What Does Being Born Again Mean?
Recently I’ve been reading the Passion Translation of the Bible on Bible Gateway and upon arriving at John 3:2-11 where Jesus tells Nicodemus we need to be “Born Again” I felt a real desire to revisit and write about this in the hope of gaining an even further understanding of the depth of its meaning. This is probably a section of scripture I have studied and meditated on more than any other over the years trying to understand just exactly what this means for me and all who have put their hope and trust in Jesus. It’s a conversation between Jesus and Nicodemus who was one of the religious leaders belonging to the sect of the Pharisees and a member of the Jewish ruling council. He came to Jesus discretely one night and said,
“Master, we know that you are teacher from God, for no one performs the miracles signs that you do, unless God’s power is with him.”
Jesus answered, “Nicodemus, listen to this eternal truth: Before any person can perceive God’s Kingdom realm, they must first experience a rebirth.”
Nicodemus said, “Rebirth? How can a gray-headed man be reborn? It’s impossible for a man to go back into the womb a second time and be reborn!”
Jesus answered, “I speak an eternal truth: Unless you are born of water and Spirit-wind, you will never enter God’s kingdom realm. For the natural realm can only give birth to things that are natural, but the spiritual realm gives birth to supernatural life!"
“You shouldn’t be amazed by my statement, ‘You must be born from above!’ For the Spirit-wind blows as it chooses. You can hear its sound, but you don’t know where it came from or where it’s going. So it is within the hearts of those who are Spirit-born!”
Then Nicodemus replied, “But I don’t understand, what do you mean? How does this happen?”
Jesus answered, “Nicodemus, aren’t you the respected teacher in Israel, and yet you don’t understand this revelation? I speak eternal truths about things I know, things I’ve seen and experienced—and still you don’t accept what I reveal. If you’re unable to understand and believe what I’ve told you about the natural realm, what will you do when I begin to unveil the heavenly realm? No one has risen into the heavenly realm except the Son of Man who also exists in heaven.”
In The Passion Translation which beautifully combines the Hebrew, Greek and Aramaic we see Jesus saying in verse 3 that before a person can perceive God’s Kingdom Realm they must first experience a rebirth. The Greek word for perceive is the word eidō which means; to see, perceive, be aware, to experience, understand or know, while the Word Study Dictionary adds for John 3:3, to be able to see and enjoy the privileges of the divine kingdom.
The word rebirth in most other translations reads born again or born from above, but what exactly does this mean? The Greek word again or from above is the Greek word anōthen, that Strong’s dictionary defines it as; above or by analogy from the first; by implication anew; - from above, again, from the beginning (very first), the top, while Thayer’s dictionary adds; from a higher place, of things which come from heaven or God, from the first, from the beginning, from the very first. The Aramaic word here is clearly defined as born from the origin according to the Footnotes from the Passion Translation which I think fits perfectly with what I’ve come to believe and what I think Jesus actually means here. To me it means that we must be reborn or renewed to man’s original state prior to the fall in the garden. What does that consist of exactly? Well we know from the Genesis account that we were created in the exact image and likeness of God and that he breathed into man’s nostrils the breath of life. Genesis 2:7.
Jesus further expands in verse 5 of John 3 by adding;
“Unless you are born of water and Spirit-wind, you will never enter God’s kingdom realm.”
The word Spirit-wind here is the Greek word pneúma which has several meanings all related as Strong’s and Thayer’s defines it as; a current of air, of the wind or the wind itself, breath (blast) or a breeze, by analogy or figuratively a spirit, Holy Spirit, the vital spirit or life residing in man and the breath breathed by God into man and again returning to God, the spiritual entity in man. I really like that last one which comes from The Word Study Dictionary. God’s very Spirit breathed into man as we see in the original creation.
As for the meaning of being born of water I’ve heard various interpretations of what this means over the years with a common interpretation that it refers to our physical birth, with the water representing the amniotic fluid released at our natural birth. In other words we need to be born physically of a woman, a natural birth as well as be born of the Spirit, a second spiritual birth. I don’t think this is what Jesus is implying here though as I hope to show.
