How to be born again according to the Bible
“Born again” is one of the best-known expressions in Christianity, but also one of the most misunderstood. Some associate it with a particular religious group, others with an intense emotion, and others think it means starting over through their own effort. Yet the expression comes from the lips of Jesus, and it describes something no human being can produce: a new life that God gives through his Spirit. In this article we will look at what Jesus told Nicodemus, what it means to be born again, why we need it, how it happens according to the Bible, what signs the new life shows and how to grow in it. At the end you will find a prayer for giving your life to Christ.
Jesus and Nicodemus
Nicodemus was a Pharisee, a teacher of the law and a member of the Jewish council. He was a religious, moral and respected man. One night he came to see Jesus, perhaps out of curiosity or for fear of what others would say, and acknowledged him as a teacher come from God. Jesus answered with a statement that baffled him:
“Jesus answered and said unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.”
John 3:3
Nicodemus asked how an old man could be born again. Could he enter his mother’s womb a second time? Jesus explained that he was not speaking of physical birth but of spiritual birth: “Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God. That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit” (John 3:5-6). The Greek expression can also be translated “born from above”: a birth that comes from God.
What is surprising is to whom Jesus said this. Not to a criminal, but to one of the most religious men of his day. The new birth is not only for “great sinners”; we all need it. Religion, morality and knowledge are not enough to enter the kingdom of God.
Why do we need to be born again?
The Bible teaches that sin separated us from God and left human beings spiritually dead: “you… were dead in trespasses and sins” (Ephesians 2:1). A dead person cannot raise himself. We don’t just need to improve a little; we need to receive a new life. That is why Paul writes: “For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23). Read I am a sinner: will God accept me? and Filthy rags.
A new heart
Centuries before Jesus, God had already promised this inner transformation through the prophet Ezekiel:
“A new heart also will I give you, and a new spirit will I put within you: and I will take away the stony heart out of your flesh, and I will give you an heart of flesh. And I will put my spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statutes, and ye shall keep my judgments, and do them.”
Ezekiel 36:26-27
Being born again is receiving that new heart. It is not an outward reform, but a work of God in our deepest being. The Holy Spirit comes to dwell in us and gives us new desires and a new ability to love and obey. Paul sums it up: “Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new” (2 Corinthians 5:17).
It is God’s work, not ours
No one decides to be born physically; in the same way, the new birth is a gift from God. John writes that to those who received Christ, “even to them that believe on his name”, God gave power to become children of God, and he adds that they “were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God” (John 1:12-13). Paul insists that salvation is by grace:
“For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast.”
Ephesians 2:8-9
And Titus adds that God “saved us, not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to his mercy… by the washing of regeneration, and renewing of the Holy Ghost” (Titus 3:5). We cannot earn the new birth through good works, rituals or effort; we receive it through faith in Jesus Christ.
How is one born again?
Although it is God’s work, the Bible shows us how to respond to his invitation. Jesus explained the way to Nicodemus in the best-known verse in the Bible:
“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.”
John 3:16
Recognise our need. Honestly admit that we are sinners and cannot save ourselves. Repent. Repentance is a change of mind and direction: “Repent ye therefore, and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out” (Acts 3:19). Believe in Jesus Christ. Trust that he died for our sins and rose again. “That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved” (Romans 10:9). Receive him. Open the door of the heart to him as Lord and Saviour (John 1:12; Revelation 3:20). Follow him. The new birth is the beginning of a life of discipleship. Read Have you given your life to Christ?.
Baptism and the different traditions
Jesus spoke of being born “of water and of the Spirit”, and the Bible closely links the new birth with baptism (Acts 2:38; Titus 3:5). Christians understand this relationship in different ways. The Catholic and Orthodox churches and some Protestant churches, such as the Lutheran, teach that in baptism God works regeneration, in children too, and that this grace must be received and lived out in faith throughout life. Many evangelical churches teach that the new birth takes place when a person personally repents and believes in Christ, and that baptism is the public testimony of that new life. Beyond the differences, all agree that the new birth is the work of the Holy Spirit, that it is received through faith in Christ and that it must show itself in a transformed life. Read Baptism and Ecumenism.
Examples of lives born again
Zacchaeus, the chief tax collector, welcomed Jesus into his home and his life changed at once: he repaid fourfold what he had stolen and gave half his goods to the poor. Jesus said: “This day is salvation come to this house” (Luke 19:9). Saul of Tarsus, persecutor of the Church, met the risen Christ on the road to Damascus and became the apostle Paul (Acts 9). The Samaritan woman, marked by a difficult past, found living water in Jesus and ran to tell her town (John 4). The Philippian jailer asked: “Sirs, what must I do to be saved?”, and Paul answered: “Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved, and thy house” (Acts 16:30-31). And Nicodemus too, who at the end appears courageously beside Joseph of Arimathea to bury Jesus’ body (John 19:39).
Signs of the new life
The new birth is not always accompanied by intense emotions, but it does produce changes. The first letter of John describes some signs: love for fellow believers (“We know that we have passed from death unto life, because we love the brethren”, 1 John 3:14); a desire to obey God (1 John 2:3); confessing Jesus as the Son of God (1 John 4:15); struggling against sin rather than living comfortably in it (1 John 3:9); the fruit of the Spirit: love, joy, peace, patience, goodness (Galatians 5:22-23). It is not about immediate perfection, but a new direction.
How to grow after being born again
Every newborn needs food and care. Peter writes: “As newborn babes, desire the sincere milk of the word, that ye may grow thereby” (1 Peter 2:2). Read the Bible every day, starting with the Gospel of John or Mark. Pray simply. Find a church where you can grow in community. Be baptised according to your church’s teaching, if you have not been. Tell others. Be patient: spiritual growth takes time. Read Spiritual growth.
A prayer to be born again
Lord Jesus, I come like Nicodemus, by night, with more questions than certainties. I have tried to be a good person and inside I am still the same: tired, empty, carrying things I am not proud of. I do not need repairing; I need to be born again. And that I cannot do myself. I acknowledge that I have sinned and that I cannot save myself. I believe you are the Son of God, that you loved me to the point of dying on a cross for me and that you are alive. Today I stop running. I open the door to you: come in, stay, be my Lord. Come, Holy Spirit, wind of God, and breathe on me as you breathed on the clay at the beginning. Take away my heart of stone and give me a heart of flesh. Cause me to be born from above. I begin again, small, like a child, in your arms. Thank you for receiving me just as I am. I am yours from today and for ever. Amen.
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