Birth, Seeds, and Life Again

I was thinking about being born again. And also about just being born at all.

Jesus told Nicodemus in their famous nighttime conversation that he must be born again (John 3:1–21). David said that he was born in sin and iniquity in Psalm 51, reflecting on his sin with the wife of Uriah. 

We are born through a process of growth starting with deep darkness. Afterall, we couldn't use our eyes until we were about 20 weeks old. Our human journey started with us being as insignificant and weak as only a few cells. God is incredibly, undeniably creative and loves starting great projects in seed form (1 Corinthians 15:35–44).

Healthy seeds always end up as plants far more fascinating than the dark packages they initially inhabit. God’s word often uses seed metaphor as well. Growth in Christ produces results much more beautiful than the small seedy beginnings. The Apostle Peter even says that we've "been born again, not of perishable seed but imperishable" (1 Peter 1:23).

While we as adults can't imagine living in total darkness, unborn children actually have to grow accustomed to light and sound (and everything else) a bit at a time.

We (people reading this) have been born once. Tragically, many children did not and do not have that opportunity. But we all need to be born again.

When the scripture says that we see dimly, it must be similar to unborn babies who only see light dimly and indirectly through the womb when eyes develop. It must be similar to babies only hearing muffled conversations from their mothers and the people around them.

While our second birth is at conversion, our new person has replaced the old, like Paul we groan to be further clothed. We long to let what is mortal now be fully swallowed up by life (2 Corinthians 5:4).

We long for a complete experience of the second birth we’ve received through faith in Jesus. If our fully realized God-given life is anything like a baby growing into an adult, we have a whole lot to look forward to as we grow up in Christ, again.