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Hello Bruce, Those are very good questions. I believe Jesus was absolutely correct when he said we must be born again in order to see the Kingdom. But I disagree with traditional Christians about exactly what this means. I believe the point Jesus was making was that we must be spiritually transformed so that we can enter heaven. For some people, this process happens during this life on earth. Those people will be happy because they will be able to enter heaven immediately after death. The people who never heard of Jesus and therefore could not follow him, or who chose not to pursue the way of Jesus during their life, the process of spiritual rebirth, but instead turned to the things of the flesh, will find that when they die they will have to go through a purgatorial process of correction for their sins. Jesus will invite them to go through the painful process of burning away the self and being transformed in the spirit which they did not pursue on earth. He will make this offer based on the power of his sacrificial death on the cross, which enables all men to be forgiven of all sins. If they refuse, they will be in darkness until they change their mind. If they accept, they will be given hard lessons in the afterlife to help them to become born again, until eventually they are ready to enter heaven. So, in my opinion, there is punishment for those who are not willing to seek a rebirth in Christ during this life. Jesus Christ made that very clear. God does not consider all ways of life acceptable; only the way taught by Jesus. Some people from other religious traditions who followed a way similar to Jesus -- such as the great Hindu leader, Mahatma Gandhi, who practiced non-violence and denial of self to help others -- are more acceptable in their deeds than others. Some non-Christians like Gandhi are more acceptable to God even than some Christians who only believe theological doctrines but do not really follow Jesus in how they live. But ultimately it is not our deeds that save us. The law is not our salvation. It is only grace, through the work of Jesus Christ. If we are not born again now, God's grace will someday come to us, maybe not in this life but the next, and we will finally be saved. It is God who saves us; we do not save ourselves, because we are all sinners, even those who are striving to follow Jesus. Jesus Christ taught that there is always forgiveness for our sins when we are ready to repent. The Bible informs us that Jesus went and preached to suffering souls in hell after he had died on the cross. "For Christ died for sins once for all, the righteous for the unrighteous, to bring you to God. He was put to death in the body but made alive in the spirit, through which also he went and preached to the spirits in prison who disobeyed long ago when God waited patiently in the days of Noah while the ark was being built." (1 Peter 3:18-20). This is confirmation of Jesus's promise recorded in John 12:32 to "draw all people" to himself after leaving earth. It is a traditional myth that if a person dies without knowing or accepting Christ, he will go to hell forever. Even in death, the Apostle Peter tells us, unbelievers and sinners can still have an opportunity to be saved by hearing the message of Jesus Christ delivered to them. Of course, some Christians argue that Peter meant to tell us that Jesus went to hell to laugh at its prisoners. Instead of encouraging them to repent and be saved by hearing the Good News, Jesus supposedly went to spirits in hell to inform them that he is saving some fortunate people but never them, just to add to their hopeless misery. I can only say that this view of Jesus completely contradicts the entire testimony of the Gospel about who Jesus was and what he was all about. How could Jesus, a man full of love for the lowest sinners, preach to anyone to make them suffer even more? I hope this explanation helps. You may also want to read this article about the issue of being born again, which has some interesting perspectives:
Peace in Christ,
Hi Alice, The first thought that comes to my mind about what it means to be "born again" is that we are made new in Christ, i.e. that we are living now in Christ instead of living in the ego. It is Christ in us that is living, not us in the flesh. As for your specific question about Jesus's saying about the wind blowing, in regard to being born again (John 3:7-8), perhaps this is a reference to the fact that some people are born again through divine grace in this life, whereas others are not, but must wait until the afterlife when God will transform them. In other words, salvation, transformation, being made new -- whatever we call it -- is something we don't ourselves choose, but God does it for us. God starts us on that path of salvation. No one knows where the "wind" of divine grace comes from, or to whom it will come and at what time or under what circumstances, much like the physical wind can blow suddenly and unexpectedly, and can blow somewhere and not somewhere else. Those are a few of my thoughts.... The thing that is important for us to realize is that there is no time limit on the wind of the Spirit, after which a person has lost the chance to be born again. God can send this divine wind of change to a person at any time He chooses -- if not during one's life on earth, then after death. Eventually, all will be born again because the Apostle Paul says God will be "all in all." (1 Cor. 15:28). Praise Jesus! Peace in Christ,
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Christian Universalist FAQ -- Frequently Asked Questions
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Heavenly Father, please bless this ministry, lead multitudes to this website, and help them see the truth of Your love and forgiveness for all people through the power of Your Son, our Lord Jesus Christ, the Savior of the whole world. Open their eyes to Your true nature, take away their fears, and fill their hearts with the Holy Spirit. In Jesus' name we pray, Amen. |