Regeneration

Before anyone believes, repents, or follows Christ, something deeper must happen.

The Bible calls it being “born again.”

Regeneration is not self-improvement. It is not moral reform. It is not religious effort. It is the supernatural work of the Holy Spirit giving spiritual life to someone who was spiritually dead.

Jesus did not describe salvation as a second chance. He described it as a new birth.

1. The Problem: Spiritual Death

Scripture does not say we were spiritually sick. It says we were dead.

“You were dead in your trespasses and sins” (Ephesians 2:1).

Dead people do not revive themselves. They do not cooperate in resuscitation. They require life from outside themselves.

Romans 8:7 says the natural mind “does not submit to God; indeed, it cannot.” This is not weakness. It is inability.

This is why regeneration is necessary.

2. Jesus and the New Birth

In John 3, Jesus tells Nicodemus:

“Unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God” (John 3:3).

Notice the order. One must be born again to see. New birth precedes spiritual sight.

Jesus compares it to the wind:

“The wind blows where it wishes… So it is with everyone who is born of the Spirit” (John 3:8).

Regeneration is the sovereign work of the Spirit. It is not mechanical. It is not forced. It is living, personal, and powerful.

3. What Regeneration Does

Regeneration changes the heart.

“I will give you a new heart, and a new spirit I will put within you” (Ezekiel 36:26).

This promise is fulfilled in Christ. The Spirit removes the heart of stone and gives a heart that desires God.

This does not mean believers become perfect overnight. But it does mean something fundamental changes:

New affections
New desires
New awareness of sin
New hunger for Christ

Second Corinthians 5:17 says, “If anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation.”

That is regeneration.

4. Regeneration and Faith

Here is where theology often wrestles.

Does faith cause new birth, or does new birth produce faith?

John writes, “Everyone who believes that Jesus is the Christ has been born of God” (1 John 5:1). The grammar suggests the new birth is the source of true belief.

When God opens the heart, faith follows.

This does not remove responsibility. The gospel still commands repentance and belief (Acts 2:38; 17:30). But when someone truly comes to Christ, Scripture ultimately gives credit to God’s life-giving work.

Salvation is “not of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God” (John 1:13).

5. Why Regeneration Matters

Without regeneration, Christianity becomes behavior management.

With regeneration, Christianity becomes life transformation.

It humbles us. No one can boast in their spiritual insight or moral decision. If we believe, it is because God gave us life.

It also gives hope in evangelism. No one is beyond the Spirit’s power. The same God who said, “Let there be light,” can shine in the darkest heart (2 Corinthians 4:6).