Jesus answered and said unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.
John 3:3
Hopefully we can agree that anything Jesus Christ said must be extremely important, especially when we consider the fact that He claimed and proved to be God in the flesh. Whenever we notice Jesus using the two words "verily, verily," we should take serious notice; this is no menial declaration This phrase identifies what He is about to say as being of extreme value. There is no entrance into God's kingdom, into God's heaven, unless a man is born-again. Now, that's serious business that should cause us to be inquisitive. Obviously, the question arises, just as it did with Nicodemus, how can this be? When Adam sinned, he died spiritually. This spiritual death passed on via sin to all of his earthly descendents. Man needs a spritual resurrection, and only God can raise the dead. To be born-again is to be spiritually resurrected to life by God. God has made Himself available in and through Jesus Christ, and has declared there is not other path to glory. The new birth is a literal spiritual birth by which man is resurrected to spiritual life. It's a supernatural, internal change within man's spirit. He then begins a spiritual journey in the process of sanctification, and slowly progresses into the "image and likeness of Christ." Can you say with certainty, "preacher, I know I have been born-again?"
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