Jesus answered and said to him, “Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.

John 3:3

The most important question you can ask yourselves is this. Am I born again? Being born again is not found in being part of a church, being baptised, or doing good deeds. My aim today is to explore the signs of being born again. I aim to aid you in examining your heart to see if the fruits of salvation from God are present in your life.

1 John 3:9 says, “Whoever has been born of God does not sin, for His seed remains in him; and he cannot sin, because he has been born of God.” The Christian does not sin continually. The believer does not habitually commit sin in his heart, mind, and soul. The born-again believer aims to fight against sin within himself. The believer fights against sin. The Christian soul hates sin and strives against it. Before coming to faith in Christ the believer loved sin, it brought pleasure to his heart. Now sin does not sit easy with him, it no longer pleasures him.

1 John 5:1 says, “Whoever believes that Jesus is the Christ is born of God, and everyone who loves Him who begot also loves him who is begotten of Him.” A true Christian believes in Jesus as the Christ, the Messiah. The born-again believer has faith in the Son of God. This means that he believes that Jesus Christ is the Son of God and besides Christ, there is no Saviour. Christ is the way, the truth, and the life of the Christian. He is the only way to God.

1 John 2:29 says, “If you know that He is righteous, you know that everyone who practices righteousness is born of Him.” A person striving to be holy will do righteousness. This is done by loving God with all your heart, mind, and soul. Righteousness and goodness can only come from God through Jesus Christ. John Newton a famous hymn writer once said, “I am not what I ought to be, I am not what I want to be, I am not what I hope to be, but still I am not what I used to be and by the grace of God I am what I am.”

1 John 3:14 says, “We know that we have passed from death to life, because we love the brethren. He who does not love his brother abides in death.“ The one who is born of God will love the people of God. This means the Christian enjoys the company of fellow believers. The believer is most happy when in the presence of fellow saints. More importantly, the believer has a desire to be in the company of fellow believers and to have close fellowship with the Church of God. A faithful Christian will also seek to attach himself to a local assembly of believers.

1 John 5:4 says, “For whatever is born of God overcomes the world. And this is the victory that has overcome the world—our faith.” The world no longer rules the views and opinions of the believer. The child of God is transformed by God’s Word. Now the Bible rules the thinking of the believer. He hates what God hates and loves what God loves.

1 John 5:18 says, “We know that whoever is born of God does not sin; but he who has been born of God keeps himself, and the wicked one does not touch him.” The last point I would like to make is the child of God is careful about the company he keeps. Evil company corrupts the heart. The believer does not fellowship with the world and does not lead a life controlled by sinfulness.