The Pastor’s Corner – September 2014
Now there was a Pharisee, a man named Nicodemus who was a member of the Jewish ruling council. He came to Jesus at night and said, “Rabbi, we know that you are a teacher who has come from God. For no one could perform the signs you are doing if God were not with him.” Jesus answered, “Very truly I tell you, no one can enter the kingdom of God unless they are born of water and the Spirit. 6 Flesh gives birth to flesh, but the Spirit gives birth to spirit. 7 You should not be surprised at my saying, ‘You must be born again.’ John 3
The story of Nicodemus is a familiar one but it is also one that can cause tension to arise among good Christians faithfully living out their lives. For some, to be “born again” means that you have to remember a specific day, time and place where you declared Jesus as your personal Savior. For others, it means that they recognize Christ’s saving power in their lives that has continued to develop over time. For them it is not about a specific time or place but about the faith journey they are on. Personally, I fall into the latter category. My preaching and my liturgies and my leading the prayers of the people often address our faith journeys and what God is calling us to today. I believe I am on good solid Biblical ground here. One of the multiple meanings of the Greek word for “born,” (gennao) is the imparting of God’s Divine nature to the believer; good standing for both opinions on this verse. The Greek word for “again,” (anothen) can mean a place and time but it can also mean ‘from above,’ for me, a direct connection to God imparting His Divine nature because we believe that Christ is God’s unmerited gift to us given for our redemption.
If you happen to agree with me on my understanding of being born again then you also must agree that our faith journey is one where we continue to grow into Christ; one where we continue to strive to follow His perfect example and heed God’s call upon our lives. As we begin a new church season with our Rally Day Sunday it is the perfect time to give thanks for the gift of Christ but also to listen to the voice of God and what He is calling you to do to farther your faith journey. Is God calling you…
- To attend worship more faithfully
- To attend Sunday school or Bible study
- To start a new Sunday morning ‘Conversation Group’ to read and discuss the morning text before the worship service
- To give an extra dollar to two each week in gratitude for God’s blessing to you
- To help with our church’s fundraisers
- To volunteer for any of our community ministry partnerships
As we begin again may we be born again…receiving the impartation of God’s Divine nature from above as we continue our faith journeys as the Logan’s Ferry church family.
Blessings & Peace,
Pastor Bob