Is there a difference between ‘seeing’ the Kingdom of God, and ‘entering’ it? (John 3)

Is there a difference between ‘seeing’ the Kingdom of God, and ‘entering’ it? (John 3)

Click to join the conversation with over 500,000 Pentecostal believers and scholars

Click to get our FREE MOBILE APP and stay connected

| PentecostalTheology.com

               

My question concerns two verses in John’s Gospel. I’m using the English Standard Version here but I think the same question arises in other translations:

Jesus answered him, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born
again he cannot see the kingdom of God.” – John 3:3 (English Standard Version)

and

Jesus answered, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born of
water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God. –
John 3:5 (English Standard Version)

Often I have heard and assumed that being ‘born again’ is the same as being ‘in’ the kingdom of God. Is ‘seeing’ and ‘entering’ used as synonyms/interchangeable metaphors here, or are they clearly indicating different sorts of actions in relation to the Kingdom of God?

I was wondering if anyone more knowledgeable than I could give me some textual insight.

1 Comment

  • Reply June 23, 2023

    Anonymous

    Born-again believers are able to see when the Body of Christ is together on the earth, and once it will take up to Heaven will be able to enter it. Amen!

Leave a Reply

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.