In this issue:
Born Again
In order to be born again, there must be the first birth. What then is the first birth? The first birth simply means the physical birth from the mother’s womb. He who is not born of the first birth cannot come into this world. Likewise, he who is not born of the second birth cannot enter the kingdom of heaven. Every man celebrates his first birthday with joy every year. But no one celebrates his second birthday.
Let us compare the first birth and the second birth.
As stated, the first birth has to do with a birth from the mother’s womb. In that manner, a preson enters this world. He is born as a child of Adam, a child of Satan. He is a sinner; a slave to sin; cursed by God; born as an enemy of God. He was born to suffer in this world; born spiritually dead; born to suffer; and to finally, die. It boils down to just being born to die and go to hell. There is no good thing at all with the first birth.
That is why Job cursed his birth.
Job opened his mouth and cursed the day of his birth. 2 He said: 3 “May the day of my birth perish, and the night that said, ‘A boy is conceived!’ 4 That day—may it turn to darkness; may God above not care about it; may no light shine on it. 5 May gloom and utter darkness claim it once more; may a cloud settle over it; may blackness overwhelm it. 6 That night—may thick darkness seize it; may it not be included among the days of the year nor be entered in any of the months. 7 May that night be barren; may no shout of joy be heard in it. 8 May those who curse days[a] curse that day, those who are ready to rouse Leviathan. 9 May its morning stars become dark; may it wait for daylight in vain and not see the first rays of dawn, 10 for it did not shut the doors of the womb on me to hide trouble from my eyes. 11 “Why did I not perish at birth, and die as I came from the womb? 12 Why were there knees to receive me and breasts that I might be nursed? 13 For now I would be lying down in peace; I would be asleep and at rest 14 with kings and rulers of the earth, who built for themselves places now lying in ruins, 15 with princes who had gold, who filled their houses with silver. 16 Or why was I not hidden away in the ground like a stillborn child, like an infant who never saw the light of day? 17 There the wicked cease from turmoil, and there the weary are at rest. 18 Captives also enjoy their ease; they no longer hear the slave driver’s shout. 19 The small and the great are there, and the slaves are freed from their owners. 20 “Why is light given to those in misery, and life to the bitter of soul, 21 to those who long for death that does not come, who search for it more than for hidden treasure, 22 who are filled with gladness and rejoice when they reach the grave? 23 Why is life given to a man whose way is hidden, whom God has hedged in? 24 For sighing has become my daily food; my groans pour out like water. 25 What I feared has come upon me; what I dreaded has happened to me.” (Job 3:1-25)
The prophet Jeremiah also said, “Cursed be the day I was born! May the day my mother bore me not be blessed! 15 Cursed be the man who brought my father the news, who made him very glad, saying, “A child is born to you—a son!” 16 May that man be like the towns the Lord overthrew without pity. May he hear wailing in the morning, a battle cry at noon. 17 For he did not kill me in the womb, with my mother as my grave, her womb enlarged forever. 18 Why did I ever come out of the womb to see trouble and sorrow and to end my days in shame?” (Jeremiah 20:14-18)
However, most people are very happy with their physical birth. That is because they do not know the full extent of human life and do not know its end. Those who are only born for the first time, as the Lord Jesus said to Judas Iscariot, would have been better off if they had never been born (Matthew 26:24). It is very scary and sad for those people to face all kinds of troubles in the world and finally to go down into the lake of fire. However, because they do not know and do not think, they stay happy.
