John
3:1-9 (NIV) Now there was a man of the Pharisees named Nicodemus, a member of
the Jewish ruling council. 2 He came to Jesus at night and said, "Rabbi,
we know you are a teacher who has come from God. For no one could perform the
miraculous signs you are doing if God were not with him."
3 In
reply Jesus declared, "I tell you the truth, no one can see the kingdom of
God unless he is born again."
4
"How can a man be born when he is old?" Nicodemus asked. "Surely
he cannot enter a second time into his mother's womb to be born!"
5 Jesus
answered, "I tell you the truth, no one can enter the kingdom of God
unless he is born of water and the Spirit. 6 Flesh gives birth to flesh, but
the Spirit gives birth to spirit. 7 You should not be surprised at my saying,
'You must be born again.' 8 The wind blows wherever it pleases. You hear its
sound, but you cannot tell where it comes from or where it is going. So it is
with everyone born of the Spirit."
9
"How can this be?" Nicodemus asked.
NOTE: I think that
western Christianity misses truth by not seeing the Jewish aspects of this
passage. The concept of being "born again" or "born from
above" was not unusual in Jewish circles. What surprised Nicodemus is that
he had already completed all the renewals that were possible for a man his age;
he would have to start all over again. The "born of water" part
probably was more related to the cleansing of water that is repeated in many
rituals. A person needed to be cleansed both externally (water) and internally
(the Spirit). The inner cleansing by the Spirit surprised Nicodemus, and is one
of the mysteries of God revealed in the New Testament, that is, how the Holy
Spirit enters one's life and our bodies become temples of God. Jesus' teaching
that occurs very early in his ministry already has the concepts of a new birth,
a cleansing, and an indwelling Holy Spirit. Jesus knew that his ministry would
change everything.
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