Born Again by Water and the Holy Spirit
Jesus taught Nicodemus that a person must be born again by water and the Holy Spirit to enter the Kingdom of Heaven. This lesson helps us understand His meaning and guides us to true salvation.
Reading Passage: John 3:3–8 (NASB)
“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.”
Jesus also said, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless someone is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God.” (John 3:3, NASB)
The Pharisees kept the Law of Moses with strict discipline and valued the traditions handed down from their ancestors. They believed in resurrection, angels, the end times, and the coming of the Messiah. They were considered leaders who believed in the Lord God faithfully. However, Jesus rebuked them strongly and said that there would be woe to them. Their outward appearance looked holy, but their hearts were filled with greed and corruption. They were like whitewashed tombs. Even though they taught the Word of God, they could not understand the truth that Jesus preached, and they even rejected Him and tried to kill Him.
1. Nicodemus, a Man with a Good and Honest Heart
Nicodemus was a Pharisee, but he had a good and sincere heart. When he saw the works and signs that Jesus performed, he understood that Jesus had come from the Lord God (John 3:2). Nicodemus was a member of the Sanhedrin, the highest ruling council of the Jews. He was a man of high social status, authority, wealth, and honor. Even though he knew the Law very well and kept it strictly, his hunger for the truth grew deeper each day. Jesus, who preached the gospel with power and performed many signs, looked different from anyone he had ever seen. Every word Jesus spoke was filled with the truth and came with great authority.
Nicodemus went to see Jesus at night because he was afraid of what people might say if they saw him. But after meeting Jesus, his heart began to change. When the Pharisees spoke badly about Jesus, Nicodemus defended Him and said, “Our Law does not judge a man unless it first hears from him and knows what he is doing.” (John 7:51, NASB) This was not an easy thing for a Jewish ruler to say. It could have cost him his position, and he could have faced persecution.
Still, Nicodemus defended Jesus. This shows how sincere he was and how firmly he believed in Jesus. After Jesus died on the cross, Nicodemus brought a mixture of myrrh and aloes to prepare His body for burial. This act also shows his deep respect and faith (John 19:39–40).
2. The Spiritual Conversation Between Jesus and Nicodemus
When Nicodemus met Jesus, he said with respect, “Rabbi, we know that You have come from the Lord God as a teacher. No one can do these signs that You do unless the Lord God is with him.” Nicodemus had seen Jesus raise the dead, open the eyes of the blind, enable the mute to speak, and make the lame walk. These works were impossible for any human. Because of his honest conscience, he believed that Jesus had come from Heaven.
But Jesus did not answer, “You are right.” Instead, He said, “Unless someone is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God.” (John 3:3, NASB) Jesus spoke this to awaken Nicodemus, who did not yet understand spiritual things. Nicodemus could not understand the meaning of Jesus’ words. He wondered how a person could be born again. He asked Jesus, “How can a man be born when he is old? He cannot enter his mother’s womb a second time and be born, can he?”
It was clear that no one could enter the mother’s womb again after being born. But because Nicodemus lacked spiritual understanding, he could only ask physical and earthly questions. Jesus then said, “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.’” (John 3:5–7, NASB) Jesus taught him that anyone who wants to enter the Kingdom of Heaven must be born again by water and by the Holy Spirit so that his spirit may come alive.
3. What It Means to Be Born Again by Water and the Holy Spirit
How did the spirit of a person die, and how can we be born again by water and the Holy Spirit? The first man, Adam, was made from the dust of the ground. When the breath of life, which is the power of the Lord God, entered him, he became a spiritual being. He became a living spirit. But when he disobeyed God and committed sin, his spirit died according to the law of the spiritual realm that says, “The wages of sin is death.”
When Adam’s spirit was alive, he had constant fellowship with the Lord God and received the truth from Him. But when his spirit died, that fellowship was cut off, and he became a fleshly man. Since he could no longer receive the knowledge of the spirit from God, he accepted untruth from the enemy, the devil, and began to follow the desires of the world. When we say Adam’s spirit died, it means the connection with God was broken because of sin, the knowledge of the spirit left him, and untruth came in and covered his spirit so that it could no longer act. It was a state where the spirit became like something dead.
Because Adam’s spirit died, all his descendants were also born with dead spirits. They lived in darkness and could only end up in Hell. But the Lord God prepared a way for people to revive their dead spirits and enter the Kingdom of Heaven. That way is to accept Jesus Christ and be born again by water and the Holy Spirit.
What does it mean to be born again by water? It means to obey the Word of God and receive the circumcision of the heart, so the heart can be changed by the truth. Water represents the living water, which is the Word of God, and it also refers to Jesus, who is the Word made flesh. Jesus said, “But whoever drinks of the water that I will give him shall never be thirsty; but the water that I will give him will become in him a fountain of water springing up to eternal life.” (John 4:14, NASB)
Water removes thirst, supports life, and washes away dirt. In the same way, the Word of the Lord God washes away the evil and uncleanness inside the heart. But even if water is in front of us, it cannot help unless we drink it or use it to wash. In the same way, knowing the living water of the Word does nothing unless we obey it. When we remove untruth such as hatred, jealousy, judgment, and condemnation, the heart becomes clean. When we obey the commands that say, “Do this” and “Keep this,” such as loving others, serving them, and seeking their benefit, the heart becomes filled with truth. This process of removing untruth and filling the heart with the truth of the Word is what it means to be born again by water.
What It Means to Be Born Again by the Holy Spirit
What does it mean to be born again by the Holy Spirit? To receive salvation, we must be born again by water—the Word of the Lord God—and also be born again by the Holy Spirit. When we accept Jesus Christ and repent with a broken and sincere heart, we receive the Holy Spirit as a gift. Then the dead spirit inside us comes alive, and we begin to change into the spiritual person that the Lord God desires. The Holy Spirit comes into our heart and revives the dead spirit. He helps us understand the truth of the Word and helps us throw away sin. Through His help, we change into a person of truth and a person of the spirit. This process—where the dead spirit comes alive, sin is removed, and the heart becomes spiritual—is what it means to be born again by the Holy Spirit.
No one can enter the Kingdom of Heaven unless he is born again by water and the Holy Spirit. The Bible says, “For by grace you have been saved through faith; and this is not of yourselves, it is the gift of God.” (Ephesians 2:8, NASB) Therefore, being born again by water and the Holy Spirit and receiving eternal life are possible only because of the grace and love of the Triune God—the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. It is a free gift. I hope you will receive the work of the Holy Spirit each day, remove the evil from your heart, change into a heart of truth, and long for the most beautiful place in Heaven, New Jerusalem.
Memory Verse: John 3:5 (NASB)
“Truly, truly, I say to you, unless someone is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God.”
Reference Verse: Acts 2:38 (NASB)
“Repent, and each of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins; and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.”
Plus: What Is the Sanhedrin Council? The Sanhedrin Council, which Nicodemus belonged to, was the highest ruling body of the Jews. It worked like both a national assembly and a court in today’s terms. The number of members is described as 71 or 72 in some writings, but it is usually considered to have about 70 members. The high priest was the head of the council, and the members included priests, elders, and scribes.