Others see it as speaking to the Jewish ritual of ceremonial washing representing spiritual purification which as a teacher of the Law Nicodemus certainly would have understood. A quick internet search shows that there are a number of Old Testament scriptures that refer figuratively or symbolically to spiritual cleansing and renewal by water with Ezekiel 36:24-27 being prominent among them. But this too speaks to a sprinkling or cleansing through water and Jesus is speaking very specifically here of being born of water. That’s not to take away from Ezekiel’s prophecy though, which I do believe portends to our new birth. But Jesus did not come to add or change the old system (Mosaic Law). He came to fulfil it thereby establishing a new covenant making the old obsolete (Hebrews 8:7-13) and restoring man to his original place and stature upon the earth.
Finally there are some that even suggest that the water is a reference to water baptism, John’s baptism or Christian baptism but the context just does not fit here.
With that said I’ll confess I did not spend a lot of time researching beyond these three interpretations so it’s highly likely people far more educated and smarter than I have established what I’m about to share. These come strictly from my own research, thoughts and understanding and from the scriptures I feel the Spirit has revealed to me in regards to what Jesus might mean.
In verse 6 Jesus says;
"For the natural realm can only give birth to things that are natural, but the spiritual realm gives birth to supernatural life!"
From here I am going to list a number of scriptures that immediately come to mind that I think give us the true interpretation of what Jesus meant when He said we must be gennaō anōthen, born again, born from above, born from the first, the very beginning or as the Aramaic says, born from the origin.
To Jesus’ statement that the natural realm gives birth to natural and the Spirit realm gives life to supernatural life let’s read John 6:63;
“The Holy Spirit is the one who gives Life, that which is of the natural realm (the body) is of no help. The Words I speak to you are Spirit and Life.”
John 4:13-14;
“Jesus answered, “If you drink from Jacob’s well you’ll be thirsty again and again, but if anyone drinks the living water I give them, they will never thirst again and will be forever satisfied! For when you drink the water I give you it becomes a gushing fountain of the Holy Spirit, springing up and flooding you with endless life!”
The Passion Translation footnote adds; The Greek verb used for “springing up” is hallomenou, and is never used for inanimate objects (water). It is a verb used for people (living things) and means “jumping,” or “leaping up.” The Septuagint translates this verb elsewhere as an activity of the Holy Spirit.
John 7:37-39;
“Then on the most important day of the feast, the last day, Jesus stood and shouted out to the crowds—“All you thirsty ones, come to me! Come to me and drink! Believe in me so that rivers of living water will burst out from within you, flowing from your innermost being, just like the Scripture says!” Jesus was prophesying about the Holy Spirit that believers were being prepared to receive. But the Holy Spirit had not yet been poured out upon them, because Jesus had not yet been unveiled in his full splendor.”
1 Corinthians 10:3-4;
“They all ate the same heavenly manna (spiritual food) and drank water from the same spiritual rock that traveled with them—and that Rock was Christ himself.”
Ephesians 5:26
“To make us holy and pure, cleansing us through the showering of the pure water of the Word of God.”
John 1:1-4
“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God; all things were made through him, and without him was not anything made that was made. In him was life (or that which has been made was life in him), and the life was the light of men.”
And finally Colossians 1:15-18a;
“He is the image of the invisible God, the first-born of all creation; for in him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or principalities or authorities—all things were created through him and for him. He is before all things, and in him all things hold together. He is the head of the body the church.”
Wow! Does anyone see a common denominator here or connection between the Living Water, the Fountain of Life, and the Life giving Rock, the Holy Spirit, and the Word of God? Of course they all point to Jesus Christ; He is the Living Water, the Spirit of God, the Word of God and God Himself. But then as believers we should already know that much. The question then comes back to just what it means to be born again from the origin and of water and for that we have to go all the way back to the very beginning where in the second verse of Genesis 1 we read that;
"The Spirit of God was moving, hovering or brooding over the face of the waters."
Throughout scripture there are numerous references to water and its significance to birth, life, cleansing, and it’s relation to Christ and the Word. We do know that without water, life could not exist. So in that light how do we interpret this, what exactly does Jesus mean? That is what I hope to uncover and discover in part II of this study.
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