There is nothing as precious, or innocent as a newborn baby. They are totally dependent on someone taking care of them. Yet, it is amazing to me how they know their mother from the womb. No, they can’t talk or even reach for her, but when they are needing comfort it is obvious they know who she is. If they are in distress, just her touch seems to calm them down, and the closer they are pulled into her chest the calmer they become. As she wraps her arm around them and gently holds them you can sense they feel secure, loved, and at peace.
The very first feeling of being forgiven brings a sense of innocence. Just like the newborn, you enter a new world. For one brief second, all sin is gone, and a new life begins. You still have a sinful nature, but all of your past sins have been forgiven. You are a new creation. You sense a feeling of being clean, and guilt-free like never before. At that moment there is nothing else in the world that can make you feel more complete.
II Corinthians 5:17 “Therefore if any man is in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things have become new.
As a newborn is totally dependent on someone else, so are we at our new spiritual birth. We need brothers and sisters in Christ to come along beside us and show us how to live this life. We need them to be patient with us when we fail, to help us up, and put their arm around us to give us support. We need them to act as our family because that is what they become to us. In Christ, we are brothers and sisters.
Romans 12:5 “So we, being many, are one body in Christ, and every one members one of another.”
Paul himself sought the communion of saints for strength and edification. Humans are creatures that need to belong, and if we don’t provide new friends, and a new family, for the new Christian, they are very likely to turn back to the ones they enjoyed before conversion. We need to remember what it was like when we were first saved. If a person is not from a Christian home, they may be totally alone in their new faith. We are responsible to them as a mentor and a brother or sister in Christ.
Romans 1:12 “That is, that I may be comforted together with you by the mutual faith both of you and me.”
We are to also be an example to them.
Titus 2:7-8 “In all things showing thyself a pattern of good works: in doctrine showing uncorruptness, gravity, sincerity, Sound speech, that cannot be condemned; that he that is of the contrary part may be ashamed, having no evil thing to say of you.”
As with an infant, they too must have nourishment. The word of God becomes their spiritual nourishment to sustain them and help them grow. Just like a baby the more they take in the faster they grow. They are not at a point of understanding scripture, such as the book of Revelation, but they can understand the book of I John. So, you start with the “milk” of the word.
I John 2:1 “My little children, these things write I unto you, that ye sin not. And if any man sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous:”
I John 2:12 “I write unto you, little children because your sins are forgiven you for his name’s sake.
John lets the new Christians know that they are young and unlearned, but that if they fail they are forgiven, they have an advocate, a champion who will represent them, Jesus Christ.”
A newborn also needs love. They need to be close to their mother to hear her heartbeat, to feel her touch, and experience that loving arm holding them and pulling them close. We are to be the same with Christ. When we need comfort, there is nothing that can take the place of feeling the tender spiritual embrace of Jesus. Through the power of the Holy Spirit, His words become life to our souls. As we feed on His word we draw closer and stronger.
I John 3:1 “Behold, what manner of love the Father hath bestowed upon us, that we should be called the sons of God: therefore the world knoweth us not, because it knew him not.”
Romans 8:38-39 “For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, Nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.”
Just as a newborn babe knows its mother and the mother knows the baby, so Christ knows us, and when we experience the new birth we know him. Another aspect of the new birth is found in Jerimiah 1:5. Long before a baby is born the mother knows the child is there, she knows the activity level, the sleeping habits, and what excites the baby. God informs Jerimiah he knew him long before he was formed in his mother’s womb. He knows our needs, our desires, and our future.
Jerimiah 1:5 “Before I formed thee in the belly I knew thee, and before thou camest forth out of the womb I sanctified thee, and I ordained thee a prophet unto the nations.”
John 10:14 “I am the good shepherd, and know my sheep, and am known of mine.”
If you are a new Christian, I pray that you have found a body of believers that will love you and help you to grow in your faith. If you are an older Christian, my prayer for you is that you will open your heart and your life to include those who are young in the faith. A baby could never make it in this world if he or she didn’t have someone to feed them and love them. They need someone to protect them from this world, someone who is willing to put their needs above their own. I challenge you to be this person for someone new in the faith or someone who is having a hard time growing up. Just like babies don’t all grow at the same rate, neither do babies in Christ. Some may have their growth stunted by older Christians who are too busy, or too selfish to come along beside them and help. It should not only be looked at as our responsibility but also our joy to help grow the family the right way, with pure selfless love. It may cost you time, and even money, but the rewards are out of this world! Remember being a baby does not depend on how long they have been saved it depends on their growth rate. Are you ready to feed, nourish, and encourage a baby in Christ?
