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Lesson 5 - The New BirthIntroduction: As we observed in our last lesson, God sent His Son to save us "from our sins" that "whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life" (Matt. 1:21; John 3:16). Through faith in Jesus we receive (1) repentance for sin, (2) forgiveness for sin, and (3) power to overcome sin. This work of grace is the beginning of a "new life," which is called the "new birth" or "conversion." In this lesson we will see how this new birth takes place in our lives. 1. How many of us are naturally good? Rom. 3:10, 23 [The Further-study verses are John 8:34; Eccl. 7:20; Isa. 64:6] (Romans 3:10 NKJV) "As it is written: "There is none righteous, no, not one;" (Romans 3:23 NKJV) "for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God," 2. Therefore, what is "most assuredly" necessary if we are going to receive the free gift of eternal life? John 3:3, 5, 6 [Matt. 18:3] (John 3:3 NKJV) "Jesus answered and said to him, "Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God."" (John 3:5-6 NKJV) "Jesus answered, "Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God. {6} "That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit." 3. Can we change ourselves? Jer. 13:23 [Rom. 7:18-24] (Jeremiah 13:23 NKJV) "Can the Ethiopian change his skin or the leopard its spots? Then may you also do good who are accustomed to do evil." STEPS TO CONVERSION 4. The Bible points out three steps to conversion. What is the first step? Acts 3:19 (Acts 3:19 NKJV) ""Repent therefore and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, so that times of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord," [Ans: We must repent of our sins. 2 Peter 3:9; Acts 2:38; 5:31; Rom. 2:4; Ps. 34:18] 5. Repentance means to be so sorry for our sins that we do not want to repeat them. Only God can give us that sorrow for sin, for we, by nature, love sin. What will true repentance lead us to do with our past, sinful way of life? Rom. 6:6, 16 (Romans 6:6 NKJV) "knowing this, that our old man was crucified with Him, that the body of sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves of sin." (Romans 6:16 NKJV) "Do you not know that to whom you present yourselves slaves to obey, you are that one's slaves whom you obey, whether of sin leading to death, or of obedience leading to righteousness?" [Ans: By God's help we will crucify the sinful habits we once cherished. True repentance also will cause us to make restitution for our wrongs (such as paying back stolen goods) where we can. Num. 5:7; Eze. 33:15; Luke 19:8, 9; Rom. 8:13] 6. After repentance, what is the second step? 1 John 1:9 (1 John 1:9 NKJV) "If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness." [Ans: We must confess our sins to God, asking for forgiveness. After confessing our sins, we are not to keep on dwelling upon them, but to have faith that God has forgiven them. There also may be people from whom we should ask forgiveness. Prov. 28:13; Ps. 32:5; 51:1-10; Lev. 5:5; 26:40-42; Mark 1:5; James 5:16; Neh. 1:6-11; Rom. 5:1] 7. Thirdly, after repentance and forgiveness, how are we then to live? Rom. 6:4 (Romans 6:4 NKJV) "Therefore we were buried with Him through baptism into death, that just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life." [Ans: We are to live a new life, a righteous life, through the power of the Holy Spirit. Eph. 2:1-10; 1 John 2:6; 3:3] 8. What will happen if we repent of our sins but do not replace our evil deeds with good deeds? Luke 11:24-26 (Luke 11:24-26 NKJV) ""When an unclean spirit goes out of a man, he goes through dry places, seeking rest; and finding none, he says, 'I will return to my house from which I came.' {25} "And when he comes, he finds it swept and put in order. {26} "Then he goes and takes with him seven other spirits more wicked than himself, and they enter and dwell there; and the last state of that man is worse than the first."" [Note: We must preoccupy the mind with good if we would not have it filled with evil. Matt. 6:24; Rom. 12:21] NEW LIFE THROUGH JESUS 9. The end product of conversion is a new life of righteousness. How can we live this new life? Rom. 8:2-4 (Romans 8:2-4 NKJV) "For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has made me free from the law of sin and death. {3} For what the law could not do in that it was weak through the flesh, God did by sending His own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, on account of sin: He condemned sin in the flesh, {4} that the righteous requirement of the law might be fulfilled in us who do not walk according to the flesh but according to the Spirit." [Note: God has power to help even the worst sinner overcome his sins. 1 John 3:3-9; Heb. 10:16; Eze. 36:25-28; 1 Cor. 10:13; Phil. 4:13; John 8:34-36; Heb. 7:25] 10. Who showed us the way to live this new life of righteousness? John14:6 (John 14:6 NKJV) "Jesus said to him, "I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me." [Heb. 2:10, 11, 16-18; 1 Peter 2:21; Matt. 16:24] 11. In demonstrating a righteous life, Jesus showed us three things we can do to enable the Holy Spirit to give us this new life. What is one thing Jesus did, and taught us to do, to live the victorious Christian life? Luke 21:34-36 [Luke 6:12; Matt. 26:41] (Luke 21:34-36 NKJV) ""But take heed to yourselves, lest your hearts be weighed down with carousing, drunkenness, and cares of this life, and that Day come on you unexpectedly. {35} "For it will come as a snare on all those who dwell on the face of the