Born Twice
By Barry Adams
John 3:1-9
1 Now there was a Pharisee, a man named Nicodemus who was a member of the Jewish ruling council. 2 He came to Jesus at night and said, “Rabbi, we know that you are a teacher who has come from God. For no one could perform the signs you are doing if God were not with him.” 3 Jesus replied, “Very truly I tell you, no one can see the kingdom of God unless they are born again.” 4 “How can someone be born when they are old?” Nicodemus asked. “Surely they cannot enter a second time into their mother’s womb to be born!” 5 Jesus answered, “Very truly I tell you, no one can enter the kingdom of God unless they are born of water and the Spirit. 6 Flesh gives birth to flesh, but the Spirit gives birth to spirit. 7 You should not be surprised at my saying, ‘You must be born again.’ 8 The wind blows wherever it pleases. You hear its sound, but you cannot tell where it comes from or where it is going. So it is with everyone born of the Spirit.” NIV
1 Now there was a Pharisee, a man named Nicodemus who was a member of the Jewish ruling council. 2 He came to Jesus at night and said, “Rabbi, we know that you are a teacher who has come from God. For no one could perform the signs you are doing if God were not with him.” 3 Jesus replied, “Very truly I tell you, no one can see the kingdom of God unless they are born again.” 4 “How can someone be born when they are old?” Nicodemus asked. “Surely they cannot enter a second time into their mother’s womb to be born!” 5 Jesus answered, “Very truly I tell you, no one can enter the kingdom of God unless they are born of water and the Spirit. 6 Flesh gives birth to flesh, but the Spirit gives birth to spirit. 7 You should not be surprised at my saying, ‘You must be born again.’ 8 The wind blows wherever it pleases. You hear its sound, but you cannot tell where it comes from or where it is going. So it is with everyone born of the Spirit.” NIV
The overarching theme of the Bible is that God fathered the human race so that we would all be an extension of His family. We first read about this in the Genesis account where Father, Son & Spirit created both male and female in their own image with the intent that Adam and Eve would multiply and have dominion over the earth. (Genesis 1:26-28).
There are many references in the Old Testament that reinforce God's Fatherheart for unredeemed humanity expressed in His heart for Israel (Isaiah 64:8, Isaiah 63:16, Deuteronomy 1:31, Deuteronomy 32:6, Jeremiah 3:19-20). We can also read of God's intimate involvement in our creation throughout the book of Psalms, especially Psalm 139.
King David writes about God's intimate knowledge of him, God's abiding presence in his life, and how God formed him in his mother's womb. These are just a few of the references that refer to God's fathering role in our creation in this very descriptive psalm. David also describes God as a father to the fatherless in Psalm 68:5, and He compares God to a compassionate, loving father in Psalm 103:13-14. And there are many other references to God's loving care of humanity that are too many to reference here.
And then we come to the New Testament, where Jesus introduces God by one name and one name only... And that is the name, Father. Not only did Jesus refer to God as His Father (John 5:18), but He taught His disciples to pray using the words... 'Our Father in heaven' (Matthew 6:9-13)
He even told His listeners, to pray in secret to your Father because your Father knows what you need before you even asked for it (Matthew 6:6-8). Jesus also reminded them that if their Heavenly Father feeds the birds of the air, how much more will He look after them (Matthew 6:25-32). And Jesus goes on to clearly tell his disciples to not even call anyone on earth 'father', because they had one Father in heaven (Matthew 23:9).
If we realize that all these references to God being a Father were still in the Old Covenant (because Jesus had not yet died and rose again), this means God has always had a father's heart for us even before our conversion. While this is biblically clear, for some reason, the idea of God fathering the human race seems to be controversial in some Christian circles.
It is as if we are afraid to acknowledge God's fathering of humanity in case it negates our need for salvation. But my question is, if our creation didn't originate in the heart of God, where did we come from? 1 Corinthians 8:6 clearly states that everything created, originated in both the Father and the Son... But for us, There is one God, the Father, by whom all things were created, and for whom we live. And there is one Lord, Jesus Christ, through whom all things were created, and through whom we live. NLT
So what is so controversial about declaring God's fatherhood of the human race? I think some well meaning believers are concerned that this idea leads to a theology that says, since we are all God's children already, there is no need for a spiritual renewal of the human heart. But that is not what Jesus said (even though He referred to God as being our Father many times in the gospels).
