A Man Must Be Born Again (John 3: 1-7)

 

A Man Must Be Born Again (John 3: 1-7)

 

“There was a man of the Pharisees, named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews:

² The same came to Jesus by night, and said unto him, Rabbi, we know that thou art a teacher come from God: for no man can do these miracles that thou doest, except God be with him.

³ Jesus answered and said unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.

⁴ Nicodemus saith unto him, How can a man be born when he is old? can he enter the second time into his mother's womb, and be born?

⁵ Jesus answered, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God.

⁶ That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit.

⁷ Marvel not that I said unto thee, Ye must be born again.”

 

In the Scripture above, our Lord Jesus explained one of the foundational truths that some of our Christian brothers and sisters have found to be puzzling…even if not to the extent of Nicodemus. The key words are: “born again”.

If we key in on Verse 8 above, we understand that first there must be a live birth. The “water” is the mother’s “water” / amnionic fluid that has encompassed the embryo, then fetus through its growth and development processes. Being “born of water” is for the fetus to be released from the amnionic sac of the mother’s uterus and exposed to the outside world (vaginally or by C-Section). That outside exposure (light, temperature and other sudden environmental changes) prompts the newborn to take that first breath and receive its soul / spirit. [Remember from Genesis 2: 7, it wasn’t until the LORD God breathed the breath of life into the nostrils of the body of the man He had created (Adam), that man became a living soul.] Once that first breath has been taken and the soul / spirit has been imparted, the neonate has received all three necessary parts and the birth process is complete.

Although the human body has been completed, note that the Lord is not speaking to Nicodemus about an infant. He is answering the question posed to Him about a “man”. According to Jewish Law under which they were operating, an individual reaches maturity as an adult when he (Bar Mitzvah) or she (Bat Mitzvah) reaches the age of 12 or 13 years. The distinction between an infant and a man is most important because the second part of the Lord’s statement is that the man must also be born “of the Spirit”. That person already has a “spirit” (note the lowercase “s”) joined with the soul at birth (Hebrews 4: 12) The “Spirit” (note the Uppercase “S”) to which the Lord Jesus is referring is the “Holy Spirit” that must enter the person to give “re-birth” or a new life to the preexisting spirit. That preexisting spirit has been “dead” / dormant due to the fall of Adam (Genesis Chapter Three), waiting for the “awakening” through the “Second Adam”, our Lord Christ Jesus. (1 Corinthians 15: 45-49)  When a person becomes a Christian by believing in the Lord Jesus, the Holy Spirit becomes a part of them. (Romans Chapter 8)

The person’s preexisting spirit was that part of the “soul / spirit” that was the communication link between the LORD God and Adam in the Garden of Eden.  Remember that after Adam’s eating of the forbidden tree, God asked him: “Where art thou?” (Genesis 3: 9) Their normal communication had been broken. Although God unilaterally restored His link to Adam, each of us since then has had to make the choice on whether to restore this communication link.

The Bible provides the historical accounts of many men’s decisions regarding making that free choice. The “Spirit” would never force God’s will upon someone. It will be our individual choice as to whether we receive the gift of our Creator to eternal life through our Lord Christ Jesus.

Dr. W. A. (Bill) Robinson