Joyce Meyer - Born Again: What Does It Mean?

TOPICS: Born Again

Well, thank you for joining me today on, «Enjoying Everyday Life». Today we’re doing a heart to heart segment. And I call it that because I really just wanna speak to you, my heart to your heart, and talk to you about something that is very, very important. Have you ever had anyone say to you, «Are you born again, or are you saved»? And wondered what in the world they’re talking about? Or have you just heard that phrase, and you wondered, «What am I getting saved from»? Or, «How can you be born again? You can’t go back into your mother’s womb and be born all over again». But the Bible says in John 3:3, «Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again he cannot see the Kingdom of God».

So, this is not just something that people randomly say, but it’s actually something that Jesus said himself. And to be born again means to be born again spiritually. You are a spirit, you have a soul, and you live in a body. We’re all tri-part beings. When you look at yourself in the mirror, there’s more to you than just the body that you see. Sometimes you’re hurting in your soul about something and your body feels fine. Our spirit can be dead or it can be alive. And it’s dead if we don’t have Jesus Christ, the light of the world, living in us. When God told Adam and Eve that, if they ate of the one tree in the garden that he told them not to eat of, that they would surely die. He didn’t mean that they would die physically.

Matter of fact, Adam lived to be over 900 years old. But he meant that they would die spiritually. When you’re alive spiritually, you have received Jesus Christ as your Savior. You believe that he came and died for your sins. You believe he bore your sins on the cross, he shed his blood for you, that he died, was buried for three days, and rose again from the dead. You know, there’s so many people that believe in so many different things and people that believe in different, what they call Gods, although there is only one God. But Jesus is the only one that’s alive. A lot of religions believe in people that died a long time ago. But our God is alive and he is seated at the right hand of the father.

And you can be seated with him, if you receive him as your Lord and Savior. And I say receive, because it’s not something you get. I don’t wanna say to you today, «Did you get saved? Did you get born again»? No. «Have you received Christ»? There’s really nothing you have to do except repent of your sins, be willing to turn away from a life of sin, and become a follower of Jesus Christ. And then you receive him. The Bible says that we are saved by grace through faith. Faith is the hand that reaches out and simply receives what God gives us by his grace. There is not one of us that deserved for Jesus to die for us. That means that we’re all sinners. Sin must be punished in order for there to be justice. Sin must be punished. But instead of punishing us, God sent his own son to take our place. That would be like if somebody was a murderer and they were sentenced to life in prison, and somebody said, «Well, I’m gonna take your place and you can go free».

Why anyone would not want to be born again or saved, is beyond me. A lot of times people think, «Well, my lifestyle would have to change, and I don’t wanna give up this, and I don’t wanna give up that, and I don’t wanna give up something else». But to be honest, when you receive Christ as your Savior, your desires change. You don’t have to worry about having to give things up. You will just start to have new desires, and you’re not gonna want to do those same old things that you used to do. You might for a while, but as you study God’s word and you develop a relationship with him, that all changes. When we accept Jesus into our heart, and it’s by faith, you may feel something, you may not feel anything.

When I was born again as a nine-year-old child, I felt like I had, had an inner bath. I felt like I had just been scrubbed clean on the inside. But, not understanding the word, the first time I did something wrong, I thought I lost all that, but that’s not true. Once you’re saved, God has to work with you through the power of the Holy Spirit all throughout your life, changing you into the image of Jesus Christ. I’m still changing. Everybody I know that is a Christian is still changing, if they’re serious about their relationship with God. Just for a minute, let me make a difference between those who are serious and those who are just maybe putting their time in, hoping that if they go to church a few times a year, they won’t go to hell. I do not like it when I ask somebody, «Are you born again»? And they tell me what church they go to. Being born again is about having a relationship.

Now listen to me, a personal relationship with God. He created you in your mother’s womb with his own hand, carefully and intricately. He knows every thought you’re gonna think before you think it. He knows every word you’re gonna speak before you speak it. He has a good plan laid out for your life, and you are the only one that can mess it up. No matter what anybody else does, God can redeem you from any hurt, from any injustice, and you can have a wonderful life. So don’t think that it’s what you do that saves you. It’s not. It’s what Jesus did that saves you. When we accept Jesus into our heart, our sins are forgiven. Think about this with me. Our sins are forgiven, completely forgiven. They are forgotten by God. The Bible says he remembers our sin no more.

Now, I’ll be honest with you, it takes a while to believe some of these things because they’re so wonderful. You think, «How can that be»? But see, once you’re born again, if you do sin, which you still will, you’ll recognize it right away. The Holy Spirit will convict you, and you can repent, tell God you’re sorry, and ask him to help you not to do it again. And God immediately forgives you, and he forgets the sin. The Bible says, «Removes it as far as the east is from the west, and remembers it no more».