In John 3, Jesus is having a conversation with one of Israel's spiritual leaders (Nicodemus) and Jesus tells this Pharisee of the need of a person to be 'born again' in order to see the Kingdom of God. (John 3:3) Nicodemus immediately tries to understand this through a grid of a second physical birth when Jesus replies in John 3:5... 5 Jesus answered, “Very truly I tell you, no one can enter the kingdom of God unless they are born of water and the Spirit. 6 Flesh gives birth to flesh, but the Spirit gives birth to spirit. NIV
In essence, Jesus was saying every person on planet earth needs to be born twice. Once in the natural (born by water) and once in the spiritual (born of the Spirit). If we understand that the genesis of both of our births come from our Heavenly Father, then there is no theological conflict to declaring... There is one God and Father of us all!
In Acts 17:16-34, the Apostle Paul shares the good news with a bunch of pagan philosophers on Mars Hill when he makes the genetic connection between their origin and God when he says... As your own poets have said, 'We are his offspring' (Acts 17:28). This statement further reinforces God's fathering of the human race but it clearly denotes the difference between being God's offspring through creation and His children/heirs through redemption.
The word for offspring is 'genos' means born, country(-man), diversity, generation, kind(-red), nation, offspring, stock. It is a word that can describe things that have a similarity (kind) and it can describe someone who is generationally linked to another person. It is a more technical term to describe our connection to God by virtue of our creation.
I like how The Passion Translation Bible communicates this idea of all of us having our lineage traced back to God in the way TPT translates Acts 17:28-29...
28 It is through him that we live and function and have our identity; just as your own poets have said, ‘Our lineage comes from him.’ 29 “Since our lineage can be traced back to God, how could we even think that the divine image could be compared to something made of gold, silver, or stone, sculpted by man’s artwork and clever imagination?
It is interesting to note that there is a different Greek word used to describe those who are children of God and have been born again. John 1:11-13 says... 11 He came to that which was his own, but his own did not receive him. 12 Yet to all who did receive him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children (teknon) of God-- 13 children (teknon) born not of natural descent, nor of human decision or a husband’s will, but born of God. NIV
The Greek word that John describes here for the word 'children' is the word 'teknon' which means a child (as produced): — child, daughter, son. It also describes an intimate and reciprocal relationship formed by the bonds of love. This word is used most often, especially in the writings of the Apostle John to describe our familial relationship to God as His children.
For example in 1 John 3:1... See what great love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children (teknon) of God! And that is what we are! The reason the world does not know us is that it did not know him. NIV
When we begin to understand that both our natural birth and our spiritual birth are necessary for us to see the fulfillment of God's dream for His family (Ephesians 1:3-6), we have no problem declaring from the housetops God's fatherhood and His great love for the entire human race!
John 20:17
Jesus said, “Do not hold on to me, for I have not yet ascended to the Father. Go instead to my brothers and tell them, ‘I am ascending to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.’” NIV
There are many references in the Old Testament that reinforce God's Fatherheart for unredeemed humanity expressed in His heart for Israel (Isaiah 64:8, Isaiah 63:16, Deuteronomy 1:31, Deuteronomy 32:6, Jeremiah 3:19-20). We can also read of God's intimate involvement in our creation throughout the book of Psalms, especially Psalm 139.
King David writes about God's intimate knowledge of him, God's abiding presence in his life, and how God formed him in his mother's womb. These are just a few of the references that refer to God's fathering role in our creation in this very descriptive psalm. David also describes God as a father to the fatherless in Psalm 68:5, and He compares God to a compassionate, loving father in Psalm 103:13-14. And there are many other references to God's loving care of humanity that are too many to reference here.
