Born of Water and the Spirit

In the well-known “Nic at Night” passage in the third chapter of John, Jesus tells a Pharisee named Nicodemus, “Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.” Nicodemus doesn’t get it, so Jesus explains more thoroughly in verse 5, “Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God. Nicodemus still doesn’t get it. In verse 9 he says to Jesus, “How can these things be?” He doesn’t seem to realize that Jesus is talking about spiritual things – things that cannot be given natural explanations. To be “born again” is a spiritual transaction that results in eternal life. Jesus then shows clearly that he thinks Nicodemus should know about these things. He says, “Are you the teacher of Israel, and do not know these things?” A Pharisee in Jesus’ time should know about things like being born of water and the Spirit because the Pharisees were thoroughly trained in the writings of the prophets, and God had spoken through the prophet Ezekiel, foretelling the coming of the Messiah and the New Covenant. In Ezekiel 36:25-26, God says, “Then I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you shall be clean; I will cleanse you from all your filthiness and from all your idols.” This seems to be what Jesus meant by being born of “water.” “Water” stood for spiritual cleansing – forgiveness for ones sins. God had also said, “I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you; I will take the heart of stone out of your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. I will put My Spirit within you and cause you to walk in My statutes…” There is the Spirit part of what Jesus meant by “being born of water and the Spirit.” Jesus was talking about a truly supernatural thing that would be done by God and would have the effect of causing the one to whom God had done these things to walk in His statutes. And what are God’s statutes? Jesus summarized them in Matt 22:36-40. “‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.’ This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like it: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ On these two commandments hang all the Law and the Prophets.” The effect of being born again is a supernatural love for God and for other people. These are the outward signs of an inner transaction between God and a person, when that person becomes “born again.”