Thursday 6/5/14 Going Up 3

Dear Father in Heaven:  I love You.  Thank You so very much for loving me and forgiving me of my sins.  Please help me with the message of today, and please help me to dispatch it.  Please be with our veterans, our military, and our nation's leaders.  I pray that our president knows You and not just knows of You.  I pray today for his safety and for his soul.  In Jesus' Name, I pray.  Amen.

Brothers and sisters, no bad side effects from the hit in the head yesterday.  I do want to get right to the message today and start out by talking about some words that seem to scare some folks.

Thursday, June 5, 2014, Going Up (Day Three)

John 3:3 - In reply Jesus declared, "I tell you the truth, no one can see the kingdom of God unless he is Born Again.'  4 "How can a man be born again when he is old?" Nicodemus asked.  "Surely he cannot enter a second time in his mother's womb to be born!"  5 Jesus answered, "I tell you the truth, no one can enter the kingdom of God unless he is 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.'"  (NIV)

"Born Again" which I myself say those words scare some people, they do NOT however scare me one bit for I know what they mean.  The Greek also use the term for Born Again by saying "Born From Above."  Here from the Bible I will show you about being born of the Spirit.

Titus 3:3 - At one time we too were foolish, disobedient, deceived and enslaved by all kinds of passions and pleasures.  We lived in malice and envy, being hated and hating one another.  4  But when the kindness and love of God our Savior appeared, 5 He saved us, not because of righteous things we had done, but because of His mercy.  He saved us through the washing of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit, 6 whom He poured out on us generously through Jesus Christ our Savior, 7 So that having been justified by His grace, we might become heirs having the hope of eternal life.  (NIV)

When we get Baptized, as the example that Jesus set by letting John baptize Him, we also get baptized.  This done by water is to show cleansing or cleaning and it is an outward expression of our inner feeling.  This is why I believe that we should be baptized when we decide to follow Jesus and become Born Again.  Some churches have babies baptized.  I am not going to debate one over the other, for the most important thing we want to talk about is being renewed by the Holy Spirit, which means we have been Born Again, or Born from Above.  This all comes from Jesus Christ, and we cannot buy it, earn it by working for it, what we just need to do is ASK IN FAITH for Jesus to come into our hearts and confess our love for Him.  Here it is in scripture.

Romans 10:9 - That if You confess with your mouth, Jesus is Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved.  10 For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified and it is with your mouth that you confess and are saved.  (NIV)

Of course we will change, for once we are Born Again we become a new person in Christ, we are to repent and put away our old self.  That should be gone.  When I came to Jesus I changed, and brothers and sisters, I want to tell you that I am indeed a sinner saved only by grace and I am still changing and still growing in Christ.  In fact each time I write a daily message and look up scripture God opens His Word more to me.  Okay, enough for today.

Now go forth and share your blessings.  Love ya.  Please share my love with others.

Pastor Dan