Jesus said, "I tell you the solemn truth, unless a person is born from above, he cannot see the kingdom of God" (John 3:3 NET).
The Bible teaches us that we become a child of God only through the new birth.
Those who believe on Jesus Christ become God’s children. “As many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, even to those who believe on His name, who were born not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God” (John 1:12-13).
It is not a physical birth, but a spiritual birth, and it is something that is received by the person who believes in Him (1 Pet. 1:23). The start of the new birth is with God.
It is the teaching throughout the New Testament (Eph. 2:8-9; Rom. 10:9-10).
Without Christ we are spiritually dead in trespasses and sin (Eph. 2:1-3).
We need divine life, and that is what God provides through the new birth.
“He who believes in the Son has eternal life” (John 3:36, 16; 1 John 5:13).
How do we not become a child of God?
There is absolutely nothing that man can do to add to his spiritual birth. This is made very clear in John 1:13, “who were born not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.”
No amount of human,religious activity, or moral teaching can change the essential nature of man.
Therefore, it is imperative that man’s deepest need is to be born again.
You do not become a child of God by anything you say or do.
You do not become a child of God by being a member of a church.
You do not become a child of God by being sincere.
The Bible teaches we are saved by grace through faith in Christ and not of works.
It is the free gift of God. “What must I do to be saved?”
The Bible says “Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and you shall be saved” (Acts 16:31).
You must believe in Jesus alone;
You must trust Him alone;
You must accept Jesus' sacrifice for your sins alone and nothing that you do in any way.
We become a child of God when God gives us His life.
By whose authority do we become the children of God? Jesus. “As many as received Him, to them He gave the right . . .” It is the authority of Jesus Christ. Those who believe on Him have the right to become the children of God.
It is an act of God. We receive that life the moment we believe on Christ.
It comes from God and is received only on the basis of God’s grace.
Those who believe become God’s children.
Only by receiving Christ do we gain the right to become a child of God.
There is nothing in our human nature or character that can bring about a spiritual birth. All human effort is ruled out and incomplete.
We are “born of God.” There is no other way to become a child of God. It is life in Christ and is divine in origin. The whole emphasis in this verse and in John chapter three is the activity of the Spirit of God, "not human effort, works or merits.” The Holy Spirit gives us a new spiritual nature.
When He gives us this new nature we are "born again" (2 Pet. 1:4).
Here are four steps as simple as A, B, C, D
Admit
The first step is to admit that we have ignored God and therefore need a Saviour. As the Bible puts it, we are all sinners. We have broken God's laws, and not even lived up to our own ideals. Part of the seriousness of sin is that it separates us from God. God is all-holy and absolutely pure. He hates sin. He cannot dwell with it. He cannot even look at it. We are cut off. : "But your iniquities have separated you from your God; your sins have hidden his face from you, so that he will not hear" (Isaiah 59:2). So we need a Saviour. We cannot save ourselves. We must humbly and honestly admit this. Jesus said .."he had come to call not the righteous, but sinners to repentance."
Believe
We must believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God who died on the cross and rose again on the third day to be the saviour of the world. John 1:12 says, "Yet to all who received him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God (NIV).
What we have to believe is:
• Believes that there is a loving, personal all powerful God who has created the universe, loves and cares for humanity.
• Recognizes that they have ignored God, either intentionally or unintentionally, and so has turned away from him. They are a rebel.
• That Jesus of Nazareth is the Son of God, uniquely divine, who came down from heaven and became man.
• That he deliberately went to the cross to die for the sins of the world.
He bore them in his own body. He "was made sin for us".
In his immense love for us he took upon himself the penalty that our sins deserved. That as the perfect man, death could not contain him. On the third day he rose to life. Because he lives, we may live also.
Jesus is the Son of God, who died and rose for us.
• Believes that Jesus, God's Son, by his death on the cross, has bridged the separation between God and man. He has taken the punishment our rebellion deserves. Also, Jesus, by his resurrection, has guaranteed our new life now and in the age to come.
• Believes God's call to repent and has turned from rebelling and submitted to his Son.
• Has put their complete trust in Jesus for forgiveness, direction in life and fulfillment of all God promises. It starts and stops with Jesus.
Consider the Cost
We must consider this fact. If we commit our life to Jesus Christ, he will be our Lord as well as our Saviour. He offers us salvation, but he demands our thoughtful and total commitment. Receiving Christ will mean a willingness to turn from everything we know to be wrong. He will become master of:
Our ambitions and our career;
Master of our time, money and talents;
Master of every area of our life.
This is what he asked of his disciples. This is what he asks of us. He told them, as he tells us, to count the cost of following him.
Do
What is there to do? The first steps have been in the mind, not the will. It is not enough to intellectually believe that he died to be the Saviour of the world and rose to be the Lord of the Universe, we must ask him to be our Saviour and our Lord. "Produce fruit in keeping with repentance" (Matt. 3:8, NIV) It is this act of personal commitment which so many people miss. As Jesus said, "I tell you the truth, anyone who will not receive the Kingdom of God like a little child will never enter it", Mk.10:15.
“ Then He said to them all, “If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow Me. For whoever desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake will save it” (Matthew 16:23-24)
"I am the way, the truth, and the Life, and no one comes to the Father but by Me" (John 14:6).
"Therefore if any man is Christ, he is a new creature; the old things passed away; behold, new thing have come" (2 Cor. 5:17).
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