I remember when I was in my twenties. I used to kneel down by the bed every night before I went to sleep, and I prayed the same prayer every night. «Father, forgive me for my sins,» and I had certain sins in mind. «And help me be a good wife and a good mother. But most of all help me be a good Christian. Because I know if I can do that, then everything else will work out alright». And I prayed that same prayer every night. And one night I heard God speak to me, which I wasn’t accustomed to, although he does want to speak with us all the time, and I’ve learned that now. But I heard in my heart very plainly, «I forgave you the first time you asked me. Now, you have to receive the forgiveness». Or another way of saying it, which is not my favorite way, but it gets the point across, is you have to forgive yourself.

You have to receive the forgiveness that God gives you. And then the good news is, is there’s no more condemnation. You don’t have to carry the guilt. When Jesus bore your sins, he also bore the guilt. And I had a huge problem with guilt. And I would imagine that there are hundreds of thousands of people watching right now, that you’re still feeling guilty for things that God forgave you for a long time ago, but you need to receive it. When we believe that he was punished and died for our sins, was buried and rose again after three days, and is seated at the right hand of God, the Bible says in Romans 10:9, «That if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved».

So, there’s two things here, it’s saying to believe, and to confess it with your mouth. Why is it important to confess it? It’s because that kinda like makes it real in this realm. And you know, we do have an enemy. He’s called by many different names in the Bible: Lucifer, satan, the evil one, the father of all lies. And he comes against us. But making that declaration, «I accept Jesus Christ as my Lord and Savior. I believe that he died for me. I believe he rose from the dead». That lets the enemy know where you stand. And actually, as soon as you’re saved, I really encourage you to get baptized in water as quick as you can. Now maybe you don’t even understand what that is, but baptism is something that’s very important.

People say, «I baptize you in the name of the father, son, and the Holy Ghost,» and they put you under the water, and then they bring you back up. And when you go under, it signifies the burying of the old life. And when you come out, it signifies being raised to a brand-new life. And that’s what happens. «Old things pass away, and all things become new». There again, when the enemy sees that, he knows what your intention is, that you’re gonna live for God. Being a Christian means to be a follower of Christ. It’s so much more than just going to a building and sitting there once a week and thinking that, «Now, I’m okay».

There’s a life that God has for you. He’s got such a good life already planned for you, that you might walk in it. Oh, there’s something for you to do. We’re partners with God. There’s a part that only he can do, but there’s a part that only we can do. And I always say we can’t do his part, and he won’t do our part. «Faith without works is dead». We receive by faith, but then the Bible says, «…To work out your salvation with fear and trembling». Well, what in the world does that mean? If we’re saved by grace, then we can’t be saved by works, which Ephesians 2:8 and 9 says. Then what does it mean to work out your salvation? Well, when you’re born again, what happens to you happens deep inside you in your spirit, but it has to be worked out of you. Your soul has to be healed, which is your mind, your will, and your emotions.

One of the first things you need to do when you’re born again is learn how to think the way God thinks. And we don’t think the way God thinks. We think all the junk that the devil has put in our head for years and years. And you think the devil don’t talk to you? Well, he talked to eve in the Garden of Eden. He talked to Jesus when he was taken into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil 40 days and 40 nights. That’s in Luke chapter 4. Yes, he talked to Judas to get him to betray Jesus. He talked to Peter to get him to deny Jesus. But he talks to us in our mind. He puts thoughts in our mind. And we have to know God’s word, because if we don’t, we don’t know when we’re hearing lies. And chances are, right now, if you’re not born again, most of what you believe may be lies. And you probably believe a whole lot of bad stuff about yourself, that God’s already taken care of.

So, the way you work out your salvation is by learning the Word of God. And let me be honest with you, you can go to some churches for 20 years, and never learn very much about the Word of God. You may learn a lot about that church’s doctrine, which is important. Doctrine is what we base our faith on. It’s important to understand what those things are and what they mean. But we also have to apply the Word of God in our everyday lives. And in order for that to happen, we need to hear teaching and read books that help us learn how to apply the word in our daily lives. And some of it, yes, is harder to understand than other parts. But there are so many different translations of the Bible now, that make it so much easier to understand.

I personally use an Amplified classic Bible. I have for 48 years, and I just like it. But there’s the new international version, the English standard version, the word, just, I mean, I have no idea how many different translations there are. Also, you can get a study Bible. We have an «Enjoying Everyday Life study Bible». And so we will have different articles interspersed in this Bible that help you understand what you just read, or little life points that help you understand. We want to help you understand the Word of God, and we want you to know that it is for you. Salvation is such a wonderful gift, and everybody can receive. Now, let me tell you some good news.

When you receive Christ as your Savior, which I’m gonna pray with you before the end of the program. And there will also be a number on your screen that we would like you to call and just say, «I prayed the prayer of salvation with Joyce today. I received Jesus». And we have a book that we wanna send you as a free gift. Or you can get it as a free download online. Because you need to tell somebody that you made a commitment to Christ. It kinda doubles down the determination when you tell somebody, now you’re committed to somebody else. But when you’re born again, the Bible says that, «He that knew no sin,» which is Jesus, «Became sin». He didn’t just take our sin, he became sin. On that cross, he actually killed sin, because he had lived a perfect life. He followed all the laws, and so, crucifying him was illegal, because he had done it all just right.

