"Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to His mercy He saved us, by the washing of regeneration, and the renewing of the Holy Ghost." (Titus 3:5)

Paul never uses the words "born again" as John does so often in his gospel and his epistles. Yet Paul does use two key words that are its equivalent; "regeneration" and "child" and which expand our understanding of what occurs when one is "born again."

The operative word for what occurs in the new birth - "regeneration." Mankind was created alive toward God but at the fall man became dead toward God. The great need for fallen was not only to have his sins forgiven by placing his faith in Christ as Savior, but also, and more to the greatest issue, was for believing men to be "regenerated" by simultaneously receiving "the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus" (Rom 8:2a).

The Pauline revelation leads us into glorious truths regarding both our position and experience as believers. Indeed, the new birth itself, as it takes place in the believer today, is directly related to the divine baptism by which Christ and the believer are made one.

"But he that is joined unto the Lord is one spirit." (1 Corinthians 6:17)

How was Christ made one with mankind? First, He was baptized into the human race. He did not merely come to dwell with men. He became man. How? By being born into the race. Was this by natural birth? No, by supernatural birth. He was begotten of the Holy Spirit of God the Father. But His baptism into the human race did not end with His birth and life on earth. So fully did He become one with man, that He even died man's death on the accursed tree. He was baptized into death (Luke 12:50) and, as we now know, into our death.

And it is there, at the Cross, that we become one with Him. The moment one looks in faith to Calvary's cross, acknowledging that: "Christ is no sinner; I am the sinner. Christ is dying my death," in that moment the believer becomes "one spirit" with Christ; The believer is baptized or placed into the crucified, risen Lord Himself (Rom. 6:3; Gal. 3:26-27) not only positionally, but experientially, by the Spirit. And thus a new life is begotten in that believer - Christ's very life.

Is this by another natural birth? No, its by a supernatural birth.

As some, even I at one time held that the Epistles of Paul don't teach the new birth, but this is an error. Paul uses the word "child" seven times in his thirteen epistles. Note that Paul's word for "child" is the Greek "teknon," generally translated simply "child" in our English Bibles. But it literally means a "born one." Paul uses this word with regard to our spiritual relationship to God, we are The Lord's literal children, birthed of His Spirit loins by His "Seed, which is Christ" (Gal 3:16b, cf. 1Pet 1:23). The word "seed" in the Greek is easily recognizable; it is "sperma." As we know, the "sperma" of a Father bears the very life and nature of that Father.

Thus, the Apostle Paul teaches us the very truth of the new birth by two terms.

1. Christ's life brings us new life by regeneration as seen here again in "Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to His mercy He saved us, by the washing of regeneration, and the renewing of the Holy Ghost." (Titus 3:5)
2. Then also Paul teaches us of the seeded life of the Father, by His "Seed, which Jesus Christ." Christ's "Spirit of life" as God's "Seed" indwell the human spirit of believers bearing to them the very life, nature, and spiritual DNA of the Godhead. They are the birthed "children of God."