Part 4 of 31 from "Christ our Righteousness".
By Carl Oluf Rosenius.
(1816-1868)
Translated from ekris.net
“No one can see the kingdom of God unless he is born again.” John 3:3
We are best aware of the new birth, which is in question here, when a person at a moment is carried from the deepest distress of sin into the bright and joyful certainty of grace for Jesus` sake. But you also, who reached this certainty little by little, know of a time in your life when this great change took place with you.
You remember your old life and unbelief as a long dark night, which gradually has been replaced by a new and glorious day, in which the sun of grace has risen above you with healing power under its wings. You can therefore make the man born blind’s words your own: ´One thing I do know. I was blind but now I see!` John 9:25.
On the other hand, it’s a dangerous thing to console oneself with anything which is at direct variance with the words and examples of the Bible. The person who thinks that s/he is a Christian, without knowing anything of such a fundamental change or turning point in her/his life, does that.
But, that you can’t feel all the effects of grace in your heart, and neither know day and hour for your conversion, is not at variance with God’s word. A gradual revival by the reminder of the law, and a corresponding gradual acquisition of the gospel of Jesus, is as much a saving faith as a sudden change from death to life.
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Translation Gert Gravgaard
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In Danish and in English as pdf-files here.
