Are Christians “Born Again”?

Is the Christian "born again" now?
 

Peter said the Christians were "born again" by the word of God (I Peter 1:23). Some have thought this means that Christians are only begotten (that is conceived) but that the process of spiritual birth has not yet occurred to them. However, in the next chapter Peter gives a further illustration that surely cinches the fact that he meant born (that is, out of the womb) rather than a simple conception and still in the womb. Peter said: "as newborn babes, desire the sincere milk of the word, that you may grow thereby" (I Peter 2:2).

This context given by Peter obviously shows that he considered Christians as already "born again." Indeed, a person cannot partake of his mother’s milk unless the person is truly born. However, in the Gospel of John (chapter 3) where Christ spoke of being born "from above" (as the original Greek has it, and not "born again"), this is the resurrection from the dead. This is because Christ said that anyone born of the spirit from above is indeed spirit (and he went on to say that spirit cannot be observed by humans). John is speaking about something very different. It is the resurrection to spiritual life that will occur at the resurrection when Christ returns at the second advent.

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