What could be better than beer, sex and rock n’ roll?

In the third century, Cyprian (bishop of Carthage) wrote to his friend Donatus: “It is a bad world, Donatus, an incredibly bad world. But I have discovered in the midst of it a quiet and holy people who have learned a great secret. They have found a joy which is a thousand times better than any of the pleasures of our sinful life. They are despised and persecuted, but they care not. They are masters of their souls. They have overcome the world. These people, Donatus, are Christians…and I am one of them.” That is one of the most wonderful confessions a person can ever make. I am one of them too. What about you?

“As many as received him,” the Bible says, “to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name” (John 1:12).

Down through the ages God has been calling people to Himself. Those who have come have been born again and received His forgiveness, His joy, and His peace in their hearts.
“I went to the altar like a candle without light; there was no meaning or purpose in my life,” a young convert recently exclaimed. “But while I was kneeling in prayer something happened. God touched my heart. He set my candle on fire. Everything is different now. Spiritual death has been replaced with spiritual life. A love for Christ has been planted in my heart. I’ll never again be the same.”

The moral and spiritual changes which occur when a person come to Christ are really quite amazing. Spiritual things which seemed unimportant and worthless before are suddenly filled with meaning. Worldly pleasures which were so important before suddenly lose their appeal. Old things pass away; all things become new!

The new birth is difficult to explain to someone who hasn’t experienced it. How do you explain spiritual darkness being replaced by spiritual light? How do you explain spiritual death being replaced by spiritual life? How do you explain a person’s character being changed in a moment of time? Yet, this is what happens when a person gives his heart and life to Christ. It’s what God promised when He said, “A new heart will I give you and a new spirit will I put within you.” It’s what He promised when He said, “I will put my laws in your mind and write them upon your hearts.” It’s what happens when God places His love in our hearts (Ezekiel 36:26; Hebrews 8:10; 10:19; Romans 5:5).

The new birth is not man reforming himself. It’s not man turning over a new leaf or resolving to do better. It’s God changing his heart from the inside out. There’s a mystery about it which no one can explain because it’s something which God alone can accomplish in a person’s heart.

Some people have a great emotional experience when they come to Christ and are born again. Others experience little or no emotion at all. They may not even be able to pinpoint the exact time when they gave their hearts to Christ but they know that they did. They know it because Christ is the object of their faith and devotion. And His joy and peace reside in their hearts.