Recently, I was thinking about one of Jesus' conversations.
Jesus answered and said to him, “Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.” (John 3:3)
Nicodemus is justifiably confused, so he asks, and gets a... sort of explanation, of what Jesus means.
My thoughts took a different turn than Nicodemus's this time around. I've heard many a sermon and spent many a day thinking on what it means to be "born again," but that isn't what I thought of this time. Instead, I reasoned that God doesn't do things that are incomplete. God doesn't need to be educated on basic biology, He knows that birth is not the beginning of life.
If God doesn't do things that are incomplete, is there more to this analogy than comes out in their middle-of-the-night conversation?
If birth is the beginning of a new Christian's life, then what is conception? When is conception? Does the 9-month timeline, or the 3 trimesters, have any reflection in "spiritual pregnancy?"
I don't have answers to all of these questions, although I imagine God does. In the Old Testament, the analogy of "a woman in birth pangs," is used quite frequently. Usually the idea is that someone is going through something terrible and hard, but eventually it will end, and the result will make the difficult process worth it.
Be in pain, and labor to bring forth, O daughter of Zion, like a woman in birth pangs. For now you shall go forth from the city, you shall dwell in the field, and to Babylon you shall go. There you shall be delivered; There the Lord will redeem you from the hand of your enemies. (Micah 4:10)
A woman, when she is in labor, has sorrow because her hour has come; but as soon as she has given birth to the child, she no longer remembers the anguish, for joy that a human being has been born into the world. Therefore you now have sorrow; but I will see you again and your heart will rejoice, and your joy no one will take from you. (John 16:21-22)
The birth analogy is not new to the Jesus' mid-night conversation, although He approaches it from a different angle. If we examine both angles together, we see that the deliverance that is always either explicit or implicit in labour analogies, has a final fulfillment in Christ. Nicodemus, being a Pharisee well versed in the scriptures, would likely have recognized the connotation of "rebirth" right away.
Therefore I will wail and howl, I will go stripped and naked; I will make a wailing like the jackals and a mourning like the ostriches, for her wounds are incurable. For it has come to Judah; It has come to the gate of My people—To Jerusalem. (Micah 1:8-9)
Throughout the bible, God shows His grief over sin, and not just because He is offended, but because He is grieved for the sinner. I mention this because if there is a "spiritual pregnancy" resulting is "rebirth," then God is the one carrying the child, and God is the one who experiences the "birth pangs."
And Jesus said to him, “Today salvation has come to this house, because he also is a son of Abraham; for the Son of Man has come to seek and to save that which was lost.” (Luke 19:9-10)
Jesus comes and shows that the pain of grief was not in vain, but like a difficult labour, it will eventually end, and new life will be the result. Jesus says that He came to "seek" and to "save that which was lost."
The seeking is the painful part, the saving is the joyful part. So it would seem to follow that the seeking is the pregnancy, and the saving is the birth.
This has a few connotations which I think are cool. Firstly, after a child is born, she is largely cared for by her mother, but she may be passed off to others around, to help. As the body of Christ, we can take the baby and help care for her. But before the child is born, she cannot be passed off to anyone else, the mother is the only one who can care for her. In a way, it's a relief for us, because it shows that God is the one responsible for that person's salvation, we don't have to try to bring it about.
...being confident of this very thing, that He who has begun a good work in you (conception?) will complete it until the day of Jesus Christ; (Philippians 1:6 - my note added)
That being said, we are also "the body of Christ," and unlike in an actual pregnancy, this person is visible to all of us, among us all the time. So if we are not the ones responsible for their salvation, what is our responsibility to this "pre-born Christian?"
Let's start with this question, What does a pre-born child need for a healthy pregnancy? The proper nutrition, and the proper environment.
In Matthew 5, Jesus says,
“You are the salt of the earth; but if the salt loses its flavor, how shall it be seasoned? It is then good for nothing but to be thrown out and trampled underfoot by men. “You are the light of the world. A city that is set on a hill cannot be hidden. Nor do they light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a lampstand, and it gives light to all who are in the house. Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven. (Matthew 5:13-16)
We are called to be "salt and light." Salt is a nutrient, and light is a part of an environment. Salt is a preservative, it makes you thirsty, and it helps to retain water. Spiritually, this is an easy parallel to draw, since the One Who brings salvation gives "Living water." (I'm not going to get into what Light is all about, Matthew 5 did a pretty good job of summarizing.)
So it seems to me, that just as natural birth is a complicated, but beautiful process, so is spiritual birth.
Conception, in both cases, is God's work. Natural pregnancy is a time in which the child is prepared for birth, and nutrition and environment are essential to the health of the child; Spiritual pregnancy is a time in which God is seeking and preparing His child for rebirth, and we, as nutrition and environment, are essential to the spiritual health of the new child of God.
Both kinds of "pregnancies" can be very painful for the one carrying the child, but the end result is worth the hardship.
“Can a woman forget her nursing child, and not have compassion on the son of her womb? Surely they may forget, yet I will not forget you. (Isaiah 49:15)
