Born Again
A Sermon on John 3:8
Scripture
8The wind bloweth where it listeth, and thou hearest the sound thereof, but canst not tell whence it cometh, and whither it goeth: so is every one that is born of the Spirit.
Sermon Description
In this sermon on John 3:8 titled “Born Again,” Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones addresses those who wrongly assume they are believers and illustrates signs of a truly born-again Christian. The condition and position of the Christian is foundational: they must be born again. Listen and learn about the love that ought to characterize all believers – love for the brethren. This is not merely to have a natural liking for fellow believers, but it is a choice. Find out how love and church unity are inseparably bound together, and how these serve as the foundation for what influence the church can have. Dr. Lloyd-Jones speaks about the clear and visible marking of the true Christian in that the child of God ought to be more interested in the state of one’s soul than in their nationality, class, or ability. Christ-like love is the one common language that binds the church together. The Christian must be grieved by godlessness and weaknesses of the present church, but anxious about the future of the Christian church. Love for one another must be ever increasing, growing in the hope of the glory to come, and bearing patiently with one another. The Christian is a “man who prefers the society of the brethren to the best society that the world can afford.”
Sermon Breakdown
- The sermon focuses on 1 John 3:14 which states "We know that we have passed from death to life, because we love the brethren."
- Loving and liking are two different things. Liking is natural and uncontrolled, loving is a choice and duty.
- We are commanded to love one another, not like one another. Loving means treating people you don't like as if you do like them.
- Those born again have the same life, outlook, desires, hopes, fears, and battles which brings them together.
- We speak the same "language" and understand each other in a way the world does not.
- We share secrets and experiences with each other that we cannot share with the world.
- We fight the same enemy and have the same hope of glory which binds us together.
- We recognize each other intuitively as brethren. This relationship means more to us than any other.
- We feel comfortable and belong with other Christians, not awkward.
- We prefer the company of Christians over any society the world offers.
- We sympathize with and are concerned for one another. The suffering of one is the suffering of all.
- We bear with one another and forgive one another as God has forgiven us.
The Book of John
Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones
Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones (1899-1981) was a Welsh evangelical minister who preached and taught in the Reformed tradition. His principal ministry was at Westminster Chapel, in central London, from 1939-1968, where he delivered multi-year expositions on books of the bible such as Romans, Ephesians and the Gospel of John. In addition to the MLJ Trust’s collection of 1,600 of these sermons in audio format, most of these great sermon series are available in book form (including a 14 volume collection of the Romans sermons), as are other series such as "Spiritual Depression", "Studies in the Sermon on the Mount" and "Great Biblical Doctrines". He is considered by many evangelical leaders today to be an authority on biblical truth and the sufficiency of Scripture.