Born of God

DEVOTION

THE GOSPEL OF JOHN

BORN OF GOD

John 1:10-13

10 He was in the world, and though the world was made through him, the world did not recognize him. 11 He came to that which was his own, but his own did not receive him. 12 Yet to all who received him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God— 13 children born not of natural descent, nor of human decision or a husband's will, but born of God.

NIV

When John make reference to the world not recognizing who Jesus was, it would seem he is just speaking about Israel. It is doubtful any other part of the world, such as Persia or China, and what is now known as the Americas had any chance at all to know or see Jesus. Jesus was born as a Jew, in the Promised Land, among the people chosen by God, the promised descendants of Abraham. It is these people who did not understand that Jesus was the Divine Messiah they had been waiting for. They had all the words of the Prophets concerning how he would come and what he would do, yet they missed it all. Some did not, but it was the leadership, the spiritual leadership that would not accept him. It is interesting to see how power corrupts, even in those days. They were in charge, they made their living being religious, but were nothing but empty tombs. Yet the good news is that whosoever believes in the name of Jesus can be known as the children of God. Because we believe, we have been born again as children of God. We have been born of human or natural descent. We have been born because of the will of a man and a woman to bring a child into the world. This is why we must be born again, as Jesus told Nicodemus. There is no way we can see the kingdom of God unless we are born again. It seems interesting when we hear people say they have been Christians all their life, being reared in a Christian home. We wonder have they ever been born again, or do they just believe they are going to see the kingdom of God because they were born of the decision of man’s will into a Christian home. Would that not be like the children of Israel being born by the decision of man’s will, even if they were the chosen people who God determined to reveal himself to the world. They still had to believe and receive and be born again in order to see the kingdom of God. We are so glad there was that moment in our life when we decided by our will, to be born of God.