I am born of ... yes, of course

NORSK
The theme: “What kind of birth which gives access to the kingdom of God” is still on the agenda:

“Very truly I tell you, no one can enter the kingdom of God unless they are born of water and the Spirit.”
John 3:5

Yesterday, I wrote about water, blood and Spirit as three witnesses to my regeneration. Today "born of the Spirit" gets my full attention. For some reason we seem to be more familiar with the idea of the Spirit’s role in the rebirth. Perhaps, the reason for this familiarity is found in the creation-story:

And Jehovah God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul.
Genesis 2:7

Already in the first verse of the prologue, John identified "logos" as God. A few verses later he states “In him was life”. Therefore, it is also he who gives mankind new life. Just as God breathed the breath of life into the first Adam, he now breaths new life through the last Adam. This is how Paul describes this:

“The first man Adam became a living being”; the last Adam, a life-giving spirit.
1 Cor 15:45

There is a lot of food for the thought in this reflection, but the main thing is to have the assurance of regeneration in the heart!

‘Manna’ for today:

I am born of the Spirit! (1)

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(1) Of course I am – I have already declared that "I am born of God"

Certificate or record?

NORSK

Our daughters found it timely to make some fun on my behalf when I in my Norwegian version of the blog wrote that “my birth certificate is issued in Stavanger”. The correct way of referring to this document in Norwegian, translates “my birth record”, which again sounds strange in English.

Today I will take this certificate or 'record' one step further. The point is that the certificate bear witness to the fact that a birth has taken place and that I as a consequence am registered as a citizen of the kingdom of Norway.

Do I have an equivalent certificate to bear witness to the fact that I am a citizen in the kingdom of God?

Several bible verses may be used as a certificate, and since this is about being born of God, I choose this:

For there are three that testify: the Spirit, the water and the blood; and the three are in agreement.
1 John 5:7-8

For years I wondered what this means. That the Spirit testifies, was fine, but what about the water and the blood? 
If you have read the blog in recent days, you will remember that John had a strong focus on water and blood. Some will immediately associate the elements with baptism and communion, and the symbolism of the sacraments will have links to the new birth.

However, for John the water and the blood primarily represent the birth fluids. He interprets them as the physical evidence to the fact that Jesus was human. The Spirit of truth gives the divine confirmation that Jesus is a physical human being as well as the son of God, but the same Spirit also confirms that the new birth has taken place in those who believe.

Therefore, the pilgrimage to Jerusalem is only the first stage. From the place of birth, the 'born of God continues to walk into all the world as the visible 'Jesus' people can see and touch today.

‘Manna’ for today:

The new birth is the new incarnation

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I am born of God!

NORSK
This is a strong statement, but there is biblical evidence for the claim. I sometimes wonder why many believers seem to find it easier to confess “I am created in God's image”, than to say “I am born of God”.

In the prologue of John's Gospel, it is often the 12th verse many believers learn by heart:

Yet to all who did receive him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God
John 1:12

I use this verse very often, and a couple of days back I used it as the biblical foundation for praying the ‘prayer for salvation’. When I prayed this prayer, I became a child of God, and John concludes that they who do that are:

children born not of natural descent, nor of human decision or a husband’s will, but born of God.
John 1:13

Being a child of God implies that I am born of God. It pushes the limit of what can be grasped by my human reason, and it is possible that is the reason why some believers find the claim threatening. It's okay to confess that: “I believe”, “I am a Christian” - even that “I am a child of God”, but many are struggling to say “I am born again” or “I am born of God”- at least in Norway. Therefore Norwegians have created the odd term “personal Christian” to distinguish him from a nominal Christian who does not confess a faith, but has a membership in a church.

I have already written – John is crystal clear: A child of God is born of God. However, it is still I who decide if I will define myself as a child of God - and the condition is unchanged: I become his child through receiving him and believe. More about the journey to the place of birth tomorrow.

‘Manna’ for today:

I am born of God!

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Returning to the place of birth

No, this is not about returning to beautiful Stavanger although that is the city in which my birth certificate was issued. Some of you who have read this blog regularly for some time may have been involved in the 30-months long immersion in the Gospel of John. There are many themes that John presented as important, yet if I have to choose what I think was important for him to communicate, I am likely to end up with his teaching about the new birth.

Blood and water are regarded as the birth fluids, and there is a lot about these fluids both directly and indirectly in the ‘Jesus story’ according to John. Already in the prologue he writes about the new birth, and it runs like a stream through the whole Gospel, until the birth fluids flow from Jesus' side after his death on the cross:

The soldiers therefore came and broke the legs of the first man who had been crucified with Jesus, and then those of the other. But when they came to Jesus and found that he was already dead, they did not break his legs. Instead, one of the soldiers pierced Jesus’ side with a spear, bringing a sudden flow of blood and water.
John 19:32-34

John is so close to this event that he can observe it with their own eyes. For three years he has been with Jesus and heard his teaching about a new birth and new life that comes when we are willing to loose ourselves, to be able to find a life that cannot die. And, for John to watch the ‘birth fluids’ flow from the wound in Jesus' side must have been yet another confirmation of the new birth.

Maybe that is why John three days later, now identified as ‘the other disciple’, understood that there had been a resurrection before anybody else had realized it: “the other disciple ... saw and believed” (1).

Once a believer has grasped the mystery of the gospel about the new birth, many aspects of the faith fall into place. In fact, to believe is not any longer a battle with doubt, but a rest in the divine mystery.

‘Manna’ for today:

I am born again, and returning to my place of birth!

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(1) John 20:8a

What is the most special aspect of Jerusalem?

NORSK
Yesterday I started on the trek ‘up to Jerusalem’ as a preparation for Easter.
Actually, all the reflections for this period could have been linked to Jerusalem's unique position as the most important religious capital of the world. 

If the question in today's headline was given in a survey, I would not be surprised if the uniqueness as religious capital would receive the majority vote. 

Still, I want to focus on something else; however, I cannot claim to sit with the correct answer, if there is correct answer to the question. 

I remember very well the strong impression Psalm 87 made on me when I was preparing my messages for a tent-campaign in Lyngdal in the early 90s. The Psalm has only seven small verses, but I think it contains an important prophecy about the new birth:

And of Zion it is said:
“Each person was born in it,
but the one who will establish it is the Most High.”
Psalm 87:5

I think this is the most special aspect of Jerusalem. That was the reason why Jesus had to go up to Jerusalem. It was there that the foundation for the new birth had to be laid. The next few days I will try post reflections to substantiate this claim.

‘Manna’ for today:

I have never been in Jerusalem, but I was born there! (1)

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(1) May be you will make the same claim when you have read the entire Psalm:

God’s foundation is set on the holy mountains.
2 The Lord loves Zion’s gates
more than all of Jacob’s houses combined.
3 Glorious things are said about you,
the city of God! Selah
4 I count Rahab and Babel among those who know me;
also Philistia and Tyre, along with Cush—
each of these was born there.
5 And of Zion it is said:
“Each person was born in it,
but the one who will establish it is the Most High.”
6 The Lord makes a record as he registers the peoples:
“Each one was born there.” Selah
7 And while they dance, people sing:
“The source of my life comes from you.” 

Psalm 87