Born of the Spirit is the description Jesus gave of the new birth
—
the sovereign, life-giving work of the Holy Spirit
by which a person is made spiritually alive and enters the kingdom of God.
That which is born of the flesh is flesh;
that which is born of the Spirit is spirit.
The Spirit’s work is mysterious, powerful, and free,
like the wind that blows where it wishes.
All who are born of the Spirit
become children of God,
receive a new heart,
and begin to walk according to the Spirit
rather than according to the flesh.
When Nicodemus struggled to understand the new birth, Jesus explained that it is a birth of water and the Spirit. Flesh can only produce flesh; only the Spirit can produce spiritual life. The new birth is therefore entirely the work of the Holy Spirit. He convicts, He regenerates, He gives the heart of flesh, and He comes to dwell within those who are born of Him. The same Spirit who hovered over the waters at creation, who raised Jesus from the dead, and who was poured out at Pentecost is the One who gives life to those who were dead in trespasses and sins. Being born of the Spirit is not a second blessing for a select few; it is the essential beginning of the Christian life for every believer. Those who are born of the Spirit are led by the Spirit, walk by the Spirit, and bear the fruit of the Spirit. The flesh profits nothing; it is the Spirit who gives life.
- Being born of the Spirit is the only way to enter the kingdom of God.
- The Spirit alone can produce spiritual life; the flesh is of no help at all.
- The work of the Spirit in the new birth is sovereign and mysterious, like the wind.
- Those born of the Spirit receive a new nature and the indwelling presence of the Spirit Himself.
- The new birth by the Spirit is the foundation for walking by the Spirit and bearing His fruit.
- All true believers are born of the Spirit; there is no Christian life apart from this birth.
- The same Spirit who gives life will also give life to our mortal bodies at the resurrection.
- Divine Agency – The Holy Spirit is the sole author of the new birth; human will and effort cannot produce it.
- Spiritual Life – The Spirit imparts life to those who were spiritually dead.
- New Nature – That which is born of the Spirit is spirit — a new creation with new desires and capacities.
- Mysterious Freedom – The Spirit blows where He wishes; His work cannot be controlled or predicted by human means.
- Indwelling Presence – Those born of the Spirit receive the Spirit Himself as the seal and guarantee of their inheritance.
- New Walk – Being born of the Spirit leads to walking by the Spirit and putting to death the deeds of the body.
- Resurrection Hope – The Spirit who gives life now will also raise the body at the last day.
- John 3:5-8 – “Jesus answered, ‘Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God. 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.” The wind blows where it wishes, and you hear its sound, but you do not know where it comes from or where it goes. So it is with everyone who is born of the Spirit.’”
- John 6:63 – “It is the Spirit who gives life; the flesh is no help at all. The words that I have spoken to you are spirit and life.”
- Titus 3:5 – “…he saved us, not because of works done by us in righteousness, but according to his own mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewal of the Holy Spirit…”
- Ezekiel 36:26-27 – “And I will give you a new heart, and a new spirit I will put within you. And I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. And I will put my Spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statutes and be careful to obey my rules.”
- Romans 8:9-11, 14 – “You, however, are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if in fact the Spirit of God dwells in you. Anyone who does not have the Spirit of Christ does not belong to him… If the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, he who raised Christ Jesus from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through his Spirit who dwells in you… For all who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God.”
- Galatians 5:16, 25 – “But I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh… If we live by the Spirit, let us also keep in step with the Spirit.”
- 1 Corinthians 12:13 – “For in one Spirit we were all baptized into one body—Jews or Greeks, slaves or free—and all were made to drink of one Spirit.”
- John 1:12-13 – “But to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God, who were born, not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God.”
- 1 Peter 1:23 – “…since you have been born again, not of perishable seed but of imperishable, through the living and abiding word of God…”
- James 1:18 – “Of his own will he brought us forth by the word of truth, that we should be a kind of firstfruits of his creatures.”
- Ephesians 2:4-5 – “But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ—by grace you have been saved…”
- 2 Corinthians 3:6 – “…who has made us sufficient to be ministers of a new covenant, not of the letter but of the Spirit. For the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life.”
- Romans 8:15-16 – “For you did not receive the spirit of slavery to fall back into fear, but you have received the Spirit of adoption as sons, by whom we cry, ‘Abba! Father!’ The Spirit himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God.”
- 1 John 3:9 – “No one born of God makes a practice of sinning, for God’s seed abides in him; and he cannot keep on sinning, because he has been born of God.”
- 1 John 5:4 – “For everyone who has been born of God overcomes the world. And this is the victory that has overcome the world—our faith.”
- Galatians 4:6 – “And because you are sons, God has sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, crying, ‘Abba! Father!’”
- John 3:16 – “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.”
That which is born of the Spirit is spirit. The new birth is the Spirit’s own work — sovereign, life-giving, and free. The flesh can only produce flesh; only the Spirit can give life. Those who are born of the Spirit receive a new heart, the Spirit Himself as their indwelling Helper, and the power to walk in newness of life. The wind still blows where it wishes. The same Spirit who gave you life will lead you, strengthen you, and one day give life to your mortal body. Therefore do not trust the flesh. Depend on the Spirit. Walk by the Spirit. Keep in step with the Spirit. You have been born of the Spirit — now live as one who belongs to Him, crying “Abba, Father,” and bearing the fruit that only He can produce.
Entry compiled for the JESUSaves.com Bible Glossary. Optimized for wiki.js Visual Editor.