Who Am I?Sample

The New Birth

Born again? Did God really ‘birth’ us? Are we actually begotten by God? Can this even be compared to the way a mother gives birth?

Yes! God birthed us in the same way a mother gives birth to a baby.

A mother undergoes two significant experiences during childbirth: the excruciating pain of labour and loss of blood. Jesus underwent the same struggles in the process of giving birth to us. In fact, the pain He suffered was far greater than any mother's labour pains.

Human pain is measured in units called 'dels,' with the maximum threshold a person can endure being 45 dels. However, doctors have found that during labour, a mother experiences 57 dels of pain, which is equivalent to the agony of 20 bones breaking simultaneously. The pain is so intense that, at the height of suffering, a mother would yearn for death rather than endure another second of labour. Yet, the moment her child is born, the same mother who wished for death now fiercely desires to live for her baby.

Our loving Lord Jesus experienced the same agony on the cross. Yet, even in His greatest moments of suffering, Jesus envisioned the faces of the children who would be born as a result of His sacrifice. This vision gave Him strength and encouragement, as He was assured that although He would die, He would rise again to live for His children. It is remarkable that Isaiah prophesied this many centuries ago.

“Yet it pleased the Lord to bruise Him;
He has put Him to grief.
When You make His soul an offering for sin,
He shall see His seed, He shall prolong His days,
And the pleasure of the Lord shall prosper in His hand.” Isaiah 53:10 (NKJV)

The term "seed" here refers to offspring or children. Thus, we see that He envisioned His children and wished to prolong His days.

Secondly, every mother inevitably sheds blood during labour. Jesus, however, went even further. He shed more blood than any mother could; He gave every last drop of His blood to birth us. Christ’s ultimate sacrifice shows the depth of His love and the immense value He places on each of us.

Here’s something profoundly important to recognize: Although our identity as ‘God’s child’ is offered to us as a free gift, the price paid for it is unimaginably great.

The Creator and Ruler of Heaven & Earth, the Great King, shed His blood as a ransom for us. He paid for us with His very own blood! When we absorb this Truth into our hearts and feel the magnitude of what God has done for us, it fills us with gratitude. In response, our hearts naturally open to welcome Jesus as the Lord of our lives. We are moved to call God our Abba. This is how we are born-again into the family of God. This New-Birth is very important because this is what gives us our new, stable and everlasting identity.

Challenge Question:

Are you born again in Christ? If so, are you aware of the new identity God gifted you when you were born again? If you’ve never had the born-again experience, I invite you to pray the following with a sincere heart:

Loving Father,

The Creator of heaven and earth, I thank You for loving me. And because of Your incredible love for me, You sent Your Son, Jesus, to earth. I confess before you today that I am a sinner. I thank You for sending Your Son Jesus to die in my place, taking the punishment I deserved. And I wholeheartedly believe that You raised Him up on the third day. I make this Jesus the Lord and Savior of my life, and I confess joyfully that He is my Lord. I thank You, from the bottom of my heart, for graciously accepting me as Your child. In Jesus' Name I pray, Amen.