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.
John 3:3 Jesus answered and said to him, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God.” James 1:21 Therefore, putting aside all filthiness and all that remains of wickedness, in humility receive the word implanted, which is able to save your souls.
The absolute and utter necessity of regeneration is set out for us in Colossians 1:13 as well. “For He rescued us from the domain of darkness, and transferred us to the kingdom of His beloved Son.” In this text we can see that salvation is set forth in terms of people being under the domain of darkness, but they are rescued from that darkness and transferred to the kingdom of His beloved Son. While the words seem to set this out as an external kingdom, the reality is that the domain of darkness is in the inward man and the kingdom of Christ is also in the inward man. Both are primarily issues of the heart. It is not just that the behavior or deeds must change, but the heart must change. If the heart is in darkness because of what it is, then it must be changed in order to be under the rule of another. The kingdom of Christ is the reign of Christ in the heart and Christ will not live and dwell in a heart that is not changed. Thus we can see the absolute and utter necessity of regeneration.
2 Corinthians 4:4 in whose case the god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelieving so that they might not see the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God.
The god of this world is speaking of the one who reigns in the hearts and lives of those who in the world or are part of the worldly system. That god (the devil, Satan) works to blind the minds of the unbelieving from the light of the Gospel. Those who are in the domain of darkness (from Col 1:13) remain in darkness because of the work of the evil one and so they are blinded to the light of the Gospel. But note that this light of the Gospel is the light of the glory of Christ. Satan works feverishly to blind the eyes of sinners to the glory, though not necessarily to the facts of the Gospel.
Colossians 1:13 shows us so clearly that sinners have to have one greater than themselves rescue them and take them from the bonds and domain of darkness. The text tells us that it was God who rescued believers from the domain of darkness. It was not that sinners could do this themselves or that a priest or a group of priests could do this, but instead it was God who rescues His people. He rescues them from the domain of darkness, which shows that the unregenerate are slaves, though willing slaves to darkness. Darkness dominates them and domineers over them and controls all that they do, but God rescues them.
Not only does God rescue them from darkness, it is God that transfers them to the kingdom of His beloved Son. Here we see the beauty of God on display as He not only rescues people from the domain and bondage of darkness, but He transfers them to the kingdom of His beloved Son. The dominion of darkness is an evil and cruel bondage, but those who are wrenched from the power of darkness are then taken into and granted a new King, the King of kings who reigns in kindness and love, the Lord Jesus Christ.
The necessity of regeneration is so clear from this passage and the context of all Scripture. Each and every human being descended from Adam is either a child of the devil or a child of God. All who are not regenerated are children of the devil and so under the domain and dominion of darkness. All those who are regenerated have Christ in their hearts and so they have been transferred to the kingdom of God. As Jesus said in John 3, unless one is born from above, he cannot see or enter the kingdom. So those who have been transferred to the kingdom are those who are born from above and as such they are children of the living God. It must be declared and asserted with the greatest strength that a person absolutely MUST be born from above to enter the kingdom. Regeneration is an utter and absolute necessity.
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