whole earth. {36} "Watch therefore, and pray always that you may be counted worthy to escape all these things that will come to pass, and to stand before the Son of Man."" 12. A second thing Jesus did was to study the Bible and to resist temptation by quoting Scripture. What will regular Bible study do for us? 2 Peter 1:3, 4 (2 Peter 1:3-4 NKJV) "as His divine power has given to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of Him who called us by glory and virtue, {4} by which have been given to us exceedingly great and precious promises, that through these you may be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust." [Note: When we study the Bible daily, the Holy Spirit fills us with holy thoughts and gives us strength to resist temptation. When Jesus was tempted, He quoted Scripture that He had memorized. If we will fill our minds with texts of the Bible and Christian songs, our minds will not be so easily affected by sin. Then, when we are tempted, if we will quote Scripture and pray for strength, we will obtain victory. Matt. 4:3, 4, 7, 10; Ps. 119:11; John 6:53-57, 63; John 17:17] 13. Thirdly, after receiving spiritual strength through prayer and Bible study, Jesus mentally and consciously resisted Satan and his temptations, and chose to do right (see Isa. 7:14, 15 and Luke 4:8). What should we do when tempted? James 4:7, 8 [Eph. 6:12, 13] (James 4:7-8 NKJV) "Therefore submit to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you. {8} Draw near to God and He will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners; and purify your hearts, you double-minded." 14. These three things--Prayer, Bible study, and exercising our will in refusing to sin and choosing to do good with the spiritual strength we have thus received--are the secrets for victorious Christian living. We must combine divine power with human effort. But we must do this every day, even moment by moment! How can we have a growing Christian experience? Col. 2:6 [Luke 9:23; 1 Cor. 15:31; 1 Thess. 5:17; Rev. 2:4] (Colossians 2:6 NKJV) "As you have therefore received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in Him," 15. When we have been truly born again, what will happen to us? 2 Cor. 5:17 [Phil. 1:6] (2 Corinthians 5:17 NKJV) "Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new." Commitment: Is it your desire to be born again into a spiritual life of righteousness, with Jesus as your example? Will you spend time with Jesus every day in prayer and Bible study, and with the strength you thus receive from God choose to resist sin and to follow the Lord Jesus Christ?
Further Study VersesQuestion 1 - Further Study (John 8:34 NKJV) "Jesus answered them, "Most assuredly, I say to you, whoever commits sin is a slave of sin." (Ecclesiastes 7:20 NKJV) "For there is not a just man on earth who does good And does not sin." (Isaiah 64:6 NKJV) "But we are all like an unclean thing, And all our righteousnesses are like filthy rags; We all fade as a leaf, And our iniquities, like the wind, Have taken us away." -->Back to Study Question 2 - Further Study (Matthew 18:3 NKJV) "and said, "Assuredly, I say to you, unless you are converted and become as little children, you will by no means enter the kingdom of heaven." -->Back to Study Question 3 - Further Study (Romans 7:18-24 NKJV) "For I know that in me (that is, in my flesh) nothing good dwells; for to will is present with me, but how to perform what is good I do not find. {19} For the good that I will to do, I do not do; but the evil I will not to do, that I practice. {20} Now if I do what I will not to do, it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells in me. {21} I find then a law, that evil is present with me, the one who wills to do good. {22} For I delight in the law of God according to the inward man. {23} But I see another law in my members, warring against the law of my mind, and bringing me into captivity to the law of sin which is in my members. {24} O wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death?" -->Back to Study Question 4 - Further Study (2 Peter 3:9 NKJV) "The Lord is not slack concerning His promise, as some count slackness, but is longsuffering toward us, not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance." (Acts 2:38 NKJV) "Then Peter said to them, "Repent, and let every one of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins; and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit." (Acts 5:31 NKJV) ""Him God has exalted to His right hand to be Prince and Savior, to give repentance to Israel and forgiveness of sins." (Romans 2:4 NKJV) "Or do you despise the riches of His goodness, forbearance, and longsuffering, not knowing that the goodness of God leads you to repentance?" Psalms 34:18 NKJV) "The LORD is near to those who have a broken heart, And saves such as have a contrite spirit." -->Back to Study Question 5 - Further Study (Numbers 5:7 NKJV) "'then he shall confess the sin which he has committed. He shall make restitution for his trespass in full, plus one-fifth of it, and give it to the one he has wronged." (Ezekiel 33:15 NKJV) ""if the wicked restores the pledge, gives back what he has stolen, and walks in the statutes of life without committing iniquity, he shall surely live; he shall not die." (Luke 19:8-9 NKJV) "Then Zacchaeus stood and said to the Lord, "Look, Lord, I give half of my goods to the poor; and if I have taken anything from anyone by false accusation, I restore fourfold." {9} And Jesus said to him, "Today salvation has come to this house, because he