Sometimes we learn that thoughts often come from preconceived ideas that were conceived from others and that our life is merely a series of actions preceded by phrases composed of words that we were silly enough to believe then incorporate into our mind.
- and so reading while examining G&S is important
For example, a “born again” Christian is an oxymoron since no Christians existed when Jesus coined the two words in tandem.
Someone stripped them of their context then misapplied them to us and the majority of us saw the identifier words and incorporated them into our thought patterns, which caused a series of events in which some doubt their salvation since they’re reborn in their mind instead of made new.
The examples continue outside the Bible. Finding them is a hobby.
*Interestingly, “born again” is repeated once in the Bible by Peter since he was the one committed to the gospel of the circumcision (the Jews…see Galatians 2). Both Peter and Jesus were expected to preach gospels to the Jews at different times, while Paul preached the gospel of the grace of God for us during this time…aka now.
Over in 1 Peter 1, Peter discusses his brethren the Jews and how they are the scattered strangers who are “born again” of incorruptible seed instead of corruptible.
Now, this seed business and rebirth is a descriptive of Israel being God’s firstborn (see Exodus 4).
So, we were never God’s firstborn and so don’t get born again.
It’s serious and hysterical that the facts are scattered around the books like a scavenger hunt so that students of the Bible may rightly divide it. 😉
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