Forgot Your Birthday?

We know that we have passed out of death into life, because we love the brothers. Whoever does not love abides in death. 
1 John 3:14 (ESV)

Some people teach that unless you know the exact day and hour you trusted Christ, you don’t have eternal life. Charles Spurgeon sees it differently, teaching that you can know you are alive even if you can’t remember your birthday.

You don’t need a date to prove you were born. You need signs of life. The Apostle John gives you four, and they work like birthmarks.

You have a new birth. God has changed you on the inside, and you’re not the person you used to be.

You have a new belief. You trust Jesus as the Savior who died for your sins and the Lord of your life.

You have new behavior. You want to obey God, and sin bothers you in a way it never used to.

You have a new bond. You love other believers like family. “We know that we have passed out of death into life, because we love the brothers” (1 John 3:14, ESV).

That last birthmark is easy to overlook. A child of God doesn’t go to church because he has to. He goes because he wants to be with his brothers and sisters, the family he will spend eternity with.

You don’t have to wait until Sunday to show that love. Text one person from your church family today and say, “I thanked God for you this morning. How can I pray for you this week?” Then pray for exactly what they tell you.

You may not remember your spiritual birthday, but that love is proof you’re alive.

Prayer: Lord, I may not remember the exact day, but I thank You that I know I’m not who I used to be. Thank You for the new heart, the new hunger to obey, and the family You’ve given me. Keep making those birthmarks clearer every day. In Jesus’ name, Amen.