Regeneration, the spiritual rebirth initiated by the Holy Spirit, is a crucial aspect of Christian theology. According to Ephesians 2:1, mankind is spiritually dead in their trespasses and sins until given new life by God—that is Father, Son and Spirit. God’s gracious and unilateral act of regeneration signifies and results in a profound change, from spiritual death to new spiritual life, enabling a relationship with God.
Regeneration is a crucial aspect of Christian theology.
Below we’ll consider four metaphors that Paul applies to regeneration (Titus 3:5). Then we’ll ask if the same could be said of Old Testament believers, especially in light of them having the sacrificial system and law. Here we’ll also consider the relationship between election and faith. Finally, having shown that God’s work of regeneration encompasses Old and New Testament believers, I’ll conclude by showing that this continuity in God’s redemptive plan across history is in keeping with his character.
Four Images of Regeneration
1. New Birth
Jesus told Nicodemus he must be “born again” (John 3:3), an image portraying the beginning of spiritual life. While transformation is in view, spiritual birth is nothing less than life from nothing (Galatians 4:29; 1 Peter 1:3).
2. Cleansing
The word used in Titus 3:5 communicates the washing away of sins, illustrating how regeneration purifies the believer’s conscience, allowing for renewed fellowship with God (Hebrews 10:22).
3. Recreation
This word describes renewal. It emphasises believers are made anew as God works in them. Anyone who is in Christ, Paul writes elsewhere is a new creation (2 Corinthians 5:17).
4. Spiritual Resurrection
As the Spirit conveys new life (John 6:63), regeneration can also be seen as a resurrection from spiritual death. The repeated comparison between our spiritual resurrection and Christ’s physical resurrection from the dead affirm the Father and Son’s work in regeneration.
Were Old Testament People Regenerated?
That’s all and well, you might say; but it’s in the New Testament. For a question people often wonder about is whether the Old Testament faithful experienced regeneration in the same way as New Testament believers. Critics often point to the sacrificial system mandated in the Old Testament. They argue that if believers were regenerated, the necessity of sacrifices would be contradictory. However, this perspective overlooks the purpose behind these sacrifices.
Sacrifices and the Law
Sacrifices in the Old Testament served as a reminder of inherent sinfulness.
Sacrifices in the Old Testament served as a reminder of inherent sinfulness rather than a means to salvation. Hebrews 10:1-4 emphasises that such sacrifices were insufficient to eradicate sin; instead, they pointed to the ultimate sacrifice of Christ. Old Testament believers offered sacrifices not for salvific purposes, but in obedience to God’s command, symbolising their faith in God and dependance on his grace.
Election, Faith and Regeneration
Old Testament figures such as Noah and Abraham exemplify justification by faith (Genesis 6:8-9; 15:6). The author of Hebrews elaborates with details that faith was the common thread through which the elect, both in the Old and New Testaments, received God’s grace. This underscores the foundational belief that regeneration and justification are closely linked.
Old Testament figures such as Noah and Abraham exemplify justification by faith.
Biblically, regeneration is translated as an act for those who are elect. The Old Testament speaks to the notion of a book of life containing the names of God’s chosen people (Exodus 32:32; Psalm 69:28; see Revelation 20:15). Through regeneration, individuals whose names are inscribed in this book are empowered or better enabled to respond to God’s calling, affirming their acceptance into his covenant community.
The Reformed Perspective on Old Testament Regeneration
The Reformed tradition posits that Old Testament believers were subject to the same grace and faith principles that characterise New Testament believers’ regeneration. Calvinist theology asserts that even under the old covenant, individuals were spiritually dead due to depravity and sin, necessitating divine intervention for spiritual awakening.
The suggestion that salvation in the Old Testament occurred through different means undermines the consistent nature of God’s saving work throughout scripture.
Regeneration isn’t confined to the New Testament era.
The Holy Spirit, integral to the work of regeneration, is eternal with the Father and the Son. This points to the fact that regeneration isn’t confined to the New Testament era. Instead, instances of genuine faith, as seen in figures like David and Daniel, demonstrate that the Holy Spirit actively worked in the lives of the Old Testament faithful. He worked in the hearts of Old Testament saints and that work was no different to what he does today.
He Is the Same: Yesterday, Today and Forever
In conclusion, both Old and New Testament believers experience regeneration through the Holy Spirit, embracing the same grace by faith that has been God’s manner of salvation at all times and in all places. Though Old Testament believers had the sacrificial system and law, these served as types anticipating fulfilment in Christ. Regeneration is a divine act. It ensures that God’s elect, from the earliest saints to present-day believers, take hold of new life by faith; not because of personal impetus but God’s work in them. This continuity of spiritual rebirth underscores the unified nature of God’s redemptive purpose across all scripture.
