Life Sketches – Be Born Again

There are many people in the world today who, though they have an intellectual knowledge of the truth, are lacking the moral character that will fit them for eternal life.

While Apollos was teaching and preaching in Corinth, the apostle Paul went to the city of Ephesus. (See Acts 19.) At that time, Ephesus was one of the leading commercial cities of the world. It was a harbor city, a center of trade and shipping from all parts of the civilized world. Its streets were filled with people from many lands. Thus the city of Ephesus, like the city of Corinth, presented a favorable missionary field, from which the gospel could be taken to all parts of the world.

Within 20 to 30 years after Jesus ascended to heaven, the gospel had been preached to every creature under heaven. Part of the reason for this success was Paul’s concentrated effort in the large commercial cities where the gospel would be dispersed to all parts of the world.  The Jews had been widely dispersed in all civilized lands and were generally expecting the speedy advent of the Messiah, for while they attended their annual feasts at Jerusalem, some of them had gone to hear John the Baptist preach by the Jordan and heard from him that the time of the Messiah was at hand. On return to their homes they had talked about it and the knowledge of the Messiah was widely dispersed throughout the world at that time.

Jesus had made many promises to His disciples that those who accepted and followed Him would receive the Holy Spirit. He had promised, “John truly baptized with water, but you shall be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from now. You shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth” (Acts 1:5, 8).

While Peter preached on the Day of Pentecost, in the audience were some who had clamored for the crucifixion of Christ. Coming to the conviction of what they had done, they said to Peter, “ ‘What shall we do?’ Then Peter said to them, ‘Repent [change your mind], and let every one of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission [forgiveness] of sins; and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit’ ” (Acts 2:37, last part, 38).

Many were baptized and did receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.

In Ephesus, Paul met twelve brethren who had listened to the preaching of John the Baptist, but didn’t fully understand the gospel perfectly or the gift of the promised Holy Spirit. Paul asked them, “ ‘Did you receive the Holy Spirit when you believed?’ So they said to him, ‘We have not so much as heard whether there is a Holy Spirit.’ And he said to them, ‘Into what then were you baptized?’ ” So they said, ‘Into John’s baptism.’

“Then Paul said, ‘John indeed baptized with a baptism of repentance, saying to the people that they should believe on Him who would come after him, that is, on Christ Jesus’ ” (Acts 19:1, last part–4).  Paul explained to them about Jesus’ mission in this world and how He had suffered a cruel and shameful death. He told how the Lord of life had broken the barriers of the tomb and had arisen on the third day, triumphant over death. This same triumph was promised to all those who believe and follow Him and they would receive the Holy Spirit.

Paul repeated to the twelve the commission that Jesus had given to His disciples: “ ‘Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age’ ” (Matthew 28:19, 20).

By faith these twelve brethren grasped what Paul was teaching them. The Bible says, “When they heard this, they were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus. And when Paul had laid hands on them, the Holy Spirit came upon them, and they spoke with tongues [other languages] and prophesied” (Acts 19:5).

One of the most interesting things in this story is that these twelve men, by cherishing a humble and teachable spirit, gained precious knowledge and a new religious experience they had never had before. Their example presents a lesson of great value to Christians in our age also. There are many claiming to be Christians who make but little progress in their spiritual life because they are too self-sufficient to be learners. They are content with their present knowledge of God’s word, which may be very meager, and make no effort to obtain greater light. Jesus said, “Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you” (Luke 11:9).

Are you a seeker? Are you asking? Are you seeking the Lord and asking for more spiritual truth or do you think you know enough already? Give yourself to God and He will guide you by His divine hand just as Moses was.

You may think of yourself as lowly and ungifted, but if with a loving, trusting heart you obey every intimation of God’s will, then He will give you more and more truth and knowledge. It is not enough to be content with an intellectual knowledge of religious truth. Jesus longs to send His Spirit to work upon the hearts of those who seek Him. Many talk about salvation, but they are not experiencing it. The Bible is so clear about this point. Jesus said to Nicodemus, “Unless you are born of water and of the spirit, there is no chance that you can enter the kingdom of heaven” (John 3:3, 5). Or simply, only those who are born again will see the kingdom of God.

The Holy Spirit works upon the heart creating new emotions, new thoughts, and new feelings. Jesus spoke of it as a new birth. The life giving power of the Holy Spirit, proceeding from Christ and imparted to every disciple, pervades the soul and changes the motives and the affections. This affects even the most secret thoughts and brings forth fruit in holy deeds. Referring to the Holy Spirit, Jesus told Nicodemus that it is like the wind. You see the results, but you can’t actually see the wind itself (verse 8).

In the same way, the operations of the Holy Spirit upon the heart cannot be seen with human eye, but the results can be seen. We are sustained both physically and spiritually through the blessings that God places within our reach as we take and receive them. Are you watching? Are you praying? Are you studying God’s word and giving heed to the instructions that you see there or just stumbling along without seeking for an experience in the Holy Spirit that would result in a holy life? The Holy Spirit brings to each believer an experience in “… holiness, without which no one will see the Lord” (Hebrews 12:14).

God’s children who are living just before the close of the age (world KJV) are described as those who have the testimony of Jesus Christ and keep God’s commandments. Revelation 14:12 says, “Here is the patience of the saints; here are those who keep the commandments of God and the faith of Jesus.” There are many who believe they can be saved while in transgression of God’s law but John specifically says in Revelation that the saints will be keeping the commandments of God.

