“You must be born again”
Jesus answered him, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God… unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God.” (John 3:3,5)
You are warmly welcome back. Happy New Year! I congratulate you upon joining another class; and for the candidates, our special prayers are with you to finish well and in excellence. The theme this term is: ‘Not by might, nor by power’ (Zech 4:6), and we believe that by the Spirit of the Living God, we shall succeed.
As we grow in knowledge, understanding and wisdom, there are lessons that we encounter and these change our lives in a revolutionary way. The Church observes a special season between Christmas and Lent, and this is called ‘Epiphany’. Epiphany is the moment of sudden and great revelation or realization; particularly, it is the manifestation of Jesus Christ to the Gentiles as represented by the wise men from the East (Matthew 2:1-12). Many other Epiphanies are easy to identify from the pages of the Bible; in John 3 we find a high ranking wealthy and learned man, a ruler of the Jews named Nicodemus. This man came to Jesus by night and said to him, “Rabbi, we know that you are a teacher come from God, for no one can do these signs that you do unless God is with him.” (v.2) – I would also call this an Epiphany. He came to a realization of some awesome things about this carpenter from Nazareth!
Jesus did not deny Nicodemus findings and conclusion. Jesus Christ celebrated this Epiphany by giving a life-changing teaching to this man that very night. We should thank God that this teaching has come to us today, because it was not just life-changing for Nicodemus but for all who care to receive it. I thought you should reflect on this important lesson as we start this year in school. We are in school to get education to get to better occupations and to live a better life; to have good influence, and to enjoy a good life. The Kingdom of God is not to be compared with any kind of benefits from good education.
What Jesus said is not a mere point information; it should not just touch your mind, but will change your life and your destiny. When received, what Jesus taught brings a new birth and makes you a citizen of the Kingdom of God. This is not about belonging to a denomination (no such groupings existed when Jesus spoke these things). It is not about going to some church with exciting worship and vigorous preaching. It is about a public declaration of faith, and embracing the Spirit of God who fill us by grace. As we traverse the term and the year, remember this most important revelation, realization and life-changing lesson – you must be born again.
God bless you all.