Really enjoyed this fresh look at what happens when we are born again. These are some of my favorite quotes:
"many professing Christians are indeed ... not radically changed, to the conclusion that they are not born again"
Nearly all the wisdom we possess, that is to say, true & sound wisdom consists of two parts: the knowledge of God & of ourselves-John Calvin
Why Christmas? the Son of God became human-to take away sin, that is to destroy the works of the devil, namely sin.
“The new birth is the act of the Holy Spirit connecting our dead, selfish hearts with God’s living, loving heart so that his life becomes our life and his love becomes our love.”
“This is the way I live my life every day. My feelings are not God. God is God. My feelings do not define truth. God’s word defines truth. My feelings are echoes and responses to what my mind perceives. And sometimes—many times—my feelings are out of sync with the truth. When that happens—and it happens every day in some measure—I try not to bend the truth to justify my imperfect feelings, but rather, I plead with God: Purify my perceptions of his truth and transform my feelings so that they are in sync with the truth.”
“Haughty, condescending proclamation of Christ, with no feeling of brokenness or servanthood, contradicts the gospel.“
what should we be doing to help unbelievers be born again? The biblical answer is not obscure, and it’s not complicated. The answer is: Tell people the good news of Christ from a heart of love and a life of service.
“Be encouraged that simply finding people interesting and caring about them is a beautiful pathway into their heart.” ( )

It's a phrase that has been widely misunderstood for two thousand years, since the first time it was spoken:

"You must be born again."

The new birth, or what theologians call regeneration, is one of the most stunning and crucial realities of the universe, one which every child of God should thoroughlly understand and rejoice in.

But that's not how it is. Most church goers have vague, incomplete answers to such basic questions as:

What is the new birth?
Why must we be born again?
How does the new birth come about?
What are the effects of the new birth?
How can we help others become born again?

Those are the five questions answered by Finally Alive, a book by pastor John Piper that takes a comprehensive look at what it means to be born again. He lays out his goals for the reader:

"When you are truly born again and grow in the grace and knowledge of what the Lord has done for you, your fellowship with God will be sweet, and your assurance that he is your Father will be deep. I want that for you.

If you know what really happened to you in your new birth, you will treasure God and his Spirit and his Son and his word more highly than you ever have. In this, Christ will be glorified.

In the process of believers discovering what really happened to them, the seriousness and the supernatural nature of conversion will rise and that, I pray, will serve a more general awakening of authenticity in the Christian church so that religious hypocrisy will diminish and the world will see real love and sacrifice and courage in the service of Christ."

If you want Bible-saturated, passion-filled answers to what really happened when you became born again, this is your book. It will both inform your mind and ignite your heart in greater love for Jesus and greater desire to see others come to Christ. ( )

http://www.wordandspirit.co.uk/blog/2009/05/25/book-review-finally-alive-john-pi... ( )

Waco,TX