How one is Born Again Revised Jesus said, “Marvel not that I said unto thee, Ye must be born again.” John 3:7 To be born again is to be “…born of God.” 1 John 3:9, 1 John 4:7, 1 John 5:1 and 1 John 5:18 Bible Quotations King James Authorized Version of 1611 By Tom Hagler, Jr. September 21, 2006 Notice! Copyright laws do not protect this book. It may be copied in whole or in part. Additional copies may be obtained from Tom Hagler, 5 Somerset Court, Augusta, Georgia 30909. Introduction This small booklet is Brother Tom Hagler’s most recent writing. Ever since I have known Brother Tom, he has had a great desire to share the joy, comfort and peace of the scriptures with anyone who has the love of God in their heart. He has often stated how he would love to be able to write it in such a way that all of his friends and all of God’s children could see the simple beauty of the scriptures, and the joy of knowing God’s salvation of his children. This work endeavors to get to the essence of one of the main doctrinal differences between those who believe God is completely sovereign in the “new birth”, and those who believe there is something the poor sinner must or can do to be born again. Most, if not all, Primitive Baptists have maintained that God is the One who born His children again, without the aid of any man or means of men. Many of God’s sincere born again children from other religious beliefs, hold to the position that it is something they did, or must do to be born again and thus save themselves or others. There is the dilemma, is it of God? Or is there something we must do to be born again? It is this question “How is one born again?” that this book will focus your attention and hopefully answer for you. It is my prayer that as you read it and check it against the word of God, that the Lord would bless you as the apostle Paul prayed for the church at Ephesus “That the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give unto you the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of him: The eyes of your understanding being enlightened; that ye may know what is the hope of his calling, and what the riches of the glory of his inheritance in the saints,” Ephesians 1:17-18 Elder Dwayne Hooven Acknowledgements Elder Dwayne Hooven is pastor of Augusta Old Line Primitive Church, where I feel fortunate to be a member. He has made many important suggestions to a number of my books and booklets to improve readability as well as valuable advice on doctrinal issues. My former pastors, Elder Harold Hunt, Maryville, TN, and Elder Sam Bryant, Hoover AL, have always encouraged me in writing and offered me the benefit of their great wisdom in doctrinal matters. Their suggestions to this and all my books have been invaluable. The preaching of Elder Sonny Pyles has been the source of the idea and expressions used in several chapters of this book (as noted). In my opinion, he is the greatest preaching evangelist alive today. He has been of tremendous benefit to many Primitive Baptist Elders as well as church members and has strengthened the Lord’s churches all across America. He has been a great blessing to us all. My granddaughter Rachael and her husband Robbie Mundy have been of great benefit to me as proofreaders correcting my poor and unprofessional grammar. Finally, I would like to express my appreciation to my brother Danforth W. Hagler for his advice and insight as a Presbyterian. Many people cannot see the forest for the trees; however Danny has always had the gift of taking a complicated subject and finding the key issues that makes the whole more understandable. The idea for the fifth chapter entitled “What is the point of it all?” came from him. Minor revisions as suggested by friends were made on pages 2, 3, 49, and 50…plus other minor corrections. Dedicated to… …my friends who are open to consider in more detail how God, without help from any person, is able to give eternal salvation to His children. This booklet will examine more closely what a number of Bible verses actually state, and then compare Scripture with Scripture. If one finds this doctrine comforting to the soul, and feels it honors God and unlocks the meaning of so many things in the Bible that were once a mystery, it is my suggestion that this person visit a Primitive Baptist Church…come and see, as Philip told Nathanael: • John 1:45-46 “Philip findeth Nathanael, and saith unto him, We have found him, of whom Moses in the law, and the prophets, did write, Jesus of Nazareth, the son of Joseph. And Nathanael said unto him, Can there any good thing come out of Nazareth? Philip saith unto him, Come and see.” Foreword This booklet will examine briefly how one is born again. A widely held view by many from different denominations is that if you would only accept Christ as your personal saviour, and invite Him into your heart, then you will be born again. I am not aware of any Bible verse that supports that view. Several Bible verses are mistakenly offered as proof for this opinion. This booklet will attempt to demonstrate how these particular verses mean something completely different, thereby rejecting this assertion. The first chapter entitled “Spiritual life by regeneration” will give clear Scriptural proof of how a person is actually born again. Also in this chapter, we will consider the meaning of John 1:12 and Romans 10:9 that are often misunderstood. The second chapter is entitled “Belief…the cause or the effect?” It offers conclusive proof that one’s belief in Christ as the Son of God is the effect or evidence one is already born again. Four proof texts, 1 John 5:1, John 5:24, John 6:47, and Acts 13:48, will be presented to support this view. Since it is impossible for something to be both the cause and the effect, three important Bible verses mistakenly used to prove belief in Christ is the cause of regeneration will be examined. These verses are Romans 1:16, 1 Corinthians 1:21 and John 3:16. These three Bible verses will be explained in context, and in the exact grammar as written, thereby explaining their actual meaning. The third chapter entitled “More than one salvation taught in the Bible,” demonstrates the Bible does not always use the word salvation just to mean eternal salvation. There are other meanings that are obvious once you consider the context, grammar, and other proven Scriptural principles. No Scripture will ever contradict any other Scripture. The fourth chapter entitled “What the gospel is not,” considers Bible verses mistakenly used to teach regeneration by gospel preaching, such as James 1:18, 1 Peter 1:23, 25, Hebrews 4:12, and 1 Corinthians 4:15. Each of these Bible verses will be explained considering context, grammar, and other Scripture, in order to reject this false understanding. It is then necessary to explain what these verses actually teach. We will see there is absolutely nothing a person can do to be born again....God is completely sovereign in eternal salvation. No human can help or hinder God in this action. We will then briefly cover the important purpose of the gospel preserved by God for our benefit during this lifetime. The fifth chapter is entitled “What is the point of it all?” If one understands they can do nothing to inherit eternal life, they may ask that question. Why should one obey the Lord’s commandments? Why not eat, drink, and be merry, for tomorrow we die? They may even think God is unrighteous by not allowing man to do something so that he can obtain eternal salvation! Hopefully these questions are answered to the reader’s satisfaction. More on the purpose of the gospel will be given. The sixth chapter entitled “Those who are unregenerate,” deals with the condition and nature of a person not born again. Since a person may feel sorry for the unregenerate, it might be helpful if one understood the attitude and nature of an unregenerate. It is also important to understand more about the unregenerate in order to fully appreciate what the Lord has done for His elect children. Since I do not expect everyone will agree with the meaning assigned to every verse quoted, I invite readers to give me an explanation as to their interpretation. I need and want constructive criticism. Please send any comments to Tom Hagler, 5 Somerset Court, Augusta, GA 30909. For one final thought, Acts 17:2 states, “And Paul, as his manner was, went in unto them, and three sabbath days reasoned with them out of the scriptures.” Let’s follow this example, and reason together from Scripture. Tom Hagler