The nuts and bolts of salvation

The nuts and bolts of salvation. How you are born again

By E. Palmer Cobb 02/17/25

In the book of John, Chapter 3, Jesus has an encounter with the Pharisee 

Nicodemus. Jesus told Nicodemus: "You must be born again to enter the 

kingdom of heaven." Specifically, the word for “born again” means to be  

born from above. To enter the kingdom of God, you must be born of the 

Spirit of God. Romans 10:9,10 tells you the steps to being saved, being 

born again. But what is being saved? What happens at the moment of 

salvation? The word saved in Greek is “SOZO”. SOZO means to save, 

to rescue, to deliver, to heal, to preserve. You are saved and delivered from 

eternal damnation, hell, and punishment. And most importantly, you receive 

the gift of eternal life. Saved from eternal death. 

So, where does the Bible explain the process of "being born again, becoming

saved?" God explained it clearly about 600 years before Jesus, the Son of 

God appeared on earth in the flesh as a man. In the 36th book of Ezekiel, 

God gave a detailed description of the born-again process.

Ezekiel 36:25 "I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you shall be clean 

from all your uncleannesses, and from all your idols I will cleanse you. 

26 And I will give you a new heart, and a new spirit I will put within you. 

And I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of 

flesh. 27 And I will put my Spirit within you and cause you to walk in my 

statutes and be careful to obey my rules." ESV.

Step 1: Cleansing Ezekiel 36:25 "I will sprinkle clean water on you, and 

You shall be clean from all your uncleannesses, and from all your idols I will 

cleanse you." 

From the “Old Covenant” point of view, they probably thought Ezekiel was 

referring to the ceremonial washings in Leviticus 30:18-20. Ceremonial 

washings were for the outside, external washing of the hands. But now we 

know it is the blood of Jesus that cleanses us from all sins. A spiritual 

cleansing of the inner man. Why is Jesus's blood so important? Because Jesus

is the God-man. The physical manifestation of the invisible Father God. The 

second person of the triune Godhead who humbled himself and became a 

man. Jesus, the God-man, came, took our place, and bore our punishment for

our sins. The blood that Jesus shed was, in reality, the blood of God. Blood is 

considered a person's life force. Undeniably, the most important blood (life 

force) in all the universe was Jesus, the God-man. The only blood that could 

cleanse you of your sin and unrighteousness. 

Cleansing Part 2: “And from all your idols I will cleanse you.” 

Before the experience of salvation, your spirit was dead to God. You had 

various idols. Many of you didn’t even realize you had them. It might have 

been habits, addictions, hobbies, money, jobs, and so forth. Anything you 

put before God would be an idol. You may have sought after some forms 

of god(s) and other religions that were not of God or of God’s realm. But 

now, God promises to cleanse you of your idols. You may receive an instant 

deliverance from some idols, or it may be a gradual process over time. 

When you surrendered your life to Christ, He began the process of cleansing

you. He has promised to remove every idol.

Step 2: Receiving a new heart. “And I will give you a new Heart,” 

The heart is the part of your inner man that represents your nature. In the 

ancient world, the heart was the center for volition and the intellectual 

catalyst for feeling and action. A ‘heart of stone’ implied inflexibility and 

willfulness, while a ‘heart of flesh’ meant submission and compliance.” 

(Vawter and Hoppe). 

 

A heart of stone is dead to God, with no connection to God whatsoever. 

Often spoken of in the bible as the Old Man, Old Nature, or the Flesh. The 

heart of stone will follow whatever inner godless desires it wants. The 

desires of the flesh. Whatever feels good to you. 

The heart of stone is like having a cell phone with a dead battery. Someone 

is calling, but your phone is dead. It is totally inoperable. In your stony 

heart, God wants to talk to you, but you cannot hear or receive anything. 

The new heart or heart of flesh gives you a new nature. The ability to sense 

or connect to God and hear Him in the Spirit realm. This new heart will 

grow, develop, transform, and mature. 

Ephesians 4:23 and to be renewed in the spirit of your minds (the new 

heart). See also Romans 12:2, be transformed by a renewing of your mind.

Step 3: Receiving a new spirit, “and a new spirit I will put within you.” 

This is the next most important step in the salvation process. Your old spirit 

was dead, cut off, separated from God, the same as your heart of stone. 

From the moment that Adam sinned, the spirits of men became dead to God. 

It is only when you go through the salvation experience that a new, perfect 

spirit from God will replace the old, dead one. People often use the 

term ‘we are being restored.’ But that is wrong. A restored item still looks 

restored. God gave us a brand new spirit. New, not restored.

2 Co 5:17 Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has 

passed away; behold, the new (a new heart & spirit) has come.

Ephesians 4:24 and to put on the new self (the new creation spirit), created 

after the likeness (or image) of God in true righteousness and holiness.  

(a perfect spirit) 

You will have a new and perfect spirit. A perfect spirit that is created in the 

likeness and image of God. Similar to when God first made man in His image

at creation (Ge 1:26. Then God said, “Let us make man in our image, after 

our likeness.”) The new creation spirit is once again made in His likeness.

Step 4: Receiving the Holy Spirit. Jesus spoke often about the Holy Spirit.

The Holy Spirit would be our comforter, our power, and more. He wants to 

guide us and direct us. He wants to speak to us and through us. The Holy 

Spirit is our direct connection to Jesus and the Father.

There are volumes written about the Holy Spirit. The most important point 

here is that the Holy Spirit is God, the third person of the Triune Godhead.

And now God the Holy Spirit lives in you. God is not up there somewhere 

in the heavens, hiding silently away. There is no barrier between you and 

God. Jesus removed all the barriers. The Holy Spirit now dwells in you. He 

is your inheritance. He is in your thoughts, your mind, your body. You are 

His home, His temple; you’ve become a member of the body of Christ. 

Therefore, it is important to live your life righteously, solely because God 

has taken up residence in you. You should want to know Him intimately, 

His plans and desires for you. 

Learn how to become an empowered Christian. Learn to release the power 

and gifts of the Holy Spirit that lives in you. Envision the things you are now 

capable of because the creator of the universe dwells in you.

Step 5. Obeying God. “And I will put my Spirit within you and cause you to

walk in my statutes and be careful to obey my rules (laws)." 

I often wondered how God was going to make us walk in His statutes. One 

day, I realized what He was talking about. It is simple. To obey His law, He 

wants us to walk in love because love is the fulfillment of all the Law.  

Much of Paul’s teaching was based on love and unity. 1st Corinthians 13 

declares the meaning of love. Remember, God is love. You are now a 

container of God’s love. It’s one of the abilities and gifts you must learn to 

release.

Matthew 22: 37-40 And he said to him, “You shall love the Lord your God 

with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the 

great and first commandment. And a second is like it: You shall love your 

neighbor as yourself. On these two commandments depend all the Law 

and the Prophets.”

John 13:34,35 “A new commandment I give to you, that you love one 

another: just as I have loved you, you also are to love one another. By this, 

all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one 

another.

So how does a person become born again and a New Spiritual Creation?

Follow the instructions in the scripture below.

Romans 10: 9,10 because, if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord 

and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be 

saved.. For with the heart one believes and is justified, and with the mouth, 

one confesses and is saved.

The process is simple: 

First: believe in your heart that Jesus is Lord 

Second: verbally confess that God has raised Him from the dead, and  

then you will be saved.