(God makes) All Things New - Steven Curtis Chapman
The 48th Epistle of Bondservant007 to the church at youtube: Grace and Peace to y'all! The Good News, the Gospel, you have all read and seen.
But have you heard? Did you listen when the Lord calls us to be Born Again? Are you a new Christian, a new child of God? GROW IN CHRIST, metamorphosize from the baby cocoon and grow through all of the stages that God places in your life. Transform the way you think by "the renewing of your mind" (study His Word!). In life the Lord will take our journey down through the desert, through the valley, and continue to "bring us up in the nuture and admonition of the Lord" until we are TRANSFORMED into His will, a beautiful display of His workmanship, a butterfly wearing a coat of many colors.
Revelation 21:5 "And He who sits on the throne said, "Behold, I am making all things new." And He said, "Write, for these words are faithful and true."
Romans 12:2 "And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect."
2 Corinthians 5:17 "Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creature; the old things passed away; behold, new things have come."
"You Must Be Born Again" These are the words Jesus spoke to one of the most religious men of his day (John 3:1-8). Nicodemus had come to Jesus one night to inquire about His new doctrine. Nicodemus was a Pharisee and a ruler of the Jews. He believed in God, he prayed, fasted, tithed, attended worship services, read the Scriptures and tried to keep high moral standards. Yet, with all these credentials, Jesus told him he had to be born again in order to enter the kingdom of God.
Jesus said, " Unless one is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God."(John 3:3). "Unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God" (John 3:5). Later in the book of John he said, "You are already clean because of the word which I have spoken to you" (John 15:3). Paul wrote that Christ gave Himself to sanctify and cleanse the church with the washing of water by the WORD (Ephesians 5:26). Peter wrote that we are born again "not of corruptible seed but incorruptible, through the word of God which lives and abides forever, (1 Pet 1:23). The WORD is the seed that comes into your heart and causes faith to grow.
Not only must you have God's Word in order to be born again, but you must have God's Spirit. It is "not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to His mercy He saved us, through the washing of regeneration and renewing of the HOLY SPIRIT" (Titus 3:5).
There are several ingredients needed in making concrete. You need sand, cement, and water primarily. There is plenty of sand in the desert, but concrete doesn't appear just because it's there. There is an abundance of water in the ocean and plenty of sand, but the ocean is not full of concrete. Likewise in order for you to be saved, the Word and the Spirit must be mixed with repentance and faith in your heart.
