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THE KING’S BUSINESS
place of the new birth. (7) Culture will not take the place of the new birth; even though it is ethical culture or religious cul ture. Everywhere through Christendom the churches are substituting culture, ethical culture, or religious culture, or intellectual culture, for the New Birth, but culture will not do, “you must be born again." Nico demus was one of the most cultured men among his people, he was “the teacher of Israel,” but he was lost, and the most cul tured people of America today, the most cultured men and women in any city or country, are lost men and women, unless they have been born again. (8) Prayer will not take the place of, the new birth. A man may spend hours a day in prayer and yet be a lost man. Cornelius was a man of prayer and a generous giver, so notable was he for prayer and almsgiving that his .prayers and alms went up for remembrance before God (Acts 10:4), but-he needed to be saved by being born again through faith in Jesus Christ, and the angel said to him to send to Joppa for a»man called Peter, who would speak unto him words whereby he should be saved. (Acts 11:13,14). Evi dently he was not saved as yet. The Neces sity of the New Birth is absolute, there is nothing else that will take its place. 4. Why is the new birth absolutely nec essary? Verse 6 tells us why the new birth is absolutely necessary, why nothing else will take its place. The reason is because “that which is born of the flesh, is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit.” In other words, all that we can get by our human parentage, no matter how godly or pious or moral or cultured our parentage may be, is that which is natural and not that which is spiritual, and the' kingdom of God is spiritual and in order to enter that kingdom we must be born of the Spirit. Human nature is rotten to the core. I I .. The N ature of the New Birth. In this chapter we have a very clear explanation of just what the nature of the new birth is. 1. First of all it is A RADICAL
in the record we hear Peter saying unto this same properly baptized Simon Magus, “Thou has neither part nor lot in this mat ter : for thy heart is not right before God . . . . For I see that thou art in the gall of bitterness and in the bond of ini quity .’1 The baptism of Siipon Magus was not enough, it was not the new birth, and he needed to be T o rn . again. (4) Reli gion will not take the place of the new birth. Religion is all right in its way, if it is true religion, but religion will not save. No amount of observation of the external ities of true religion, Bible reading, prayer, church going, observation of the ordi nances, will save. No man can see or enter the kingdom of heaven, no matter how re ligious he may be, except he be born again. Nicodemus was religious, extremely reli gious, but he was unsaved■' until he "was born again. (5) Generosity in giving will not take the place of the new birth. How many there are today who are really depending for their hope of heaven upon their generous giving, and how many there are who think of others who are generous givers that these men cannot be lost because they give so much for the poor and for God’s work, but even though one should give all his goods to feed the poor, and have not that love which comes from being born again, it would profit him nothing (1 Cor. 13:3). The Pharisees were gen erous givers, they Were careful to tithe absolutely everything they received, down to the mint and anise in their gardens, but they were unsaved and needed to be born again. (6) Conviction of sin will not take the place of the new birth. M.any think that they are saved because by the power of the Holy Spirit they have been brought under deep conviction of sin, but after they have spent days or weeks in agony over their sins they find that conviction is not conversion, much less is it the new birth, and though one should sob and wail over his sins for years or his whole life, he could not by that means enter the king dom of heaven. No amount of-sobbing and wailing and doing penance will take the
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