Being Born Again, Is A Change In Body Not In Mind

bro.tan · Dec 16, 2010

"Born Again" is a major topic in the churches today. You will hear people in the churches, on the street, at work, even in jail, making the statement, "since I have been born again." Let's take a close look at this, and see if these people are making a true statement or giving themselves a false sense of security. If you have any knowledge of the Holy Scriptures you know the Lord has a time set for everything, and it will not come to past until it is time.

With that being said, let's jump into a conversation that the God of Israel and a religious leader by the name Nicodemus is having on the subject "born again." Pay very close attention and you will see the Lord makes it very simple.

John 3:1 There was a man of the Pharisees, named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews: 2 The same came to Jesus by night, and said unto him, Rabbi, we know that thou art a teacher come from God: for no man can do these miracles that thou doest, except God be with him. 3 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.

Notice verse 3, except a man is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God. We have just learned something here. If you are not born again you can not see the kingdom of God. As we go further you will understand this. Remember there is a time for everything.

Nicodemus asked a very good question. Take a look at the next set of verses.

John 3:4 Nicodemus saith unto him, How can a man be born when he is old? Can he enter the second time into his mother's womb, and be born? 5 Jesus answered, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God.

In verse 5, born of the water in this case is the Word of God. Notice the Lord mentions the kingdom of God again, but He adds a little more information. He says "Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God. When he mentions spirit He means exactly that. Watch how the Lord gives something physical to describe exactly what He means.

John 3:6 That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit.

Notice He made a difference between flesh and spirit.

John 3:7 Marvel not that I said unto thee, Ye must be born again.

8 The wind bloweth where it listeth, and thou hearest the sound thereof, but canst not tell whence it cometh, and whither it goeth: so is every one that is born of the Spirit.

Notice He compared the wind to a spirit. Can you see the wind? No! We have seen things being blown around by the wind, but we have never seen the wind. If you are born of the spirit you are like the wind. This is when you are truly born again, when you are born of the spirit.

belantos · Dec 16, 2010

bro.tan said:
John 3:4 Nicodemus saith unto him, How can a man be born when he is old? Can he enter the second time into his mother's womb, and be born? 5 Jesus answered, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God.

In verse 5, born of the water in this case is the Word of God. Notice the Lord mentions the kingdom of God again, but He adds a little more information. He says "Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God. When he mentions spirit He means exactly that.

One needs to be careful how symbolism is used. Once the Word is the pre-existent Jesus, other times it is the whole bible, and again, now it is equated with water. Consider the following:

1 John 5:6
This is the One who came by water and blood, Jesus Christ; not with the water only, but with the water and with the blood It is the Spirit who testifies, because the Spirit is the truth.

You see, Jesus' Messianic ministry was framed by two events:

1. his water baptism when God anointed him with His Spirit
2. his death when the Spirit departed from him and he cried out to the Father "why have you forsaken me"

The water as related to the concept of being born again is repentance. The water baptism was the public declaration of that repentance, for it was the public that had to verify that the person's life truly reflected it. The Spirit is a reference to faithful life, for those who are led by the Spirit fulfill (ie satisfy) the Law, and, of course, by the Law is the knowledge of sin.

Therefore, the message of Jesus is, that without repentance and faithful conduct one cannot see the Kingdom.

Nicodemus thought he was OK because he had been through a number of born-again experiences (that carried different meaning in ancient Judaism, such as becoming an adult, married, etc, anything that totally changes one's life and there is no going back to the old ways) and he thought he was too old for another one. He, however, missed the one Jesus talked about because he didn't think he had to repent from anything. Jesus said, the hearts of all Pharisees were far from God and had to repent.

veteran · Dec 17, 2010

John 3:5-8
5 Jesus answered, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God.
6 That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit.
7 Marvel not that I said unto thee, Ye must be born again.
8 The wind bloweth where it listeth, and thou hearest the sound thereof, but canst not tell whence it cometh, and whither it goeth: so is every one that is born of the Spirit.
(KJV)

Note verse 6; Our Lord Jesus was actually pointing to the difference between being born of flesh vs. being born of Spirit. The being born of water part is about being born flesh through water of woman's womb. That's how Nicodemus understood that part, but he didn't understand the being born of The Spirit part, which is about being born again from above (by Heavenly operation of The Spirit).

