BORN OF WATER AND THE SPIRIT: WHAT DID JESUS MEAN?  by Calvin L. Smith

Jesus  answered and said to him, "Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one  is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God."  (Jn. 3:5, NASB).

Given  Jesus' strong and unequivocal statement ("he cannot enter the Kingdom  of heaven"), it is hardly surprising that these words have captured  so much attention over time. Yet for many, this passage remains a source  of controversy and confusion. Few of us have any difficulty understanding  what being born of the Spirit means. At the new birth, Christians are  regenerated and renewed by the Holy Spirit (Titus 3:5), baptised into  one body and made to drink of that same Spirit (1 Cor. 12:13), and finally,  sealed by Him (that is, the Spirit is God's mark that we belong to Him,  Eph. 1:13, 4:30). The giving of the Spirit is associated with sonship  (ie we received the Holy Spirit when we became sons and daughters of God,  Rom. 8:15, Gal. 4:6), and anyone without the Spirit of Christ does not  belong to Him (Rom. 8:9). Yet establishing the meaning of the phrase `born  of water' has proved somewhat more problematic. Let us examine briefly  some of the main interpretations of this phrase.

Some have taken water here to mean the sacrament  of baptism. Thus, it is argued that anyone not baptised cannot enter heaven,  a doctrine based on a misinterpretation of 1 Peter 3:21. Aside from the  grammatical basis for dismissing such an interpretation of this verse  (see any good commentary), one must also reject this doctrine on common-sense  grounds. Are we to believe any Christian who dies before having an opportunity  to be baptised is cast into hell by God? Must we baptise children at the  first available moment after birth in order to to ensure that, should  they die prematurely, they will go to heaven? Of course not. Such beliefs  hardly portray God as fair and just. Going back to Jesus' words in John  3:5, there is a link with baptism (see below), but Jesus was certainly  not ordaining that the sacrament of baptism was a necessary precursor  to salvation.

Several  commentators have suggested the words 'water and' in John 3:5 did not  appear in the original manuscript, and were instead added later by a redactor  in order to support the doctrine that baptism is an essential aspect of  salvation. However, there is no strong textual evidence for such an inclusion.  In fact, quite the reverse is true: the oldest and best manuscripts include  the reference to water.

Some  believe the water which Jesus refers to is amniotic fluid (ie the liquid  surrounding and protecting an unborn child while in its mother's womb).  Thus, Jesus was explaining to Nicodemus that one must be born of both  a woman and the Spirit, that is, one must be born spiritually as well  as naturally in order to be saved (cf. Jn. 3:4). Others have suggested  that the phrase Jesus employed in John 3:5 was an allegorical reference  to the fluid pouring from Christ's side when He was pierced with a lance  (cf. Ps. 22:14, Jn. 19:34). Yet others point to the rabbinic idea that  water, especially rain and dew, represented an allegorical reference to  (or type of) human seed, and therefore symbolised new life.

Several  of these views certainly help to shed some light on Jesus' words. For  example, converts to Judaism were regarded by rabbis as 'newborn,' which  correlates with the rabbinical idea of water symbolising new life. Interestingly,  the final act carried out by a proselyte before being accepted in Judaism  was to be baptised. Thus, the water symbolised a new life, a new beginning  within the context of Judaism. Meanwhile, the amniotic fluid surrounding  an unborn baby is also clearly linked with the idea of newness of life:  when a woman's waters 'break', it heralds the arrival a new life into  this world. Yet however interesting and valuable this insight may be,  it is also imperative that we examine Jesus' words in their original context,  if we are to understand fully what He was saying.

First,  consider briefly this narrative in relation to several others that appear  in John's gospel. Chapter 1 informs us of John the Baptist's ministry,  as well as alluding to Jesus' baptism. In chapter 3, immediately after  His conversation with Nicodemus, Jesus and His disciples themselves also  engage in the practice of baptising people (3:22). Note also that John  was still carrying out his baptismal ministry at this time (3:23), while  his disciples were indignant that more people were now seeking baptism  from Jesus than John (3:25-6). John's response is significant. He states:  He must increase, but I must decrease (3:27-30). In other words, 'His  ministry (His baptism) is more significant than mine'. (This becomes particularly  evident in the very next chapter, during Jesus' conversation with the  Samaritan woman at the well; here we learn it is Jesus, not John, who  gives the 'living water' that leads to eternal life, Jn. 4:10, 13-14).  The fact, then, that John 3:5 is sandwiched between these two very important  references to baptism is highly significant. The concept of baptism must,  in some way, help to explain what Jesus meant.

