Notes compiled by Marty Zide and Steve McAtee
True regeneration never stands alone. There are always things that follow in ones’ life, once God has implanted the incorruptible seed in the heart of an individual.
a. True regeneration always leads to enablement by the individual to express repentance and faith in the Lord Jesus.
The Bible speaks of this as conversion. Conversion is the conscious act of a regenerated person in which he or she turns to God in repentance and faith. It involves a twofold turning: away from sin and toward God.
1 Thess 1:9 - For they themselves report about us what kind of a reception we had with you, and how you turned to God from idols to serve a living and true God.
Acts 26:18 - to open their eyes so that they may turn from darkness to light and from the dominion of Satan to God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins and an inheritance among those who have been sanctified by faith in Me.
True conversion should always include the following elements; (1) illumination of the mind, whereby sin comes to be known in its true sense, as behavior which is 1)displeasing to God; (2) a genuine sorrow for sin, (3) a humble confession of sin to
God; (4) an increasing hated of sin and deliberate resolve to flee from it; (5) a fellowship with God as our gracious Father who stands ready to forgive us our sins; and (6) a growing love for God and others.
Both repentance and faith are gifts of God, but they are something that man must and will do, by God’s enablement. Man must place faith in the Lord Jesus and man must repent of their sins. These are really not two separate steps. All true faith includes repentance and all true repentance includes faith.
Eph 2:8 - For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God.
Acts 11:18 - When they heard this, they quieted down and glorified God, saying, Well then, God has granted to the Gentiles also the repentance that leads to life.
Faith and repentance are something that a believer continues to exercise throughout his or her entire experience as a believer. One never matures out of it.
b. True conversion always leads to justification, sanctification, and glorification.
All who are regenerated will manifest it by true conversion. All who are truly converted will exercise faith in the Lord Jesus and repentance from sin. All who place saving faith in the Lord Jesus are justified, sanctified, and glorified.
There is no such thing as a believer who is not justified and does not enter into the experience of progressive sanctification, and who will not ultimately be glorified. All of these are the results of regeneration.
Gal 2:16 - nevertheless knowing that a man is not justified by the works of the Law but through faith in Messiah Jesus, even we have believed in Messiah Jesus, so that we may be justified by faith in Messiah and not by the works of the Law; since by the works of the Law no flesh will be justified.
Phil 3:9 - and may be found in Him, not having a righteousness of my own derived from the Law, but that which is through faith in Messiah, the righteousness which comes from God on the basis of faith.
1Pet 1:1-2 - Peter, an apostle of Jesus the Messiah, to those who reside as aliens,... who are chosen according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, by the sanctifying work of the Spirit, to obey Jesus the Messiah and be sprinkled with His blood...
Rom 8:29 - For those whom He foreknew, He also predestined to become conformed to the image of His Son, so that He would be the firstborn among many brethren.
2Cor 3:18 - But we all, with unveiled face, beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as from the Lord, the Spirit.
Eph 5:26-27 - so that He might sanctify her, having cleansed her by the washing of water with the Word, that He might present to Himself the church in all her glory, having no spot or wrinkle or any such thing; but that she would be holy and blameless.
Rom 8:16-17 - The Spirit Himself testifies with our spirit that we are children of God, and if children, heirs also, heirs of God and fellow heirs with Messiah, if indeed we suffer with Him so that we may also be glorified with Him.
Col 3:4 - When Messiah, who is our life, is revealed, then you also will be revealed with Him in glory.
1 John 3:2 - Beloved, now we are children of God, and it has not appeared as yet what we will be. We know that when He appears, we will be like Him, because we will see Him just as He is.
It is clearly taught in Scripture that when someone is regenerated changes take place in their life. Things do not remain the same. No one becomes perfect in this life, but the direction of their life changes for the glory of God.
Coming Next – The Holy Spirit Baptizes Us
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