Have I Really Been Born Again?
1) Direct Answer
You can know. The new birth is when the Holy Spirit—Christ’s own Life—comes in and takes the throne of your heart. It is more than believing a creed or joining a church. It is the Life of the Word quickening you and sealing you as God’s own.
2) Scriptural Explanation
- Jesus said, “You must be born again… of water and of the Spirit” (John 3:3-7). That is repentance, baptism, and the Holy Spirit coming in.
- “Repent, and be baptized… in the Name of Jesus Christ… and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost” (Acts 2:38).
- “By one Spirit are we all baptized into one Body” (1 Corinthians 12:13). That’s the birth into Christ.
- “If any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of His” (Romans 8:9); “The Spirit itself bears witness with our spirit” (Romans 8:16).
- “Being born again… by the word of God” (1 Peter 1:23). The Word-seed is quickened by the Spirit.
- The evidence shows: “We know that we have passed from death unto life, because we love the brethren” (1 John 3:14); “Whosoever is born of God does not practice sin” (1 John 3:9); “This is the love of God, that we keep his commandments” (1 John 5:3); “Whatsoever is born of God overcomes the world” (1 John 5:4).
- “Grieve not the Holy Spirit of God, whereby you are sealed unto the day of redemption” (Ephesians 4:30).
3) Simple Clarifying Logic
- New birth is not emotion, not a day you joined, not a gift you exercised. It is Christ ruling inside, changing your desires, correcting you by the Word, and producing His fruit (Galatians 5:22-23).
- If the same Life that raised Jesus dwells in you, it won’t leave you loving the old life (Romans 8:11). You won’t be perfect in the flesh, but you can’t live in willful sin and be comfortable. The Spirit convicts, you make it right, and you walk on.
- Check the marks:
- Do you have a hunger for the Word and to obey it? (1 Peter 2:2; John 14:23)
- Does known sin grieve you, and do you make it right quickly? (1 John 1:7-9)
- Do you love the brethren in deed and truth? (1 John 3:18-19)
- Are you overcoming the world’s pull—its fashions, lusts, and pride? (1 John 2:15-17; 5:4)
- Is there an inward witness of the Spirit crying, “Abba, Father”? (Romans 8:15-16)
- Does your life show the fruit of the Spirit more than the works of the flesh? (Galatians 5:19-23)
If these are present and growing, that’s the Life in you.
4) Short Reinforcing Statement
If you’re unsure, don’t rest until it’s settled. Repent fully, set things right, be baptized in the Name of the Lord Jesus Christ (Acts 2:38; 19:5), ask the Father for the Holy Spirit (Luke 11:13), believe His promise, and stay with the Word until He seals you. The Holy Spirit is the Token—when He comes in, He identifies you as His, and your life will match the Word. Now notice, when He takes the throne, the question changes from “Am I born again?” to “Lord, how can I please You today?”
Ask a Follow-up Question
What did the Laodicean Church Age (our age) Angel (- messenger) Say about this?
Ranked passages from the local William Branham sermon and Church Age Book database. Relevance is relative, not a statement of doctrinal certainty.
You must be born again
61-1231M §114
...in and just makes it so beautiful, "Oh, they spoke in tongues. They're the best people you ever seen." Don't you believe that. Be leery. (I hope the Word's not boring you.) Born Christians grow into the stature of Christ as they live. They're born again, their lives begin to shape, like a baby. It takes form and begins to grow. First thing you know, here they are in the full stature. Amen. There you are. Day after day, year after year, they stay the same. Now come back to the Word, "If ye abide in me..."
You must be born again
61-1231M §65
Now, what kind of a nature have you got then, Brother Branham? His nature. If I had my father's nature, then I'd do the things my father did. But now that I'm born again, it depends on who my father was. If you're just born in a church, you got a church father, and you can call him "father" if you want to. You call him anything you want to, because he's your father. But if your Father is God, and you're born in the family of God, you seek those things that pertain to God. That's right. Then you are God's child. You...
The true vine and the false vine
55-0607 §53
...hile people are here seeking and praying to God, I just wonder if there would be a person anywhere that would raise up their hand and say, "Brother Branham, just before you have the prayer line, will you remember me in prayer, that I'll receive the Holy Ghost? I want to get off of this old dry creed I've been on so long. I really want to be borned again. I want, when the wind goes to blowing, I want to be flexible to the Spirit of God, that wherever it moves me, I can go through the streets with joy, happiness in m...
Ye must be born again
58-0619B §54
...I pray God, that somehow it'll go into the depths of my brothers' and sisters' hearts, that they'll realize, it don't make any difference whether they think that we should have this television program, or this, that or the other. Let us keep our eyes on the Master. Remember to be born again is to have that extreme love and know that we've passed from death unto life. We have the abundance of life, and the abundant life is that overflowing something that God puts into the human being.
And their eyes were opened and they knew Him
57-0421E §40
Let me tell you, just don't join church now. That won't work. You've got to be born again. Not an emotional work-up; not some little something you said, "But I shouted. I spoke with tongues. I done this." That ain't it." When really down in your heart, something comes that's changed you, and you become a new creature in Christ Jesus; you received the Person, Christ Jesus; when old things die out, and new things are born again; you make things right, that you did wrong; you love your enemies; you pray for those who...