Next,  it should be noted that in the Bible water is very often symbolic of washing  and purification (eg. Lev. 22:6; Ps. 51:2,7; Ezek. 16:4,9; Heb. 10:22).  In fact, this is what baptism symbolises: that is, to be cleansed (of  sin), to be washed, or in other words, to bury the old and arise from  the baptismal waters in newness of life (Rom. 6:4). Note what Paul says  in Titus 3:5: "He saved us, not on the basis of deed which we have  done in righteousness, but according to His mercy, by the washing of regeneration  and renewing by the Holy Spirit." (NASB). John's baptism was symbolic:  it could not wash away sin. Yet through Jesus we receive living water,  a true baptism that successfully washes away sin, makes us pure and gives  us newness of life through His shed blood. This, in turn, paves the way  for us to be regenerated by the Holy Spirit (at the moment our sins are  washed away and we become sons and daughters of God, Rom. 8:9; Gal. 4:6).  Note the unity of all three - the water, the Spirit, and the blood - in  1 Jn. 5:6,8.

Thus,  in John 3:5 Jesus was not instructing people to be baptised in order to  be saved. Rather, He was stating the absolute necessity of what baptism  symbolically represents - being sprinkled clean - which is only available  through Christ's sacrifice at Calvary. Being born of water and the Spirit,  then, simply means to be sprinkled clean (ie for our sins to be washed  away through Christ) and regenerated by the Spirit (to be given new life).  Both are essential aspects of salvation.

Yet  the significance of Jesus' words in John 3:5 does not end there. In fact,  this concept of sprinkling and newness of life through the Spirit was  not a new one for the Jews. God had promised that one day he would sprinkle  clean His people Israel and put a new Spirit within them (Ez. 36:25-7  cf 18:31, Is. 44:1-3). Taken on its own, Ezekiel 36 might simply be understood  to be a promise for the returning exiles in Zerubbabel's day. Yet bearing  in mind the Jewish concept of multiple fulfilments of prophecy, this passage  finds its ultimate expression, or fulfilment, when all Israel shall be  saved (Rom. 11:25-7). Moreover, in Zechariah chapters 12 and 13 (which  are clearly eschatological in nature, and from a proper exegetical point-of-view  simply cannot be limited to some point in Israel's past), we see how one  day God will open a fountain to sprinkle clean the House of David (13:1),  and will pour out His Spirit upon them as they look upon Him whom they  pierced (12:10). Again, we see both water and the Spirit linked together.  Hence, though Paul explains how, for the time being, Israel has been blinded  in part for the sake of the Gentiles, nevertheless Israel also one day  will be sprinkled clean and receive God's Spirit, marking that time when  the house of House of David will also be brought in to the new covenant  (Jer. 31:31-4).

Perhaps  this blindness (or hardening) Paul refers to explains Jesus' comment in  John 3:10 ("Are you the teacher of Israel, and do not understand  these things?"). Nicodemus, an important religious scholar with an  intimate knowledge of his nation's religious history and theology, did  not understand the significance of these things. Yet in a twist of irony,  in the very next chapter we meet a Samaritan woman who, unlike Nicodemus,  is neither Jewish, a religious scholar or a pious person. Yet she immediately  recognises the living water Jesus has to offer and believes in him. Happily,  it would appear the veil was eventually lifted from Nicodemus' eyes, and  that he too became a follower of Christ (Jn. 19:39).

What  John 3:5 teaches us, then, is that salvation is a two-fold process: 1)  forgiveness (or sprinkling, cleansing) and, 2) regeneration. Notice also  how soteriology (the doctrine of salvation) is inextricably intertwinned  with Israel's place in history. Systematic theologians may well seek to  establish a theology of salvation which is independent of Israel. Yet  God used Israel as the vehicle for His salvific plan! For example, the  essence of Ezekiel 36-38 is to demonstrate God's salvific plan for the  entire world through His people Israel (see also Rom. 9:3-5). It is therefore  inconceivable that Israel herself should not be included in that salvation.  Through Israel, the Gentiles are saved, who in turn provoke the Jews to  jealousy, who in turn will one day turn back to God. No wonder, at the  end of his discussion of these things, Paul exclaims: "Oh, the depth  of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge God! How unsearchable are  His judgements and unfathomable His ways" (Rom. 11:33).

© 2002 Calvin L. Smith