The word "regeneration" is translated from the Greek word palingenesia, palin means again and genesis is birth, the word simply means new birth. This word is only used twice in the NT, first in Matt. 19:28, spoken by the Lord in reference to His future millennial earthly kingdom. This is a time in which the Jews of the earth will have their mind opened [regenerated], to enable them to know their true messiah. Secondly it is used by Paul in Titus to apply a spiritual or heavenly positional context to Christianity, when he wrote; "Not by works of righteousness which we have done, [the reformed mans effort toward good] but according to His mercy He saved us.... by the washing of regeneration, and renewing of the Holy Spirit".
The washing is a biblical symbol for the believing man being cleansed by God's Spirit of his very nature, the man who is not acceptable. This is the believing reformed man, within his mind, coming to know a life based on God's mind and the actions He took upon the Cross. Thus doing away with any concept that he may become a instrument that can know or please God in and of himself. The reformed or righteous effort is the attempted remaking of who we are into something godly or the Adam of old, trying to do good to please God. Paul in Titus is calling for the believing man to be renewed and cleansed of the old by his intake of the very Word's of God. His thoughts washing us by His own Words to regenerate [make newly alive] our spirit by a inner all new conscious awareness that we have now become positioned in Christ for our life here. A life which requires no self righteousness [works] to live it out, only a new awareness! "If any man be in Christ he is a new creation; old things are passed away; behold all things are become new" 2 Cor. 5:17.
Regeneration then, may be defined as an act of God whereby He bestows upon the believing sinner a new life. This life is God's own life, the imparting of His nature. Not by our actions or even attitude will we know it, but only as our perception allows us to see that which God sees in His Son. It is thus we become partakers by awareness, of the divine nature given by grace, "a new creation" 2 Cor. 5:17, "created in Christ Jesus" Eph. 2:10. Yet most settle for just being merely reformed men. Why?
The mindful condition of man has always ruled his direction in life; man is sinful, self-centered and always seeks his own way. Being a Christian does not change that. Our teachers and pastors have the same issues. Therefore the changed content of our mind, accomplished on our own, sought individually, is the key to a new life of freedom from a earthly provision. " I have been crucified with Christ" Gal. 2:20.
We tend to define ourselves and our faith through the content of our lives. All that we do, think, experience and even feel is content which may define us. This fate [self concern, worldly influence] takes up most peoples lives and absorbs their attention entirely and is in fact the common identity most choose. When we think of life we are usually referring to what we have, our blessings, what we have learned form others and then how we feel about it. But we often do not know who we really are identified [a biblical vision/revelation] as in God's heavenly view. We simply have ignored God's Word about it. "When they lifted up their eye's they saw no man except Jesus" Matt. 17:8. The content or self analysis of life is also made up of the circumstances of the past and our concern for the future controlling our thoughts. We have a ruler over all and it is ourselves.
What is there other than content then? If the Word of God can be trusted there is much more indeed! "To him that does not work, but believes on Him that justifies the ungodly, his faith is granted for righteousness" Rom. 4:5. God has placed His children within a higher order, that of faith, in which the totality of their true lives is more than what they will ever experience; as their new life is founded upon faith [the reality and essence of God] in a new message for the newly created spiritual man. He, the real man, cannot be found in what he does on the earth or even in what he thinks about it. "Now we are delivered from the law" Rom. 7:8.
The problem for most is that they tend to think of and long for a experience. But all experiences are colored by the past and our limited earthly influenced perceptions. Even the spiritual life the Father has made for us contained in His Son is assessed by mans pre-programed prejudice. Our churches tend to promote this form of approach as spiritual. But really we have no spiritual life at all, when all is given over to content/experience, as in ourselves alone [what we feel and do] we are just dead men walking. "My soul waits upon God; for my expectation is from Him Ps. 62:5. If we endeavor to transfer the spirit life to thoughts, feeling and experiences it simply becomes more content. All of this of course stems from our internal sub-conscious and conscious mind and its various pre-conditioned formed concepts.
However we know that there is a formless power that has penetrated the content conditioned man. It is the believers task to allow that which is immaterial to become a new identity, align ourselves with it. This can be only done within the mind. We thus become a conscious/spiritual participant in the unfolding of His divine nature within our very own mortal bodies. "The Spirit takes what is Mine [Jesus'] and will make it know to you" John 16:15. Many fear the contemplation of a immaterial/spiritual life, as content still holds them back, it has become what they trust. The institutionalized church usually presents this content as the Christian life.
