Lesson for March 15, 2026

Our Spiritual Assets

Lesson 1

Regeneration

Regeneration, a theological term for being “born again,” is the term for when God creates a human spirit in believers at salvation. “Born again” is a poor translation of the Greek and leads one to think that the human spirit already exists and is simply being regenerated. The Greek words for “born again” help us to fully understand the meaning: “born” – “gennao,” which means “to bear or to bring forth a child”; “again” – “anothen,” which means “anew or from above.”

The word “regenerate” in English can mean to be restored, to reform, to bring into existence again, but it can also mean to be made anew. However, the Greek word for regeneration is “palingenesia,” and means a new birth. Regeneration is a new birth, a spiritual birth from above (from God). It is the “new creation” of II Corinthians 5:17. It is a brand-new nature, something that did not exist prior to faith in Christ. (John 3:1-8; I Thessalonians 5:23; Titus 3:5; Ephesians 2:1,5)

It is the human spirit that provides believers with the ability to have a relationship with God, to learn, understand, apply Bible doctrine and to produce divine good. (Romans 1:9; 8:16; Ephesians 2:10) An unbeliever does not possess a human spirit and is unable to have a relationship with God, to understand spiritual things, or to produce divine good. (I Corinthians 2:14) Therefore, the Holy Spirit must act as a human spirit for unbelievers so they can understand the Gospel and believe in Christ.

It is the human spirit that the Holy Spirit teaches, and this becomes the positive influence in a believer’s soul. Divine Viewpoint Thinking is the result of this influence and overrules Human Viewpoint Thinking. The soul of a person has the potential to be corrupted, since it contains free will. The human spirit does not contain free will and has no potential for corruption. The creation of the human spirit also sets up a battle for the control of a believer’s soul between the sin nature and the new spiritual nature. (Galatians 5:16-17; I John 3:9)

The Work of Christ

It is the work of Christ on the Cross that provides the potential for regeneration for every human being and secures forever a believer’s relationship with God. It is still a matter of personal volition as to whether a person chooses to believe in Christ or whether a person rejects Christ. God does not force anyone to believe in Christ.

On the Cross, Jesus died twice. First, He died spiritually, as the complete payment for the penalty of sin imposed on all mankind. Because the penalty for sin is spiritual death (separation from God), someone had to pay this penalty. Only a perfect, sinless person could have accomplished this, having no sin of His own to pay for. This person had to have the ability to pay, the willingness to pay and had to be related to the person for whom he is paying the penalty. This had to be done in order to meet the requirements of the “Kinsman Redeemer,” under Jewish law. Remember that Christ fulfilled the Law perfectly (even in His death). (Matthew 5:17)

Christ’s second death on the Cross was physical. But He rose from the dead to conquer physical death and the grave. Since we are in union with Christ, we too will conquer physical death and the grave. When Christ was resurrected, He became the “firstfruits” of all believers. This means that He was the first to receive a resurrection body and we will also receive a resurrection body because of our relationship with Him. (I Corinthians 15:12-20, 51-57)

As the result of what Christ accomplished on the Cross, believers receive a new birth at salvation. This new birth is made possible only by the plan of God the Father that Jesus carried out on the Cross. That plan is revealed by God the Holy Spirit. Jesus Christ was a willing sacrifice and joyfully went to the Cross because He knew what He was going to accomplish for us. (James 1:18; I Peter 2:24; Titus 3:5; Hebrews 12:1-2)

Spiritual Death vs. Spiritual Life

Prior to salvation a person is spiritually dead (separated from God). Upon faith in Christ, a person becomes alive spiritually and is no longer separated from God. Regeneration, therefore, is the supernatural work of God whereby He imparts spiritual life to a spiritually dead person. All three members of the Trinity are involved in regeneration. It is the will of the Father that everyone comes to know Christ as Savior. Regeneration is made possible by Christ’s sacrificial death. It is the work of the Holy Spirit that produces this new birth in a believer. (Ephesians 2:5-6; Colossians 2:13; James 1:18; I Peter 2:24; Titus 3:5)

Spiritual death means that a person does not possess a human spirit, is minus the righteousness of God, and has no human ability to remedy the situation. Every member of the human race is born with Adam’s original sin, which was credited to each person at birth. It is Adam’s original sin that condemns us to spiritual death, at birth.

Spiritual life means that a person possesses a human spirit, has the righteousness of God, and that God has remedied our formerly hopeless situation when we believed in Christ. At salvation, God the Holy Spirit places us into union with Jesus Christ. It is this union that removes all condemnation from believers and sets up numerous potentials for believers. But like everything in the Christian Way of Life, we must each make our own decision to act upon those potentials!