When Jesus talked with Nicodemus about the new birth. Jesus gave the reason why a person must be born again and how to be born again. Although Nicodemus was a Pharisee, a scholar and teacher in the scriptures and a ruler, a master of Israel, Nicodemus was still the old man, which means Nicodemus was carnal. He had a deep understanding of the scriptures, but Nicodemus didn’t understand what Jesus meant by becoming born again and how a person be born again?
Respondió Jesús y le dijo, En verdad, en verdad, te digo, Excepto que un hombre nazca de nuevo, no puede ver el reino de Dios. Nicodemus saith unto him, ¿Cómo puede nacer un hombre siendo viejo?? ¿Podrá entrar por segunda vez en el vientre de su madre?, y nacer? Jesús respondió, En verdad, en verdad, te digo, El que no nace de agua y del Espíritu, no puede entrar en el reino de Dios. Lo que nace de la carne, carne es.; y lo que es nacido del Espíritu es espíritu (John 3:3-6)
What does regeneration mean?
Regeneration means: (espiritual) renacimiento (el estado o el acto), eso es, (figuradamente) renovación espiritual; restauración específicamente mesiánica: – regeneración (G 3824 paliggénesis)
You will not entrar al reino de dios by your own works, but you can only enter by the work of Jesus Christ and through the process of regeneration.
No por obras de justicia que hayamos hecho, pero según su misericordia nos salvó, por el lavado de la regeneración, y renovación del Espíritu Santo; El cual derramó sobre nosotros abundantemente por medio de Jesucristo nuestro Salvador. (Tito 3:5-6)
Regeneration or being born again does not mean a reformation of lifestyle, nor does it stop with sorrow for sin, nor by becoming religious or by attending church, church membership, humanitarian works etc.
Someone can be a good person according to the world; a humanist and a faithful member of the church, doing good (charity) obras, knowing all the scriptures in the Bible and still be unregenerate.
Nicodemus is the perfect example of this.
Nicodemus was a religious man. He was serious about the things of God, pero Nicodemo no nació de nuevo. Nadie puede entrar al Reino de Dios por buenas obras, habilidades personales, effort or goodness.
How can a person be born again and enter the Kingdom of God?
Solo hay Un camino to enter the Kingdom of God and that is through the process of regeneration or in others words: by becoming born again. This process is the spiritual counterpart of the natural birth. No hay otra manera para pecadores to enter the Kingdom of God and be reconciled with God, then through regeneration.
When Nicodemus asked Jesus how a person can be born again, Jesus gave an illustration of the wind.
No man can really understand where the winds come from and the ways of the wind. But while we may not understand the wind, we feel the force of the wind.
It is the same with the new birth. No one is able to understand with the carnal mind how a person be born again, but we all experience the power of regeneration, when you become born again.
When Jesus spoke about the new birth and gave the illustration of the wind, Jesus expected Nicodemus to connect His words with the words of the prophet Ezekiel:
Then said he unto me, Profetiza al viento, profetizar, Hijo de hombre, y decirle al viento, Así dice el Señor Dios; Ven de los cuatro vientos, Oh aliento, y soplar sobre estos muertos, que puedan vivir. So I prophesied as he commanded me, y el aliento entró en ellos, y vivieron, y se pusieron de pie, un ejército extremadamente grande (Ezequiel 37:9,10)
The five components for the new birth?
- Fe
- Cleansing
- Resurrection
- Nueva creación
- Quickening
