NEW CREATION REALITIES

Topic: New Creation Realities

Facilitator: Pastor Thivha Lidzhade

Scripture

(Joh 3:3-8 AMP)

Jesus answered him, I assure you, most solemnly I tell you, that unless a person is born again (anew, from above), he cannot ever see (know, be acquainted with, and experience) the kingdom of God.
Nicodemus said to Him, How can a man be born when he is old? Can he enter his mother's womb again and be born? Jesus answered, I assure you, most solemnly I tell you, unless a man is born of water and [even] the Spirit, he cannot [ever] enter the kingdom of God. [Ezek. 36:25-27.] What is born of [from] the flesh is flesh [of the physical is physical]; and what is born of the Spirit is spirit. Marvel not [do not be surprised, astonished] at My telling you, You must all be born anew (from above). The wind blows (breathes) where it wills; and though you hear its sound, yet you neither know where it comes from nor where it is going. So it is with everyone who is born of the Spirit.

1 What does it mean to be born again?

1.1 It means to be made part of the family of God. When Jesus said, 'Unless a person is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God’. It is simply because he is not part of the family and as such cannot partake in family matters. Being born again is an act that is done by the Holy Spirit in our lives and all we can do is to believe. When you are not born again it does not matter how good you are or what good deeds you do, you are simply not part of the family. In the same way that you cannot be apart of my earthly family by doing what we do in our family, you also cannot be a child of the Father by doing what the children do or are supposed to do.

We therefore conclude that the only way to be part of God's family is through birth.

2 What gets born again?

The question here is, what part of me gets born again, is it my flesh, soul or spirit?

First we need to establish that, man is spirit, he has a soul and lives in a body.

1Th 5:23. And the very God of peace sanctify you wholly; and I pray God your whole spirit and soul and body be preserved blameless unto the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.

The spirit

According to the Strong's Concordance the original Greek word used here for spirit is:
pneuma (pnyoo'-mah)
This means:
A current of air, that is, breath (blast) or a breeze; by analogy or figuratively a spirit, that is, (human) the rational soul, (by implication) vital principle, mental disposition, etc., or (superhuman) an angel, daemon, or (divine) God, Christ’s spirit, the Holy spirit: - ghost, life, spirit (-ual, -ually), mind.

It refers to the spirit man, which Peter calls ‘the hidden man of the heart.’ 1 Peter 3:4. It is our being, it differentiates us from animals.

The soul

Greek word
psuchē (psoo-khay')
Breath, that is, (by implication) spirit, abstractly or concretely (the animal sentient principle only; thus distinguished on the one hand from pneuma, which is the rational and immortal soul; heart (+ -ily), life, mind, soul, + us, + you.

The soul would refers to the animal sentient (conscious) principle. It includes your psyche, your mind and your reasoning.

The body

This is the body as we know it.

Now the question is. When I say I am born again, is it my spirit, soul or body that is born again? Or is it the whole person that is born again, i.e. spirit, soul and body.

If it was my body that was born again, surely one would see some physical changes in one's body after being born again, since the body can be seen. So, anything that happens to it should be visible.

Could it then be my soul? Now what about James 1:1?

Jas 1:21. Wherefore lay apart all filthiness and superfluity of naughtiness, and receive with meekness the engrafted word, which is able to save your souls.

Remember James was writing to believers who were born again and he said the word implanted can save our souls, implying that their souls were not saved.

Paul writes in Romans 12:2
And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.

How about the creation, after God formed man, he breathed into his nostrils and man became a living soul. The word soul here is the Hebrew word
nephesh (neh'-fesh)
properly a breathing creature, that is, animal or (abstractly) vitality; used very widely in a literal, accommodated or figurative sense (bodily or mental): - any, appetite, beast, body, breath, creature, X dead (-ly), desire, X [dis-] contented, X fish, ghost, + greedy, he, heart (-y), (hath, X jeopardy of) life (X in jeopardy), lust, man, me, mind, mortality, one, own, person, pleasure, (her-, him-, my-, thy-) self, them (your) -selves, + slay, soul, + tablet, they, thing, (X she) will, X would have it.
However God breathed the breath of life (Hebrew: neshâmâh) into the man.
neshâmâh
nesh-aw-maw'
a puff, that is, wind, angry or vital breath, divine inspiration, intellect or (concretely) an animal: - blast, (that) breath (-eth), inspiration, soul, spirit.

It can therefore only mean that it is our spirit that is born again, because,
What is born of [from] the flesh is flesh [of the physical is physical]; and what is born of the Spirit is spirit.

Recommended reading:
Read the book, In Christ by Thivha Lidzhade

Continue Discussion

1. How does one gets born again?
Read Acts 8: 37, Acts 16:31, Romans 10:6-13
2. 1Jn 3:9 Whosoever is born of God doth not commit sin; for his seed remaineth in him: and he cannot sin, because he is born of God.
What does it mean? Does it mean he cannot sin?
What about (1Jn 1:8-10 KJVR) If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. If we say that we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us.
3. Do you think Ananias and Saphira went to heaven when they died after sinning by lying to Peter? Remember they did not get time to confess their sin.

NB: Please make sure that you read the above passage so that we can flow together during the discussion.
Continue Discussion