The trouble is that in content [seeking experience] we are simply trying to be suitable to God. Really in order to satisfy our own hearts. That is legality and bears the mark of making oneself the object; and not our Lord in heaven; as Paul taught. Who has blessed us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places" Eph. 1:3. Going forward in the mere strength of humanity is unfortunately the common prescription of the church and what most Christians today accept as the christian life style. They have acceded too a earthly cultural position of life here with the hope of heaven as their reward. "For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God not by works, so that no one can boast" Eph 2:8,9.
Unfortunately simply acquiring knowledge of God's truth alone will not lead us to our spiritual destiny. Often we are encouraged to be excited by freshly gained information. Made to be purposefully stimulated. Really so that we might be good workers for a earthly institution, and have a happy church experience, all with good and godly intent of course. However this is not God's way toward His regeneration! Paul said of his own ministry toward the local Christians; "My little children I travail in birth again [teach at a elementary level] until Christ be formed in you" Gal 4:19.
It is not the contentment or quality of our lives, the culture or the improvement of it's situation that God's grace call us unto. This should be obvious as we all suffer [some more some less] in this world and will all die! No we must discover that it is the Lord Jesus Christ, the eternal Son, Himself making us partakers of His own life that grace brings. We are being made into and have actually become new beings according to God. "If any man be in Christ he is a new creation" 2Cor. 5:17. However it is the very thoughts/content of our mind that keeps us from knowing His life in grace and restfulness while here in mortal bodies. How may we then gain the peace and freedom to enter into His new creation life now?
The key is to learn to be present in the new creation, the image of His Son we are held to within the mind of God. However if we are not prepared by His Mind/Spirit/Word within our own mind, the new mind, with God's new thoughts of us, we will always remain in Adams [earthly/mortal/fleshly] content and condition: thus subject to the world system and our own old mental dysfunctions, never honoring the sacrifice made by Christ Jesus to change us into His new creatures in conscious awareness or spirit. "Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not unto your own understanding" Prov. 3:5.
The Christian has a much greater calling than mere experience, or good deeds, even proper morals and attitude. But how will he live it and what can he expect from God's life? First it must be remembered that our Christian life is only lived out by the Lord Jesus Christ as He maintains the believer by His own Spirit. In other words it is not us that is doing it, it isn't even our life! The problem arises when we try to experience it, make it content, make it our own. "Thus saith the Lord...Cursed is the man who trusts in man, and makes flesh [man's ways] his arm" Jer. 17:5.
Again we see that it is content, form, function, experience, that stand in God's way in living out His life through us. Few will sacrifice themselves, their ego and its attachment to the things of the earth to live outside themselves in the risen Lord; be consciously present in the moment that is His life by Spirit. And more sadly the church seldom teaches a new life though acceptance of spirit through a new recognition of being, as taught by the Father in His Word by Paul.
No now we are new men, new creatures, but the difficulty is in our apprehension of it! Why? It all has to due with our state of consciousness. Our minds apprehension is either of ourselves what pleases us, or of the Lord and what we are made into in Him by His Regeneration of us. Not that I have already attained, or am already perfected; but I press on, that I may lay hold of that for which Christ Jesus has also laid hold of me. Brethren, I do not count myself to have apprehended; but one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind and reaching forward to those things which are ahead, I press toward the goal for the prize of the upward call [spiritual heavenly positional identification] of God in Christ Jesus.” Phil. 3:12.14.
We can never understand or experience His new life through thinking about it because what we think about becomes content; we will only want to feel something. This is self or ego! Self/the flesh has been rejected from God's life. "So then they that are in the flesh cannot please God" Rom. 8:8. His order for us is formless spiritual, objectified in His Son in His personal view, and is transferred to us by His Spirit. But ye are not in the flesh, but in the Spirit, if so be that the Spirit of God dwell in you. Now if any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of His. Rom. 8:9. But we can see it, know it, even understand it, be conscious participants in it. How?
By first receiving it in abject weakness; thus eliminating ego from the reception because of such a great need. We may know this new immaterial conscious apprehension is true by His Word. “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me. 2 Cor. 9.. Lastly we may enjoy His new life by the faith we have come too from this Godly exercise. We will then have a new consciousness unfolding, His higher purpose for us. We experience His Regeneration. This is the Christian life! Whose life will you choose?
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