Lesson for March 23, 2025

The Book of John

Lesson 8

The New Birth

John 3:1-15

These verses are about an encounter Jesus had with a leader of the Pharisees named Nicodemus. We will examine this encounter in three parts: 1) who was Nicodemus 2) why he had come to see Jesus and 3) what Jesus told him regarding the new birth.

Verses 1-8

“Now there was a man of the Pharisees, named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews; this man came to Jesus at night and said to Him, ‘Rabbi, we know that You have come from God as a teacher; for no one can do these signs that You do unless God is with him.’ Jesus responded and said to him, ‘Truly, truly, I say to you, unless someone is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.’” Nicodemus said to Him, ‘How can a person be born when he is old?’ He cannot enter his mother’s womb a second time and be born, can he?’ Jesus answered, ‘Truly, truly, I say to you, unless someone is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God. That which has been born of the flesh is flesh, and that which has been born of the Spirit is spirit. Do not be amazed that I said to you, ‘You must be born again.’ The wind blows where it wishes, and you hear the sound of it, but you do not know where it is coming from and where it is going; so is everyone who has been born of the Spirit.”

We learn two facts about Nicodemus. First, he was a Pharisee, and he was one of the rulers of the Jewish nation. The Pharisees were a religious sect within Judaism at the time of Christ. The word forPharisees is the Aramaic word “pharisaios,” meaning separated to a different lifestyle than the general public. They were a pious group of unbelievers who hated Jesus because He called them out for their arrogance and hypocrisy. (Matthew 23) They accepted the oral tradition of Judaism as equal with the Law of Moses and taught that Jews should strictly observe all 613 laws. The Pharisees were the religious sect, and the Sadducees were a political party within the Sanhedrin, the ruling body of the Jewish nation. The Pharisees claimed to follow the Old Testament Scriptures. The Sadducees cared nothing for God, denied the afterlife, and the resurrection of the dead. (Acts 4:1) Both groups hated Jesus. (Mark 14:53; 15:1; John 11:48–50)

This man came to Jesus at night and said to Him, ‘Rabbi, we know that You have come from God as a teacher; for no one can do these signs that You do unless God is with him.’ Jesus responded and said to him, ‘Truly, truly, I say to you, unless someone is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.’ We notice a few things in these verses regarding Nicodemus. First, he approaches Jesus at night, probably fearing being seen by the Pharisees. Second, he had seen Jesus perform miracles and equated them with God. Third, he showed respect for Jesus by calling Him rabbi, meaning teacher. Fourth, he was seemingly sincere in wanting to know more about Jesus.

Nicodemus said to Him, ‘How can a person be born when he is old?’ He cannot enter his mother’s womb a second time and be born, can he?’ Jesus’ response obviously took Nicodemus by surprise. Jesus went straight to heart of the matter by shocking Nicodemus when Jesus said he had to be born again. Of course, Nicodemus did not understand what Jesus was talking about. Typical of the religious Jews, Nicodemus failed to think in terms of the spiritual. He assumed Jesus was from God but did not acknowledge Jesus as Israel’s Messiah, meaning he was an unbeliever searching for the truth.

Jesus answered, ‘Truly, truly, I say to you, unless someone is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God. There are two legitimate schools of thought regarding the water and the Spirit. Some theologians believe the water refers to the Word of God and use Titus 2:5 and I Peter 1:23, as proof text for this belief. Others believe, as I do, that the water and the Spirit refer to physical birth and spiritual birth. I believe this is substantiated in the verse that follows when Jesus said, “That which has been born of the flesh is flesh, and that which has been born of the Spirit is spirit.” I believe this refers to what is called “the water birth” when a woman’s water breaks and gives birth. And to the Holy Spirit when He creates a human spirit in a person and they are born again, spiritually.

Do not be amazed that I said to you, ‘You must be born again.’ The wind blows where it wishes, and you hear the sound of it, but you do not know where it is coming from and where it is going; so is everyone who has been born of the Spirit. Nicodemus was obviously amazed at what Jesus said to him regarding seeing the kingdom of God. Jesus related what He had said to Nicodemus to the wind which a person can hear but cannot see. What we do see is the effect of the wind, as we see the effect of being born again and experiencing the effects of a new birth.

Regeneration, a theological term for the term “born again,” is when God creates a human spirit in believers at salvation. The Greek words for born again can help us understand the meaning; born is “gennao” in Greek, which means “to bear or to bring forth a child;” again is “anothen” in Greek, which means “anew or from above.” In English, regeneration can mean to be restored, to reform, to bring into existence again, but it can also mean to be made anew. However, the Greek word for regeneration,“palingenesia,” means a new birth. Regeneration is a spiritual birth from above (from God). It is the “new creation” of II Corinthians 5:17. It is a brand-new nature that did not exist prior to faith in Christ. (I Thessalonians 5:23; Titus 3:5; Ephesians 2:1,5)

A new birth is possible only as the result of faith in what Christ accomplished on the Cross. (Ephesians 2:8-9) God the Father designed the plan of salvation, Jesus Christ carried out that plan and God the Holy Spirit revealed that plan. Jesus Christ was a willing sacrifice and joyfully went to the Cross, because He knew what He was going to accomplish for you and me. (Hebrews 12:2)

Verses 9-12

^“Nicodemus responded and said to Him, ‘How can these things be?’ Jesus answered and said to him, ‘You are the teacher of Israel, and yet you do not understand these things? Truly, truly, I say to you, we speak of what we know and testify of what we have seen, and you people do not accept our testimony. If I told you earthly things and you do not believe, how will you believe if I tell you heavenly things?”

Nicodemus believed the Scriptures were the Word of God but failed to understand what they said regarding salvation. Nicodemus, as a Pharisee and a ruler of the Jews, should have immediately realized that Jesus was the promised Savior that he had most likely studied about and anticipated. Since Nicodemus could not understand the “earthly” illustrations that Jesus used for being born again, how could he possibly understand “heavenly things,” like God’s plan of salvation?

Verses 13-15

“No one has ascended into Heaven, except He Who descended from Heaven: the Son of Man. And just as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, so must the Son of Man be lifted up, so that everyone who believes will have eternal life in Him.”

Only Jesus could make this statement because He is the only One Who could be both on earth and in Heaven simultaneously. He was speaking to Nicodemus as the God-man, the eternal Son of God. The illustration that Jesus used was from Numbers 21:4-9. It was another attempt to illustrate the new birth to Nicodemus. This event took place while the Israelites wandered in the wilderness before they entered the Promised Land. As divine discipline for their constant complaining, God sent poisonous snakes to bite them. Then God provided the solution to the bite by having a bronze snake placed on a pole. If they looked up at the snake, they were healed. God was illustrating His divine provision, which they had rejected. Jesus used a phrase taken from this story as a metaphor for being lifted up on the Cross. Those who look in faith to Jesus for salvation will receive eternal life. 

I John 5:13, ^“These things I have written to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, so that you may know that you have eternal life.”