John 3:5-8 “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. Do not marvel that I said to you, ‘You must be born again.’ The wind blows where it wishes, and you hear the sound of it, but cannot tell where it comes from and where it goes. So is everyone who is born of the Spirit.”
The word ‘born again’ is a much debated topic in itself. Here Nicodemus who was a Pharisee meets Jesus with a desire in his heart , he wanted to enter into the Kingdom of God. Knowing this Jesus answers him “Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God. ”Nicodemus wondered, for a man birth comes once and death comes once,if so how could a man become born again or have a new life without entering the womb of his mother?He expressed his ignorance in plain language like you and me even though he was a ruler of Jews,he expressed his need to know the details of this new birth in its real sense. He did not want to miss the point Jesus was expressing to him. When we are carnal or out of flesh we could understand things that belong to this world,but when the spirit of God visits us we will be changed, we will become a new creation.Unless we become a new creation with a renewal of our old self and spirit we wont be able to see or sense the Kingdom of God. The above passage is a detail explanation of Jesus to Nicodemus.
Jesus is mentioning two elements to this new birth or reformed life, born of water and born of spirit,born of water signifies the human element of obedience to the word of God and being baptized in the water where we are burying the old man which was under sin and accepting a new life embedded in Christ-this is certainly symbolic but heaven marks it as our obedience or desire to share the oneness with Christ. Born of spirit is an element added by heaven, when a person obeys the word of Jesus the holy spirit comes and dwells in Him and then on we are lead by the holy spirit . Thus our body and spirit shares this oneness in Christ and the result is a new creation or we are born again but now the birth is a spiritual birth. The new birth in a man takes others by surprise and Jesus says its by His spirit. As a wind that could not be predicted by man the holy spirit touches the souls of man according the plan of God .If a man is to be born again it is sure the work of the spirit of God. If you are reading this blog and if you are not sure of a born again experience through Christ in your life,pray for the work of His spirit in you, which alone can lead us in his perfect truth.Remember what Jesus said to Nicodemus, “Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God”.
In Christ Jesus
Smitha Thomas.
