The New Birth, Part 1

“In Christ Jesus neither circumcision availeth anything, nor uncircumcision, but a new creature,” Gal. 6: 15.

“For other foundation can no man lay than that is laid, which is Jesus Christ,” 1 Cor. 3: 11.

Hear my words, all people, and understand them, all you who imagine that you are Christians, and presumptuously boast of the grace, merits, flesh, blood, cross, kingdom and death of the Lord, notwithstanding we find among you neither Christian faith, brotherly love, repentance, the right use of the sacraments of Christ, the pure doctrine, nor the unblamable, godly life, which is out of God, to which the Scriptures admonish us; neither the true, divine service, evangelical disposition, nor obedience; but throughout, nothing else than abominable, dark unbelief, a lewd, carnal life, false doctrine, false, self-devised sacraments, a devilish heart and mind, an accursed, heathenish idolatry under the name of Christ, blind, blood-thirsty tyranny, envious and furious revengefulness against all the children of God; yea, open obstinacy, disobedience and rejection of the words of Christ and of his Holy Ghost, as may be very plainly perceived and seen throughout the world.

In order that you may comfort yourselves no longer with lying and vain hopes, contrary to all Scriptures, to your eternal damnation, and not glory in vain, in the aforementioned riches and glory of the children of God, namely of the kingdom, grace, merits, flesh, blood, cross, death and promises of Christ, &c., which do not yet pertain to you, because you are yet altogether earthly, carnally and devilishly minded, reject Christ, and do not keep to his Spirit, word and example, without which no one can be a christian; therefore I have undertaken through the merciful grace of the Lord, as much as is in my power, to inform you, briefly, by the infallible, powerful, saving word of the holy gospel of Christ, and out of the pure doctrine of his holy apostles, in this my epistle, who they are, or who they are not, that are endowed through the grace of God, and to whom pertain the aforementioned gifts, merits and promises of Christ.

Tell me, most beloved, where or when did you read in the Scriptures, which is the true witness of the Holy Ghost and the plummet of our consciences, that the unbelieving, disobedient, carnal adulterer, whoremonger, drunkard, avaricious, idolatrous or pompous had a single promise of the kingdom of Christ and his church; yea, part or communion in his merits, death and blood? I tell you the truth, nowhere do we read it in the Scriptures, nor ever will we; but thus it is written by Paul, “For if ye live after the flesh ye shall die.” Adulterers, whoremongers, buggerers, effeminate, unclean, idolators, drunkards, proud, avaricious, betrayers of the innocent, and bloodshedders, thieves, murderers, backbiters, perjurers, sorcerers, liars, unmerciful, the disobedient to God and Christ (if they repent not) will not inherit the kingdom of God, yea, their portion will be in the fiery lake which burns with fire and brimstone; which is the second death, Rom. 8: 13; 1 Cor. 6: 10; Eph. 5: 5.

Behold, worthy reader, this is God’s irrevocable sentence and judgment upon all who live after the flesh, whoever they be, emperor or king, duke or earl, knight or squire, noble or ignoble, priest or monk, learned or unlearned, rich or poor, male or female, bond or free. All, who live after the flesh, must forever remain under the just sentence and eternal wrath of God, otherwise the whole Scriptures are untrue.

Therefore, are the poor, ignorant people comforted in vain with masses, matins, vespers, confessions, pilgrimages and holy water, and what is more, with Christ’s grace, death and blood. The word stands firm, “For if ye live after the flesh ye shall die; for to be carnally minded is death.” Therefore, I advise and entreat you all in general, to hear Christ Jesus, who is sent to us as a witness of the truth from heaven; for thus says he, “Verily I say unto you, Except ye be converted and become as little children, ye shall not enter into the kingdom of heaven.” At another place, “Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.” Again, “Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God.”

