You must be born again (Ezekiel 7-9; John 3)

There seem to be lots of ideas as to what it means to be born again. Some see it as an optional extra, as in there are the ordinary Christians and the born again types. In John 3, one of the most religious men of Israel comes to see Jesus, surely if anyone is right with God, it would be a man who has committed his whole life to keeping the rules. And yet, notice the very first thing Jesus says to Nicodemus, “unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God.” (John 3:3).

Jesus does not think that being born again is an optional extra. What does it mean? It means to have a fresh start with God. Imagine I was to say to you that I am going to become a farmer! You may say to me, you need to be born again! In other words, I don’t the first thing about farming, I’d need to start all over. Jesus is saying to the most religious man in Israel, you need a fresh start!

Nicodemus needs a fresh start, and yet it’s something that he should have known from the Old Testament Scripture. Jesus takes him to a time in the wilderness when God’s people had grumbled against him and so God sent poisonous snakes among them (Numbers 21). The people repent of their sin, and cry for mercy, and God provides a way of rescue. Moses is to make a model of a bronze serpent, and it is lifted up on a pole. If anyone is bitten, they are to take God at His Word by looking at this model, and trust that God will give them life.

Jesus says that was a shadow of what He had come to do. The result of our sin is that we deserve to die. In our reading from Ezekiel 9 we see this graphically played out as God judges people for their rebellion. But God is so loving and merciful that He offers a way out. Jesus willingly was lifted up on the cross to die instead of us, so that whoever takes God at His Word and believes that Jesus died in our places will live.

What an amazing truth! And to be born again, means to believe this. To admit that we don’t have a leg to stand on in ourselves, to be sorry for our own sin, even our sin of thinking we are good enough, and to trust that Jesus died in our place. That’s what it means to have a fresh start, to have all your sin washed away and experience a right relationship with God.

Have you experienced that? Our chapter ends by telling us that there are just two groups of people in the world. Those who trust Jesus and those who don’t. Have a look at the way it’s put in John 3:36:

“Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life; whoever does not obey the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God remains on him.”

If you trust in Jesus, you have eternal life! It starts now, you can know a relationship with God that will never end and will get you through the grave. It’s not arrogant for you to say you know you are going to heaven, because it’s not about how good you have been, but about how good Jesus has been for you. But someone will say, “I wish I had your faith.” Notice that the opposite to believe in v36 is not unbelief, but “does not obey”. We are commanded by the Lord Jesus to believe in Him, if we chose not to believe, that’s not a lack of faith, it’s disobedience. I find this helpful whenever doubts come my way, I remind myself that such doubts are disobedient, since Jesus has commanded me to believe!

So will you listen to Jesus’ command to be believe? If you refuse, you will have to pay for your own sin, you are facing God’s wrath (v36), but if you believe, then the most wonderful thing, you are born again, you have eternal life, God loves you that much!