Were Old Testament Believers Born Again
John 3:1-x
At present in that location was a homo of the Pharisees named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews. 2 This human being came to Jesus by dark and said to him, "Rabbi, we know that you are a teacher come from God, for no one can exercise these signs that yous do unless God is with him." 3 Jesus answered him, "Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is built-in again he cannot see the kingdom of God." four Nicodemus said to him, "How can a man exist born when he is old? Tin can he enter a second time into his mother's womb and be built-in?" 5 Jesus answered, "Truly, truly, I say to you, unless i is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God. half dozen That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. seven Exercise not marvel that I said to you, 'You must be born again.' 8 The current of air blows where it wishes, and yous hear its sound, merely yous do not know where information technology comes from or where information technology goes. Then it is with everyone who is born of the Spirit." 9 Nicodemus said to him, "How can these things be?" 10 Jesus answered him, "Are y'all the teacher of Israel and yet you lot do not understand these things?
One of the nearly hard problems in Bible interpretation is to understand how the New Testament uses the Old. I have in front of me a massive commentary called Commentary on the New Testament Utilize of the Quondam Testament edited past C.Yard. Beale and D.A. Carson. It is a great work which seeks to give answers about how New Testament writers used the Old Testament. Sometimes it is very difficult to determine how the Quondam Testament is being used in the New. When it comes to Christ'south rebuke of Nicodemus in John three, even the best of New Testament scholars are oft perplexed, wondering what Christ meant when he rebuked Nicodemus concerning his ignorance.
In the higher up passage, Christ is talking about the new birth. To brand things as elementary as I tin can, Christ tells Nicodemus that no one tin can enter God'south kingdom unless he has been born again. This idea of existence born once more can also hateful "built-in from above." Nicodemus, though desirous to go confronting the grain of Jewish leadership and follow Christ, is confused by Christ's education. He takes him quite literally believing that Christ is maxim that we must pass through the birth canal twice. He responds with what seems to be a valid question to Christ'southward disruptive and, seemingly, radical argument. "How tin can these things exist?"
Christ does not miss a beat in lowing the hammer on Nicodemus' ignorance. "Are you the instructor of State of israel and you don't know these things?" In other words, Nicodemus was the theology professor of the twenty-four hour period. He was a leader of the congregation of Israel. He was supposed to know these things! How could he lead without know this bones truth?
Concerning this John Calvin adds to the rebuke:
As Christ sees that he is spending his time and pains to no purpose in teaching so proud a homo, he begins to reprove him sharply. And certainly such persons volition never make whatsoever progress, until the wicked confidence, with which they are puffed up, be removed. . . Simply still Nicodemus, with all his magisterial haughtiness, exposes himself to ridicule by more than than childish hesitation about the first principles. Such hesitation, certainly, is base of operations and shameful. For what religion accept we, what knowledge of God, what dominion of living well, what hope of eternal life, if we do non believe that man is renewed past the Spirit of God? (Calvin's Commentaries: John 3:ten).
But how was Nicodemus supposed to know these things? Why does Christ come up downwards so hard on him? Was the new nascency taught in the Old Testament? If and then, where?
These are good questions. The get-go thing we may endeavour to do is find some parallel with such teaching explicitly taught in the One-time Testament. New Testament scholars have offered some possibilities:
Jeremiah 31:33
But this is the covenant that I will brand with the house of Israel after those days, declares the LORD: I will put my law within them, and I will write it on their hearts. And I will be their God, and they shall be my people. 34 And no longer shall each ane teach his neighbor and each his blood brother, proverb, 'Know the LORD,' for they shall all know me, from the least of them to the greatest, declares the LORD. For I will forgive their iniquity, and I will remember their sin no more." (Jer 31:33 ESV)
Ezekiel 11:19
And I volition give them 1 heart, and a new spirit I will put inside them. I will remove the center of rock from their mankind and give them a heart of flesh, 20 that they may walk in my statutes and keep my rules and obey them. And they shall be my people, and I will be their God. (Eze 11:19 ESV)
If, indeed, these are the passages that Christ was speaking of so the process of being "born once more/from higher up" would carry the connotation of a "new starting time" (Kostenberger, John, ECNT, 123). However, while I certainly see the redemptive theme present in both these passages, I don't meet the radical idea of existence "birthed" once more existence explicit enough to bring almost Christ's rebuke.
