https://odb.org/MY/2022/11/25/enduring-hope
In the natural, we know that every living, breathing, and moving creature needs to be born or given birth to before it comes out into the earth and live. It is mostly a situation of an egg and a sperm becoming one and being fertilised, just a question of whether the embryo is developed inside or outside the body. That’s our first birth.
We also know that every living creature has a life span – with mosquitos probably living for a few weeks, but humans living around 80 years on average, and some animals like tortoises living even past 120 years. Whatever is the average life span of our species, we will eventually die. That’s our first death.
But if we accept Jesus Christ into our lives as our Lord and Saviour and repent of our sins, we will experience what Jesus called a born-again experience (John 3: 3-7). Of course, we are not going back into our mother’s womb and being reborn as someone had asked Jesus before in the past. It’s the spiritual birthing of the spirit that is the fundamental core of our body. Once we are born again, we are able to relate to God in the spiritual realm and will become more aware of the happenings in that realm that despite us living in the physical world, there is another dimension that is hidden from us and yet is a hive of activities. Paul mentioned before in Ephesians 6:12 that our fight is not against flesh and blood but principalities and powers of darkness in the high places. That is thus the second birth only experienced by believers.
As much as Revelations 21 speaks about the new heaven and the new earth and new holy city of Jerusalem with God dwelling among His people for which those who are victorious will inherit and God will be their God and they His people. Revelation 21 also foretells in verse 8 the ultimate end for those who are cowardly, unbelieving, vile, murderers, sexually immoral, those who practice magic arts, the idolaters and all liars – they will be consigned to the fiery lake of burning sulphur. That is the second death, and it is an eternity spent without God.
The question worth pondering today is whether we will truly be experiencing the second birth only, or will we also be sucked into the second death. The logic and theory is that it is one or the other, and yet we know that after experiencing the joy, peace, and grace of the second birth, some people do descend back into darkness and will thus be risking the second death. As believers, let’s make sure we remain at two births and one death only!
Ronnie's Thoughts 