TEXAS GOSPEL VOLUNTEER

When Jesus tells Nicodemus in John 3 that he must be born again, and that entry into God’s kingdom requires being born of water and the spirit, the meaning has been misunderstood in more than one way over the years. Some have suggested the water refers to physical birth, while others have connected it to baptism paired with an internal spiritual rebirth. Neither interpretation fits the context of the conversation, and Nicodemus would not have understood either meaning from the words Jesus used.

The correct background lies in Ezekiel 36, a passage familiar to a teacher of Israel like Nicodemus. That Old Testament prophecy describes God removing a heart of stone, replacing it with a heart of flesh, and placing his own spirit within his people as part of the new covenant. Jesus draws directly on this imagery, explaining spiritual rebirth in terms Nicodemus should have already recognized from his knowledge of scripture rather than introducing an entirely new concept.

 Therefore if anyone is in Christ, this person is a new creation; the old things passed away; behold, new things have come.

2 Corinthians 5:17