Why on Earth Do I Need to Be Born Again?
In his after-hours conversation with Nicodemus, Jesus told the world we must be born again. Why? In times past, I have wondered if Jesus’s claim could have anything to do with the blessing of eternal life God placed on unity (see Psalm 133) or with the intense prayer Jesus made on the eve of his crucifixion—that we could be one with the Father as he is one with the Father (see John 17:21–23).
Paul made it clear in his letters to the church that there was a mystery hidden in God for ages and generations past that, through Jesus the Christ, was revealed to the saints, past and present. He said the incredible mystery in our Creator’s heart was that the very nature of Christ could be formed within us (see Galatians 4:19), ), so we could be one with the Father. Even Peter endorsed our need to be born again of God’s Spirit when he wrote that God has given us exceedingly great and precious promises, so we could become partakers of the divine nature (see 2 Peter 1:4). So the correct answer to why we must be born again has everything to do with effecting a positive change in our nature, so we can be one with the Father.
Building spiritual bridges is one of the greatest challenges in life, because we must build these endearing connections with pure thoughts and actions to prevent their eventual collapse.
My new book, The Bridge of Hearts, is a deep dive into the heart of Scripture’s instructions for building spiritual bridges with God the Father, God the Son, and with one another. It stands to reason that the counsel of God’s word would focus on building unblemished spiritual connections, since this is where many good intentions have painfully failed. Building spiritual bridges is one of the greatest challenges in life, because we must build these endearing connections with pure thoughts and actions to prevent their eventual collapse. This highest standard of life and love cannot be obtained without a change of heart, through our own free will.
Our nature can be a problem. The inherent nature of the living soul is carnal, and carnal is the antonym of love. Therefore, to build our spiritual connections on the righteous standards of God’s love requires a change of heart from the carnal to the divine to make us spiritually compatible with God and others.
Enduring spiritual connections must be built on spiritual compatibility, because having compatible spirits will make us capable of living together in harmony. But to consistently walk as one with God in this highest standard of love requires an upgrade in our spiritual nature from the spirit of man to the Spirit of God. Therefore, since the only nature we can effectively change is our own, we must begin the construction of our spiritual bridges on our end.
To consistently walk as one in this highest standard of love requires an upgrade in our nature from the spirit of man to the Spirit of God.
To build reliable spiritual connections, begin by renewing a right spirit. To build our end of the spiritual bond using our inherent carnal nature would be like building a house on desiccated sand and expecting it to weather the storms. So God sent his Word to renew our hearts with the right spirit—his Holy Spirit, so we could become a holy people, a spiritually compatible people who could walk with him in love throughout time without end.
Learn more about building spiritual bridges in my new book The Bridge of Hearts. Click here to download a free sample chapter, or buy the Book on Amazon.
If you have any questions, comments, or if you want to share your stories, please leave them in the comments below.
About the Author
Johnny L. Dudley was born in Louisville, Kentucky, raised in Florida, and served in the Marine Corps as a machine gunner in Vietnam. He is the father of three sons and is presently engaged as a real estate developer.