So, he killed the power of sin there on the cross. «He that knew no sin became sin: that we might be made the righteousness of God in him». Well, see, before you’re saved, you’re wrong with God. Everything is wrong. You’re doing everything wrong. You believe wrong. You act wrong. But the first thing God gives you is rightness. It’s righteousness, but I like to say rightness, because it’s important for you to realize that you now have righteousness on the inside of you, which means that you can learn to do things right.

One of the things I love about the Lord is that he never expects me to do something without giving me the ability to do it. And so, when he makes us right with him, that gives us the ability to eventually learn how to behave right. And that’s how we work out our salvation. But I do wanna tell you very clearly, you will never work out your salvation if you don’t make a commitment to learn the Word of God. Because the only way you’re gonna know when satan is lying to you, is to know the word. In 2 Corinthians 5:17, it says, «Therefore, if any person is in Christ, he is a new creation».

See, when you’re born again, you’re made brand new. Now, that doesn’t mean if you’re bald you grow hair, or if you don’t like the shape of your nose, it changes. It means that inside you become a new creature. I like to say you’re new spiritual clay. He becomes a new creature altogether. «Old [previous moral and spiritual condition] Has passed away». See you’re no longer dead in your spirit, you’re now alive in your spirit. And you may or may not feel something, but you take it by faith, and then you will begin to see differences in you, in your desires. You might be watching a movie that you would’ve been very comfortable watching last week, but you’ve gotten saved since then. And it’s like you never heard all the bad language before. You never realized all the things that were in it. And now, it’s like it kinda bothers you when you hear that kind of stuff.

So, you don’t have to worry about changing yourself. You learn the Word of God, and God has come to live in you when you received him. To receive him means he comes to live in your heart. The Holy Spirit comes to live in you. And the Holy Spirit is «The teacher». I’m a teacher, I teach, but he is «The teacher». So, I always trust him before I teach like this, that he will actually make it real to you. The Holy Spirit is working in you right now. If you’re not born again, the Holy Spirit is working on you right now, encouraging you that it’s time for you to make a commitment to Christ. «The fresh and the new has come». «The old has passed away, and the fresh and the new has come». It’s like getting—it’s like having your whole record erased and you get to start all over again. And that’s so great. And I love 1 John 3:9. It says, «No one born of God [deliberately, knowingly, and habitually] Practices sin».

Now that doesn’t mean you never sin, but you have a new identity. You’re no longer a sinner. You are now the righteousness of God in Christ, who sins. But you’re learning to sin less and less all the time, as the Holy Spirit teaches you and you learn the Word of God. But it says, «If you’re born of God, you cannot [deliberately, knowingly, habitually] Practice sin, because God’s nature lives in you». God’s nature lives in you. You get a new nature. And then one final scripture. «It is by free grace [God's unmerited favor] That you are saved (delivered from judgment and made a partaker of Christ’s salvation) through [your] Faith». So all I’m asking you to do today is just put your faith out there to receive Christ into your life.

You may think, «Well, I’m not good enough». Well, that’s the good news is if you were good enough, then you wouldn’t need Jesus. So if you’re not good enough, that’s really good news, you’re just the person that Jesus wants to save. And now listen, «This [salvation] Is not of yourself [it's not of your own doing, it came not through your own striving] It is the gift of God: not because of works [not the fulfillment of the law's demands], lest any man should boast. [it is not the result of what anyone can possibly do, so no one can pride himself or take glory to himself.]» and then Ephesians 2:10 says that, «We’re God’s handiwork recreated in Christ Jesus, [born anew] That we may do the good works which he has preplanned ahead of time, walking the path that he has laid out for us».

I’ll tell you, being a believer is fun. You’re always learning new things about yourself. You get all kinds of new abilities. You can forgive people when they hurt you. You find joy instead of fun. You have peace when you shouldn’t have peace. All kinds of good things, good things. Don’t be concerned about what you might have to give up. Matter of fact, I would just say don’t even start trying to give anything up until God puts it in your heart and you know I don’t wanna do that anymore. That’s not what I wanna do. That’s not what God wants me to do and that’s not what I wanna do.

I’m gonna pray a prayer and you can just pray it after me. But please call the number on the screen. Ask any questions you wanna ask. If you feel like you didn’t really get to thoroughly pray, they’ll pray with you again. Get this book about how to begin your new life spiritually with Christ and boy, it’s the beginning of a brand-new life for you. Let’s just say this.

Father God, I believe in you. I believe that you sent your son Jesus to pay for my sins. I believe he died on a cross, that he was buried and rose from the dead three days later. That he is alive today, seated at the right hand of the father. And I’m sorry for my sins. I’m sorry for the way I’ve lived. And I invite you into my life to be my Savior and my Lord. I’m ready to change. I want to be a Christian. I want to be a follower of Christ. Take me just the way I am, Lord. Now, make me what you want me to be. And I believe I’m saved in Jesus name. Amen.