Born Again
In John Chapter 3 Christ speaks with Nicodemus concerning the kingdom and tells Nicodemus that one must be “born again,” born of water and of the Spirit to enter the kingdom of God.
John 3:3-5
3 Jesus answered and said to him, “Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.”
4 Nicodemus said to Him, “How can a man be born when he is old? Can he enter a second time into his mother’s womb and be born?”
5 Jesus answered, “Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God.
Jesus Christ in referring to the kingdom, tells Nicodemus “Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.” The Bible presents the nation of Israel as something God sovereignly “birthed” or brought into existence through the lineage of Abraham.
Deuteronomy 32:18 Of the Rock that begat thee thou art unmindful, and hast forgotten God that formed thee.
Isaiah 51-1-2
1 Hearken to me, ye that follow after righteousness, ye that seek the Lord: look unto the Rock whence ye are hewn, and to the hole of the pit whence ye are digged.
2 Look unto Abraham your father, and unto Sarah that bare you: for I called him alone, and blessed him, and increased him.
In the Bible, Jesus Christ is presented as the source or giver of “living water” — a powerful metaphor for the eternal life, spiritual refreshment, and the Holy Spirit that He provides.
By studying the Scriptures, we understand that Jesus Christ is referring to Himself as the giver of water in His conversation with Nicodemus. Christ positions Himself as the source of this living water. This fulfills Old Testament imagery where our Lord Himself is called the “fountain of living water” (Jeremiah 2:13; 17:13). In 1 Corinthians 10:4, Paul says the Israelites in the wilderness “drank from the spiritual rock that accompanied them, and that rock was Christ.”
In John 4:10-14 Jesus Christ is speaking to the woman at Jacob’s well and offers her something far greater than physical water.
John 4:10-14
10 Jesus answered and said unto her, If thou knewest the gift of God, and who it is that saith to thee, Give me to drink; thou wouldest have asked of him, and he would have given thee living water.
11 The woman saith unto him, Sir, thou hast nothing to draw with, and the well is deep: from whence then hast thou that living water?
12 Art thou greater than our father Jacob, which gave us the well, and drank thereof himself, and his children, and his cattle?
13 Jesus answered and said unto her, Whosoever drinketh of this water shall thirst again:
14 But whosoever drinketh of the water that I shall give him shall never thirst; but the water that I shall give him shall be in him a well of water springing up into everlasting life.
We see in John 7:37-39 where Christ said that those who believe on Him shall out of his belly flow “rivers of living water.” These verses are referring to the Holy Spirit which would be given after Christ ascended into heaven and was glorified. On Pentecost we see the Holy Spirit being given first to the apostles and then to those 3,000 who believed and were baptized.
John 7:37-39
37 On the last day, that great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried out, saying, “If anyone thirsts, let him come to Me and drink.
38 He who believes in Me, as the Scripture has said, out of his heart will flow rivers of living water.”
39 But this He spoke concerning the Spirit, whom those believing in Him would receive; for the Holy Spirit was not yet given, because Jesus was not yet glorified.
New Creation
In II Corinthians 5:17 our Apostle Paul speaks that we who are saved by our belief of the gospel of the grace of God is a “new creation.” We become a “new creation” within the body of Christ.
II Corinthians 5:17 Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new.
In Galatians 6:15 Paul again refers to we who are saved by our belief of the gospel of the grace of God as a new creation.
Galatians 6:15 For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor uncircumcision avails anything, but a new creation.
In Ephesians 5:25-27 Christ speaks of loving the church, the body of Christ, and cleanses those within the body of Christ through the “washing of water by the word.”
Ephesians 5:25-27
25 Husbands, love your wives, even as Christ also loved the church, and gave himself for it;
26 That he might sanctify and cleanse it with the washing of water by the word,
27 That he might present it to himself a glorious church, not having spot, or wrinkle, or any such thing; but that it should be holy and without blemish.
When we “rightly divide the word of truth” we can easily see that those saved by their belief of the gospel of the kingdom preached by John the Baptist, Jesus, Peter and the Eleven were referred to as being “born again.”
Likewise, when we by “rightly divide the word of truth” we can also easily see that we who are saved by our belief and faith in the gospel of the grace of God preached by our Apostle Paul are called a “new creation.” We are not “born again” as we were never a part of Israel, therefore we cannot be born again, but are called a new creation.
We also see the imagery of water used in Ephesians 5:25-27 where Paul speaks of Christ loving the church, the body of Christ, for which Christ gave Himself, so that He might sanctify and cleanse it with the washing of water by the word.