For several years, I served as Chairman of Committees charged with interviewing people for possible leadership positions in campus fellowship. On one of the occasions, we asked this brother when (and how) he got born again. His reply: I was born again from birth.
Now if you're a Christian today, chances are that your reaction will not be too different from our initial reaction - to dismiss the guy ASAP. To make his case "worse", he doesn't even fit the usual definition of "born again"; as in, he's not the tongue-speaking, Bible-quoting, rhema-tic type.
But then I was in charge, so he got his full chance - and eventually made it to the executives list!
Was I taken aback by the "born again from birth" thing? Absolutely! I've never heard that before then. But then, in addition to understanding the Bible, I understood the development and evolution of theological narratives over the course of history. While the Bible has remained the same, how it's been interpreted by the church has continued to change over time.
In the earliest days of the church, people (obviously adults) hear the gospel from the apostles and repent of their sins to follow Jesus. The understanding then was that when saved, you'll raised your household in, or convert them to the way of the Lord. This perfectly explains passages like Acts 16:31 (Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved, you and your household).
This naturally metamorphosed into the practice of Infant Baptism as a way of "initiating" children of Christians into the Christian Community (a.k.a the Body of Christ), and getting their parents to commit to raising them in the way of the Lord. Notice that this is perfectly analogous to the practice of Circumcision (a rite that effectively shows you're part of the (ancient) people of God (Israel)).
Later when persecution of the church increased, the church introduced the notion of God-Parents in baptism so as to supplement the child's biological parents in raising the child in the way of the Lord. Having five "parents" (two bio-parents and three god-parents) make a commitment to raise a child for the Lord means that even if persecutors execute some of them, there'll be at least one adult responsible for the child's christian upbringing.
This was the system the church worked with until the 19th century (from 1801) when preachers decided they needed a way to determine who among their listeners have been converted (convicted); so they came up with what we now know as Altar Call.
Today, if you claim you're born again, most brethren will expect you to have a story around it that includes a specific date and Altar Call event. A basic understanding of how we got to this point will help you not write off people who do not have the usual stories around their salvation.
And if you're such a brother or sister who was brought up in the way of the Lord, and so grew up knowing Him, don't be shy about it as you're one of the most privileged Christians in the world today! But if you feel bullied by the other Christians who think you must be old enough to make an intelligent, personal decision for Jesus on a definite day that you can remember and quote, then just answer one Altar Call so as to feel among.
Now if you're a Christian today, chances are that your reaction will not be too different from our initial reaction - to dismiss the guy ASAP. To make his case "worse", he doesn't even fit the usual definition of "born again"; as in, he's not the tongue-speaking, Bible-quoting, rhema-tic type.
But then I was in charge, so he got his full chance - and eventually made it to the executives list!
Was I taken aback by the "born again from birth" thing? Absolutely! I've never heard that before then. But then, in addition to understanding the Bible, I understood the development and evolution of theological narratives over the course of history. While the Bible has remained the same, how it's been interpreted by the church has continued to change over time.
In the earliest days of the church, people (obviously adults) hear the gospel from the apostles and repent of their sins to follow Jesus. The understanding then was that when saved, you'll raised your household in, or convert them to the way of the Lord. This perfectly explains passages like Acts 16:31 (Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved, you and your household).
This naturally metamorphosed into the practice of Infant Baptism as a way of "initiating" children of Christians into the Christian Community (a.k.a the Body of Christ), and getting their parents to commit to raising them in the way of the Lord. Notice that this is perfectly analogous to the practice of Circumcision (a rite that effectively shows you're part of the (ancient) people of God (Israel)).
Later when persecution of the church increased, the church introduced the notion of God-Parents in baptism so as to supplement the child's biological parents in raising the child in the way of the Lord. Having five "parents" (two bio-parents and three god-parents) make a commitment to raise a child for the Lord means that even if persecutors execute some of them, there'll be at least one adult responsible for the child's christian upbringing.
This was the system the church worked with until the 19th century (from 1801) when preachers decided they needed a way to determine who among their listeners have been converted (convicted); so they came up with what we now know as Altar Call.
Today, if you claim you're born again, most brethren will expect you to have a story around it that includes a specific date and Altar Call event. A basic understanding of how we got to this point will help you not write off people who do not have the usual stories around their salvation.
And if you're such a brother or sister who was brought up in the way of the Lord, and so grew up knowing Him, don't be shy about it as you're one of the most privileged Christians in the world today! But if you feel bullied by the other Christians who think you must be old enough to make an intelligent, personal decision for Jesus on a definite day that you can remember and quote, then just answer one Altar Call so as to feel among.
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