Paradoxes in Christianity Part one

Paradoxes in Christianity Part one

Born again

Is born again a reincarnation?
Is birth again from the same woman or another?
Is rebirth a self-rebirth, that is, rebirthing yourself?
Is born again nonsense, or a contradiction in terms?

Paradox, according to Dictionary, represents a logical-formal contradiction, appearing despite the logical respect of reasoning; an opinion contrary to the universally recognized truth; a fact that can be shown to be both true and false. So, it can be seen as an oddity, a mismatch. In a few words, paradox can be defined as a result, a counter-intuitive statement.
Are there paradoxes in Christianity?

It can meet paradoxes in logic, science, physics, astronomy, cosmology, mathematics, art, music, philosophy, etc., but also in religion, in Christianity.

The Paradox of “Birth Again!”
One of the most discussed paradoxes in Christianity is the verse in the Epistle of John, chapter 3:

John 3:3” Jesus answered and said unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.” (John 3:3)

Human logic is confused. A man cannot be born twice! This is because the same man can’t be born again, for the same woman to give birth to you again. We can also find these questions in a biblical character – Nicodemus, when Jesus Christ directly confronts him with this problem. He wondered:” Nicodemus saith unto him, How can a man be born when he is old? Can he enter the second time into his mother’s womb, and be born?”

Jesus answers as simple as it is contrary to human thinking:” Jesus answered, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the Kingdom of God. That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. Marvel not that I said unto thee, Ye must be born again.”

Birth of water and the Spirit. Birth from the Word of God and by the Spirit of God.
A new birth, in the biblical sense, is not a self-birth, (that is, you be born yourself). It is not a repeated birth from the same woman, and even less is it not a reincarnation. Being born again is not the initiative of man. Man cannot change himself, except possibly partially and temporarily.
This work belongs to the Holy Spirit. It is the divine work that God does in the life of the sinner for a re-entry into His will, with the ultimate goal of making him in His image and likeness:

Titus 3:5-7
”Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to his mercy he saved us, by the washing of regeneration, and renewing of the Holy Ghost; Which he shed on us abundantly through Jesus Christ our Saviour; That being justified by his grace, we should be made heirs according to the hope of eternal life.”

Yes, a new birth, in the Christian sense, presupposes another new man, totally different from the first. The same man, yet another! The same man, but changed! But, a change of great depth, to such an extent that you can only recognize the man you knew. So, being born again presupposes a radical change of man, of his entire being up to the deepest level of thought, speech, and action. Another man, another life! A life unrecognizable by those in his family, by those who knew him previously. A change for many incomprehensible, even strange.

In other words, whoever stole, lied, or fornicated, or who was drunk or sodomized, murderer, etc. stops practising these things. Even more, he doesn’t even think about these things anymore. Sin is an unwanted accident, regrettable until the deep of his soul. All these changes are due to the rebirth done by the Spirit of God, and, to a large extent, to one’s own will.

Colossians 3:9-10
”Lie not one to another, seeing that ye have put off the old man with his deeds; And have put on the new man, which is renewed in knowledge after the image of him that created him:”

1 Peter 1:23
”Being born again, not of corruptible seed, but of incorruptible, by the word of God, which liveth and abideth forever.”
This statement finds its counterpart in another verse from the Bible:

1 Corinthians 15:36-37,46-49
”Thou fool, that which thou sowest is not quickened, except it die: And that which thou sowest, thou sowest not that body that shall be, but bare grain, it may chance of wheat, or of some other grain” ”Howbeit that was not first which is spiritual, but that which is natural; and afterwards that which is spiritual. The first man is of the earth, earthy: the second man is the Lord from heaven. As is the earthy, such are they also that are earthy: and as is the heavenly, such are they also that are heavenly. And as we have borne the image of the earthy, we shall also bear the image of the heavenly.”
Seeing things also from a spiritual perspective, the seed has life, but it must die to produce another new life.

This is the basic idea emphasized by Jesus Christ.

From the Christian perspective, being born again is necessary, an indisputable condition, an imperative to enter the Kingdom of God, in the holiness required by His “good, pleasant, and perfect” will for man.

Repentance

But for a sinner to be born again, he must believe and trust what God says in His Word. And it all starts with repentance. This represents a return to God, a return home! An acknowledgement that man has gone astray. All this and more are based on an attitude of humility. The finality of the act of being born again is the imprinting of God’s image on man, “until Christ be formed in you”. (Galatians 4-19)

Or, in other words, the deification of man!

The meaning required by God is perfection, it is the holiness that characterizes Him and to which we are called:

1 Peter 1:15-16
”But as he which hath called you is holy, so be ye holy in all manner of conversation; Because it is written, Be ye holy; for I am holy.”

This is the way to God! She was shown by the one who called himself:

John 14:6
”Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father but by me.”

This is the way that leads to salvation by Grace. We say “by Grace” because it is a favour that God does to man who, being a sinner, turns to Him again, through repentance. Then, God does the work of rebirth through His Word and the Holy Spirit.

Ephesians 2:8-10
”For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast. For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them.”
The fact that someone is part of a Christian church, having functions, even being actively involved in various specifically Christian activities, and even being baptized in water, does not necessarily mean that he is also born again of water and the Spirit. Unfortunately, for some people, this rebirth never happens.

A “believer”, who has not been born from above, through the Word of God and the Holy Spirit remains in sin, a fact that will become a permanent state with eternal consequences, to his loss, with the destination expressly mentioned in the Bible, that is, to Hell.

One very important thing must be mentioned. The Holy Spirit seals the authentic believer and does not let him remain in sin if he has succumbed to temptation. He warns him of the state he is in, and he, realizing his sin, asks for forgiveness. Then, his relationship with God, with his Savior is restored.
This is because he has a Mediator with the Father.

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