Baby Steps – John 3:3

 Jesus answered and said to him, “Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.” – John 3:3
    There’s a new baby in the house. And while we are racing about trying to cover all the bases, the child is just beginning to see, hear, feel, and taste the world around him. Every move; every sense; every experience is new to the child. And so it is with us when we are “born again.” To understand the concept of being born again we must first consider what is evidenced in the natural first birth of man.
    From the moment of his birth he begins to grow, to advance, to mature. He learns to go from milk to meat. He learns to go from crawling to walking. He learns to go from infantile utterances to articulate speech. And as his life begins in earnest he grows into an adult with an adult’s perceptions, understanding, abilities, and strengths. This is the linear process of human life.
    But what of our “spiritual life?” This is the subject of Christ’s conversation with Nicodemus. When we are born again we begin to see with a Christ-centered perception. Our hearing becomes Christ-centered. Our speech becomes Christ-centered. And our actions become Christ-centered. To suggest otherwise would be tantamount to saying that a child has advanced to adulthood yet hasn’t progressed from mother’s milk to solid foods, or learned to walk or speak properly, or heard the sounds of the world around him. And just as the child could not mature and develop without these advances in both his communicative skills and physical manners neither can a Christian mature who does not find himself Christ-centered!
    Being born again involves more than simply claiming the experience, otherwise merely responding to an altar-call or signing a salvation card would be enough for redemption. No, Jesus Christ requires more! He requires that we be like Him. “ . . . but as He who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct, 16 because it is written, “Be holy, for I am holy.” – 1 Peter 1:15-16. To be holy is to be Christ-centered.
    Just as that new born is learning to walk we too are learning to walk . . . like Christ! We are learning to think and talk and react and perceive things like Christ would. All these things we learn anew. Our old ways must be put to death and our new ways must take seed, flower, and blossom forth. "Most assuredly, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the ground and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it produces much grain.” - John 12:24. Our old selves must pass away for our new birth to take effect. “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new.” - 2 Corinthians 5:17.
    May we all recognize that we are new creatures in Jesus Christ and let that knowledge be reflected in our walk with Him.