Photo by Slav Romanov
By Mike Chaffin
Jesus answered and said to him, “Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.” John 3:3
It doesn’t matter if you are trying to put together a toy for your child, rebuild an engine, or get to an unfamiliar destination, you have to follow the directions.
In an earlier most referenced verse, John 3:1 (#26 most referenced verse), Nicodemus opened his conversation with Jesus by telling Him he believed He was from God. Jesus cut to the heart of the conversation with our verse.
Jesus gives Nicodemus the heart of the gospel. We must be born again to get to Heaven. It isn’t enough to be a good person. One won’t get there by weekly church attendance, studying the Bible, or even just believing Jesus is the Son of God. We must make a decision of mind, heart and soul and live it out.
Step 1. We understand Jesus died on the cross for our sins. His sacrifice paid for the sins of all who believe that sacrifice was for them.
Step 2. We love Him because He first loved us.
Step 3. We give Him our soul by making Him Lord of our life.
Through belief, asking for forgiveness, and asking Him into our heart, we are born again through the washing and regeneration by the Holy Spirit moving into our mind, heart and soul. The water is fine, come on in!
Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a huge crowd of witnesses to the life of faith, let us strip off every weight that slows us down, especially the sin that so easily trips us up. And let us run with endurance the race God has set before us. 2 We do this by keeping our eyes on Jesus, the champion who initiates and perfects our faith. Because of the joy awaiting him, he endured the cross, disregarding its shame. Now he is seated in the place of honor beside God’s throne. Hebrews 12:1-2
Prayer: Dear Lord, thank you for dying on the cross for my sins. Thank you for sending the Holy Spirit to live in me. Help me to not quench the Spirit. Refill me daily. In Jesus’ name, amen.
* There is a website that conducted a search for Bible verses. They compiled a list of the verses in order of the magnitude of hits they got in their search. Some of these verses qualify as ‘people’s favorites’, while others might be on the list because they are some of the most important and most teachable words of God.
