The Need for Repentance

The nighttime conversation between Jesus and the Pharisee Nicodemus is a profound exploration of spiritual transformation. While the word “repentance” isn’t explicitly used here, Jesus describes its absolute necessity in terms so radical they shocked a religious leader: one must be born again.

1. Born Again Needed: The Heart of Repentance

Jesus’s declaration, “Unless one is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God” (John 3:3), defines the true need. Repentance is more than moral adjustment or regret; it is a complete spiritual rebirth. Just as our first birth was an event we did not control, this new birth is a work of God’s Spirit. It signifies a fundamental change in nature, identity, and direction. We cannot reform our old life; we need a new one. This is the starting point—recognizing our need for a transformation so total that only God can accomplish it.

2. God Loves the World: The Motive for Repentance

The famous verse John 3:16 finds its context in this conversation. “For God so loved the world…” The need for rebirth is not presented as a harsh demand from an angry God, but as the necessary remedy offered by a loving God. His love for a world in darkness is the motive behind His provision. Repentance becomes a response to overwhelming love, a turning toward the Father who is already running to meet us (Luke 15:20). We are not born again to earn love, but because of love.

3. Believe in Jesus: The Mechanism of Repentance

How does this rebirth happen? Jesus connects it directly to faith: “Whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life” (John 3:16). To believe in Jesus is to trust in His person and work—His crucifixion for our sin and His resurrection for our new life. This belief is the active acceptance of God’s remedy. Repentance (turning from sin) and faith (turning to Christ) are two sides of the same coin. We are reborn by placing our complete trust in Him, the one “lifted up” to save us.

4. Light and Darkness: The Context for Repentance

Nicodemus came by night, symbolizing spiritual darkness. Jesus later says, “Light has come into the world, but people loved darkness instead of light because their deeds were evil” (John 3:19). Repentance is moving from darkness to light. It involves an honest exposure of our lives to the truth of Christ. The new birth brings us into the light, where we live in truth and grace, no longer hiding but allowing God to remake every area of our lives.

Prayer

Heavenly Father,
You so loved the world that you gave your only Son.
I confess that I need the new birth Jesus spoke of.
I cannot save myself or reform my own heart.
I turn from the darkness of my self-reliance and sin,
and I believe in Jesus Christ as my Lord and Savior.
Breathe your Spirit upon me;create in me a new life.
Born of your Spirit,may I now live as a child of your light,
in truth,grace, and eternal love.
In Jesus’name, Amen.