Born Once Die Twice – Born Twice, Die Once
It is a known fact that if you were born, you are going to die someday. If you are one of those like me that are “rounding third and heading for home” in the age scale, you are experiencing reminders (often daily) that that ominous day is coming.
– Born Once Die Twice –
The Bible speaks of a “second death” but what in the world is that?
- What is the “second death?” “And death and hell were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death.” [ Revelation 20:14 ]
- Who is going to experience the second death? “But the fearful, and unbelieving , and the abominable, and murders, and whoremongers, and sorcerers, and the idolaters, and all liars, shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone: which is the second death.” [ Revelation 21:8 ]
- Who escapes the second death? [ Revelation 2:11 ] (Jesus speaking) “He that has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches; He who overcomes* shall not be hurt by the second death.”
* The word “overcomes” is tied directly to [ John 16:33 ] where Jesus says “… but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world.” The “world” here is referring to our general world’s evil inclination. [ 1 John 2:16 ] “For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world.” Those that accept God’s way of salvation are those that overcome the world.
So basically, - The first death is the separation from others who exist in mortal bodies.
- The second death happens to those who are eternally separated from God and those in Heaven.
– Born Twice, Die Once –
“Born twice” what in the world is that? In John 3:3, Jesus explains it. A highly ranked Jewish religious ruler came to visit Jesus at night (for fear of his peers), His name was Nicodemus. Nicodemus said “We know that you are a teacher come from God: for no one can do these signs that you do unless God is with him.” Then Jesus said to him, “Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.”
We are all born spiritually un-connected with our Creator and without relationship, in other words we are born spiritually dead. God’s Spirit does work in a limited way in the lives of the non-believers by:
- Convicting them of sin through their conscience.
- Giving them an awareness of God existence and His righteousness.
- And also an awareness of the Judgment to come.
But, when a person accepts God’s Way of salvation by accepting Jesus as his personal Savior, God’s Holy Spirit (The Spirit of Truth) actually comes and inhabits that individual. To that person, suddenly it is like someone has turned on the lights of what life is all about. A wonderful peace about the future develops as believers start understanding the amazing love that God has for them. Instead of seeing God’s instructions as a list of do’s and dont’s, God’s instructions are seen as directions from a loving Father of how to bypass many of life’s pitfalls. A change within us commences and we find that our choices become different not because we are earning salvation, but because we realize we have already been granted it through the huge amount of heavy lifting that God has done on our behalf. For many, suddenly the Scriptures come alive and what didn’t make sense before, now does and the future is not only bright, it is exciting as hope fueled by your new relationship with your Creator grows. .
So, anyone reading this, I encourage you to be: Born Twice, Die Once, here’s how.