REGENERATION

Regeneration (the New Birth) is monergistic (by the singular power of God) and radical (to the core of the human heart)! Regeneration is the necessary cause of saving faith. Because all children of Adam are born enslaved to sin, they are incapable of heart driven “repentance toward God" or "faith in our Lord Jesus Christ” (Acts 20:21). Regeneration is the great need of every fallen sinner:

“Can the Ethiopian change his skin or the leopard his spots? (The rhetorical answer is “of course not!”). Then also you can do good who are accustomed to do evil.” (Jeremiah 13:23).

And, unlike the involuntary slavery common throughout history, the human will is enslaved to a heart that is driven by self-gratification (the ME-FIRST syndrome). Sin driven slavery is WILLING slavery. Sin driven hearts WANT to sin:

“Do you not know that if you PRESENT YOURSELVES to anyone as obedient slaves, you are slaves of the one whom you obey, either of sin, which leads to death, or of obedience, which leads to righteousness?” (Romans 6:16).

Their wills are in bondage to the sin they love! Consequently, their hearts live in denial of the obvious knowledge of God manifested to their natural senses (hearing, seeing, smelling, tasting, feeling) through the created order. And because their wretched hearts love the idol of self, they refuse to acknowledge the Creator they know exists (Romans 1:18-23).

Regeneration is the enabling power of spiritual perception (faith): “unless one is born again he CANNOT SEE the kingdom of God” (John 3:3).

Regeneration is the enabling power of spiritual motion (repentant response): “unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he CANNOT ENTER the kingdom of God” (John 3:5).

Entering God’s kingdom is coming to Christ by the effectually enabling, monergistic power of God: “NO ONE CAN COME TO ME unless the Father who sent Me DRAWS him. And I WILL RAISE HIM UP on the last day. It is written in the Prophets, ‘And THEY (those He discretely draws) will all (every single one of the drawn) be taught by God.’ Everyone who has heard (natural faculties) and learned from the Father (spiritual faculties) comes to Me” (John 6:44-45).

Regeneration is God resurrecting spiritually dead (unresponsive) hearts formerly capable only of satisfying the sinful passions of the flesh. The unregenerate heart can use inherent physical faculties, only to satisfy the desires of sinful fleshy passions. It is by the mercy of God in applying His monergistic (singularly sovereign energy) power, in the raising of dead hearts from spiritual death, that sinners experience spiritual life and vital union with Christ.

“And you were dead in the trespasses and sins in which you once walked, following the course of this world, following the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that is now at work in the sons of disobedience—among whom we all once lived in the passions of our flesh, carrying out the desires of the body and the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, like the rest of mankind. But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ—by grace you have been saved—and raised us up with him and seated us with him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, so that in the coming ages he might show the immeasurable riches of his grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus. For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast.” (Ephesians 2:1-9).

Regeneration is a New Genesis by which God commands a re-creation of the heart by divine fiat in the process of uniting them to Christ: “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come.” (2 Corinthians 5:17).

This New Genesis, through effectual union with Christ, empowers the newly regenerated heart (the seed or root) to become obedient to God in doing good works (the fruit): “For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.” (Ephesians 2:10).

Regeneration is God’s effectual call (irresistible command) to His saints unto Himself: “To all those in Rome who are loved by God and CALLED TO BE SAINTS: Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.” (Romans 1:7). 

They are called unto God’s sure and certain plan and purpose: “And we know that for THOSE WHO LOVE GOD all things work together for good, for THOSE WHO ARE THE CALLED ACCORDING TO HIS PURPOSE.

They are intimately loved (known) by God from all eternity, predestined, CALLED, justified, and glorified by Him: “For those whom he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, in order that he might be the firstborn among many brothers. And those whom he predestined he also called, and those whom he called he also justified, and those whom he justified he also glorified.” (Romans 8:29-30).

God’s effectual regenerating call Makes the distinction between whether the Gospel is considered foolishness by those who are left to themselves, or God’s wisdom to those whom He regenerates and calls to Himself: “For Jews demand signs and Greeks seek wisdom, but we preach Christ crucified, a stumbling block to Jews and folly to Gentiles, but to those who are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God.” (1 Corinthians 1:22-24).

Paul gives the bottom line reasoning as to why God’s saving work is begun in the needy sinner by His monergistic regenerative call:

“For consider your calling, brothers: not many of you were wise according to worldly standards, not many were powerful, not many were of noble birth. But God chose what is foolish in the world to shame the wise; God chose what is weak in the world to shame the strong; God chose what is low and despised in the world, even things that are not, to bring to nothing things that are, SO THAT NO HUMAN BEING MIGHT BOAST IN THE PRESENCE OF GOD. And BECAUSE OF HIM you are in Christ Jesus, Who became to us wisdom from God, righteousness and sanctification and redemption, so that, as it is written, ‘Let the one who boasts, boast in the Lord.’” (1 Corinthians 1:26-31)

From all these passages it is very clear, that God alone changes hearts through New Birth, and by New Birth, He calls sinners to spiritual life that ensures repentance toward Him and faith (trust, reliance, dependence) upon the Person and work of Jesus Christ alone for saving grace unto justification and a life that treasures Christ above all things..