Today, Jesus speaks to us about being born again. And we might ask ourselves, if I were to be born again, knowing everything I know now, what would I do differently? What a dream it would be to start anew, equipped with the wisdom of lived experience that would help us to avoid mistakes and capitalize on missed opportunities.
But the rebirth that Jesus speaks of is not one in which we serve ourselves in a calculating way of our prior knowledge to avoid pain and ensure success. The rebirth that he speaks of is not one that asks us to take care of ourselves, but one in which he says, “I’ll take care of you.” It’s a rebirth that calls for vulnerability and trust, one that leaves us open to love.
We are equipped with something greater than our own knowledge, that is, the love of God shown to us through the Risen Christ.