Jesus said I must be born again. Once
is not enough. The first time I was born, I was born in the flesh. The
second time I am born, I am born in the spirit. God is a Spirit, and He
is the One who makes my spirit come alive. That is why I call him
Father.
Spiritual birth isn’t something I do. Instead, it’s something that God
does to me after I open my heart to his love. God isn’t going to ask me
to write an essay to find out if I really understand what I am doing.
He isn’t going to give me a multiple choice test asking me one-hundred
questions on theology, and if I don’t score at least seventy percent, I
don’t get to call him Father. He won’t ask for a personal interview or
references from religious people. He won’t demand that I am perfect
before I can have a relationship. He won’t require that I don’t sin for
three days in a row before it can happen.
God loves me unconditionally. That means He loves me and accepts me the
way I am. He loves me from the top of my head to the tip of my toes,
and it doesn’t get any better than that. There are no preconditions to
having a relationship with God. As soon as I open my heart to his love
and call him Father, He does the rest.
DON'T LET ANYONE FORCE YOU INTO THEIR SPIRITUAL MOLD
Most people get nervous when you talk about spiritual birth.
Spiritual birth is a confusing subject, and people have a lot of
questions. How much theology do you need to know? How many
scriptures do you need to read? Do you need to pray extra hard for
a long time to make it happen? Are there any formulas you have to
follow? Are there any special words you need to say? Do you
need to say them in any particular order? Is there is special
place you need to go to make it happen? Can you do it with your
eyes open, or do they have to be closed?
All of these questions focus on you, seducing you into believe that
spiritual birth is something you do, instead of something that God does
to you.
The truth is, God is the one who does it all. He is the one who
makes it happen. As soon as you open your heart to his love and
call him Father, He does all the rest.
He isn't going to ask you to write an essay to find out if you really
know what you are doing. He isn't going to give you a multiple
choice test asking one-hundred questions on theology, and if you don't
score at least seventy percent, you don't get to call him Father.
He won't ask for a personal interview or references from religious
people. He won't demand that you are perfect before you can
have a relationship. He won't require that you don't sin for three
days in a row before it can happen.
God's love is unconditional, and that means there are no preconditions
to having a personal relationship with him.
Your relationship with God is a personal thing, and it's going to be
different for you than it will be for other people. God made you
different from everyone else, and your relationship with him will be
different as well.
It's not my relationship or someone else's relationship. It's
yours. When God made you, He threw away the mold, and your
relationship with him will be personal and unique.
Don't let anyone force you into their spiritual mold. You will not
fit, and you will be miserable if you try to be like them and have a
spiritual relationship that duplicates theirs. If God wanted all
of us to be the same, He would have made us all the same. We would
all be clones. God didn't do it, and you shouldn't try to do it
either.