2 Cor 5:17-21
17 Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.
18 And all things are of God, Who hath reconciled us to Himself by Jesus Christ, and hath given to us the ministry of reconciliation;
19 To wit, that God was in Christ, reconciling the world unto Himself, not imputing their trespasses unto them; and hath committed unto us the word of reconciliation.
20 Now then we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God did beseech you by us: we pray you in Christ's stead, be ye reconciled to God.
21 For He hath made Him to be sin for us, Who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in Him.
(KJV)

The idea of being "born again" is about becoming a "new creature" through Christ by The Holy Spirit changing our spirit inside. That's why our Lord compared that working to the wind, because just as with the wind blowing its effect can be seen, but the wind itself is not seen, so it is with everyone born of The Holy Spirit.

It is a life-changing event, and is thus a literal change within the believer, and it does not always happen with water baptism, as evidenced in Acts with those who The Holy Spirit came upon before they were baptized of water.

It is also connected in final with the idea of the resurrection, being changed to the "image of the heavenly" which Apostle Paul taught in 1 Corinthians 15 that is to manifest with Christ's coming Kingdom, and in Romans 8 where Paul said we groan within ourselves waiting for the redemption of our body.

242006 · Dec 17, 2010

Joh 3:13

And no man hath ascended up to heaven, but he that came down from heaven, even the Son of man which is in heaven.

Being 'born again' has absolutely nothing whatsoever to do with any form of spiritual renewal since the Son of man was required to be born again too.

WhiteKnuckle · Dec 18, 2010

Watchman_2 said:
Joh 3:13

And no man hath ascended up to heaven, but he that came down from heaven, even the Son of man which is in heaven.

Being 'born again' has absolutely nothing whatsoever to do with any form of spiritual renewal since the Son of man was required to be born again too.

I think this is out of context and misunderstood. Meaning,,,,,,,, No man has ever gone to heaven unless he came down from heaven. Jesus came from heaven and went back to heaven. The rest of us are still waiting for judgement day.

bro.tan · Dec 18, 2010

Watchman_2 said:
Joh 3:13

And no man hath ascended up to heaven, but he that came down from heaven, even the Son of man which is in heaven.

Being 'born again' has absolutely nothing whatsoever to do with any form of spiritual renewal since the Son of man was required to be born again too.

This is why in the scriptures its written in Proverbs 4:7 Wisdom is the principal thing; therefore get wisdom: and with all thy getting get understanding.

Notice what Jesus does in these next few verses. Remember, this is after His resurrection.

John 20:26 And after eight days again his disciples were within, and Thomas with them: then came Jesus, the doors being shut, and stood in the midst, and said, Peace be unto you. 27 Then saith he to Thomas, Reach hither thy finger, and behold my hands; and reach hither thy hand, and thrust it into my side: and be not faithless, but believing. 28 And Thomas answered and said unto him, My Lord and my God.

Note two very important things within these verses. 1. Jesus appeared in the midst of them and the doors were shut. 2. Thomas called Him God. When Jesus came out of the grave he was born into the God family (we will have a greater understanding as we go further in this class). When Thomas called Jesus God was he still a man?

Take a look at this verse in the book of Numbers.

Numbers 23:19 God is not a man, that he should lie; neither the son of man, that he should repent: hath he said, and shall he not do it? Or hath he spoken, and shall he not make it good?

Note what the verse says, God is not a man, neither is he the son of man. While Jesus walked with His disciples He called Himself the son of man. He was exactly that. He was born of a woman. But, when he was raised from the dead He was no longer in the man family neither was He flesh and blood. If he was flesh and blood He would not have been able to appear in the middle of the room with his apostles.

Take a look at these verses. Can a flesh and blood man do this?

Luke 24:27 And beginning at Moses and all the prophets, he expounded unto them in all the scriptures the things concerning himself. 28 And they drew nigh unto the village, whither they went: and he made as though he would have gone further. 29 But they constrained him, saying, Abide with us: for it is toward evening, and the day is far spent. And he went in to tarry with them. 30 And it came to pass, as he sat at meat with them, he took bread, and blessed it, and brake, and gave to them. 31 And their eyes were opened, and they knew him; and he vanished out of their sight.

