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 §107
..., Billy, you never quoted one bit of God's Word. You talked about some mother that had done gone on, or something like this, and got everybody to crying." Said, "You're not born again upon things and sensations of this earth; you're born by the Word." Said, "Billy..." Oh, he cut the wind right out of me. I'm glad he did. See? See? Not jumping up and down, hollering, that isn't it. It's the Word that makes alive. The Word's quickened. Not experiences; the Word!
Investments
63-0803B §100
...Won't you, my brother, sister, make this investment this morning, surrender your lives to Christ as we bow our heads? Solemnly, let not these words be in vain. You must be born again. You must. Now, I'm not talking about you might scream, shout, speak with tongues. I mean being born again, really with that deep confession of sin, that you've never been able... Yet, you've always held to your organization, though you know they were contrary to the Word. But yet, for selfish ideas, and for pride, and for popularity...
You must be born again
61-1231M §135
Now remember, I believe that Jesus Christ says this to every human being, on His first doctrine: "Except a man be born of the water [that's the Word, washing of the water by the Word] and of the Spirit [which is the Holy Spirit, the Holy Spirit confirming the Word], he cannot see the kingdom of heaven." Do you believe that? "By the water," washing of the water by the Word, Word and truth, He is the truth. "Water and Spirit," the Spirit coming with the Word to confirm the Word, making God live in me, see. We cannot...
Hear ye Him
57-0807 §44
Let us bow our heads just a moment. Blessed Lord, as my heart fills to think of times gone by... If it would only just being loyal to a denomination, I'd have been gone long ago. I'm so glad that one day I felt Your loving arms go around my poor, sinful shoulders when I was chuckling and crying and telling You how mean I was. There, sitting on a pair of wheel spurs, You give to me Your love. Something went down in my poor Irish heart that's never left me since that day. O God, through many dangers, toils, and snare...
You must be born again
61-1231M §78
Still with tempers, still mean, arrogant, somebody say something about you, you light up, ready to fight. And then born of the Spirit of God? No. God's Spirit don't do like that. No. God's Spirit is humble, meek, sweet, long-suffering. That's God---loving, kind, forgiving, that's God's Spirit. Oh, yes. But they'll hold to that denomination, and speak in tongues, prophesy, do all kinds of works. Jesus said they'd do it. "Having a form of godliness." Hold to the denomination because that's their father. They was born...