John 3:5-8
Jesus answered, "Very truly I tell you, no one can enter the kingdom of God unless they are born of water and the Spirit. Flesh gives birth to flesh, but the Spirit gives birth to spirit. You should not be surprised at my saying, 'You must be born again.' The wind blows wherever it pleases. You hear its sound, but you cannot tell where it comes from or where it is going. So it is with everyone born of the Spirit."
What is born again? It is not to be born again from the mother's womb, but to be born of the water and Holy Spirit. Water refers to God's word. God's word is the foundation of our faith. When we read God's word, it will naturally produce in us the faith from God. The Lord says: "Yet to all who did receive me, to those who believed in my name, I gave the right to become children of God". When we in Christ have this kind of faith, it means we receive the Lord into our life, and the Lord gives us the right to be children of God; In other words, when we by faith receive God's word, it will produce inside of us the life from God.
On the other hand, to be born again is to be born from the Holy Spirit. To be born of the Holy Spirit means to be guided by the Holy Spirit. The reason why we don't feel God's presence is because too often we do things by our flesh and by the will of man, and not depend on the guidance of the Holy Spirit. The "will of man" means human power, influence, and abilities. When a person has human power, influence, and abilities, he may become successful. However, God says: "Not by might nor by power, but by my Spirit". To live a life depending on the will of man, human power, influence, and abilities means whenever you evaluate a situation, the questions you ask are: "Is it even possible for me to do it? Is my circle of friendships good enough? How much resources and money do I have?" But when you live by depending on the Holy Spirit, the questions you ask are: "Lord! What do you want me to do? What role do you want me to play?" The question is not "am I able?" The question is "Lord! What do you want me to do?"
Brothers and sisters, in every situation you face, what questions do you ask? Service that is done by the human will always be limited by our self-centeredness. Service that is done by the Holy Spirit will always be able to exceed the limitations of man and fulfill the work of God that is so big and so difficult. May God's Spirit help us. Today we are in God's kingdom. We should do things according to the principles of God's kingdom and depend on God's word and the Holy Spirit. Then we will see God doing great and wonderful things through us!
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