The Starting Point

For every destination there is a starting place; every marriage has a wedding or a time when the man and woman declare their vows for marital faithfulness to each other, for every life there is the moment of conception and for every career there is the first day on the job. So, it is for our spiritual journey as well. There is a starting point, a time when we give God permission to enter into our lives to walk with us through our earthly existence and to fill us with His Spirit, His presence; His love, peace and joy.

Beginning a spiritual journey with God starts with us inviting Him to come into our hearts to enter our lives and to give us a new heart. Man’s heart before God comes to live in it is hardened to Him and desires to live life only for itself. God recorded in His word through the Prophet Ezekiel that He would give man a “new heart” and a “new spirit”. He said He would take the heart of stone out of the flesh of man and give him a new heart of flesh. (Ezekiel 36:26, 27) Jesus told Nicodemus that he had to be “born again” of the Spirit. He said that there is an earthly birth, that of water, and then there is a spiritual birth, that of the Spirit, and that a man can’t enter the kingdom of God without both the physical and spiritual births. That shows us that the beginning point for man’s spiritual journey is while he is here on this earth. The decision to be born again spiritually has to happen during our earthly existence.

John 3:3-7 NKJV Jesus answered an said to him, “Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.” Nicodemus said to Him, “How can a man be born when he is old? Can he enter a second time into his mother’s womb and be born?” Jesus answered, “Most assuredly I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God. “That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. “Do not marvel that I said to you, ‘You must be born again.’”

So, how do we become “born again”? How do we enter into the spiritual birth that Jesus was referring to? Well, it’s really simple. The Bible tells us in John 1:12 that as many as received Jesus He gave the right to become children of God.

John 1:12, 13 NKJV But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, to those who believe in His name: who were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.

To become “born again” you must receive Jesus. He is the “Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world”. (John 1:29) There is only one sinless man and He is Jesus. The rest of us were born as sinners and that’s why we need a spiritual birth, to be cleansed of that sin and made righteous before God. That happens as we realize that we are sinners, acknowledge that Jesus died for us that we might be saved and then ask Him to forgive us and come to live in our hearts to make us His own.

Romans 3:23 NKJV for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,

Romans 6:23 NKJV For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Romans 5:8 NKJV But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.

Romans 10:13 NKJV For “whoever calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved.”

Romans 10:9, 10 NKJV that if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart one believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.

John 3:14-17 NKJV “And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up, “that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life. “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. “For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved.”

If you have not begun your spiritual journey, God’s desire for you is that you begin at the point of your own personal need, and that is the need of a new heart. You can become born again simply by praying and confessing your sin, that you need Jesus to save you, and asking Him to forgive you and come into your heart and life to be your own personal Lord and Savior. If you would like to do that, please pray this prayer with me, be sincere in your heart and committed to follow through with a life devoted to Him.

Father, I come before You now to confess my sin and to acknowledge that I was born a sinner and that my choice to live my life for myself and not for you is sin. I ask You to forgive me and save me. I confess that Jesus is the Son of God, that He died to save me and that He was raised from the dead and lives today! I invite You to come and live within my heart and life to walk with me through every day of my life. I vow to live my life for you, Lord Jesus, and I thank You for saving me. In Jesus’ name I pray. Amen.

If you prayed that prayer for the first time and really meant it, you now are “born again”. You have a home waiting for you in heaven after this earthly life is over. You have the Holy Spirit living within you to lead you and guide you through each day. He will never leave you nor forsake you. (Hebrews 13:6) You are now a part of the family of God! Welcome to the family!

Lord God, I thank You for those that have been ushered into Your family through their prayer today. I pray that You will draw them near to Your heart, fill them with a hunger and thirst for You and Your word and pour out Your presence upon them. Reveal Yourself to them in ways that they will know that it is You and that You love them and have a great plan for their lives. In Jesus’ name I pray. Amen