Do you feel new?

2 Corinthians 5:17

“Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come.”

 

Do you feel like a new creation?  When you look back over your life, and you think of the moment you were “saved” can you say that the life you’ve lived since then has been new, or different?

 

Jesus came so that we could have an abundant life.  He did not come into the world for you to live the life you’ve always wanted, but rather the Abundant Life is the life Jesus wants you to live. Jesus tells us to be sure of our salvation.  He in fact tells us that we can have assurance.

Matthew 7:21-23

“Not everyone who says to me ‘Lord, Lord’, will enter the kingdom of heaven, but one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. On that day many will say to me, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and cast out demons in your name, and do many mighty works in your name?’ And then will I declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from me, you workers of lawlessness.’

This verse is specifically talking to Christians.  Many will call themselves Christians, and will be “very sure” that they are going to inherit eternal life and Jesus tells them it will be a sad day for a lot of people.

Imagine spending your whole life, praising Jesus, going to church every week, making sure to tithe your 10%, telling your friends about Jesus, only to find out after 80 some odd years that you stand before Jesus and He says “I’m sorry, I don’t know you”, and you realize that what you did for most of your life was just religious activities. (I am telling you there is more.)

So what is the Christian to do?

Just say the prayer, and keep attending church in the hopes that you may squeak by and get in?

John 3:3

“Jesus answered him, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God.”

John 4:23-24

“But the hour is coming, and is now here, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for the Father is seeking such people to worship him. God is spirit, and those who worship him must worship in spirit and truth.”

God is spirit, and those who worship him must worship in spirit and truth.

How do we worship God in Spirit and Truth?

One can only do this through the Holy spirit.  The very Spirit and Breath of God that inhabited Jesus through His ministry.  The very Spirit that Jesus wants you to have.

Why?

Why does Jesus tell us to receive the Holy Spirit?

Because on your own, the very basic level you are born into, you cannot please God.  There is nothing you can do by yourself to lift yourself out of this state you have been born into.  God abhors sin, it is counter to His very presence.  It is what causes us to be looked at with disdain.

The Holy Spirit, when you welcome Him into your life, when you in fact tell the Living God that you want to be possessed by His Spirit, then He moves in and starts working on you from the inside out.

You may not notice it right away, the Holy Spirit is mysterious, and He works in the best possible way for each individual, in His own time.

I believe now the Holy Spirit is waking us His chosen people.  There are swarms of lifelong “Christians” who are “waking” up.  As if they have been asleep all their lives, to one day waking up and realizing that the world looks different to them, to wake up and realize that everything in the Bible is true, and that it is in fact God’s Word to His people.

If you have been looking at the world around you and wondering why nobody in the secular world seems to make sense, it’s because the Holy Spirit wants to inhabit you.  He is giving you truth, He wants to wake you up, in fact He has to wake you up because we are on the precipice of witnessing a world like no one could’ve imagined.  This is true revival.  The Holy spirit does not need special music, the Holy Spirit doesn’t need anything actually, He is God, and He is trying to get your attention, do not quench Him.

If you are wondering “Can I be born Again?” I have hope for you.

The Bible tells us plainly that no man comes to the father, save for the ones He draws.

John 6:44

“No one can come to me unless the Father who sent me draws him. And I will raise him up on the last day.”

Are you are feeling the call of Jesus?  Then the Holy Spirit is and has been working on you.  You need to accept the fact that God has been working through your whole life to get you to this point.  Jesus is the Author and perfector of our faith.  The Holy Spirit is where your faith comes from.

There is a price though.  In order to receive the Holy Spirit, in order to receive the promise of eternal life, in order to be a Child of God, you have to give Him the rest of your life.  This is no small ask, and I must be abundantly clear here; the Christian life is not an easy one, in fact in the coming months and years it will be much harder to be a true Born Again Believer because of the persecution that is mounting.  The time to separate the wheat from the tares is approaching, you will either be found to be a sheep, or a goat.  Jesus tells us that the Father leaves the 99 to find You.

As long as you still have breath on this planet, God wants you to dedicate your “new life” to His service.

To try and “live” the Christian life without the Holy spirit, is the same as putting on a jersey, but never watching a game.  Anyone who puts on the jersey of a team they do not support can always be spotted.  They cheer at the wrong moments, and even if the team wins, it really means nothing to the wearer.

To be a Christian means you put on the full uniform, go to the sidelines, and beg the coach to let you play.

The most significant, and important questions you can deal with as a human being is the condition of your soul.  And I do not mean just looking forward to one day having salvation in eternity, I mean it is pivotal in your life right now, as you live and breathe, because while there is still breath in your lungs, there is still hope that you will accept the calling.  We do not call God, He calls us, it’s up to us whether we answer the call.

Lay your “old” life at the feet of the cross, repent of the life you’ve lived so far, and beg God to create in you a new heart.  Then get connected, to a group of Born Again believers, and watch what God has planned for your New Life.