The second birth is the birth of God through Christ. This is what happens. Man, a sinner, cannot be corrected or controlled. He keeps on commiting sin. Man thinks that only bad behavior in the eyes of man is considered sin. However, every action of man that goes contrary to God and His will is a sin. Trying to do the things of God without knowing God’s will is also a sin. Serving God without doing what God asks is also a great sin. Regarding the Pharisees, Jesus replied, “Every plant that my heavenly Father has not planted will be pulled up by the roots. 14 Leave them; they are blind guides. If the blind lead the blind, both will fall into a pit.” (Matthew 15:13-14)
It is written that the Israelites could not understand even though God rebuked them several times. “Woe to the sinful nation, a people whose guilt is great, a brood of evildoers, children given to corruption! They have forsaken the Lord; they have spurned the Holy One of Israel and turned their backs on him. 5 Why should you be beaten anymore? Why do you persist in rebellion? Your whole head is injured, your whole heart afflicted. 6 From the sole of your foot to the top of your head there is no soundness— only wounds and welts and open sores, not cleansed or bandaged or soothed with olive oil.” (Isaiah 1:4-6) Again, it is also written that the human heart is damage beyond repare “The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked. Who can know the thoughts of the heart?” (Jeremiah 17:9)
Such a person cannot be reformed. Because man is so corrupt, God no longer tries to fix him, but to create him anew. Because he does not know his condition, man tries to fix himself. Every religion tries to fix man, but it fails. Therefore, God put man in Christ and crucified him. Paul says, “It is because of him that you are in Christ Jesus” (1 Cor. 1:30) The word “in Christ Jesus” is very important. Why does God put man in Christ Jesus? It is to put an end to the man who is irreparable and cannot be fixed, and to create a new man. Paul writes, “For we know that our old self was crucified with him so that the body ruled by sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves to sin” (Roman 6:6) Our old self is the natural man born of our mother. That old man was crucified along with Christ. Therefore, you must believe that you are dead in Christ Jesus. After you died, you were baptized (buried) in Christ Jesus. “Don’t you know that all of us who were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? 4 We were therefore buried with him through baptism into death in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too may live a new life.” (Romans 6:3-4) After being buried with Christ Jesus, we are raised with him to a new life. It is written: “Just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, so we too should walk in newness of life.” (Romans 6:4) You have been raised to a new life. Paul said, “Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. Old things have passed away, behold, all things are become new. And this is by the power of God.” (2 Corinthians 5:17) Only such a new creature is a born again person. We can know the second birth by believing in what God has done for us in Christ?
A dog will eat unclean things, but if God transforms it into human being, he will no longer want to eat dog food, but only human food. If you are born in flesh and in the Spirit afterward, you will want to eat the food of the Spirit, which is the Word of God. If that happens, you will also know the will of God. Paul said, “ This is what we speak, not in words taught us by human wisdom but in words taught by the Spirit, explaining spiritual realities with Spirit-taught words. 14 The person without the Spirit does not accept the things that come from the Spirit of God but considers them foolishness, and cannot understand them because they are discerned only through the Spirit. 15 The person with the Spirit makes judgments about all things, but such a person is not subject to merely human judgments,” (1 Cor. 2:13-15) Therefore, if you become a spiritual person, you will have a desire for spiritual things. However, if you are a spiritual child, you may not be any different from a natural person. Paul wrote to the Corinthian church, who were spiritual children, saying: “Brothers and sisters, I could not address you as people who live by the Spirit but as people who are still worldly—mere infants in Christ. 2 I gave you milk, not solid food, for you were not yet ready for it. Indeed, you are still not ready. 3 You are still worldly. For since there is jealousy and quarreling among you, are you not worldly? Are you not acting like mere humans?” (1 Cor. 3:1-3).
Is your birth only by nature? If you are, you will be attached to this world and will not like heavenly things. If you are born only by nature, you cannot follow the will of God, nor do you want to. If you are born only by nature, you will only go to the lake of fire. Therefore, you need to be reborn spiritually as soon as possible. If you have been reborn spiritually but do not grow, you will only want the things of this world like a natural person. You will not want spiritual things. Therefore, you need to grow and mature as soon as possible.
Those who are born again should celebrate their spiritual birthdays. Because spiritual birth is a blessing. It makes a person from a child of Satan to a child of God. It makes a person righteous. It prevents a person from going to hell and send him to heaven. The second birth causes an enemy of God to become a child of God. It frees a person from the curse. It gives him eternal life from the life that would have ended in hell.
If the cursed physical birthday is happily celebrated, then a spiritual birthday should be celebrated a hundred folds. I have celebrated my spiritual birthday four or five times. By celebrating my spiritual birthday in this way, others will realize that they also need to be born again spiritually.
Love and Discipline
Balancing love and discipline is essential. In some families, parents only show love to their children and do not discipline them, so the children do not have discipline and live as they like. As a result, there are many problems within the family. This problem has repercussions outside of the family such as in schools, churches, friends' houses, and public places. When children misbehave, some parents are ashamed or angry, and avoid going to places where there are many people. On the other hand, some parents do not care if their children misbehave, nor do they care about the feelings of others. As a result, they are bad-mouthed by others. Some children are bad, so when some people try to correct them, their parents hold grudges against those people. Such families then isolate themselves and avoid mingling with others. It is sad and nothing can be done except feeling sorry for them because they do not understood their situation. Are you and your family in that kind of situation?
Every parent must love their children. This is something that comes naturally without having to be taught. However, some parents do not love their children or show them love. Some parents have favoritism in the family. This should not happen. Parents often scold their children and do not try to understand the challanges their children are facing in their lives. The parents simply put the blame on them, or resort to punishing them in some ways. Then, the children harbor bitterness and started to do whatever they want. Once they are unable to take it anymore, they run away from home, making friends with bad people, and commit sins at a young age. Some children commit suicide. Therefore, parents need to teach their children, discipline, and show love.
