Biblical Word Pictures for Regeneration

1. Spiritual Birth
   A. Regeneration is the combination of two words, literally meaning to be “born again” like in 1 Peter 1:3, 23.
   B. When speaking to Nicodemus, Jesus told him “You must be born again” (John 3:3, 7).
   C. 1 John repeatedly speaks of

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   _ (2:29; 3:9; 4:7; 5:1, 4, 18).

2. Spiritual

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   _
   A. Titus 3:5 Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to his mercy he saved us, by the washing of regeneration, and renewing of the Holy Ghost.
   B. 1 Corinthians 6:9-11; Ephesians 5:26.

3. Spiritual resurrection
   A. There is a coordinated Trinitarian effort in bringing

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   to those who would otherwise be spiritually dead.
   1) The Spirit – John 6:63; 2 Corinthians 3:6
   2) The Father – John 5:21; Romans 4:17; 6:13; Ephesians 2:5; Colossians 2:13
   3) The Son – John 5:21

What are the Results of Our Regeneration?

1. Reveal Answer
   _ Righteousness
   A. Remember 1 John 2:29 – those who have been
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   _ of God continue to practice righteousness
   B. To say it in the
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   , consider 1 John 3:9 – the one who has been regenerated will not continue in sin
   1) When we are regenerated our nature is fundamentally changed and so we no longer make a practice of sinning (unrepently).
   2) This doesn’t mean that the Christian has completely
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   sinning (the principle of sin remains in our flesh according to Romans 7:14-25). This passage speaks more of
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   _ than it does of perfection.
   C. Those who have been born again live lives characterized by putting
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   habits of sin and putting on habits of righteousness.
   Consider the repeated grammatical
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   _ of 1 John
   C. 1 John 5:1 Whosoever believeth that Jesus is the Christ is born of God: and every one that loveth him that begat loveth him also that is begotten of him.
   1) “whosoever believeth that Jesus is the Christ” = a present active participle that indicates present, continuous
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   2) “is born of God” = a perfect passive participle, speaks of a past action whose results
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   _ in the present time.
   3) In other words, everyone who PRESENTLY believes that Jesus is the Christ HAS BEEN born of God. This shows faith as the consequence, not the
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   _ of the new birth.
   E. 1 John 2:29 If ye know that he is righteous, ye know that every one that doeth righteousness is born of him.
   1) A habitual pattern of practiced righteousness is an indication of the new birth. The causal relationship between the practice of righteousness and the new birth should be clear to us. Surely we wouldn’t argue that a man is born again by his good
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   . Ephesians 2:10 clearly teaches that regeneration is the cause of an ongoing practice of good works.
   2) Everyone who PRESENTLY does righteously HAS BEEN born of God.
   F. 1 John 4:7 Beloved, let us love one another: for love is of God; and every one that loveth is born of God, and knoweth God.
   1) Love does not cause the new birth but is the consequence of the new birth. This would completely undermine the Bible’s teaching of salvation by
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   alone.
   G. If practicing righteousness and loving the brethren are consequences and not causes of regeneration, then we must conclude that faith is also a consequence and not a cause of regeneration since 2:29, 4:7, and 5:1 all use the
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   grammatical structure.

2. Overcoming evil influences with willing

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   A. A great evidence that the
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   of regeneration has taken place in someone’s life is that they delight to obey God’s commands (1 John 5:3).
   B. There are some who are not Christians but who obey the commands of God. But for them, while they can bring their behavior into conformity to an external standard of God’s Word, they don’t love and
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   _ in God’s Word (Ps. 119:97; 40:8). Unlike the regenerate man in v. 3, they find God’s commands to be burdensome.
   C. The regenerate man is not enslaved to the duty he
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   _, he is liberated to obey the law he loves!

3. Love for fellow believers
   A. God’s very nature is love (1 John 4:8, 16) and those begotten of Him
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   _ in His nature (2 Peter 1:4).
   B. We prove that we have been regenerated when we love one another as God loves us (1 John 4:7) and we seek to
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   and bless others (1 John 3:16-18; 5:1).