empty and needy, spiritually bankrupt. Little wonder much of what we do in the church is unredeemed and ego-centered. Nicodemus can now only ask wonderingly, “How can a man be born when he is old?” And again Jesus responds, “Most assuredly.” Nicodemus is still pushing in, and Jesus will give him all he can handle. The new birth is by water. Just as John’s baptism was a plunging under, a cleansing, so it is if Nicodemus really wants to enter the kingdom. Unless he dares to let go of his morality and