S2 E010 : Regeneration: Made Alive in Christ

What actually happens within a person when he or she is saved?

Jesus answered that question in His conversation with Nicodemus: “Ye must be born again.” The Christian life does not begin with self-improvement, religious effort, or a determination to become a better person. It begins with the supernatural work of God giving spiritual life to someone who was spiritually dead.

In this episode of Written and Read, McKenzie Fleming and Dr. Robert C. Crowder examine the biblical doctrine of regeneration. Beginning with Jesus and Nicodemus in John 3, they explore why the new birth is necessary, what it means to be born of the Spirit, and how passages such as Titus 3 and Ephesians 2 help us understand the work of God in making sinners alive in Christ.

The conversation also considers what changes when a person is born again, how regeneration differs from the lifelong process of sanctification, and what evidence of new spiritual life looks like in the believer. Regeneration is not the improvement of the old life. It is the beginning of new life in Jesus Christ.

Scripture References:John 3:1–7, Titus 3:5, Ephesians 2:1–10, Ezekiel 36:25–27, John 1:12–13, 2 Corinthians 5:17, James 1:18, 1 Peter 1:23, Romans 8:14–16, 1 John 5:11–13