Faithful reader, take heed; these words are not invented or instituted of man, nor are they the resolution of any council; but they are the infallible, precious words, which the Son of God, Christ Jesus, brought to us from the mouth of his Father, and declared unto pious Nicodemus, the scribe, with a double affirmation. That word is powerful and clear, and has not only reference to Nicodemus, but to all the children of Adam, who have come to the years of maturity. But alas, it is so obscured by the offensive, leavenous mire of human commands, statutes and glossaries, that scarcely one or two is found in a thousand, who have the true sense and understanding of the heavenly birth, much less have they the active nature, power, properties and fruits of it. Yea, they have brought it so far, through their philosophy, wisdom and self-chosen holiness, that the eternal Wisdom of God, Christ Jesus, eternally blessed, is banished as a poor, senseless fool, out of the house of his honor, which is his church, with his Holy Ghost, word, baptism, Supper, divine worship, separation and unblamable example; and the man of sin, the son of perdition, is placed in his stead, with his abominable doctrine, idolatrous infant baptism and supper, with his unclean purifications and promises, with his churches, convents, priests, monks, masses, matins, vespers, holy water, images, pilgrimages, purgatory, vigils, confessions, absolutions, &c.; all of which in short, are nothing but the doctrines and commands of men, raised up contrary to the Scriptures, an accursed idolatry and abomination, an open denial of the Lord’s death and offering, a despising of the New Testament, or of the covenant which was sealed by the innocent blood of the Lamb, a destroying and desolation of the saving ordinances of Christ, of doctrine, baptism, Supper, life and separation, abundantly testified in the Scriptures, which ordinance he taught in this world with incontrovertible clearness and power according to the command of his Father, and left it to his children in his word, and none other can be established eternally that will stand before him.

In short, writers and the learned have corrupted every thing so much through their councils, decrees and statutes, with all the tyranny and violence of the great, that there is scarcely an article entire, of all that Christ and his holy apostles taught. All the aforementioned abominations, together with the ungodly, carnal life of the whole world, I call on as witnesses, nevertheless they would be called the holy christian church; and he that admonishes them in sincere, pure love, with the Spirit and word of the Lord, must be an accursed anabaptist and heretic. I tell you again, They want to be the christian church, and it is evident from all their actions, that they are not christians; but carnal, proud, avaricious, lascivious, lewd, drunken, idolatrous, blind heathens; and what is worse, some of them are unmerciful, murderous, ferocious, revengeful and blood-thirsty fiends; many of their works are done according to the will of the devil. We may with propriety complain of this matter; for the righteous judgment is come upon them, that they are unconvertible and that little of a salutary kind remains with them.

O! how miserably is the fair vineyard desolated, and how lamentably are its branches withered, its walls are broken down, the destroying foxes have destroyed the grapes, the clouds are dry and give no rain; there is neither pruner nor knife at hand; and if there is one he must be devoured by the dragon, or slain by the apocalyptical woman, drunk with blood. O merciful, gracious Father, how long will this great misery endure? Our rulers are like voracious lions and bears. Our fathers are our betrayers. Our leaders, our deceivers. And those who feign to be our pastors, are thieves and murderers of our souls. Well may we sigh and lament from the inmost of our hearts; for our house is left unto us desolate. For that which was heretofore the church and kingdom of Christ, is now, alas! the church and kingdom of anti-christ, and for no other reason than because they ungratefully rejected the word of grace, and will not have the ruling Lord Jesus Christ, to rule over them with the righteous sceptre of his holy word and Spirit; nevertheless, this poor, blind people hope to obtain the grace and promises of God through their infant baptism, masses, confession and the like superstitious ceremonies and idolatries, which they call the true, divine service, and use it as a remedy for their sins. Ah! no, most beloved, no; for, says Solomon, “The hope of the ungodly is like dust, that is blown away with the wind.” I have said it once, and repeat it, and that from the mouth of the Lord, who can neither lie nor deceive, “Except ye be converted, and become as little children, ye shall not enter into the kingdom of heaven.” And “Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God,” Matt. 18: 3; John 3: 3.

