicodemus did (as a lost person) was in the physical life (world)--it was all he understood
    
    
  • Being born again means you can now discover and understand (by reading the Bible and interpreting It through church pastor's sermons) the unseen, spiritual world
    
    
    • EXAMPLE: America did not put a man on the moon until it first understood and adapted to the new climate
      
      
    • This is why Nicodemus didn't understand "born again" at first: he was thinking only with regard to the physical
      
      
      • Nicodemus (like lost people) tried to fit Jesus' spiritual truth into a physical framework; incompatible
    
    
  • People do the same today by trying to please God in a "seeing" world through singing, preaching and public displays of charity; but God values the unseen even more: faith, obedience and private displays of charity and integrity

#3: A NEW LIFE (ETERNALLY SAVED)

• Having "eternal life" is not fire insurance from hell because your soul lives forever; therefore, we all have eternal life--it's a question of where do you choose to spend it
  
  
• Eternal life IS when you become saved ("born again") because at that moment, Jesus Christ enters your life, regenerates your spirit and continues to live within you (your body is considered His "temple")
  
  
• #1/3: You begin to understand sin and yourself
  
  
  • Romans 7:10-12: The law doesn't teach you how to be good and perfect (because no one can be, per Isaiah 64:6) but what can cause you to sin
    
    
    • If not for the 10 Commandments, we wouldn't know how bad we are or what our flesh truly is
  
  
• #2/3: But this new life protects us from the condemnation of the law
  
  
  • Romans 8:1-4: If you are "in the Spirit" (saved) then you will continue to sin but it will not be counted against you at Judgment Day
    
    
    • Romans 6:1-2: But it doesn't give you a "blank check" to continue sinning either
  
  
• #3/3: We exchanged condemnation of sin into hell for everlasting life in Heaven
  
  
  • Romans 8:2: And being free from sin means we do not continue in it; rather, we now focus on using our talents/abilities in order to best serve and follow Him until the Rapture

Life in the flesh

• Galatians 5:17 and Romans 8:4-6: The flesh (earthly pleasures) and the spirit oppose each other; they cannot work together--they do not agree on anything
  
  
  • And with that, people are still trying to please God today in the flesh (charity, attending church out of duty vs. love, singing the hymns without passion)
  
  
• 1 John 4:19: God loved us before we learned to love Him; He has made his gift of salvation (becoming saved) available to you
  
  
• To become saved is to join God's family: He is now your Father, you are his Son/Daughter and Brother/Sister to all other saved people in this world

With a new identity (now you're a "born again Christian") comes a new future

• Ephesians 1:18 and John 14:2: Heavenly riches and a mansion built by Christ, Himself, await you; and you can build upon those riches through your obedience to God and service to others while still on earth

CLOSER

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God's "witness protection program:" by being saved, you are guaranteed eternal life with God, forever separated from sin, pain, sadness and Satan

The spiritual world and successful interpretation of the Bible can only be done by being born again (saved)