REGENERATION

Now a Jew named Apollos, a native of Alexandria, came to Ephesus. He was an eloquent man, competent in the Scriptures. ²⁵ He had been instructed in the way of the Lord. And being fervent in spirit,^[a] he spoke and taught accurately the things concerning Jesus, though he knew only the baptism of John. ²⁶ He began to speak boldly in the synagogue, but when Priscilla and Aquila heard him, they took him aside and explained to him the way of God more accurately.

Acts 18:24-26

Regeneration is to make something new out of something that was damaged. The marking of a new year is a healthy way to take an honest assessment of one’s life. Everyone who is candid with himself or herself would like to improve on something in their life. The start of a new year is a popular time to begin fixing what we see as broken. The beauty of becoming a Christian is that the Creator of the universe begins a work inside of an individual through His Spirit that no self-help book could ever achieve as that person becomes a new creation (2 Cor. 5:16-18). Even better, is the fact that the broken do not have to wait for a new year to begin a new life. For some individuals the change in them happens very quickly and dramatically and for others it is a slower process and could take years. Unfortunately, most churches that I have been to touch lightly on or skirt around the topic of God’s Holy Spirit.

Understandably, the average local church in the West focuses on the salvation brought about by Jesus, the Christ, however, without the work of God’s Spirit there is no changed life. While ministering here on earth, Jesus made it clear to the religious leader named Nicodemus, that one must be born again by the Spirit (John 3:1-8) in order to inherit the kingdom of heaven. In light of this, why do so few religious leaders of our time dive into this teaching? The importance of the Holy Spirit is most likely common knowledge to most of my readers, however, believe it or not, there are hundreds of thousands of professing Christians out there who know nothing about the importance of the work of the Spirit. These are people who have attended a church most of their lives, some of whom you may know. How can this be? Why is this part of God’s deliverance so widely ignored?

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

John 3:3

Jesus answered, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God. ⁶ That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit ⁷ Do not marvel that I said to you, ‘You must be born again.’ ⁸ The wind blows where it wishes, and you hear its sound, but you do not know where it comes from or where it goes. So it is with everyone who is born of the Spirit.”

John 3:5-8

For some reason, there seems to be little teaching on the regenerative work of God’s Spirit. It does not make sense. All of humanity is damaged, as we are all born into sin and we require some form of intervention to even have the desire to want to know God (Rom. 12:2; 2 Cor. 5:16-18; Gal. 6:14-16). This omission is going to have huge consequences for a person’s eternal destiny. Jesus was clear not only when speaking with Nicademus, but also with his disciples about the importance and necessity of the Holy Spirit (John 4:22-24, 14:17, 14:26, 15:26). Without the Spirit’s indwelling, a person cannot come to know God deeply. This is partly because there is little to no interest in seeking His face in the Scriptures without the prompting of the Spirit. The human spirit is dead until awakened by the movement of God’s Spirit. (Eph 2).

¹⁸ For through him we both have access in one Spirit to the Father. ¹⁹ So then you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God, ²⁰ built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus himself being the cornerstone, ²¹ in whom the whole structure, being joined together, grows into a holy temple in the Lord. ²² In him you also are being built together into a dwelling place for God by the Spirit.

Ephesians 2:18-22

In the book of Acts the reader sees how it is possible for God’s Spirit to move in a person’s life and stir them into action, yet the individual remains unaware of the power that is now within him or her. This explains how Apollos could speak so fervently even before understanding that his passion was coming from being Spirit filled. It is notable that even though he was pointing many souls to the Gospel of Christ, Priscilla and Aquila thought that it was important to pull him aside and explain to Apollos that his message was incomplete. Unfortunately, professing faith in Christ does not always mean that the individual has been indwelt by the Spirit of God. According to Jesus, the Spirit is the key to fully awakening the human spirit (John 20:21-23; Acts 2:1-4; Rom. 8:1-17).

Renewal of the human spirit will not only change a person’s eternal destination but will also change an individual’s life and worldview. To the unregenerate soul, all of this is gibberish and ridiculous (1 Cor. 23-25). This is a deadly attitude and one that only God can help change. We are all susceptible to the enemy, but so much more are those who do not have the indwelling of the Spirit of God. The devil is continually looking for lives to destroy. This is a situation that all Christians should be concerned about, especially when it comes to the nominal Christians in their lives.

Keep in mind that the temple of God is no longer in a building. It is inside of each and every regenerate soul (1 Cor. 6:19-20). Knowing God is the most important thing that an individual will ever do in their life, but without the work of the Spirit any knowledge remains in the head as an academic endeavor. Every Christian has the responsibility to help seekers understand the importance of the work of the Spirit. Scripture tells the reader that there is none that are good, no not one (Rom. 3:10-12) and for this very reason it is imperative that every soul repent and seek the face of the Creator to find the kingdom of heaven, or suffer eternal consequences without God. It is up to you as the Temple of the living God to make sure that the Gospel of Life is understood. Depend on the Spirit to speak Truth.