WHEN Christ Was Born Again
Notice again, carefully, Romans 8:29. It is speaking of CHRIST, the Son of God. It says, plainly, that Jesus Christ was "the firstborn of many brethren."
This shows that many brethren were to be born — but that Christ was the first OF these brethren — the first to be so BORN.
WHO are the "brethren?" In Romans 8:12, Paul shows his epistle which we call the Book of Romans was addressed to the BRETHREN. He says: 'Therefore, BRETHREN . . ." Now to whom is this epistle addressed? Notice Rom. 1:7 — to those "beloved of God, called to be SAINTS." Paul addresses his letter to the Corinthians thus: "Unto the Church of God . . . to them that are sanctified in Christ Jesus, called to be SAINTS." And in verse 10, "Now I beseech you, BRETHREN." The BRETHREN are those who have been converted — UNDER GRACE — who are SAINTS.
Romans 8:9 says Jesus was BORN first, before any of these brethren.
Now WHEN was He so born? Is this speaking of His HUMAN birth, His FIRST birth, of the virgin Mary? Well mark this fact, and mark it well! Jesus was born 33½ years before the Holy Spirit came on that day of Pentecost — before the CHURCH began — before these BRETHREN came under GRACE.
Were any people 34 years old converted, baptized, and put under grace that day — any 35, or 40, or 50? If there was a single one older than 33½, then he was born (as a human) before Jesus. In that case Jesus could not have been the FIRST of these BRETHREN to be born.
This is not speaking of Jesus' first and human birth at Bethlehem. It is speaking of His being born AGAIN — after He was born of the virgin Mary — because many BRETHREN were born (of human birth) before Jesus.
Next consider — since this Scripture — Romans 8:29 — cannot refer to Jesus' first and human birth at Bethlehem, it must, of necessity, refer to a second birth — to being born again.
Now WHEN was Jesus born again — AFTER His human birth of the Virgin Mary? Did Jesus Christ have the same "born-again experience" millions of people profess to have had? Was Jesus Christ a SINNER? Did He need, or ever receive, forgiveness of SIN? Did He need salvation from SIN?
I'm sure every person who professes this "born-again experience" will agree the answer is NO! A thousand times NO!
When the Scripture says that Jesus was "the first BORN of many brethren," we have to agree that this birth was NOT the conversion of a sinner, being put under grace. It was NOT the same kind of being BORN AGAIN that has been erroneously taught, and so widely accepted!
Yet, since He was the firstborn of many brethren, these many brethren are to be born AS He was — the SAME KIND of new birth!
By process of elimination we have now proved:
1) This BIRTH of Christ in Romans 8:29 was not His first, or human birth of the virgin Mary. Therefore it had to be a later birth — a being born AGAIN.
2) It was NOT the kind of "born-again experience" so commonly professed — NOT receiving salvation from SIN. Yet He was born AGAIN!
3) Therefore, it leaves only ONE POSSIBILITY. It was His SPIRITUAL birth, when He was BORN OF GOD, BY HIS RESURRECTION FROM THE DEAD!
When He was born at Bethlehem, as a human, He was born as the Son of MAN. Continually, through His ministry, He called Himself the "Son of MAN." But He was BORN AGAIN — born of God by His RESURRECTION, as you read in Romans 1:3-4:
"Concerning His Son Jesus Christ our Lord, which was made of the seed of David according to the flesh (HIS HUMAN BIRTH OF MARY — making Him the Son of MAN); and declared to be the Son of GOD with power, according to the spirit of holiness, BY THE RESURRECTION FROM THE DEAD."
This Scripture speaks of the TWO births of Jesus Christ. The one, of the Virgin Mary, a descendant of DAVID by which He became the Son of MAN. Then later, He was born AGAIN, this time as the Son of GOD, by His RESURRECTION from the dead!
In Context
Before leaving this Scripture in Romans 8:29, let's notice the theme of the whole chapter — let's be sure we understand it IN CONTEXT.
What is the theme of this chapter? It is generally called "the Holy Spirit chapter." But it is showing how God, by the Holy Spirit, changes us from carnal and sinning humans into, ultimately, sons of GOD, by the RESURRECTION from the dead.
Serving the flesh, we cannot please God (verse 8), but (verse 9), we are in the Spirit, if the Spirit of God dwells in us.
"BUT" (verse 11), IF the Holy Spirit dwells in us, even AS God raised Jesus Christ from the dead, WE ALSO shall be RESURRECTED by His Spirit that dwells in us. READ IT in your Bible. Even AS Christ was BORN AGAIN, born of GOD, by His resurrection, even so WE — the brethren — shall be BORN AGAIN as sons of GOD, through the RESURRECTION of the dead, BY His Spirit that dwells in us!