My beloved reader, take heed to the word of the Lord, and once learn to know the true God. I warn you faithfully to take heed; he will not save you, nor pardon your sins, nor show you his mercy and grace, except according to his word, namely, If you repent, if you believe, if you are born of him, if you do what he has commanded, and walk even as he walked. For if he could save unjustified, carnal man, without regeneration, faith and repentance, he did not teach us the truth; but he is the truth, and there is no lie in him. Therefore, I tell you again, that you cannot be reconciled with all your masses, matins, vespers, ceremonies, sacraments, councils, statutes and commands under the whole heavens, together with all the popes and their adherents from the beginning; for I warn you, they are abominations and not reconciliations. Christ says, “In vain do they honor me,” because they teach commandments of men. But if you, by any means, wish to be saved, your earthly, carnal, ungodly life, must be reformed; for the Scriptures teach nothing but true repentance and reformation, and present to us admonitions, threatenings, reprovings, miracles, examples, ceremonies and sacraments; and if you do not repent, there is nothing in heaven or on earth that can save you; for without true repentance, we are comforted in vain. The prophet says, “O my people, they which lead thee cause thee to err, and destroy the way of thy paths,” Isa. 3: 12. We must be born from above, must be changed and renewed in our hearts, transplanted from the unrighteous and evil nature of Adam, into the true and good nature of Christ, or we can never be saved by any means, whether human or divine. Wherever true repentance and the new creature are not (I speak of adults), man must be eternally lost; this is incontrovertibly clear. Upon this every one may confidently rely, who does not wish to deceive his soul.

That regeneration of which we write, from which comes the penitent, pious life having the promise, comes alone from the word of the Lord, if it be rightly taught, and if rightly understood and received in the heart by faith through the Holy Ghost. The first birth of man, is out of the first, earthly Adam, and therefore its nature is earthly and Adamic, that is, carnal-minded, unbelieving, disobedient and blind in divine things, deaf and foolish, whose end, if not renewed by the word, will be damnation and eternal death. Would you, therefore, have your inbred, evil nature reformed, and be free from eternal death and damnation, so that you may obtain, with all true christians, what is promised them, you must be born again. For the regenerated are in grace, and have the promise, as you have heard. They, therefore, lead a penitent and new life, for they are renewed in Christ, and have received a new heart and spirit. Before, they were earthly, carnally minded, but now, heavenly, spiritually; before, unrighteous, now righteous; before, evil, now good. And live no longer after the old, depraved nature of the first, earthly Adam, but after the new, sincere nature of the new and heavenly Adam, Christ Jesus; as Paul says, “Nevertheless, I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me.” Their poor, weak life they renew daily, more and more, and that after the image of him who created them; their minds are after the mind of Christ, they gladly walk as he walked; crucify and mortify their flesh with its evil lusts; bury their sin with baptism in the Lord’s death, and rise with him to a new life; circumcise their hearts with the word of the Lord, and are baptized with the Holy Ghost in the spotless, holy body of Christ, as obedient members and fellow-heirs of his church, according to the true ordinance and word of the Lord. They put on Christ and manifest his Spirit, nature and power in all their fruits; fear God with all the heart, and seek, in all their thoughts, words and works, nothing but the praise of God and the salvation of their beloved brethren. They know not hatred and vengeance, for they love those who hate them; do good to those who despitefully use them, and pray for those who persecute them; hate and resist avarice, pride, unchastity, pomp, drunkenness, fornication, adultery, hatred, envy, backbiting, lying, defrauding, quarreling, blood-shedding and idolatry, all impure, carnal works, and forsake the world with all its lusts; meditate upon the law of the Lord by day and by night; rejoice at the good, and are grieved at the evil; evil they do not repay with evil, but with good; they seek not self, nor their own good, but what is good for their neighbors, both as to body and soul; feed the hungry, and give drink to the thirsty; entertain the needy, release prisoners, visit the sick, comfort the faint-hearted, admonish the erring, and are ready after their master’s example, to give their lives for their brethren. Again, their thoughts are pure and chaste, their words are true and seasoned with salt; with them yea is yea, and nay is nay, and their works are done in the fear of the Lord; their hearts are heavenly and new; their minds, peaceful and joyful; they seek righteousness with all their powers. In short, they are so assured in their faith through the Spirit and word of God, that they will valiantly overcome, by virtue of their faith, all blood-thirsty, cruel tyrants, with all their tortures, punishment, exiling, plunder, stocks, stakes, executioners, tormentors and counsel; and out of a pure zeal, with an innocent, pure, simple yea and nay are willing to die. The glory of Christ, the sweetness of the word, and the salvation of souls are dearer to them than any thing under heaven.

