"But as many as received Him, to them gave He power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on His name: which were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God' (John 1:12,13).

"But as many as received Him"—Salvation comes to the sinner through receiving Christ personally. It means accepting Him by faith—"For by grace are ye saved through faith … not of works" (Ephesians 2:8,9). Faith simply faces facts: One—You are a lost sinner. Two—Christ paid the full price for your sin. Three—Receive Christ as your Saviour. Faith is the flight of the soul to Christ. Faith is believing that God will do what he has promised. The little Irish lad who was saved in the hospital as a result of reading a Gospel tract handed to him by a nurse, exclaimed, with a new light on his face, "I always knew that Jesus was necessary for salvation, but I never knew that He was enough."

"To them gave He power to become the sons of God"—The "power" means the right, authority or privilege. It does not mean ability or strength. It does not mean that Christ confers on those who receive Him a certain spiritual and moral strength by which they convert themselves and thus become God's children. Christ does all the saving, and He bestows on those who have trusted Him the full right of instantly becoming members of God's family.

"Even to them that believe on His name"—The relation between the two acts to receive Him and to believe on Him is a very close one. The first is accomplished by the action of the second. The sinner receives Christ by believing upon Him.

"Which were born … of God"—Being born again is wholly the work of God. It completely excludes all human assistance, both before the new birth and after the new birth.

"Not of blood"—The new birth is "not of blood," that is, not by blood descent from faithful Abraham nor from godly parents. It is not something you inherit.

"Nor of the will of the flesh"—Sinners do not become sons of God through self-effort. It does not come as a result of doing our very best. Our best is not good enough. As our efforts had nothing to do with our physical conception, likewise our efforts shall in no way assist in the resurrection of the physical body. So in a similar way, we contribute nothing to our new birth.

"Nor of the will of man"—Nor does salvation come as the result of the acts and special deeds of others, including preachers, priests, religious powers or even governments.

"But of God"—Man becomes a new creation entirely by the grace of God. It does not come by human resources.

—N.A. Woychuk