Regeneration

Why did Jesus tell a religious leader he had to be "born again"?

In this study of John 3, Dr. Toby Holt considers Nicodemus, a respected teacher of Israel who came to Jesus by night and was told, to his confusion, "You must be born again." Dr. Holt unfolds the doctrine of regeneration: fallen man enters the world with corrupt "default settings" — a nature of the flesh that cannot receive the things of God. The new birth, therefore, is not self-improvement but a sovereign work of God's Spirit — being born from above. No one climbs to God by his own effort; the only "ladder" is the Son, given because "God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son." Regeneration precedes and produces faith, and it is indispensable to salvation.

Questions this study answers:

1. What does "born again" mean? It refers to regeneration — a spiritual rebirth worked by the Holy Spirit — not a physical birth or a self-generated moral change.

2. Why must we be born again? Because by nature we are dead in sin and cannot see or enter the kingdom of God apart from this new birth from above.

3. Who accomplishes the new birth? God does, by His Spirit. It is a gift of grace received through faith in Christ, never a work we achieve for ourselves.

"That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. Do not marvel that I said to you, 'You must be born again.'" — John 3:6-7 (NKJV)

Speaker: Dr. Toby Holt is the President of New Geneva Theological Seminary, a Reformed seminary in Colorado Springs. He is known for clear, down-to-earth Bible teaching, and his sermons have been downloaded more than 1.9 million times on SermonAudio. Listen and go deeper: This study is part of New Geneva Theological Seminary's teaching on systematic theology and the great doctrines of the Christian faith. Find more verse-by-verse teaching across the Bible at newgeneva.org. To support this teaching ministry, visit newgeneva.org/give.