Look at verse 31, once they realized that it was Jesus they spoke with, what happen? He vanished out of their sight. Remember in John chapter 3 and verse 8. The Lord gave an example of how a spirit would look. He likened a spirit to the wind.( John 3:8 The wind bloweth where it listeth, and thou hearest the sound thereof, but canst not tell whence it cometh, and whither it goeth: so is every one that is born of the Spirit.) Can you or can you not see the wind?

Nomad · Dec 18, 2010

Watchman_2 said:
Joh 3:13 And no man hath ascended up to heaven, but he that came down from heaven, even the Son of man which is in heaven.
Being 'born again' has absolutely nothing whatsoever to do with any form of spiritual renewal since the Son of man was required to be born again too.

Your proof-text says absolutely nothing about Jesus being born again and being born again has everything to do with spiritual regeneration.

Joh 3:6 That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit.

Tit 3:5 he saved us, not because of works done by us in righteousness, but according to his own mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewal of the Holy Spirit,

1Jn 2:29 If you know that he is righteous, you may be sure that everyone who practices righteousness has been born of him.

1Jn 3:9 No one born of God makes a practice of sinning, for God's seed abides in him, and he cannot keep on sinning because he has been born of God.

1Jn 4:7 Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God, and whoever loves has been born of God and knows God.

1Jn 5:1 Everyone who believes that Jesus is the Christ has been born of God, and everyone who loves the Father loves whoever has been born of him.

1Jn 5:4 For everyone who has been born of God overcomes the world. And this is the victory that has overcome the world--our faith.

1Jn 5:18 We know that everyone who has been born of God does not keep on sinning, but he who was born of God protects him, and the evil one does not touch him.

242006 · Dec 18, 2010

WhiteKnuckle said:
I think this is out of context and misunderstood. Meaning,,,,,,,, No man has ever gone to heaven unless he came down from heaven. Jesus came from heaven and went back to heaven. The rest of us are still waiting for judgement day.

When one examines the word 'again' in the original language of the Bible, one sees -

G509

ἄνωθεν
anōthen
an'-o-then

From

G507; from above; by analogy from the first; by implication anew: - from above, again, from the beginning (very first), the top.

Properly translated, the clause should have been rendered in English 'born from above'. Of course, there would never be a group of Christians running around the country claiming that they were 'born from above Christians' if properly translated.

So, I was correct in stating that the rendering 'born again' has nothing whatsoever to do with a spiritual renewal.

242006 · Dec 18, 2010

bro.tan said:
This is why in the scriptures its written in Proverbs 4:7 Wisdom is the principal thing; therefore get wisdom: and with all thy getting get understanding.
.
.

What is your point?? It does not appear that there is anything in your post that is relevant to my post.

bro.tan · Dec 19, 2010

Watchman_2 said:
What is your point?? It does not appear that there is anything in your post that is relevant to my post.

Hey Watchman,

Understand, when I post a lesson, it takes time and in some cases the point may not be visible in the beginning. I go from Genesis to Revelation, like Isaiah said 28:9 Whom shall he teach knowledge? and whom shall he make to understand doctrine? them that are weaned from the milk, and drawn from the breasts.cb(28,10); 28:10 For precept must be upon precept, precept upon precept; line upon line, line upon line; here a little, and there a little:cb(28,11); This lesson will unfold more and more as I post. All I look for, right now is brothers and sisters to understand, whats being said here. You will see that I post with scriptures and verses to back up the lessons, so its no interpretation from me, just Bible.

peace in Jesus name

bro.tan · Dec 19, 2010

Lets take continue the lesson brothers and sisters and take a look at Genesis and see the distinction between man and God.

Genesis 1:11 And God said, Let the earth bring forth grass, the herb yielding seed, and the fruit tree yielding fruit after his kind, whose seed is in itself, upon the earth: and it was so. 12 And the earth brought forth grass and herb yielding seed after his kind, and the tree yielding fruit, whose seed was in itself, after his kind: and God saw that it was good. 24 And God said, “Let the earth bring forth the living creature after his kind, cattle, and creeping thing, and beast of the earth after his kind” and it was so. 25 And God made the beast of the earth after his kind, and cattle after their kind, and every thing that creepeth upon the earth after his kind: and God saw that it was good.

Note these things which were created were after its kind. Notice the change in the next scripture.

Genesis 1:26 And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness: and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth.

