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Retronyms of Birth
Yenny Kartika Official Writer
1841John
3:7
Do not marvel that I said
to you, "You must be born again."
Bible
Reading for a Year [bible]prove29[/bible];
[bible]colos2[/bible]; [bible]iichr16-17[/bible]
What do regular coffee,
acoustic guitars, and black-and-white television have in common? All are what
journalist Frank Mankiewicz calls “retronyms”—words or phrases created because
a familiar word needs to be distinguished from a term that refers to a new
development or invention.
Once, all coffee was
regular, all guitars were acoustic, and all TVs were black and white. Not so
today, thus the need for a growing list of retronyms, including decaf mocha
java, electric guitar, and high-def television.
It could be said that
Jesus turned the phrase physical birth into a retronym when He told an
inquiring man named Nicodemus, “Unless one is born again, he cannot see the
kingdom of God” (John 3:3).
Nicodemus was a religious
person who didn’t grasp the idea of second birth. “How can a man be born when
he is old?” he asked Jesus. “Can he enter a second time into his mother’s womb
and be born?” (v.4).
Jesus further explained
the difference between being born of the flesh and being born of the Spirit,
then concluded, “Do not marvel that I said to you, ‘You must be born again'”
(v.7).
Our Christian life begins
when we invite Jesus to live within us. It’s a miracle! We’re born again. (David
McCasland/ODB.org)
Natural
life came by God's breath; eternal life comes by Christ's death.
