Isr 243, 5/24/92

DOCTRINE OF THE REGENERATION ISSUE

A. Regeneration is a theological term.

1. It means a second birth or being born again, as Jesus said in Jn 3:3, “Jesus answered and said to him, `Truly, truly, I say to you, unless a person is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.’” Jn 3:7, “Do not marvel that I said to you, `You must be born again.’”

2. How is a person born again? Jesus answered this question in Jn 3:16, “For God loved the world so much, that He gave His Son, the uniquely born one, that anyone who believes in Him shall never perish, but have eternal life.” Anyone refers to all races without exception. Jesus answered the question a second time in Jn 3:18, “He who believes in Him is not judged; he who does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the unique Son of God.”

B. Regeneration is the basis for the Jewish race.

1. The Old Testament Jews were not just a race of people born physically, but certain Jews were the chosen or elect people of God by being born again through faith in Jesus Christ as He was revealed. The pattern for the Jews as a chosen people is not related to their self-righteousness, to their first birth, but to their second birth.

2. The basis for the origin of the Jewish race was not in physical birth, but in being born again.

a. Abraham was born again through faith in Jesus Christ, Gen 15:6, “Then he believed in the Lord; and it was credited to his account for righteousness.”

b. Rom 4:1ff, “What then shall we say that Abraham, our forefather according to the flesh, has found? For let us assume that Abraham was justified by works; he has something about which to boast, but never before God. For what does the Scripture say? “And Abraham believed the Lord, and it was credited to him for righteousness.” Now to the one who works [for salvation], his wage is not imputed on the basis of grace, but on the basis of debt. But to the person who does not work [for salvation], but believes in Him who justifies the ungodly [the spiritually dead unbeliever], his faith is imputed for righteousness.”

c. Therefore, the origin of the Jewish race was based on regeneration, or faith in Christ as He was revealed in the Old Testament.

d. The line of regeneration is Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. The Jewish race was founded through regeneration, Rom 9:6-12.

3. The “Chosen Race” title belongs to the Jew who believed in Christ during Old Testament times. There is no chosen race on the basis of physical birth, but on the basis of regeneration. Consequently, the racial Jew is not God’s chosen or elect people, but the born again Jew who believes in Christ. Jesus Christ was revealed in the Old Testament and confirmed in the New Testament as the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. Ex 3:6, 15-16; 4:5; Mt 22:32; Mk 12:26; Lk 20:37; Acts 3:13, 7:32. The chosen people concept is based on regeneration. Therefore, faith in Jesus Christ as the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob is the way in which certain Jews in the Old Testament became the chosen people.

C. Regeneration is related to birth rather than conception.

1. The key to human life is always related to birth, never conception. The Bible emphasizes two categories of human life related to birth.

a. Human life begins at physical birth through a creative act of God. When the fetus emerges from the womb, God the Father creates soul life and imputes it to the biological life. This is when human life begins. There is nothing in human life to provide salvation; that was the work of Christ on the Cross.

b. The means of attaining salvation is only one thing we have which came from soul life: our non-meritorious function of positive volition— faith in Jesus Christ. Eternal life begins at regeneration, which is believing in the salvation work of Jesus Christ.

2. Jesus did not say to Nicodemus, therefore, in Jn 3:1-16, that you must be conceived again.

a. Conception is not an issue, except as the basis for spiritual death and the perpetuation of human life and the sin nature; for the sperm of Adam in copulation is the means of transmitting the sin nature from one generation to another. Conception is the origin of biological life, which is mother dependent in the womb, but never God dependent.

b. Human life does not exist in the womb. Human life begins at birth when God creates soul life and imputes it to biological life (the fetus after it emerges from the womb and mother dependence).

c. Conception can only produce biological life in the womb. Birth and the creation and imputation of soul life is required for any human being to come into existence. Furthermore, for human life to have eternal life a second birth called regeneration is required. While human life begins at birth, eternal life begins at the second birth.

d. Conception is not the issue in the origin of life; for conception relates to genetics and what man can do in copulation. But human life relates to birth and what God can do at that moment. Eternal life relates to the second birth—faith in Christ—which emphasizes the work of God. Just as mankind does no deed or work for physical life, so mankind does no deed or work for eternal life. The first birth is the origin of human life; the second birth is the origin of eternal life. In both births, the work and grace of God is the issue.

e. Conception is not human life; human life is God’s creation of soul life after birth and the imputation of that soul life to biological life. The energy and production of genetic life is not the issue in eternal life; for even faith in Christ originates from the soul, not from the genetic part of the human being.

f. Conception is not the issue in the origin of eternal life. Conception is not the issue in the origin of human life. Conception of biological life is simply an empty house without an occupant until God provides soul life.

3. Birth is always the beginning of any category of life related to the human being.

a. Biological life plus the sin nature is perpetuated through conception. But human life originates at birth. The house (biological life) is empty until it has an occupant (soul life). The fetus as it emerges from the womb is an empty house; it is something mankind has produced through copulation.

b. Eternal life occurs at the moment of regeneration or being born again through faith in Christ. The mechanics of the second birth include the creation of a human spirit by God the Holy Spirit at the moment of faith in Christ and impution of eternal life to that human spirit.

c. Physical birth is the origin of human life through the imputation of soul life by God. Spiritual life or the second birth (regeneration) is the origin of eternal life through faith in Christ.

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