Jesus’ Message: You Must Be Born Again

I’ve traveled to Kenya over twenty times, preaching the gospel and training leaders. Our family lived in Kenya for six months while we were adopting one of our daughters. We have dear friends there. Early on in my travels to Kenya, my friends there gave me some insight on Christianity in Kenya. If you ask anyone in Kenya if they are a Christian, more than 80% will say that they in fact are a Christian. However, only 16% of the country attends church regularly. Basically, when a Kenyan says they are a Christian, what they are saying is, “I’m not Muslim.” Because of this, my friends there don’t call themselves Christian. When they introduce themselves to someone they don’t know, they will say, “I’m Daniel, and I’m born again!” You see, In Kenya, the phrase “born again” identifies a person as a true follower of Jesus.

One day, I was in a taxi and the driver, wanting to be polite, asked me what I was doing there in Kenya. When I told him I was a pastor, the driver quickly replied, “Oh, I’m a Christian.” With the cultural intelligence I’d already been provided, I quickly replied, “Oh, so you are born again?” He quickly shot back, “Oh, no. I’m not one of those.”

Interesting, right? I’m not “one of those.” I’m not one of those people who takes it that seriously. I’m not a fanatic. I don’t get too crazy about that Jesus stuff.

Essentially, when a Kenyan says, “I’m born again,” what they are really saying is, “I’m a true Christ-follower. My life has been changed by the Gospel of Jesus Christ. I’m a new person!”

Read John 3:1-8.

Here, Jesus is speaking with a well-educated religious teacher and leader named Nicodemus. What thoughts or images came to Nicodemus’ mind when he heard the phrase “born again?”

Read Ephesians 2:4-6.

The Apostle Paul makes it clear. Because of our sin, we are spiritually dead. We need new life!

Read Romans 6:5-11.

When we place our faith in Christ alone for the forgiveness of our sins, we are born again. In that moment, we go from being spiritually dead to spiritually alive. We are reborn. We are raised to new life by the same transforming power that raised Christ from the dead.

When we become a Christian, it is not just a decision that we make to believe something in our head. When we become a Christian, a change happens in our heart. We are a new person. Years ago, I was with friends in New York during the U.S. Open Tennis Tournament. Hundreds of thousands of people filled Flushing Meadows. We had some amazing spiritual conversations. One friend got in a gospel conversation with one of New York’s finest, a police officer named Tony. God was at work, and right there amidst the throngs of people, Tony bowed his head and prayed, placing his faith in Christ to forgive and save him. A while later, we were walking back in that area, and my friend saw Tony about 50 yards away. He shouted above the crowd, “Hey Tony! What’s up?!” Tony, in front of fellow police officers there in the crowded park, shouted back, “I’M A NEW MAN!!!”

That’s what it means to be born again. I’m a new man! You’re a new person! We’ve been brought from death to life. We have been forever changed by the power of the Gospel!