In His sermon on the mount, Jesus said, “Not everyone that says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven. Many will say to Me in that day, ‘Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name, cast out demons in Your name, and done many wonders in Your name’ ” (Matthew 7:21, 22)?

These people are not atheists or unbelievers. They claim to be Christians who call Jesus Lord. They tell Him that they have made a mistake. They believe that they are saved because they have prophesied in His name and cast out demons in His name, and have done many miracles in His name. They know that they are saved.

Every time I read this Scripture it causes a tremor to go through my mind and sometimes through my whole body as I realize the terrible shock that these people are going to have.

Jesus says, “And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness’ ” (Matthew 7:23)! Can you imagine? They believe they are saved. They had the spirit, but it wasn’t the right spirit. The Holy Spirit never leads a person to “practice lawlessness” by breaking the law of God.

Paul says, “The mystery of lawlessness is already at work; only He who now restrains will do so until He is taken out of the way. And then the lawless one will be revealed, whom the Lord will consume with the breath of His mouth and destroy with the brightness of His coming. The coming of the lawless one is according to the working of Satan, with all power, signs, and lying wonders, and with all unrighteous deception among those who perish, because they did not receive the love of the truth, that they might be saved” (2 Thessalonians 2:7–10).

These “protesters” are deceived because they did not receive the love of the truth. It is not enough to have an intellectual knowledge of the truth. You must also love it and choose to follow and obey it so you can receive the Holy Spirit and be changed in character. Those who do not love the truth enough to obey it will be sent a strong delusion so that they will believe the lie that you can be saved in sin. They believe that you can go ahead and keep breaking God’s law and God will still save you. The New Testament does not teach that. Paul said in 1 Corinthians 7:19, “Circumcision is nothing and uncircumcision is nothing, but the keeping of the commandments of God is what matters.”

God’s children in the last days will be keeping His commandments. In Paul’s second letter to the Thessalonians, he speaks of a condemnation on those “who did not believe the truth but had pleasure in unrighteousness” (2 Thessalonians 2:12). The Bible says that all unrighteousness is sin (1 John 5:17). “Sin is the transgression of the law” (1 John 3:4 KJV). So in other words, those who find pleasure in sin have pleasure in breaking the law of God.

All must choose their own destiny. There are many people today who have unwittingly violated one of the precepts of God’s law. Look again at Exodus 20:3–17 and ask yourself the question, “Am I keeping God’s commandments or not?” When the understanding is enlightened and the claims of the 4th commandment are urged upon the conscience, then a person sees himself or herself as a sinner in the sight of God. Notice that James 2:10 says that whoever offends in one point of the law is guilty of all. Keeping only 90% of the law is not enough.

We are bidden to search the Scriptures and all who are honest seekers after truth will not plead ignorance of the law as an excuse for transgression. Light is within the reach of all. God’s word is plain, His law is holy, just and good (Romans 7:12). Earnest seekers after truth will repent of their transgression and plead that the atoning blood of Christ may pardon their sins so that they may be converted and live in harmony with all of God’s commandments.

When the Holy Spirit works on the heart, that person will be led to be in harmony with everything that Christ and His apostles have taught.

There’s no promise in the Bible for salvation in sin. The promise of salvation is salvation from sin. The angel said to Joseph, “You shall call His name Jesus, for He shall save His people from their sins” (Matthew 1:21). [Emphasis supplied.] God is going to have a people at the end of the world who are obedient to all His commandments (Revelation 14:12). Revelation 22:14 says, “Blessed are those who do His commandments, that they may have the right to the tree of life, and may enter through the gates into the city.” But then notice what it says in the next verse: “But outside are dogs and sorcerers and sexually immoral (see the seventh commandment) and murderers (see the sixth commandment) and idolaters (see the first and second commandment), and whoever loves and practices a lie (see the ninth commandment)” (verse 15).

When Jesus returns, the whole world is going to be separated into two classes—the saved and the lost. In Matthew 25:31–33, Jesus said, “When the Son of Man comes in His glory, and all the holy angels with Him, then He will sit on the throne of His glory. All the nations will be gathered before Him, and He will separate them one from another, as a shepherd divides his sheep from the goats. And He will set the sheep on His right hand, but the goats on the left.”

The world population will be separated, some to the right hand and some to the left hand. Those on the right will receive the benediction of Christ, the gift of eternal life and will enter into the kingdom. Jesus said, “Then the King will say to those on His right hand, ‘Come, you blessed of My Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world’ ” (verse 34). But to those on the left, He will say, “ ‘Depart … into eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels’ ” (verse 41, literal translation).

Waste no time in choosing life, for soon God will ask, “Has this person been obedient to My law or not?” The decisions that you make day by day are going to determine your eternal destiny. Yield yourself to the work of the Holy Spirit that will transform your character so that your life will come into harmony with God’s word and with His law.

 

(Unless appearing in quoted references or otherwise identified, Bible texts are from the New King James Version.)

Pastor John J. Grosboll is Director of Steps to Life and pastors the Prairie Meadows Church in Wichita, Kansas. He may be contacted by email at: historic@stepstolife.org, or by telephone at: 316-788-5559.