How Do We Know?

...no one can say, "Jesus is Lord," except by the Holy Spirit (I Cor. 12:2).

 

...unless a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God (Jn:3:3).

 

How do we know if we've been "born again" of water and the Holy Spirit?  We cannot tell by our observance of the Law, by attendance at church services, or by our upright standing in the community. We cannot tell by our supporting worthy causes or by almsgiving.  All these things are good, but they do not indicate our being born again of water and the Holy Spirit.  All of these things are works of the flesh, and we know that "flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of heaven."  Paul himself wrote that if anyone had reason to put confidence in the flesh, he had more:  circumcised on the eighth day, of the people of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew of Hebrews; in regard to the law, a Pharisee; as for zeal, persecuting the church; as for legalistic righteousness, faultless (Phil.3: 5-6).

 

Paul goes on to say that he now considers all these things as "loss compared to the surpassing greatness of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord...I consider them rubbish, that I may gain Christ and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ."

 

Paul calls the Corinthians "carnal" Christians, because there are divisions among them.  Some claim to follow the teachings of Cephas; some, of Paul, and some, of Apollos.  As I look around today, I am very much afraid that our churches are full of  'carnal' Christians -- those who put their faith in their own observance of the law or of the teachings of men.  Paul says that one man plants and another waters, but both are servants ---it is God who makes things grow, "For you are God's field, God's building (I Cor. 3:9).

 

If our religious observance does not bring us to the Lordship of Jesus Christ over our lives, we are still "carnal," or Christians according to the flesh, but not walking by the Spirit.  Everything we do, according to St. Seraphim, is for one purpose only -- to acquire the leadership and dominance of the Spirit of God in our lives.  And when He comes, when He rules over us, we will be able to say, "Jesus is Lord" of our lives. 

 

We do not say we are perfected in faith or in practice; in fact, at the moment we recognize Jesus as Lord, we are more likely to say with Peter, "Depart from me, Lord, for I am a sinful man!"  Before knowing Jesus, Paul most likely would not have considered himself sinful, but pretty good (as did I, before meeting Jesus as Lord).  But after knowing Jesus, we become conscious of who we are -- sinful people.  And this in itself is a sign of the Spirit's Presence:  When He comes, he will convict the world of sin, because they do not believe in me (Jn. 14).

 

When we acknowledge our helplessness toward God and acknowledge Jesus Christ as Lord, Savior, and completer of our faith, we can be assured that we have been born again of water and the Spirit.  Tomorrow, I will tackle the concept of  'water' in this context.