Other passages proposed by scholars include Isa. 29:10, Deut. 30:6, Ps. 51: 6, and Ps. 51:10. I even heard a message from a prominent Old Testament professor who linked this text to Psalm 87:4-7, believing that the new birth is explicitly alluded to in that location. However, I think it is a bit of a stretch to try to discover explicit reference to the new birth in any 1 Old Attestation passage. Nevertheless, I am non arguing against Jesus. Nicodemus should have known about the new birth. Nicodemus should not take been surprised. Every bit the "instructor of Israel" his hope and instruction should have been grounded here.
So where practice we find the new nascency in the Old Testament? I am glad y'all asked. While I don't believe that there is any one passage of Scripture nosotros can point to, I do believe there is a theological theme throughout the entire Erstwhile Testament that necessitates Christ'due south new nascence theology. It goes all the way back to the fall. The first time that death is mentioned in the Bible is in Gen. ii:17 where God warns Adam non to eat from the tree of knowledge: "But of the tree of the knowledge of practiced and evil you shall non eat, for in the day that you swallow of it you shall surely die." The consequence of eating the tree was death. Just ane chapter subsequently, Adam and Eve both ate from the tree, but they did not die. In fact, Adam lived 930 years! How is it that he died "the solar day" he ate of it?
Theologians have wrestled with this question for some time. It would seem that the all-time reply we tin can give is that decease entered into the homo condition on that day in ii means: 1) Man was forced out of the Garden and no longer had access to the tree of life (Gen. iii:22-23). In this sense, that 24-hour interval they were prevented from eternal life and therefore that 24-hour interval death began. 2) Most importantly for our purpose hither, the day they ate of the tree of life they died spiritually. Let me state the obvious: spiritual expiry is the opposite of spiritual life. Throughout the Scriptures humanity is shown to be in its natural condition spiritually dead. "And you lot were dead in your trespasses and sins," "But God . . . made us alive together in Christ" (Eph. 2:4). Since the spiritual decease of the kickoff human, Adam, every man ever built-in has been still-born spiritually. This is what theologians refer to every bit "imputed sin." Because of our connection with the sin and death of Adam, nosotros too have inherited sin and death (Rom. 5:17-xix).
Being built-in again is nothing less that a complete restoration of spiritual life. All of humanity was separated from God in Eden. Through the cantankerous that separation was bridged. In Adam nosotros have the imputation of sin and death. Through Christ nosotros accept the imputation of righteousness and life. We are either establish death in Adam or alive in Christ.
Nicodemus was rebuked not because in that location was a particular passage in the Old Testament that escaped his notice, only because he was unaware of humanities spiritual condition since Gen. 3. Nicodemus should have known that people must be born again in social club to inherit eternal life and enter the Kingdom precisely because he should have know that they were dead. The only promise for a dead man is resurrection. The merely hope for spiritually dead people is to be born again or "from higher up."
While Christ's rebuke of Nicodemus was harsh, it is nothing less than a rebuke for a failure to admit the utter helpless condition that all of humanity faces exterior of Christ. The new nascency was but every bit necessary for people in the Erstwhile Attestation is information technology is for all people.
If I am right and Christ's rebuke of Nicodemus is due to his theological ignorance, this should serve equally a stern warning for many of those out in that location who run across our identification with Adam every bit something that tin can be sacrificed. Imputed sin is the reason why we are expressionless. Our deadness is the reason why we demand to be born again. The sad thing is that I believe there are many prominent leaders in the church building today who would say to Christ "How can these things be?" due to their fail of the reality of humanities still-born condition.
Source: https://credohouse.org/blog/is-the-new-birth-in-the-old-testament-or-why-was-christ-so-hard-on-nicodemus-in-john-310
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