Our sin-state is the reason Jesus came among us. Only one without a sin nature could expunge sin from humans. That left only God Himself. In His love for humanity, He sent His only begotten Son Jesus, "Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be used to His own advantage; rather, He made himself nothing by taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. And being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to death—even death on a cross" (Philippians 2:6-8)!
But although Jesus took on human form, He was not born through the union of a man and a woman as all other humans are born. Instead, He was conceived by the Holy Spirit, and born of a virgin. Many people find this unbelievable, but it is an amazingly perfect plan designed by an amazingly limitless God.
We have already seen that "sin entered the world through one man and death through sin" (Romans 5:12). So God designed a birth plan that would enable His Son to take on full humanity without "inheriting" the sin nature that would come through man.
Even back in Eden, when Adam and Eve first disobeyed God, the promise was for a deliverer to come through the woman, and not the man. To the deceiver, God made this pronouncement: "And I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and hers; He will crush your head, and you will strike His heel” (Genesis 3:15).
In God's flawless plan to rescue humanity, Jesus was born without sin, fully God, and fully man. He, and He alone, could reconcile humans to God by offering them a new nature.
That is what Jesus meant when he taught Nicodemus, “Very truly I tell you, no one can see the kingdom of God unless they are born again” (John 3:3). This much-maligned phrase is often misunderstood by even many who profess it. Jesus was explaining that no one can enter the kingdom of God in the natural state of sin inherited at birth. Period. No matter what we do or refrain from doing. No matter what religion we have. No matter what spiritual rites we practice.
A new birth by the Spirit is needed, Jesus explained. “Flesh gives birth to flesh, but the Spirit gives birth to spirit. You should not be surprised at My saying, ‘You must be born again’” (John 3:6-7). Jesus, the only human born of Spirit, was, and is alone qualified to offer new birth. He offered this on the cross when he willingly laid down His life to rid us of our sinful nature.
The apostle Paul shows how this happened through the crucifixion, “For we know that our old self was crucified with [Jesus] so that the body ruled by sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves to sin—because anyone who has died has been set free from sin” (Romans 6:6-7).
But the crucifixion cannot be viewed except in light of the resurrection. Jesus was not a helpless victim who suffered the same capital punishment as many in the Roman Justice System. He said in John 10:18, “No one takes [my life] from me, but I lay it down of my own accord. I have authority to lay it down and authority to take it up again.”
The crucifixion gave way to the resurrection, and the culmination of God's rescue plan. It was through the resurrection that Christ triumphed over sin and death, and restored spiritual life to humans through a new nature.
The apostle Paul explains, “If Christ has not been raised [from the dead], your faith is futile; you are still in your sins. But Christ has indeed been raised from the dead…For since death came through a man, the resurrection of the dead comes also through a man. For as in Adam all die, so in Christ all will be made alive” (1 Corinthians 15: 17, 20-22).
Through the cross, Jesus made possible the rebirth He described to Nicodemus. The apostle Paul continued to explain in his second letter to the Corinthian Christians, “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here” (2 Corinthians 5:17)!
