He came unto His own, and His own received Him not. But as many as received Him, to them gave He power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on His name; which were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God. John 1 11, 12, 13

If language means anything at all, the above Scripture teaches that it is the sovereign work of God for one to be born of God, or to be born from above. It is not of the will of the flesh that one is born of God. This being true, the will of the sinner has nothing to do with his being born of God. His will is not consulted in the matter. He has no will in that matter whatever. Neither is it of the will of man. The will of any man, or set of men, has nothing in the wide world to do with a sinner being born of God. It is not of blood that one is born of God. Hence, the works of men have nothing in the world to do with one being born of God. As it is not of blood, it is not by the doings of men. The things that men may do, or have done, or can do, have nothing to do with being born of God. It is of God - not man or men. It is God's own work, God's own doing, by which a sinner is born of God. All works of men are excluded, and have nothing to do with the bringing about the spiritual birth, Not only is it God's own work, His own doing, but it is of His own sovereign will. He regenerates, or borns again, or from above, those whom He sovereignly wills to regenerate. "For as the Father raiseth up the dead, and quickeneth them, even so the Son quickeneth whom He will." (John 5, 21) It is of the will of God, not of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, that sinners are born of God, or quickened into divine life, or raised up out of a state of death in sin to a state of life in Christ. This is clearly and unmistakably taught in the text.

But "He came to His own, and His own received Him not. But as many as received Him." Many of His own received Him not, but some of them received Him. To those who received Him He gave power, authority, right, privilege to become the sons of God. Those to whom this power, right, privilege, was given were those that believe on His name. They were not given power, or right, or privilege, to become the sons of God in the sense of regeneration, or of being born of God; for they were already born of God"which were born, not of blood, but of God." They were born of God - in the past tense. "Even to them that believe on His name"in the present tense. It is not possible that the present could be in order to the past. Believe is in the present, and were born is in the past, in the text, were born must, therefore, necessarily, precede and come before the believing. The "Were born" is something which was done, fully accomplished, at some time in the past, or in the long ago; and the believing is in the present, as something which is the effect of that which was done in the past. Were born was the cause, and the believing is something which follows as the effect. One must be born of God, then, in order to believe. It cannot be true, then, that one must believe in order to be born of God. But God gives to those who have been born of God, and who believe on His name, the power, the authority, the right, the privilege, to become the sons of God. If He does not give them this power, right, or privilege, to become the sons of God by birth, or in the sense of regeneration - which He does not, for the simple reason that they were already born of God before they believe - then it must be true that He gives them this power, right, or privilege, to become the sons of God in some sense other than by regeneration or birth. In what sense, then, or in what way, do they have the power to become the sons of God? He gives them the power to become the sons of God in what sense, or in what way? It cannot possible be in any other way than in the sense of obedience to His laws and commandments - thus in a manifest way, manifesting by their obedience that they are the sons of God. He gives them this authority, this power, this right, this privilege. It is not only a duty that one obey the Lord who has been born of God; it is a gracious heaven-given right or privilege. God gives them that right, that privilege, that authority, that power. The Lord's dear children should esteem this as a great privilegeto render service, and praise, and adoration, to the God of all grace, for His unspeakable mercy and grace bestowed upon them.

In nature, one is first born of his parents; and the will of the one born is not consulted in the matter; his will has nothing to do with that work. He has no will before being born. He must first be born in order that he have a will concerning or pertaining to the natural realm. Even so, it is also true in grace, that the will of the one born of God is not consulted in that work; his will has nothing to do with his being born of God, or born into the spiritual realm. He has no will concerning or pertaining to spiritual things until he has been born of God, or born in the spiritual realm. A will pertaining to natural things springs from, and is a product of, the natural life. Even so, a will for spiritual things springs from, and is a product of, the spiritual life.

Hence, in nature, one becomes a child of his parents first by birth; then he begins to hear about his parents, as his parents; then he begins to believe on them as his parents, This all being self-evidently true, it follows that one is first a child of his parents by birth; then a child by hearing; then a child by belief, or by faith; then a child by obedience. This is just as true in grace as in nature. One is first a child of God by birth; then he begins to hear about the Lord as his heavenly Father; then he begins to believe on the Lord as his heavenly Father; then, if a dutiful child, he begins to obey the Lord as his heavenly Father. This being true, one is a child of God by birth before he is or can be a child of God by faith. "For ye are all the children of God by faith in Christ Jesus." - Gal 3, 26. They were children of God by birth before they were children of God by faith, or by belief.

"For as many of you as have been baptized into Christ have put on Christ." - Galatians 3, 27. In putting on Christ in baptism, they put Him on, as one putting on a coat. A man has no right to put a coat on and wear it if the coat does not belong to him. But it is the right and privilege of one to put on and wear a coat which belongs to him. Even so, if Christ is yours, and you are His by regeneration, or by you having been born of God, then you have the authority, the power, the right, and the privilege to put on Christ in baptism. You have been born of God, and as a result of having been thus born, and hearing the testimony of the witness, and thus being a believer on Him, you have the right, and the privilege, of putting on Christ in baptism. It is not only your duty; it is your heaven-given, your god-given, right and privilege. Thus you become a child of God by obedience, which God has given you the authority, the power, the right, the privilege, to do.

This is the teaching of God's holy and blessed word. The Arminian world may reverse the order in their teaching, and the Absoluter may deny the teaching; but it remains the same blessed and eternal truth, and will stand amidst the wreck of nature and the crash of worlds. The eternal God is the author of it; and He is the author of all truth. Principles are eternal, and never change. The Lord's children and His servants should be bold and faithful and true to contend for these precious heavenly truths. May the Lord help us thus to do. C. H.C.