also is a son of Abraham;" (Romans 8:13 NKJV) "For if you live according to the flesh you will die; but if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live." -->Back to Study Question 6 - Further Study (Proverbs 28:13 NKJV) "He who covers his sins will not prosper, But whoever confesses and forsakes them will have mercy." (Psalms 32:5 NKJV) "I acknowledged my sin to You, And my iniquity I have not hidden. I said, "I will confess my transgressions to the LORD," And You forgave the iniquity of my sin. Selah" (Psalms 51:1-10 NKJV) "Have mercy upon me, O God, According to Your lovingkindness; According to the multitude of Your tender mercies, Blot out my transgressions. {2} Wash me thoroughly from my iniquity, And cleanse me from my sin. {3} For I acknowledge my transgressions, And my sin is always before me. {4} Against You, You only, have I sinned, And done this evil in Your sight; That You may be found just when You speak, And blameless when You judge. {5} Behold, I was brought forth in iniquity, And in sin my mother conceived me. {6} Behold, You desire truth in the inward parts, And in the hidden part You will make me to know wisdom. {7} Purge me with hyssop, and I shall be clean; Wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow. {8} Make me hear joy and gladness, That the bones You have broken may rejoice. {9} Hide Your face from my sins, And blot out all my iniquities. {10} Create in me a clean heart, O God, And renew a steadfast spirit within me." (Leviticus 5:5 NKJV) "'And it shall be, when he is guilty in any of these matters, that he shall confess that he has sinned in that thing;" (Leviticus 26:40-42 NKJV) "'But if they confess their iniquity and the iniquity of their fathers, with their unfaithfulness in which they were unfaithful to Me, and that they also have walked contrary to Me, {41} and that I also have walked contrary to them and have brought them into the land of their enemies; if their uncircumcised hearts are humbled, and they accept their guilt; {42} then I will remember My covenant with Jacob, and My covenant with Isaac and My covenant with Abraham I will remember; I will remember the land." (Mark 1:5 NKJV) "Then all the land of Judea, and those from Jerusalem, went out to him and were all baptized by him in the Jordan River, confessing their sins." (Romans 5:1 NKJV) "Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ," (James 5:16 NKJV) "Confess your trespasses to one another, and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much." (Nehemiah 1:6-11 NKJV) ""please let Your ear be attentive and Your eyes open, that You may hear the prayer of Your servant which I pray before You now, day and night, for the children of Israel Your servants, and confess the sins of the children of Israel which we have sinned against You. Both my father's house and I have sinned. {7} "We have acted very corruptly against You, and have not kept the commandments, the statutes, nor the ordinances which You commanded Your servant Moses. {8} "Remember, I pray, the word that You commanded Your servant Moses, saying, 'If you are unfaithful, I will scatter you among the nations; {9} 'but if you return to Me, and keep My commandments and do them, though some of you were cast out to the farthest part of the heavens, yet I will gather them from there, and bring them to the place which I have chosen as a dwelling for My name.' {10} "Now these are Your servants and Your people, whom You have redeemed by Your great power, and by Your strong hand. {11} "O Lord, I pray, please let Your ear be attentive to the prayer of Your servant, and to the prayer of Your servants who desire to fear Your name; and let Your servant prosper this day, I pray, and grant him mercy in the sight of this man." For I was the king's cupbearer." -->Back to Study Question 7 - Further Study (Ephesians 2:1-10 NKJV) "And you He made alive, who were dead in trespasses and sins, {2} in which you once walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit who now works in the sons of disobedience, {3} among whom also we all once conducted ourselves in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, just as the others. {4} But God, who is rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, {5} even when we were dead in trespasses, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved), {6} and raised us up together, and made us sit together in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, {7} that in the ages to come He might show the exceeding riches of His grace in His kindness toward us in Christ Jesus. {8} For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, {9} not of works, lest anyone should boast. {10} For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them." (1 John 2:6 NKJV) "He who says he abides in Him ought himself also to walk just as He walked." (1 John 3:3 NKJV) "And everyone who has this hope in Him purifies himself, just as He is pure." -->Back to Study Question 8 - Further Study (Matthew 6:24 NKJV) ""No one can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or else he will be loyal to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon." (Romans 12:21 NKJV) "Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good." -->Back to Study Question 9 - Further Study (1 John 3:3-9 NKJV) "And everyone who has this hope in Him purifies himself, just as He is pure. {4} Whoever commits sin also commits lawlessness, and sin is lawlessness. {5} And you know that He was manifested to take away our sins, and in Him there is no sin. {6} Whoever abides in Him does