We, IF God's Spirit is in us, are children of God, and HEIRS. Not yet inheritors — but HEIRS to INHERIT, when we are born of God by the resurrection, even the GLORY which Christ now has. We shall be GLORIFIED together (verse 17). The whole creation groans, waiting for the actual manifestation of the SONS OF GOD, when we shall be resurrected to GLORY (verses 18-19). We are waiting for the redemption of our body — by the resurrection (verse 23).
Yes BY THE RESURRECTION, we are to be conformed to the IMAGE (spiritual image) of God's Son Christ, who was the FIRST so born, by the resurrection, of MANY BRETHREN (verse 29). "It is Christ that died, yea, rather, that is RISEN AGAIN" (verse 34).
Yes, this chapter is talking of the RESURRECTION, by God's Holy Spirit which dwells in us! That is its theme.
Christ was the FIRSTBORN OF MANY BRETHREN, through the RESURRECTION.
It is plain!
BORN by Resurrection
Now notice other Scriptures. Speaking of Christ, "who is the image of the invisible God, the FIRSTBORN OF EVERY CREATURE" (Col. 1:15).
Now notice a PLAIN STATEMENT that it is speaking of Christ being the first-born from the dead, by the RESURRECTION:
"And He (Christ) is the head of the body, the church: who is the beginning, the FIRSTBORN FROM THE DEAD; that in all things He might have preeminence" (Col. 1:18).
THERE IT IS! Read it with your own eyes, in your own Bible. Christ is HEAD of the Church — the FIRST of the brethren in the CHURCH to be born from the dead.
Are you willing to BELIEVE that Scripture? Are you willing to realize that the teaching that being born again means conversion from sin is FALSE teaching? When we are converted, our sins forgiven, we receive the Holy Spirit; we are then BEGOTTEN of God — not yet BORN of God. If this has taken place — if we have been converted, begotten, we are, truly, already SONS of God (I John 3:2) but what we SHALL be, when BORN of God, does not yet appear — for then WE SHALL BE LIKE HIM — like Christ in His resurrected glorified body!
Now turn to the "resurrection chapter" — I Corinthians 15:
"If in THIS LIFE ONLY we have hope in Christ, we are of all men most miserable" (verse 19). That is, if merely being converted in this life — being forgiven — placed under grace — is all the hope we have — if THAT is all there is to it — if there is not to be the RESURRECTION to the life to come, then we are of all men most miserable. If "being born again" takes place in THIS life, then we have no hope for the ETERNAL life to come!
"But now is Christ risen from the dead, and become the first-fruits of them that slept" (verse 20). That is, Christ has been born AGAIN — born to a second LIFE — eternal life, becoming the FIRST of many brethren to be so born. He is the FIRST of those who have died to be resurrected — that is, BORN — to a new and future LIFE.
"For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive. But every man in his own order: Christ the first-fruits; afterward they that are Christ's at His coming" (verses 22-23). Christ was the FIRST to be BORN AGAIN — born from the DEAD. Afterward — at His coming — they that are Christ's — the many BRETHREN — shall be BORN AGAIN from the dead, just as Christ was.
These Scriptures are PLAIN. They make PLAIN the fact, and the TRUTH that being "born again" is NOT the experience of conversion from sin during this life — but being BORN OF GOD, immortal, BY the resurrection.
That does not in any way nullify the experience of conversion in this life. It simply means that millions have been deceived into calling that experience by the WRONG NAME. It is a begettal, not a birth. Each of us was BEGOTTEN in our mother's womb before he was, later, BORN.
Now notice Acts. 26:23 "That Christ should suffer, and that He should be the FIRST that should rise from the dead." There it is again. Christ the FIRSTFRUITS — Christ the FIRSTBORN of many brethren — the FIRST to be BORN by the RESURRECTION from the dead!
These are plain statements of Scripture — plain statements from GOD. They do NOT say — and I do not say — that Christ was a sinner who needed salvation. If false prophets reply to this, as they did to the article of a year ago, they will not hesitate to deliberately lie and misrepresent, and send out a barrage of tracts, pamphlets and articles saying that I have said, in this article, that Christ needed salvation. They have accused me of this before.
What these plain statements from God's Holy Word do say, is that being BORN AGAIN is not that experience of conversion from sin in this life — it is NOT anything any human has experienced in this life — it is a NEW birth to a NEW life, by a RESURRECTION. However, it is also true that no one will be BORN AGAIN — born of GOD to the new IMMORTAL life — unless he repents of sin, believes on Christ and accepts Him as personal Savior, receives the gift of the Holy Spirit, and then is LED BY the Spirit of God. But THIS experience is NOT a "born-again" experience — it is a BEGETTAL!
Are YOU, now, willing to believe God's TRUTH? It is so infinitely more precious and glorious than Satan's counterfeits with which he has deceived so many of our readers.