John 1:13

“who were born, not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God.’

               This is a continuation of the verse before. It is an explanation of what it means to be a child of God. As we explored last week, those who receive Jesus and believe in His name, He gives the right to become children of God. In this verse, John shows that being a child of God has nothing to do with a physical trait or anything to do with man; it comes from God. This “birth” will be explained later by Jesus in John 3 as being born again.

               John explains that this birth is not a normal birth because it does not involve any of the normal processes. For one, it does not involve blood. This can be related to a bloodline but also to the physical process being bloody. This is also not a birth in the flesh. The first process of being born is completely in the flesh as we are created in our mother’s womb and come in bodily form. Thirdly, it is not the will of man. This is in contrast with our first birth that comes from the will of our parents to have a child. John shows this second birth, as we can call it, comes from something else.

               The last phrase shows that this second birth comes from God in every way. The birth comes from a lack of bloodshed as the blood shed was completed already from Jesus. The second birth is one of spirit as this is in contrast to flesh. Thirdly, and most importantly, it comes from the will of God. God wills those that will come to this second birth as He is the one who remakes us in His image.

               As Christians, we can take heart that God wills us to be born again. We do not do this alone or by our will but by His will. This is so much better because, as Paul explains in Philippians 4:13, “[We] can do all things through [Christ] who strengths [us].” Living in this reality gives us a new perspective on the challenges in our lives be it worries of the world or the fleshly desires which sometimes entangle us. God willed us to be His own. Nothing can get in our way of the pursuit of Him as we daily grow closer to Him through the reading of the word and our prayer to Him.

               If you are not a Christian, Jesus is calling to you today to talk to Him. He wants to give you a rebirth and a new life. All it takes is to accept Him as Lord of your life. God will do the rest, and He will give you a rebirth—not one of physical flesh but of spirit—and a new heart which has the ability to follow Him completely.