not sin. Whoever sins has neither seen Him nor known Him. {7} Little children, let no one deceive you. He who practices righteousness is righteous, just as He is righteous. {8} He who sins is of the devil, for the devil has sinned from the beginning. For this purpose the Son of God was manifested, that He might destroy the works of the devil. {9} Whoever has been born of God does not sin, for His seed remains in him; and he cannot sin, because he has been born of God." (Hebrews 10:16 NKJV) ""This is the covenant that I will make with them after those days, says the LORD: I will put My laws into their hearts, and in their minds I will write them," (Ezekiel 36:25-28 NKJV) ""Then I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you shall be clean; I will cleanse you from all your filthiness and from all your idols. {26} "I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you; I will take the heart of stone out of your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. {27} "I will put My Spirit within you and cause you to walk in My statutes, and you will keep My judgments and do them. {28} "Then you shall dwell in the land that I gave to your fathers; you shall be My people, and I will be your God." (1 Corinthians 10:13 NKJV) "No temptation has overtaken you except such as is common to man; but God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation will also make the way of escape, that you may be able to bear it." (Philippians 4:13 NKJV) "I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me." (John 8:34-36 NKJV) "Jesus answered them, "Most assuredly, I say to you, whoever commits sin is a slave of sin. {35} "And a slave does not abide in the house forever, but a son abides forever. {36} "Therefore if the Son makes you free, you shall be free indeed." (Hebrews 7:25 NKJV) "Therefore He is also able to save to the uttermost those who come to God through Him, since He always lives to make intercession for them." -->Back to Study Question 10 - Further Study (Hebrews 2:10-11 NKJV) "For it was fitting for Him, for whom are all things and by whom are all things, in bringing many sons to glory, to make the captain of their salvation perfect through sufferings. {11} For both He who sanctifies and those who are being sanctified are all of one, for which reason He is not ashamed to call them brethren," (Hebrews 2:16-18 NKJV) "For indeed He does not give aid to angels, but He does give aid to the seed of Abraham. {17} Therefore, in all things He had to be made like His brethren, that He might be a merciful and faithful High Priest in things pertaining to God, to make propitiation for the sins of the people. {18} For in that He Himself has suffered, being tempted, He is able to aid those who are tempted." (1 Peter 2:21 NKJV) "For to this you were called, because Christ also suffered for us, leaving us an example, that you should follow His steps:" (Matthew 16:24 NKJV) "Then Jesus said to His disciples, "If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me." -->Back to Study Question 11 - Further Study (Matthew 26:41 NKJV) ""Watch and pray, lest you enter into temptation. The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak."" (Luke 6:12 NKJV) "Now it came to pass in those days that He went out to the mountain to pray, and continued all night in prayer to God." -->Back to Study Question 12 - Further Study (Matthew 4:3-4 NKJV) "Now when the tempter came to Him, he said, "If You are the Son of God, command that these stones become bread." {4} But He answered and said, "It is written, 'Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God.'"" (Matthew 4:7 NKJV) "Jesus said to him, "It is written again, 'You shall not tempt the LORD your God.'"" (Matthew 4:10 NKJV) "Then Jesus said to him, "Away with you, Satan! For it is written, 'You shall worship the LORD your God, and Him only you shall serve.'"" (Psalms 119:11 NKJV) "Your word I have hidden in my heart, That I might not sin against You!" (John 6:53-57 NKJV) "Then Jesus said to them, "Most assuredly, I say to you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink His blood, you have no life in you. {54} "Whoever eats My flesh and drinks My blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up at the last day. {55} "For My flesh is food indeed, and My blood is drink indeed. {56} "He who eats My flesh and drinks My blood abides in Me, and I in him. {57} "As the living Father sent Me, and I live because of the Father, so he who feeds on Me will live because of Me." (John 6:63 NKJV) ""It is the Spirit who gives life; the flesh profits nothing. The words that I speak to you are spirit, and they are life." (John 17:17 NKJV) ""Sanctify them by Your truth. Your word is truth." -->Back to Study Question 13 - Further Study (Ephesians 6:12-13 NKJV) "For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places. {13} Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand." -->Back to Study Question 14 - Further Study (Luke 9:23 NKJV) "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." (1 Corinthians 15:31 NKJV) "I affirm, by the boasting in you which I have in Christ Jesus our Lord, I die daily." (1 Thessalonians 5:17 NKJV) "pray without ceasing," (Revelation 2:4 NKJV) ""Nevertheless I have this against you, that you have left your first love." -->Back to Study Question 15 - Further Study (Philippians 1:6 NKJV) "being confident of this very thing, that He who has begun a good work in you will complete it until the day of Jesus Christ;" -->Back to Study
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