New Birth

Flesh gives birth to flesh, but the Spirit gives birth to spirit.  John 3:6 (NIV)

We were all born in the flesh.  We are living breathing human beings.  Right from the start we begin to learn how to act and make good decisions.  We use our experience and what we are taught to keep improving ourselves.  We try to make decisions that better our lives.  We choose what kind of person we want to be and how we conduct ourselves.  These choices center on ourselves and this world we live in.  But Jesus presents us with a different birth.  He presents us with a spiritual change.  He talks about being born to life with God?   Is He talking about waking up to new life which has focus, purpose and intention apart from anything we had before?  Is Jesus referring to a new life born into us which is spirit in nature and purpose?  Doe it shift our center from us and our world to God and His realm?

Before we came to this important step towards God, we lived for ourselves.  We made decisions the way the world taught us to.  But now that we hear that we must be born again, can we go on thinking like we did in the old life?  Or would this new birth change everything?

Should we think that the person who is born a second time goes on living for their own desires?  Will a person who is born into the Kingdom of God be making decisions for their own gain?  Or will a person who is actually born again, find themselves with a totally new direction in life?  Will they live with their eyes focused on the world around them, or a New World that is coming into focus?  Will we look to see our problems and situations as we did before?  Or with this new birth, will the passing scenes of this world be seen with eyes looking first to Heaven?  If we are born into the Kingdom of God, will our hearts be tuned to that Kingdom instead of the one that we belonged to before?

We were all born in flesh.  That was our world.  We lived for the goals of that world.  But now some of us have heard and turned to seek a New Birth.  We yearn to be born into a new realm.  We want to be quickened in Spirit.  We want to discover new heights.  We want to know Powers much greater than anything we saw in our realm.  We want to come near to God.  He is Spirit.  Does a birth into THAT realm seem attractive to us?  Are we willing to let go of our old realm to discover this New One?  We have a loving, caring Guide to take us into this new and wonderful territory.  Jesus has sacrificed much to demonstrate His love and good wishes for us.  What are we going to do?  Shall we stay with the world that our first birth brought us into?  Or are we going to pray to be born into an entirely new life?  Are we going to pray to be raised up into faith, hope and grace?  Would we like to soar on the wings of eagles into a great experience of living with, and for our God in Heaven?  Are we going to pray for a spiritual birth?  Would we like to enter a spiritual realm where all is focused upon and directed to God above?

Dear Jesus, we pray to You because You were sent to us from God.  We pray to You because in You we find an opportunity to approach One Who is infinitely greater than anything we could know here on earth.  You call our attention to be born in spirit.  We are willing but scared.  Take our hands.  Lead us through this new birth and into a new life.  Raise us up with You into God and into His Kingdom and realm.  Hold us close, as the discoveries we may make there will make our former life seem so small and meaningless.  Hold us and brace us for all the wonder which is still to come! 

Amen