1Pe 1:23 KJV Being born again, not of corruptible seed, but of incorruptible, by the word of God, which liveth and abideth for ever.
1Pe 1:23 AMP You have been regenerated (born again), not from a mortal origin (seed, sperm), but from one that is immortal by the ever living and lasting Word of God.
How are we born again? What past of us is born again? What does it mean to be born again? These are questions folks sometimes never ask but they are important questions. The scripture above holds the answers and deeper truth.
From the Amplified version, we see that to be born again is to be re-generated. What does that mean? Well, look at it this way, when you were born by your physical parents, you came out carrying their DNA and genes. Likewise when God who is a Spirit gave birth to your new Spirit, you came out with God's DNA and God's genes. Your spirit carries within it the DNA, Characteristics, genes etc of the Living God just like a physical baby carries that of his or her parents. Physically, sometimes children come out with hereditary disorders because of genes they have inherited. A genetic disorder is an illness caused by abnormalities in genes or chromosomes, especially a condition that is present from before birth. Well guess what its the same with your spiritual birth except that your spirit was birth full of God's genes and hence instead of having genetic disorders, you have genetic orders—such as pure God-life i.e. Zoë, perfect health, excellence, purity, faith, hope , love, prosperity etc. God is love. He does not have love. He IS Love and hence because Love begat you, you carry the genes of Love, your Father. Love is your nature. It's not simple feelings. It is who you are.
Finally God is eternal. He cannot die because He carries Zoë. Likewise you cannot die either. You too carryZoë. You may lay your life down but you cannot die even physically. That is why no one could kill Apostle John. They even fried him in oil and he would not die so they banished him to Patmos because they could not kill him. He had apprehended life. That's the true meaning of John 3:16. For God so loved the world that whosoever believed in Him would not perish but have Zoë i.e. the God kind of life. Like Jesus, for you to die, you must willingly lay down your life. Most folks are still in John 11:24, when their inheritance is John 11: 40 and John 11:25-26.
Joh 11:25-26 Jesus said unto her, I am the resurrection, and the life: he that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live: (26) And whosoever liveth and believeth in me shall never die. Believest thou this?
Most know Jesus as the resurrection i.e. if they die he will resurrect them on the last day i.e. the rapture. Very few know him as the Life i.e. v26. If you believe in him as the life, you will never die. Read verse 26 again.
Jesus knew Martha would not believe this revelation so after saying it to her, he asked her, "Believest thou this?". Her response was yes but she lied. Her later response to his command to take away the stone is proof she did not believe like many today have a problems believing in Zoë. This life is not for the future. You were born with it and it is a present day reality The bible translators also could not believe this and that is why they translated this God kind of life Zoë as eternal life. It is still correct because it is life which never ends but many interpret it as life we get when we go to heaven.
This passage is not talking about heaven. If it was he would not have raised Lazarus from the dead. He would have waited to the rapture to raise him. Jesus was explaining that He was two things.
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Christ as the resurrection and
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Christ as the LifeAs the resurrection, he says that if you are dead, he will resurrect you on the last day or at the rapture. But if you are alive and know him then as the life he says, "whosoever liveth and believeth in me shall never die.
That's plain English yet some folks struggle with it. He said those who were already dead like Lazarus, he would resurrect but if you were still alive, you had no reason to ever die. Why then do men still die? Because as a man thinketh in his heart so he is. God will always give you what you believe. If you believe you must die, then so be it BUT if you believe death was a result of the curse of Adam and that curse has been removed as a result of Christ's death, burial and resurrection, then there is no more death for you--only life or Zoë. Another way to look at it is God himself says His people die for one reason. What is that? According to Hosea 4:6, it is because of a lack of knowledge. Only truth sets free and gives life. Ignorance leads to death.
Joh 8:32 And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.
Hos 4:6 My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge: because thou hast rejected knowledge, I will also reject thee, that thou shalt be no priest to me: seeing thou hast forgotten the law of thy God, I will also forget thy children.
The opposite of truth is a lack of knowledge. One brings death and the other results in freedom which is life.
I'VE GOT THE LIFE OF GOD IN ME! Well God's life doesn't lead to death. The very seed that gave birth to you according to the Amplified bible quoted above is not from a mortal origin (seed, sperm), but from one that is immortal by the ever living and lasting Word of God. How can the immortal give birth to something that ends up in death? It cannot. Immortal begets immortal.
Someone will argue and say but that life was given to your spirit alone and not your mortal body. Ok, let's consult the scriptures.
Rom 8:11 KJV But if the Spirit of him that raised up Jesus from the dead dwell in you, he that raised up Christ from the dead shall also quicken your mortal bodies by his Spirit that dwelleth in you.
Rom 8:11 AMP And if the Spirit of Him Who raised up Jesus from the dead dwells in you, [then] He Who raised up Christ Jesus from the dead will also restore to life your mortal (short-lived, perishable) bodies through His Spirit Who dwells in you.
The verse says, God's spirit in you quickens your mortal body. That is if you believe of course. What does that mean? It means when Holy Ghost comes to live in you, He vitalizes or gives Zoë to your mortal body. How awesome is that? But you may ask, how come people are still dying? The answer is they believe not or they have not received this truth or it has not been revealed to them. They may simply be suffering from a lack of knowledge. If we believe, the Word assures us that life is ours in spirit, soul and body right now. But how does the Holy Ghost do this? According to the verse, He does it the same way He raised Jesus' dead body from the grave after 3 days. Our spirits are alive because of Christ and the new birth but our bodies are mortal or they are dead because of the sin of Adam. It is the Holy Ghost who gives our dead bodies life resurrecting them like He did Jesus' body.
Rom 8:10-11 But if Christ lives in you, [then although] your [natural] body is dead by reason of sin and guilt, the spirit is alive because of [the] righteousness [that He imputes to you]. (11) And if the Spirit of Him Who raised up Jesus from the dead dwells in you, [then] He Who raised up Christ Jesus from the dead will also restore to life your mortal (short-lived, perishable) bodies through His Spirit Who dwells in you.
Verse 10 says if Christ lives in you i.e. if you are born again, your body is still dead but when the Holy Ghost is in us and we believe in Him and His Word, He who lives in our spirit will vitalize or gives Zoë to our mortal bodies.
God will grant you understanding! I have to move on for now.
In conclusion, because you carry God's genes or His very nature, whatever you touch is blessed and receives life just like whatsoever God touches lives and prospers. You carry and disperse Zoë i.e. life and prosperity. You might not have known these things and hence not lived in the reality of your inheritance in Christ Jesus. Now KNOW the Truth about yourself and your birth and the Truth will set you free to live in your true God given destiny. God bless you child of God.
