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Born of the Word, January 13
Being born again, not of corruptible seed, but of incorruptible, by
the word of God, which liveth and abideth for ever.
1 Peter 1:23
.
The change of heart by which we become children of God is in
the Bible spoken of as birth. Again, it is compared to the germination
of the good seed sown by the husbandman.... So from natural life,
illustrations are drawn, to help us better to understand the mysterious
truths of spiritual life. Not all the wisdom and skill of man can produce
life in the smallest object in nature. It is only through the life which
God Himself has imparted, that either plant or animal can live. So it
is only through the life from God that spiritual life is begotten in the
hearts of men.
When truth becomes an abiding principle in the life, the soul is
“born again, not of corruptible seed, but of incorruptible, by the word
of God, which liveth and abideth for ever.” This new birth is the result
of receiving Christ as the word of God. Then by the Holy Spirit divine
truths are impressed upon the heart, new conceptions are awakened,
and the energies hitherto dormant are aroused to cooperate with God....
Christ was the revealer of truth to the world. By Him the incorruptible
seed—the Word of God—was sown in the hearts of men.
The Word destroys the natural, earthly nature, and imparts a new life
in Christ Jesus. The Holy Spirit comes to the soul as a Comforter. By
the transforming agency of His grace, the image of God is reproduced in
the disciple; he becomes a new creature. Love takes the place of hatred,
and the heart receives the divine similitude.
Henceforth you are not your own; you are brought with a price. “Ye
were not redeemed with corruptible things, as silver and gold, ... but
with the precious blood of Christ....”
1 Peter 1:18, 19
. Through this
simple act of believing God, the Holy Spirit has begotten a new life in
your heart. You are as a child born into the family of God, and He loves
you as He loves His Son.
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