And then we come to the New Testament, where Jesus introduces God by one name and one name only... And that is the name, Father. Not only did Jesus refer to God as His Father (John 5:18), but He taught His disciples to pray using the words... 'Our Father in heaven' (Matthew 6:9-13)
He even told His listeners, to pray in secret to your Father because your Father knows what you need before you even asked for it (Matthew 6:6-8). Jesus also reminded them that if their Heavenly Father feeds the birds of the air, how much more will He look after them (Matthew 6:25-32). And Jesus goes on to clearly tell his disciples to not even call anyone on earth 'father', because they had one Father in heaven (Matthew 23:9).
If we realize that all these references to God being a Father were still in the Old Covenant (because Jesus had not yet died and rose again), this means God has always had a father's heart for us even before our conversion. While this is biblically clear, for some reason, the idea of God fathering the human race seems to be controversial in some Christian circles.
It is as if we are afraid to acknowledge God's fathering of humanity in case it negates our need for salvation. But my question is, if our creation didn't originate in the heart of God, where did we come from? 1 Corinthians 8:6 clearly states that everything created, originated in both the Father and the Son... But for us, There is one God, the Father, by whom all things were created, and for whom we live. And there is one Lord, Jesus Christ, through whom all things were created, and through whom we live. NLT
So what is so controversial about declaring God's fatherhood of the human race? I think some well meaning believers are concerned that this idea leads to a theology that says, since we are all God's children already, there is no need for a spiritual renewal of the human heart. But that is not what Jesus said (even though He referred to God as being our Father many times in the gospels).
In John 3, Jesus is having a conversation with one of Israel's spiritual leaders (Nicodemus) and Jesus tells this Pharisee of the need of a person to be 'born again' in order to see the Kingdom of God. (John 3:3) Nicodemus immediately tries to understand this through a grid of a second physical birth when Jesus replies in John 3:5... 5 Jesus answered, “Very truly I tell you, no one can enter the kingdom of God unless they are born of water and the Spirit. 6 Flesh gives birth to flesh, but the Spirit gives birth to spirit. NIV
In essence, Jesus was saying every person on planet earth needs to be born twice. Once in the natural (born by water) and once in the spiritual (born of the Spirit). If we understand that the genesis of both of our births come from our Heavenly Father, then there is no theological conflict to declaring... There is one God and Father of us all!
In Acts 17:16-34, the Apostle Paul shares the good news with a bunch of pagan philosophers on Mars Hill when he makes the genetic connection between their origin and God when he says... As your own poets have said, 'We are his offspring' (Acts 17:28). This statement further reinforces God's fathering of the human race but it clearly denotes the difference between being God's offspring through creation and His children/heirs through redemption.
The word for offspring is 'genos' means born, country(-man), diversity, generation, kind(-red), nation, offspring, stock. It is a word that can describe things that have a similarity (kind) and it can describe someone who is generationally linked to another person. It is a more technical term to describe our connection to God by virtue of our creation.
I like how The Passion Translation Bible communicates this idea of all of us having our lineage traced back to God in the way TPT translates Acts 17:28-29...
28 It is through him that we live and function and have our identity; just as your own poets have said, ‘Our lineage comes from him.’ 29 “Since our lineage can be traced back to God, how could we even think that the divine image could be compared to something made of gold, silver, or stone, sculpted by man’s artwork and clever imagination?
It is interesting to note that there is a different Greek word used to describe those who are children of God and have been born again. John 1:11-13 says... 11 He came to that which was his own, but his own did not receive him. 12 Yet to all who did receive him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children (teknon) of God-- 13 children (teknon) born not of natural descent, nor of human decision or a husband’s will, but born of God. NIV
The Greek word that John describes here for the word 'children' is the word 'teknon' which means a child (as produced): — child, daughter, son. It also describes an intimate and reciprocal relationship formed by the bonds of love. This word is used most often, especially in the writings of the Apostle John to describe our familial relationship to God as His children.
For example in 1 John 3:1... See what great love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children (teknon) of God! And that is what we are! The reason the world does not know us is that it did not know him. NIV
When we begin to understand that both our natural birth and our spiritual birth are necessary for us to see the fulfillment of God's dream for His family (Ephesians 1:3-6), we have no problem declaring from the housetops God's fatherhood and His great love for the entire human race!
John 20:17
Jesus said, “Do not hold on to me, for I have not yet ascended to the Father. Go instead to my brothers and tell them, ‘I am ascending to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.’” NIV