A NEW BIRTH INTO A LIVING HOPE
My first birthday was planned, but also came as a surprise. My brother, Dan, was born, the third child in our family. FORTY-FIVE MINUTES later, my father nearly had a heart attack. SURPRISE!! I was born too!!
In those days there were no ultrasounds or other medical techniques to determine birth details. My mother was a medium built woman and it was difficult to determine from a physical standpoint what the outcome would be. Anyway, I'm alive by the miracle of conception and delivery.
Today, my body is telling me that I'm aging and I am a Senior Citizen and receive discounts and Medicare.
But, I am more excited about my Second Birthday.
My parents were missionaries among the Chinese and we lived in Hong Kong. I was nine years old. One evening, while our parents were in church, my oldest brother was taking care of us younger siblings. He began to share with me about an exciting experience in his life which had occurred just a few months earlier.
That evening my brother shared with me about Jesus Christ, who came to provide salvation for the world including me. I knew about Jesus, having been raised in the church almost immediately after birth, and attended Sunday School and worship regularly.
But I remember August 18, 1948, as a special night, when I knelt at our living room couch and my brother led me in a personal prayer as I prayed to ask Jesus to forgive my sins and come into my life. That night I was BORN AGAIN, which Jesus called being "BORN OF THE SPIRIT." (John 3:8, NIV) Although I didn't fully comprehend it and I have grown and matured in my spiritual life since that time, I remember that night as my SPIRITUAL BIRTHDAY! I have celebrated 60 years of life with Jesus Christ!
My prayer is that you may experience a SPIRITUAL BIRTH which is far more important than your physical birth in terms of present and eternal value.
As Peter wrote in his letter to the Christians, "Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In his great mercy he has given us NEW BIRTH INTO A LIVING HOPE through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, and into an inheritance that can never spoil or fade. This inheritance is kept in heaven for you, who through faith are shielded by God's power until the coming of the salvation that is ready to be revealed in the last time." (1 Peter 1:3-5, NIV)
(Excerpts of this column first appeared in "Your Faith" section of The Newark Advocate, Newark, OH, 1998)