John 3:2-4
He came to Jesus at night and said, "Rabbi, we know that you are a teacher who has come from God. For no one could perform the signs you are doing if God were not with him." Jesus replied, "Very truly I tell you, no one can see the kingdom of God unless they are born again." "How can someone be born when they are old?" Nicodemus asked. "Surely they cannot enter a second time into their mother's womb to be born!"
When Nicodemus came to look for Jesus, Jesus clearly knew the dilemma deep inside his heart. That's why Jesus started by answering Nicodemus: "Very truly I tell you, no one can see the kingdom of God unless they are born again." Nicodemus then wondered, does this mean being born again from mother's womb? Actually, Nicodemus was really hoping that he could re-live his life all over again, differently from this time.
Have you ever thought about what would happen to your life if you could turn back time and start all over again? We can avoid all the mistakes that we've made before; in other word, living a more perfect life. But if you think again, even if we could turn back time and start over, how can guarantee that we won't make the same mistakes? Even if we don't make the same mistakes, who can guarantee that we don't make other mistakes?
Someone once asked me, "Why is it so hard for people to change their habits?" There's a Chinese saying that "it's easier to shift the landscape than changing someone's nature." If we honestly face ourselves, we'd agree with what Paul said in the book of Romans, that "For I have the desire to do what is good, but I cannot carry it out." One time I went to the library to check out books, where the rule was that each book can only be checked out for two weeks, after which an extension was needed. I saw a lady checking out books and took a glance at the book she was extending. I had great sympathy for the lady, because the name of the book was "quit smoking in five days." The book's title suggested that one can quit smoking in five days, but apparently even two weeks weren't enough for that lady!
We always have great New Year resolutions, but by the year-end we often find that we accomplished none of the resolutions, yet we did all those things that we didn't want to do! People are caught in sorrow and worries because we are under the bondage of sin. What we need is not to turn back the clock, but to have a new life in Jesus Christ! That's why Jesus Christ said that unless we are born again, we won't be able to enter God's Kingdom. May God help us to receive the new life in Christ, not to live by depending on our own might any more, but to depend on the Spirit of God!
No comments:
Post a Comment
Note: Only a member of this blog may post a comment.