Behold, worthy reader, all those who are born of God with Christ, who thus conform their weak life to the gospel, are thus converted, and follow the example of Christ, hear and believe his holy word, follow his commands, which he, in plain words commanded us in the holy Scriptures, form the holy, christian church which has the promise; the true children of God, brothers and sisters of Christ; for they are born with him of one Father, and of the new Eve, the pure, chaste bride. They are flesh of Christ’s flesh, and bone of his bone, the spiritual house of Israel, the spiritual city, Jerusalem, temple and Mount Zion, the spiritual ark of the Lord, in which are hidden the true bread of heaven, Christ Jesus and his blessed word, the green, blossoming rod of faith, and the spiritual tables of stone, with the commands of the Lord written thereon; they are the spiritual seed of Abraham, children of the promise, confederates of the covenant of God, and partakers of the heavenly blessings.

These regenerated have a spiritual king over them, who rules them by the unbroken sceptre of his mouth, namely, with his Holy Spirit and Word, he clothes them with the garment of righteousness, of pure white silk; he refreshes them with the living water of his Holy Spirit, and feeds them with the bread of life. His name is Christ Jesus. They are the children of peace, who have beaten their swords into plough-shares, and their spears into pruning hooks, and know of no war; and give to Cæsar the things that are Cæsar’s, and to God the things that are God’s, Isa. 2: 4; Matt. 22: 21. Their sword is the sword of the Spirit, which they hold in a good conscience through the Holy Ghost. Their marriage is that of one man and one women, according to the ordinance of God. Their kingdom is the kingdom of grace, here in hope, and after this in eternal life, Eph. 6: 17; Matt. 19: 5; 25: 1.

Their citizenship is in heaven; and they use the creatures below, such as eating, drinking, clothing and dwelling with thanksgiving, and that to the necessary wants of their own lives, and to the free service of their neighbor, according to the word of the Lord, Isa. 58: 7. Their doctrine is the unadulterated word of God, testified through Moses and the prophets, through Christ and the apostles, upon which they build their faith, and save their souls; and every thing that is contrary thereto, they consider accursed. They use and administer their baptism on the confession of their faith, according to the command of the Lord, and the doctrines and usages of the apostles, Mark 16 : 16.

The Lord’s Supper they celebrate in remembrance of the favors and death of their Lord, and in reminding one another of true and brotherly love.

The ban extends to all the proud scorners, great and small, rich and poor, without any respect to person, who heard and obeyed the word for a season, but have fallen off again, and in the house of the Lord, teach or live offensively, till they again sincerely repent.

They sigh and lament daily over their poor, displeasing, evil flesh, over the manifold errors and faults of their weak lives. They war inwardly and outwardly without ceasing. They seek and call the Most High; fight and struggle against the devil, world and flesh during their lives, press on towards the prize of the high calling that they may obtain it. And they prove by their actions that they believe the word of the Lord; that they know and have Christ in power; that they are born of God and have him as their Father.

Behold, worthy reader, as I said before, so I say again. These are the christians who have the promise, and are assured by the Spirit of God, to whom are given and bestowed Christ Jesus, with all his merits, righteousness, intercessions, word, cross, suffering, flesh, blood, death, resurrection, kingdom, and all his possessions, and this all without merit; given out of pure grace from God. But what kind of doctrine, faith, life, regeneration, baptism, supper, ban and divine service, sectarian churches have, of whatever name; and what kind of reward is promised them in the Scriptures, I will let the reasonable, meditate upon, with the aid of the Spirit and word of the Lord.

Here I would call on all the high and mighty lords, princes and rulers, all under the canopy of heaven, also on all the popes, cardinals, bishops, the wise and learned, who from the beginning perverted and darkened the Scriptures, to show us one single word in the whole Bible, I say in the Bible (for we do not regard human fables and lies), that an unbelieving, refractory, carnal man, without true repentance and regeneration, ever was or ever will be saved, simply because he boasts of faith and the death of Christ, or heard the masses and service of the priests, as the whole world does; if so, they shall have gained the point. But this never has been from the beginning, and never will be to the end of time; if such vile men could be saved without repentance and regeneration, by hearing masses, and confessing, as they, poor children, without the warrant of the Scripture, hope, then we might of a truth say, that the aforementioned means were stronger (though they are idolatrous), than the word of the Lord; for the word knows no mass, but says, “Except ye repent, ye shall all likewise perish,” Luke 13: 3. Then would also Moses and the prophets, Christ and his apostles, have been false witnesses, and have miserably deceived us poor sheep, because they directed us upon such a narrow path.