By Todd Crosby

What do we believe?
Regeneration is the new birth, whereby God gives to a person a new heart that responds to Him in repentance and faith.

Why do we believe this?

Titus 3:4-7 – But when the goodness and loving kindness of God our Savior appeared, he saved us, not because of works done by us in righteousness, but according to his own mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewal of the Holy Spirit, whom he poured out on us richly through Jesus Christ our Savior, so that being justified by his grace we might become heirs according to the hope of eternal life.

Why does it matter?

On Wednesday of Week 3, we discussed the depravity of man and his spiritually dead state according to the Bible. So the question is how does a person who is dead and unable to respond overcome their deadness? How does a person become alive in order to respond? How does a person become born again? Nicodemus asked the same question to Jesus in John chapter 3. Christ does not respond with “say this prayer” or “do this thing” or anything like it. Listen to Christ’s response in John 3:8, “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.” What he is saying is that regeneration (being born again) is a work of God alone and we only see the results of it. At the beginning of his gospel, John makes this point clear when he says that believers are “born not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God” (John 1:13). These are the ones “who did receive him, who believed in his name” and “he gave the right to become children of God” (John 1:12). The implication is clear. Man is reborn by the will of God. This is how our deadness is overcome. At that point, we are ready to respod rightly in belief with repentance and faith.

The important thing to remember is the fact that we do not cause anyone to be born again. God initiates regeneration (being born again). We are simply messengers of the Good News, and we are commanded to share that Good News (Matthew 28, Mark 16:15-16, Luke 24:47, Acts 1:8). In evangelism, we must understand our role and responsibility. No more, no less. We spread the seed of the Gospel and God will make it effective ever how he sees fit.

How does understanding that man is spiritually dead affect your evangelism? Does it encourage you, challenge you, or does it humble you?