The Bible contains several different expressions to describe the event when a person comes into contact with God: A person comes to believe, repents, turns to God, is saved, and is justified.
Jesus also used these figures of speech and parables to describe this event. With each of them, he sought to reveal the miracle of human salvation from a different perspective and to unveil the mystery of faith. The Gospel of John records a conversation Jesus had with a Pharisee named Nicodemus. In it, Jesus uses the metaphor of being born again.
“Very truly I tell you, no one can see the kingdom of God unless they are born again” (John 3:3).
However, the idea of being born again was incomprehensible to Nicodemus:
“How can someone be born when they are old?” Nicodemus asked. “Surely they cannot enter a second time into their mother’s womb to be born!” (John 3:4)
This short article examines the imagery and the miracle of rebirth in the light of the Bible. The Bible reveals at least two different perspectives that help us understand what Jesus wanted to tell Nicodemus and all of us.
In order to be born again, a person must first die spiritually
God requires all people to obey His law perfectly throughout their lives. Only death frees us from the demands of the law—God’s law, which is written on the hearts of all people (Rom. 2:14-15). God said:
“These are the decrees and laws you must be careful to follow in the land that the Lord, the God of your ancestors, has given you to possess—as long as you live in the land” (Deut. 12:1).
In his letter to the Romans, Paul explains this relationship between man and the law by using marriage as an example of how God’s law binds man as long as he lives:
“Do you not know, brothers and sisters—for I am speaking to those who know the law—that the law has authority over someone only as long as that person lives? For example, by law a married woman is bound to her husband as long as he is alive…” (Rom. 7:1-2)
Paul continues the analogy by pointing out that only death can end the obligation of marriage:
“…but if her husband dies, she is released from the law that binds her to him. So then, if she has sexual relations with another man while her husband is still alive, she is called an adulteress. But if her husband dies, she is released from that law and is not an adulteress if she marries another man” (Rom. 7:2-3).
Paul then reveals the lesson of the parable: just as with the obligations of marriage, the only way to be freed from the demands of God’s law is through death. For this purpose, God sent His only Son to earth to be sacrificed so that people could be freed from the law. Those who carry living faith in their hearts have Jesus himself and thus share in everything that belongs to Jesus—including his death. Thus, thanks to Jesus’ death, the covenant between the law and man has ended, and Jesus Christ himself has become the spouse of those who believe in him.
“So, my brothers and sisters, you also died to the law through the body of Christ, that you might belong to another, to him who was raised from the dead” (Rom. 7:4).
In summary, the message of Paul and the entire Bible is as follows: in order for a person to be born again, they must first die spiritually. It is characteristic of humans to strive to obey the law and thus achieve God’s approval through their own actions. However, this task is impossible, and therefore they ultimately fall under the judgment of the law and despair. In his Epistle to the Romans, Paul writes:
“Once I was alive apart from the law; but when the commandment came, sin sprang to life and I died. I found that the very commandment that was intended to bring life actually brought death” (Rom. 7:9–10).
However, God can revive those who have fallen into such despair and been killed by the law, freeing them from its demands and granting them the mercy of forgiveness. In rebirth, God forgives all the sins of a person out of pure grace. That is when the person becomes acceptable to God: the old self in them has died, and a new self, united with Christ in faith, has been born. Paul ends his marriage analogy with the following words:
“But now, by dying to what once bound us, we have been released from the law” (Rom. 7:6).
Birth is not a matter of choice
Another important aspect of the concept of rebirth is obvious but difficult for human reason to accept.
Jesus often used metaphors and comparisons to refer first to something from everyday life or a commonly known principle. He then shows that the same principle or rule also applies to the relationship between man and God, in the given context.
It is a generally accepted truth that no one can influence their own birth. Both the miracle of new life and physical birth are entirely beyond the control of a newborn.
Jesus and the entire Bible testify to what human reason resists: A person is born again—meaning that they receive faith and forgiveness of sins—entirely as a gift, without any influence or choice of their own.
“For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God” (Eph. 2:8).
“You did not choose me, but I chose you…” (John 15:16).
No person can contribute in any way to receiving the gift of faith, either through actions or mental efforts. Faith is a gift that God gives without any demands on human beings.
The place of rebirth
Receiving the gift of faith is a matter of spiritual birth. Jesus taught Nicodemus:
“Flesh gives birth to flesh, but the Spirit gives birth to spirit” (John 3:6).
Rebirth is therefore the work of the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit’s task is to lead people to Christ with the help of the Word and the congregation. The apostle Peter writes:
“You have been born again, not of perishable seed, but of imperishable, through the living and enduring word of God.…”
Peter continues and points out that the Word that gives new birth is the good news about Jesus, that is, the gospel:
“And this word is the good news that was preached to you” (1 Peter 1:23, 25, ESV).
God’s congregation has been sent to proclaim this good news. They proclaim it, not in their own authority, but in the authority of Jesus. This gospel has the power to regenerate because Christ himself is present in it.
“Whoever listens to you listens to me” (Luke 10:16).
“If you forgive anyone’s sins, their sins are forgiven” (John 20:23).
When this Word encounters a person, it calls them into communion with Christ. The Word does not lead to loneliness, but to the fellowship of the congregation, where the gospel is proclaimed and where Christ has promised to be present. In the congregation, the Word does its work, strengthens faith, and carries people to heaven. Therefore, it is worthwhile to be obedient to this call.
Author: Kingdom of Peace
Image: SRK