Notice man is made in the image of God after his likeness not after His kind. Meaning we look like Him but, we are not made up of the same substance.

Take a look at Genesis chapter 2 verse 7. There you will find the 2 elements that men are made of.

Genesis 2:7 And the LORD God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul.

Notice what it says, man was formed from the dust of the ground, and the Lord breathed the breath of life into his nostrils. Dust and breath that's it, nothing else. Take note also it says man became a living soul. The Bible did not say a soul was placed in the man. You are the soul?
Men also have another similarity other than the outward image of The Godhead members.

Notice what the Lord says in Genesis chapter 3.

Genesis 3:22 And the LORD God said, Behold, the man is become as one of us, to know good and evil: and now, lest he put forth his hand, and take also of the tree of life, and eat, and live for ever: 23 Therefore the LORD God sent him forth from the garden of Eden, to till the ground from whence he was taken. 24 So he drove out the man; and he placed at the east of the garden of Eden Cherubims, and a flaming sword which turned every way, to keep the way of the tree of life.

Notice what the Lord says, "the man is become as one of us, to know good and evil." If Adam didn't listen to Eve we would only have two commandments. 1. Be fruitful and multiply and 2. Do not eat from the tree of knowledge good and evil (listening to Satan). Man would have never died. Everyone from Adam until eternity would still be alive.

242006 · Dec 19, 2010

bro.tan said:
Hey Watchman,

Understand, when I post a lesson, it takes time and in some cases the point may not be visible in the beginning. I go from Genesis to Revelation, like Isaiah said 28:9 Whom shall he teach knowledge? and whom shall he make to understand doctrine? them that are weaned from the milk, and drawn from the breasts.cb(28,10); 28:10 For precept must be upon precept, precept upon precept; line upon line, line upon line; here a little, and there a little:cb(28,11); This lesson will unfold more and more as I post. All I look for, right now is brothers and sisters to understand, whats being said here. You will see that I post with scriptures and verses to back up the lessons, so its no interpretation from me, just Bible.

peace in Jesus name

I didn't think there was any relevance to my post. Thank you for clarifying. If I might offer a suggestion, I think that it would be better that, if you are just continuing on with your lesson, you don't reply to another's post in posting your lesson. It is confusing in that, those who might be reviewing your lesson, will not be sure if you are continuing your lesson or actually replying to another's post. And, those, like me, who are not following your lesson, will question relevance.

242006 · Dec 19, 2010

Nomad said:
Your proof-text says absolutely nothing about Jesus being born again and being born again has everything to do with spiritual regeneration.

See post No. 8 in this topic. The correct rendering is 'born from above' -- not 'born again'.

There is no such Biblical thing as a 'born again Christian'. Those who claim so are simply engaging in a tradition of man.

What Jesus is relaying to Nicodemus in John 3:3-13 is that we all have 2 bodies within each of us -- flesh body and spiritual body. In order to go to heaven, each has to go through the flesh body. This is opposed to the fallen angels, who refused to be born of water and can never have salvation.

Hence, this has absolutely nothing to do with spiritual renewal as Jesus also had to be born from above in order to return to heaven.

bro.tan · Dec 20, 2010

Let's take a look at man's potential.

Psalms 82:1 God standeth in the congregation of the mighty; he judgeth among the gods. 2 How long will ye judge unjustly, and accept the persons of the wicked? Selah.
Who are these mighty ones that God judgeth among the gods? These are not pagan gods that the Lord judge. Pagan gods have no might nor any breath in them.

Take a look and see who these gods are.

Psalms 82:6 I have said, Ye are gods; and all of you are children of the most High. 7 But ye shall die like men, and fall like one of the princes.

These gods are men. Why? Look at the 7th verse again. But ye shall die like men, and fall like one of the princes. Spirits don't die; men do (flesh and blood).
To give you a better understanding of this, take a look at what Jesus said to the Pharisees.

Pay close attention what's being said.

John 10:30 I and my Father are one. 31 Then the Jews took up stones again to stone him. 32 Jesus answered them, Many good works have I showed you from my Father; for which of those works do ye stone me? 33 The Jews answered him, saying, for a good work we stone thee not; but for blasphemy; and because that thou, being a man, makest thyself God. 34 Jesus answered them, “Is it not written in your law, I said, Ye are gods?”Notice Jesus quoted the 6th verse in the 82nd Psalm.

