Jesus said: “Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God…unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God…you must be born again…” John 3:3-7
“…If anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new.” 2 Corinthians 5:17
November 25, 1967 @ 10:30 PM I was born again and became a new creature in Christ, no doubt about it!
I was raised a Catholic. Our family was a faithful, religious, Catholic family. I became a Catholic by being baptized as a baby. When I was six years old, I made my first confession and communion. I was taught that the Catholic Church was the true church, the mother church, and whatever she taught me was the truth. And so at that early age, the priest began to instruct me on the teachings of the Catholic Church.
The very first thing was that I was to receive Jesus on Sunday morning; every Sunday morning if possible. I would receive Jesus physically by the priest putting a wafer (which he had turned into the body of Jesus during the Mass) into my mouth. In order to be worthy of receiving Jesus on Sunday morning, I must confess my sins to the priest. I was taught to go through the ten commandments, and the teachings of the church, to see what sins I had committed—at six years of age.
What I was not taught, and never heard was that you must be born again. I never heard the word “saved.” I never heard the word “Christian.” I never heard John 3:16. I never heard God and Jesus loved me. I never heard that Jesus died on the cross because He loved me; that all my sins were washed away by His precious blood. I was not once told that He freely gives eternal life to all who believe in Him.
My Catholic life took a turn when I married a girl who was raised in a Pentecostal church. The first ten years of our marriage was very rocky. However during those years, I went to Mass, and then Sunday School with my wife and children. Fast forward through those years.
Shortly after turning 29, a horrible fear came over me of dying and going to Hell; that fear was 24/7. The priest was talking in Latin; her pastor talked about the church and family, but I wasn’t hearing anything to help me with my fear. I didn’t know what to do. This lasted until shortly after I turned 30. Trying desperately to find an answer, one evening, after work, I stopped at a small Christian bookstore, and was browsing through a shelf of paperback books.
As I scanned the titles, I saw one, “The Secret of Happiness” by Billy Graham. I purchased it. That night, while my wife and kids watched TV, I went in our bedroom, laid down in bed and began to read the book—the words started to speak to me. I didn’t want to stop, but I had to work the next day, so I stopped, and went to sleep.
The next day, at work, all I could think about was what I had read in that book. That evening, after dinner and talking to my wife and kids, I hurried into our bedroom to read some more in the book. Shortly after I picked up the book I read this, “If you have never accepted Jesus as your Savior, there’s no point in reading the rest of this book.” Instantly, my 30 years flashed before me: I had been religious all my life but had never done that one thing.
I immediately got out of bed, knelt down and told God I was sorry for my sins and wanted to ask Jesus into my heart. Just that short. Well, the room was very quiet. I said, “God, I don’t hear anything, I don’t feel anything,” but I wanted to make sure God understood what I was trying to do, so I said again, only louder, “God, I’m sorry for my sins, and I want Jesus to come into my heart.” As I finished saying this, I got up and said, “God, this is as far as I can go, the rest is up to you”
I got back in bed and started reading my book. About 15 minutes later, all of a sudden, this tremendous, for lack of a better word, feeling came over me. I had a peace fill me, and I knew my sins were forgiven, and all my fear was gone. I began to say things that I had never said before: “Praise God! Thank You, Jesus! Praise the Lord!” And it was like I was alone with Jesus, and He was saying, “I am the Answer.”
Sometime after that, my wife came to bed, and I began to excitedly tell her what had just happened. She said, “Bill, you just got saved.” That was Saturday night. I rejoiced all night long. We got up the next morning as usual, but that morning, as I was dressing, there just came a knowing that I would never return to the Catholic Church.
We got the kids ready and headed for my wife’s church. Now, we had become friends with three couples there but the rest of the folks, about 75, I didn’t like; I thought they looked funny and were weird. But that morning, as I entered the small auditorium where they were gathered, as I entered the room, I’ll never forget that moment as long as I live, I loved everybody!
In the weeks that followed, I was led to start reading the Bible and memorize Scripture. God was faithful to feed His newborn child. As I read the Bible, my eyes were opened to see the dark domain I was raised up in, and how God had rescued me and translated me into the kingdom of His dear Son. I also saw how the Holy Spirit had cut out from under me all the false teaching that had been so ingrained in me; I had been set free; I was a new creation; I was born again.
To this very hour, in spite of the troubles, trials, disappointments, and sorrows that I have encountered in my walk with Jesus; the love, peace and joy that Jesus brought to me that night, remain secure and bright in my heart: Great is His faithfulness!
