Romans 8:12-17 & John 3:1-17
“Born again Christians…” No, I’m not asking for a show of hands. But I wonder, how many of us here would identify as a “Born Again Christian?”
Because it has connotations. It comes with baggage; both for non-believers; and indeed for some Christians. Comedians have built routines based on the concept. Those three words can put you in mind of a certain type of character, and that character might not be favourable, might not be our cup of tea.
And yet…. I hope we’re all either born again, aspiring to be born again, or at least an enquirer, eager to find out more. Otherwise, we’re not doing our job as a Church community.
Nicodemus, in the Gospel reading, is at the enquirer stage. But he can’t go to his local Church or his parish priest to ask about matters of faith, because neither yet exists. But Nicodemus is fortunate, because he can ask Jesus himself, in person, even if he does have to sneak to him under cover of darkness. And he gets a clear unequivocal message. He must be born again if he wants to see the Kingdom of God. He MUST be born again! But Nicodemus, he doesn’t really understand the detail. And I’d venture to suggest, maybe we don’t either!
Well… how can someone be born a second time? Born of water AND of the spirit. So, born of water. Two schools of thought on this. At least! It could mean born as in physically born – emerging from the womb. Or it could mean being spiritually cleansed. I’m going with actual physical birth. Argue amongst yourselves; but the fact is, the main thrust of this reading and this sermon is that we must be born again, of the spirit.
Look what Paul says in Romans: “…if by the Spirit you put to death the misdeeds of the body, you will live. For those who are led by the SPIRIT of God are the CHILDREN of God.” In other words, to be a child of God, YOU must be led by the Spirit of God.
And that’s what being born again means! That’s what it’s all about. We must accept the Holy Spirit within us and live according to it’s will. That’s what this Born Again business comes down to. You must invite the Holy Spirit into your life, accept it, obey it, and live by it. We require faith in Jesus, and a second, spiritual birth in order to be Children of God.
Now, who remembers their own birth, the moment you appeared in the world Probably no-one! We had no say in the matter! We couldn’t choose when we were born. Couldn’t choose whether we were born in a nice safe and prosperous country or a war torn, poverty stricken place. We couldn’t choose our skin colour, whether to be dark or white. Couldn’t choose whether to be born as a girl or a boy. We had no say in it whatsoever! No influence. No choice. Totally out of our hands.
You know what…… it’s the same for being born again, born of the spirit! It’s not our call. We can aspire to be born again of the spirit. We can work towards it, and we should do. But as to when it happens, it’s not in our gift. Not our decision.
It’s not like a Baptism, or a Confirmation, where we can announce the date, invite others to celebrate the occasion, buy gifts, have cakes, do whatever else we do at such events. It’s not like that, because it’s not our call. When it happens, it’s God’s decision. His only.
That’s why Jesus says to Nicodemus, “The wind blows wherever it pleases. You hear its sound, but you cannot tell where it comes from or where it’s going. So it is with everyone born of the Spirit.”
That nicely encapsulates two concepts. One, that God as holy spirit is not at our beck and call, and two, that those born of the spirit, those born again, act according to the spirit’s prompting and not according to the demands of the human world. I guess that raises the bar a bit doesn’t it? Makes being a Child of God seem a bit out of reach? And it poses two questions.
The first has to be: How do we get there? Jesus is wanting and asking to come into our lives. How do we make ourselves ready to receive the Spirit? There is no set formula. No catechism you can learn to gain entry. So the best advice is: Pray, Worship, Read the Scriptures, be with and around other Christians. But more than that; try to live as Jesus did, try to have the same values as he did, model yourself on him.
Welcome the power and presence of the Holy Spirit and open the door to your soul. Secondly, how do you know that the Spirit’s within you and you are in fact Born Again? Because you don’t get a second Birth Certificate.
Well one definition is: “It’s when everything you’ve been taught as a Christian becomes real, and you develop a direct and personal relationship with God.” And I think that’s a good definition. But good as it is, I prefer to see the Born Again experience as ongoing; once we’ve had that second birth, it leads to a continual process of striving to come to an ever closer relationship with God, and all the good things that brings upon us. Because when we let the Spirit in, that’s what happens to us.
And even if WE’RE not sure if we’re born of the Spirit, God himself knows, and that’s all that matters.
If our first birth gave great joy, then our being born again, which don’t forget Jesus says makes us complete as Children of God, will give even more joy, both here on earth and also in heaven.
St Peter's Church 