To Be Born Again
by John M. Duvall
(Please read John 3:1-21.)
In his gospel account, John recorded a very powerful conversation between Jesus and Nicodemus. Nicodemus approached Jesus during the night and said to Him, “Rabbi, we know that You are a teacher come from God; for no one can do these signs that You do unless God is with him.” (vs 2) Nicodemus recognized Jesus as has having come from God.
Jesus replied to Nicodemus, saying, “Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.” (vs 3) Such a statement, when taken literally would be quite confusing. Understandably, Nicodemus asked Jesus how a person could be born again? In answering Nicodemus’ question, Jesus said, “Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God. That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit.” (vs 5-6) Jesus’ answer was in reference to a spiritual birth, not a physical birth. The second birth takes place when a person is born of the water and of the spirit.
It would stand to reason that the idea of being “born of water and the Spirit” in order to enter the kingdom would have seemed strange to Nicodemus. Seemingly in anticipation of Nicodemus’ bewilderment, Jesus said, “Do not marvel that I said to you, ‘You must be born again.’” (v 7) Jesus went on to explain that a person cannot see the beginning nor the ending of the wind, but one still knows that the wind blows. Although we cannot explain the why’s or the how’s of being born again, we simply accept what Jesus said.
The next question Nicodemus posed was, “How can these things be?” The reasons “these things be” had to do with Jesus’ death on the cross. According to verses 13-15, Jesus, the Son of Man, was to be lifted up, “as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness.” (This is a reference to Numbers 21:5-9.) Jesus would be lifted up so that whoever believes in Him would not perish, but would receive eternal life. This was the reason God sent Jesus into the world. (John 3:15-16) God sent Jesus into the world to save the world, not to condemn the world. However, if a person chooses not to believe in Jesus, then he will be condemned.
How does Jesus’ explanation tie in with one being “born of water and the Spirit?” When Jesus died on the cross, giving His life for man, He created a means whereby one could become a new creature, being born again. The apostle Peter wrote, “Since you have purified your souls in obeying the truth through the Spirit in sincere love of the brethren, love one another fervently with a pure heart, having been born again, not of corruptible seed but incorruptible, through the word of God which lives and abides forever.” (1 Peter 1:22-23) Take notice that Peter also used the phrase “born again.” In this verse, Peter said that Christians have “been born again” of “incorruptible seed, through the word of God.” Considering what Jesus told Nicodemus, it would stand to reason that when a person follows the “word of God,” that person will obey the words of Jesus and be “born of water and the Spirit.” The apostle Paul wrote, “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new.” (2 Corinthians 5:17) In Jesus Christ, a person becomes a new creation.
The question then arises, “How does one enter into Jesus Christ?” To the churches of Galatia, the apostle Paul wrote, “For you are all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus. For as many of you as were baptized into Christ have put on Christ.” (Galatians 3:27) According to the apostle Paul, when a person is “baptized into Christ,” he “put(s) on Christ.” Now, if a person is a new creation in Christ and a person is baptized into Christ, then it would stand to reason that when a person is baptized into Jesus Christ, that person become a new creation. Therefore when a person is “born again,” being “born of water and the Spirit,” he becomes a “new creation,” being “baptized into Christ,” being “born again” through the “word of God.”
Some people may ask the question, “How do we know that the phrase ‘born of water’ refers to water baptism and not the physical birth?” Earlier we established that Jesus not was addressing the first physical birth nor a second physical birth, but a spiritual birth. Therefore the “born of water” could not be referring to a person’s birth into this world. How do we know that the “born of water” is referring to baptism? In Mark 16:15-16, Jesus gave His disciples the following command: “Go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature. He who believes and is baptized will be saved; but he who does not believe will be condemned.” (Mark 16:15-16) In this passage we see the promise that if a person believes in Jesus Christ and is baptized, then that person will be saved. Jesus, in John 3:5-6, said that “unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God.” It would stand to reason that entering the kingdom of God would be synonymous with “shall be saved.” In addition, Peter told the people at the temple in Jerusalem, “Repent, and let every one of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins; and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.” (Acts 2:38) Consider the promise seen in this verse. One who repents of his sins and is baptized in the name of Jesus Christ will receive the remission of his sins. We see a connection between “shall be saved,” entering “the kingdom of heaven,” and “remission of sins,” the three being synonymous. The outcome of all three passages, the promises stated, shows the connection between baptism and being born of water.
How do we know that the baptism commanded by Jesus was water baptism? Aside from the fact that John was baptizing in water (Mark 1:9; John 3:23) and Jesus’ disciples were baptizing in water (John 3:26; 4:1-2), we must look at an example of Jesus’ teaching in application. Consider the conversion of the eunuch from Ethiopia. After Philip preached to the man concerning Jesus, the man asked the following question, “See, here is water. What hinders me from being baptized?” (Acts 8:36) Philip told the eunuch that if he believed in Jesus Christ being the Son of God, then he could be baptized. (Acts 8:37) “So he (Philip) commanded the chariot to stand still. And both Philip and the eunuch went down into the water, and he baptized him. Now when they came up out of the water, the Spirit of the Lord caught Philip away, so that the eunuch saw him no more; and he went on his way rejoicing.” (Acts 8:38-39) The eunuch knew to ask to be baptized because Philip had preached unto him Jesus Christ, which apparently included Jesus’ teachings on belief and baptism being necessary for salvation. Likewise we know that the baptism was water baptism because the eunuch said, “See, here is water,” after which he and Philip went down into the water. From this we can see that the baptism of Mark 16:16 was water baptism.
Accepting the words of Jesus to Nicodemus should not be difficult. The Lord expected Nicodemus to accept the teaching simply because it was so. So too must we accept the fact that one must be born of the water and the Spirit in order to enter the kingdom of heaven.
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