Now take a look at the next verse.

35 If he called them gods, unto whom the word of God came, and the scripture cannot be broken;
So you see, He called them gods unto whom the Word of God came. If you continue in His Word you will be in the God family, but you must endure this world to make it into the kingdom. This will take place at an appointed time in the near future.

BritGuy · Dec 21, 2010

bro.tan said:
...
8 The wind bloweth where it listeth, and thou hearest the sound thereof, but canst not tell whence it cometh, and whither it goeth: so is every one that is born of the Spirit.
...

And what would Nicodemus hear whenever someone is born again?

bro.tan · Dec 23, 2010

Pay close attention to what Paul he says below.

Romans 8:9 But ye are not in the flesh, but in the Spirit, if so be that the Spirit of God dwell in you. Now if any man has not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of his.

Now if you look at the verse above you will say, "See, I told you we are in the spirit.” Then I would say to you. "What spirit are you in?” Remember, Jesus compares someone born of the spirit to the wind. Look closely at the verse.

Notice something familiar? Take a look. "If so be that the Spirit of God dwell in you.” If the Spirit of God dwells within you, you are in the spirit. How can the spirit of God dwell within you?

Before we continue in Romans 8, let's have the Master even Jesus clear this up.

John 6:63 It is the spirit that quickeneth; the flesh profiteth nothing: the words that I speak unto you, they are spirit, and they are life.

Romans 8:9 But ye are not in the flesh, but in the Spirit, if so be that the Spirit of God dwell in you. Now if any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of his. 10 And if Christ be in you, the body is dead because of sin; but the Spirit is life because of righteousness. People have to understand and know God's righteousness.

Look at the 10th verse, "And if Christ be in you". How can Christ be in you again? His word is in your mind. Look at the next part of the verse. "The body is dead because of sin". Notice what it says, the body is dead to sin? This isn't a physical death. The next verse will explain.

Romans 8:11 But if the Spirit of him that raised up Jesus from the dead dwell in you, he that raised up Christ from the dead shall also quicken your mortal bodies by his Spirit that dwelleth in you. 12 Therefore, brethren, we are debtors, not to the flesh, to live after the flesh.

Look at verse 11, "quicken your mortal bodies by his Spirit that dwelleth in you." So you see, a person is very much alive physically, but if you don't follow the word of God you are a dead man walking.

aspen · Dec 23, 2010

Watchman_2 said:
Joh 3:13 And no man hath ascended up to heaven, but he that came down from heaven, even the Son of man which is in heaven.
Being 'born again' has absolutely nothing whatsoever to do with any form of spiritual renewal since the Son of man was required to be born again too.

The emphasis on being born again was actually started by [font="Arial]George Whitefield[/font] in America to be less denomination and more ecumenical. It actually led to the Great Awakening - perhaps ecumenical isn't such a bad word after all......

242006 · Dec 23, 2010

aspen said:
The emphasis on being born again was actually started by [font="Arial]George Whitefield[/font] in America to be less denomination and more ecumenical. It actually led to the Great Awakening - perhaps ecumenical isn't such a bad word after all......[/color][/size]
[/quote]

If one does some historical research, the tradition of man 'born again' started with the early church fathers. Here is a link which identifes some of those early writings -

[url="http://www.catholic.com/library/Are_Catholics_Born_Again.asp"]http://www.catholic.com/library/Are_Catholics_Born_Again.asp[/url]

Most of the traditions of man, which were conjured up by the RCC, made their way into the Anglican, as well as Protestant churches. This tradition of man was the result of the RCC's other false belief that baptism also regenerates an individual. Hence, by the time the English translators got around to rendering scripture in English, this tradition of man was already well established and believed to be true. So, the mistranslation of 'born again' is quite understandable given the historical context.

Nomad · Dec 24, 2010

Watchman_2 said:
If one does some historical research, the tradition of man 'born again' started with the early church fathers.

Wrong! The necessity of being 'born again,' also known as 'spiritual regeneration,' can be traced immediately back into the Old Testament era.

Deu 30:6 And the LORD your God will circumcise your heart and the heart of your offspring, so that you will love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul, that you may live.

Jesus picks up this necessity in the Gospel of John.

Joh 3:3 Jesus answered him, "Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God."

