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I do not know of any words that Jesus spoke which we
have on record in the Bible that are of more importance, or that
should be considered more seriously by the sinner or unsaved person
than these words: "Ye must be born again." (John 3:7). Many men and
women have read the Bible over and over, and yet have never been
born again. Many young men and women take courses in the many Bible
schools in the land and come out with diplomas and take up pastoral
work or evangelistic work and pass themselves off on the people as
Doctors of Divinity who have never been born again. In this way
Satan is deceiving the multitudes. Some of these D.D.'s who need to
be born again teach the people that Jesus meant literal water when
He said, "Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot
enter into the kingdom of God." John 3:5. Water is often used in the
Bible as a symbol of Christ, and if we put the right meaning on this
Scripture it would keep us clear from many other errors in our
conclusions and understanding of the Sacred Word.
In the fourth chapter of John, Jesus made it plain to the woman at
the well that He is the water of life that will quench the thirst of
the soul. Read verses 10 and 14. Christ in us is symbolized as
"living water." We read in John 7:37-39, ". . . If any man thirst,
let him come unto me, and drink. He that believeth on me, as the
scripture hath said, out of his belly [innermost being] shall flow
rivers of living water. (But this spake he of the Spirit, which they
that believe on Him should receive: for the Holy Ghost was not yet
given; because that Jesus was not yet glorified)." In Colossians
1:27 we read what Paul said of the Holy-Spirit-baptized Colossians:
"To whom God would make known what is the riches of the glory of
this mystery among the Gentiles; which is Christ in you, the hope of
glory." In Revelation 22:17 we read again, "And the Spirit and the
bride say, Come. And let him that heareth say, Come. And let him
that is athirst come. And whosoever will, let him take the water of
life freely." Christ is the water of life to every thirsty soul He
is the Lord "our righteousness." (Jer. 23:6.) In Matthew 5:6 we
read, "Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after
righteousness: for they shall be filled." "And the Word [Christ] was
made flesh, and dwelt among us,.." John 1:14.
Peter, referring to the eight souls that were saved by water, said
in I Peter 3:20-21, "The like figure [You notice he puts literal
water as a figure and not the real thing that saved them.] whereunto
baptism [water] doth also now save us (not the putting away of the
filth of the flesh, but the answer of a good conscience toward
God)." The water merely answers to our good conscience of Christ
being resurrected in our souls because we have been born of the
Spirit, as Peter further says, "by the resurrection of Jesus
Christ." The water did not save the eight souls in Noah's time, but
it was the ark that saved them. So it is today that when we are in
Christ, we are in the Ark of safety and He saves us from all the
surrounding sin and evil in the world. The literal water was a
figure of the salvation of the eight souls in the ark of safety, and
the literal water of baptism (immersion) is a figure of the death,
burial, and resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ. (Rom. 6:4-6.) In
other words, in water baptism we go down into the watery grave as
Jesus went into an earthly grave. We are buried with Christ, dead to
the world of sin, and resurrected to new life in Christ. We
symbolize this change that has taken place by water baptism as we
come forth from the watery grave to walk in newness of life, even in
His life. Speaking of this new life, Paul said in Galatians 2:20, "I
am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ
liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by
the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me."
There is a vast difference between having the faith of the Son of
God and only having faith that God exists. One could have a head
faith in God, and yet be lost and headed for destruction; but if he
has the faith of the Son of God, he will be saved and ready for
heaven. Faith of the Son of God is a part of God in the soul, or an
earnest of the Spirit, (Eph. 1:14), which preserves us unto His
coming and causes us to put on an immortal body to live with God the
Father, and Jesus Christ His Son, forever. (1 Cor. 15:51-52.) It is
not an uncommon thing for us to hear people say, "I trust in God,"
or "I have faith in God," or "I believe in God." It is one thing to
talk of trust, faith, and belief in God, but it is another thing to
have trust, faith, and the belief of God in the soul. Many people
will say, "I believe God will save me and that He has power to save
me," but they do not have the faith of God in the soul that He saves
now.
Some people seem to think that obtaining salvation is like buying
groceries where they can hunt for bargains. You can buy the truth
and salvation-not with money-but you cannot find any bargains, for
all must pay the same full price to obtain genuine salvation. The
Devil has plenty of substitutes and bargains on display, but the
genuine can only be purchased by the willing, obedient, self-denying
route. Jesus makes it plain to us in Matthew 13:45-46. He tells us
about a merchant man seeking for goodly pearls. When he had found
one pearl of great price (which is Christ) he went and sold all that
he had and bought the Pearl of great price. To really be "born
again," means a selling out of self and giving up to God. It means
that the majority of people will not do this, but they look for
bargains in the many man-made religions and pay a small price to be
deceived and lost, having only a profession of faith in God. Just to
say we believe God is not sufficient, for James says, "The devils
believe and tremble." (James 2:19.)
God wants people to get the faith of God in their heart. We read in
Romans 10:9-10, "That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord
Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him
from the dead, thou shalt be saved. For with the heart man believeth
unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto
salvation." Literal water salvation is certainly a cheap substitute
for the genuine salvation of God, which comes to man through His
blood sacrifice on the cross of Calvary. We must have something from
heaven in our souls by faith from the Son of God in order to have
the genuine Pearl of great price. Jesus is the author and finisher
of our faith. (Heb. 12:2.) Brother, sister, if you have been
deceived into receiving one of Satan's many substitutes, please
throw it all away and seek God for the genuine. If you have made no
profession, do not look among the many man-made churches and be
fooled with a substitute, but seek God and pay a full price and get
genuine salvation that saves from all sin in this life and brings
peace, quietness, and assurance in your soul forever.
Jesus said, "Ye must be born again."
You do not need to know very much about the Bible nor its teachings
to get genuine salvation. You need to know that you are a sinner and
lost on the road to destruction and that Jesus is the Saviour of all
who believe on Him. You need to know that you should repent of
sinning against God. You should ask God to have mercy upon you and
to forgive you of all your trespasses and sins, and should keep
seeking, giving up, surrendering, and humbling yourself before Him
until you know that your soul has been born again, born from above,
and that you really have the faith of God in your soul that He saves
you now from all sin, and that peace, quietness, and assurance is in
your soul. (Isa. 32:17.) When you have the Spirit of truth in your
soul, He will lead and guide you into all truth. (John 16:13.) And
as you are obedient, you will be eating His flesh and drinking His
blood, for Jesus said, "Except ye eat the flesh of the Son of man,
and drink his blood, ye have no life in you." (John 6:53.) Yes, dear
sinner friend, "Ye must be born again." Dear professor, you must
have the faith of God in your soul or you will be grievously
disappointed in the great judgment day. |
