What does it mean to be born of water? | GotQuestions.org

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Hi there. Many others, like yourself, have asked, what does it mean to be born of water?

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Let's find out, shall we? You can discover this answer and more on gotquestions .org.

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In John 3, Jesus uses the phrase born of water in answer to Nicodemus' question about how to enter the kingdom of heaven, saying that he must be born again.

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Nicodemus questioned how such a thing could happen when he was a grown man. Jesus answered,

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Very, truly, I tell you, no one can enter the kingdom of God unless they are born of water and the

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Spirit. Being born of the Spirit is easily interpreted. Salvation involves a new life that only the

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Holy Spirit can produce. But there are a couple of different schools of thought on what

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Jesus meant when he said born of water. One perspective is that born of water refers to physical birth.

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Unborn babies float in fluid in the amniotic sac for nine months. When the time for birth arrives, the amniotic sac bursts, and the baby is born in a rush of water, entering the world as a new creature.

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This birth parallels being born of the Spirit, as a similar new birth occurs within our hearts.

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A person once born has physical life. A person twice born has eternal life.

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All the work is done by the mother during the birth process. So it is with spiritual birth.

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We are merely the recipients of God's grace. According to this view, Jesus was using a teaching technique, comparing a spiritual truth with a physical reality.

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Nicodemus did not understand spiritual birth, but he could understand physical birth. So that was where Jesus took him.

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The other perspective is that born of water refers to spiritual cleansing, and that Nicodemus would have naturally understood it that way.

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According to this view, born of water and born of Spirit are different ways of saying the same thing, one metaphorically and one literally.

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Jesus' words describe different aspects of the same spiritual birth. So, when

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Jesus told Nicodemus that he must be born of water, he was referring to his need for spiritual cleansing.

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An example in Ezekiel says, I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you will be clean.

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I will cleanse you from all your impurities. Nicodemus, a teacher of the law, would have been familiar with the concept of physical water and spiritual purification.

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The New Testament, as well, uses water as a figure of the new birth. Regeneration is called a washing, brought about by the

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Holy Spirit through the Word of God at the moment of salvation. Paul notes that Christians are spiritually washed, sanctified, justified in the name of the

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Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God. In conclusion, whichever perspective is correct, one thing is certain,

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Jesus was not teaching that one must be baptized in water to be saved. Baptism isn't mentioned in the context, nor did

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Jesus ever imply anything except having faith to inherit eternal life. The emphasis of Jesus' words is on repentance and spiritual renewal.

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Water baptism is not a requirement for salvation. Alright, that answers your question.

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What does it mean to be born of water? On our website, GotQuestions .org, you'll find an in -depth article with citations and resource suggestions.

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If this helped you as much as it did others, like this video and subscribe to the GotQuestions channel. Meanwhile, if you'd like to study more, as always, just keep asking.