This prerequisite of salvation is carried straight through the New Testament.

Tit 3:5 he saved us, not because of works done by us in righteousness, but according to his own mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewal of the Holy Spirit,

1Jn 2:29 If you know that he is righteous, you may be sure that everyone who practices righteousness has been born of him.

1Jn 3:9 No one born of God makes a practice of sinning, for God's seed abides in him, and he cannot keep on sinning because he has been born of God.

1Jn 4:7 Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God, and whoever loves has been born of God and knows God.

1Jn 5:1 Everyone who believes that Jesus is the Christ has been born of God, and everyone who loves the Father loves whoever has been born of him.

1Jn 5:4 For everyone who has been born of God overcomes the world. And this is the victory that has overcome the world--our faith.

1Jn 5:18 We know that everyone who has been born of God does not keep on sinning, but he who was born of God protects him, and the evil one does not touch him.

242006 · Dec 24, 2010

Nomad said:
Wrong! The necessity of being 'born again,' also known as 'spiritual regeneration,' can be traced immediately back into the Old Testament era.

Deu 30:6 And the LORD your God will circumcise your heart and the heart of your offspring, so that you will love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul, that you may live.

Once again, you are allowing your religious indoctrination [brainwashing] to interfere with concise and objective analysis of scripture. There is nothing linguistically or contextually in Deu. 30:6 that makes it a 'necessity' that Joh 3:3-13 to be interpreted as a spiritual regeneration. Linguistically, there is nothing in the Hebrew meaning of the word rendered 'circumcise' that indicates a 'regeneration' of any sort. Contextually, Deu. 30, is speaking of the blessings/cursings issued to ancient Israel -- has nothing whatsoever with informing them of the requirement to go to heaven.

It is simply the desperation of mankind to attempt to find justification in the OT for the false religions conjured up from misinterpretation and mistranslation in the NT. Your example is a classic case of such desperation.

So, let's examine the rest of your NT claim and see it such 'necessity'/'prerequisite' exists -

This prerequisite of salvation is carried straight through the New Testament.

Tit 3:5 he saved us, not because of works done by us in righteousness, but according to his own mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewal of the Holy Spirit, So

There is nothing whatsoever here about a prerequisite for salvation [see the kingdom of God -- John 3:3]. The word 'saved' is -

G4982
σώζω
sōzō
sode'-zo

From a primary word σῶς sōs̄ (contraction for the obsolete σάος saos, "safe"); to save, that is, deliver or protect (literally or figuratively): - heal, preserve, save (self), do well, be (make) whole.

It means 'to keep safe' -- not saved in the sense of seeing the kingdom of God. The concept of keeping safe or preserved is verified a few verses thereafter -

Tit 3:7

That being justified by his grace, we should be made heirs according to the hope of eternal life.

The mercy which Christ gives through the Holy Spirit working within the Christian's spirit, keeps a Christian preserved 'in hope', not as a 'prerequisite', of eternal life.

1Jn 2:29 If you know that he is righteous, you may be sure that everyone who practices righteousness has been born of him.

1Jn 3:9 No one born of God makes a practice of sinning, for God's seed abides in him, and he cannot keep on sinning because he has been born of God.

1Jn 4:7 Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God, and whoever loves has been born of God and knows God.

1Jn 5:1 Everyone who believes that Jesus is the Christ has been born of God, and everyone who loves the Father loves whoever has been born of him.

1Jn 5:4 For everyone who has been born of God overcomes the world. And this is the victory that has overcome the world--our faith.

1Jn 5:18 We know that everyone who has been born of God does not keep on sinning, but he who was born of God protects him, and the evil one does not touch him.

You are really desperate for some semblance of proof. The word 'born' is the Greek gennao, which is derived from the Greek genos, from which, in English, we get the word 'genus'. Literally, gennao means to procreate. The figurative meaning is ''regenerate'.

Nothing in these scriptures identifies the regeneration process as a prerequisite to see the Kingdom of God.

The only scripture that you rely upon for asserting a claim that 'spiritual renewal/regeneration' is a requirement/prerequisite to enter into the kingdom of heaven is John 3:3. And, as I have demonstrated, such belief is not Biblical. Your belief is a tradition of man -- not the Word of God.

Being Born Again, Is A Change In Body Not In Mind

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