Stacey D. Wheeler | Director of Communications and Church Planting Support
On March 20th, 2026, spring officially began. Recently Tony and I drove through the Flint Hills in Kansas and enjoyed seeing the cattle herds with all the new baby calves. Green grass, beautiful flowers, and baby calves are reminders that there is a rebirth happening signaling transformation from death to life.
According to Collins, the word “rebirth” is defined as a “revival or renaissance” and “a change that leads to a new period of growth and improvement.” The epitome of rebirth occurs in our hearts, minds, and spirits when we surrender our lives to God and are born again. This is the ultimate transformation that revives us from death to life.
Romans 6:4 expresses a powerful statement about our new life in Christ when we are born again: “We were therefore buried with him through baptism into death in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too may live a new life.” This states that we were buried with Christ and raised with Christ. The Greek word καινότης (kainotēs) means “newness,” and “freshness.” It refers to renewal and transformation. And the Greek word ζωῆς (zōēs) means “life.” Together this means “newness of life” — a fresh way of living that flows from resurrection power. We have access to this new, supernatural way of living through the life and death of Jesus Christ.
Easter or Resurrection Day reminds us of new life and represents a time when the words “born again” hold their deepest meaning for Christians. Through the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ we can be transformed daily, a spiritual reality and truth that we recognize and celebrate. To better understand this transformation, we can look at one of the most powerful stories in scripture: the Passover.
The Israelites lived in Egypt for four hundred years, struggling under the weight of slavery. God heard their cries and had a plan to set them free. On the night of Passover, each Israelite household was asked to sacrifice a lamb and mark their doorposts with its blood. This act was a declaration of faith. When the angel of death passed through Egypt, those households marked by the blood did not lose their firstborn child. Israel was being set free! By morning, they were no longer slaves but a people set apart, stepping into a new identity and a new future.
This moment foreshadows the rebirth offered through Christ.
The Israelites were delivered from physical slavery; we are delivered from spiritual death. When we surrender our lives to Christ, we are, in a very real sense, participating in our own Passover. Jesus, the Lamb of God, hung on the cross, was buried for three days, rose again, and His blood covers our sin and past mistakes. Jesus is risen! Because of his shed blood and victory, judgment passes over us.
Rebirth is not simply about trying harder. It’s a complete transformation of the heart. This transformation happens not by our own strength, but through grace. It begins with surrender: laying down our pride, our fears, and our attempts to control our own lives, and trusting fully in Christ.
There is a well-known story about a man who once visited a blacksmith’s shop and watched as the craftsman heated a dull, hardened piece of metal in the fire. The metal glowed red, then white-hot, before being hammered, folded, and shaped again and again. Curious, the man asked, “How do you know when the metal is ready?” The blacksmith replied, “When I can see my reflection in it.”
In many ways, this mirrors the process of rebirth. When we come to Christ, we are not instantly perfected, but we are placed into the hands of a loving Craftsman. We may still be in bondage, but as we continue to daily seek Christ and surrender to the molding of the Potter’s hands, we are transformed into his image. In an observation generated by ChatGPT, “Bondage convinces us that we are stuck forever, that change is impossible. It thrives on repetition, on cycles that feel inescapable” (“Rebirth: From Bondage”). Ways in which we are in bondage can be overcome through the power of the blood of Jesus. He can cover our sin, strengthen what is weak, and form us into something new. His goal is to restore us, until His image is reflected in our lives.
This surrender can feel like death. As we give our lives to him and humble ourselves, Jesus miraculously changes us. What follows is resurrection. We are given a new life of freedom from sin and an identity as children of God, marked not by our past but by His love and righteousness.
As the evangelist D.L. Moody once said, “The Bible was not given for our information but for our transformation.” That transformation—this rebirth—is the very heart of the Christian message. As Lamentations 3:22-23 declares, “Because of the Lord’s great love we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail. They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness.” Thank God that his “mercy is new every morning” so we can experience new life. No matter how long we have been in our own “Egypt,” no matter what chains we carry, God’s power to redeem is greater.
“Rebirth.” Collins Dictionary. Collinsdictionary.com., N.D. Web. 3 April 2026. “Rebirth: From Bondage to New Life.” ChatGPT, OpenAI, 6 Apr. 2026, chat.openai.com.
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