Nicodemus At Night: Understanding New Birth

Transcript

Nicodemus Meets Jesus At Night

You Must Be Born Again

Born Of Water And Spirit Explained

The Wind And Sovereign New Birth

Are You Born Again?

The Serpent Lifted Up

For God So Loved The World

Christ’s Substitution And Resurrection

Assurance Through Faith In Christ

Closing Blessing And Charge

SPEAKER_00 0:01

Quiet Voice Ministries presents the Word with Dr. John P. Johnson. I'm so glad you chose to join me today. This morning we're going to move into chapter 3 of the Gospel of John. We will see Jesus Christ's glory revealed, and we'll see the essence needed to believe in his name. Turn with me to John chapter 3, verse 1 through 10. John chapter 3, verses 1 through 10. Let us pray. Our Father who art in heaven, we so glad to come into your holy presence this day. And we ask, O Lord, that you will open up our eyes and our hearts that we might know you divinely, and we give you all the honor, praise, and glory in Jesus' name. Amen. John chapter three verses one through ten. Now there was a man of the Pharisees named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews. This man came to Jesus by night and said to him, Rabbi, we know that you have come from God as a teacher, for no one can do these signs that you do unless God is with him. Jesus answered and said to him, Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God. Nicodemus said to him, How can a man be born when he is old? Can he enter a second time into his mother's womb and be born? Can he? Jesus answered, Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God. That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the spirit is spirit. Do not be amazed that I said to you, you must be born again. The wind blows where it wishes, and you hear the sound of it, but do not know where it comes from or where it is going. So is it with everyone who is born of the Spirit. Nicodemus said to him, How can these things be? Jesus answered and said to him, Are you the teacher of Israel and do not understand these things? That's a wonderful narrative that many of us have heard before. This is a story about Jesus Christ and a Jewish ruler named Nicodemus. Nicodemus comes to Jesus Christ by night to inquire secretly with a hidden agenda. But God being God understood where Nicodemus was coming from. Let's see if we can understand this narrative of salvation. Verse one. This was a religious man, a Jewish man who had reached high rank in the religious order in Israel. He comes to Jesus Christ by night, because he had been watching and been hearing Jesus preach. He had been seeing the signs and miracles that Jesus was performing. He had been listening to Jesus declare that he is the Christ, he is the Messiah, he is the Son of God, He is the Savior of the world. So he comes to Jesus Christ to inquire. But Jesus reads his hidden agenda. Look at verse 2. This man came to Jesus by night and said to him, Rabbi, we know that you have come from God as a teacher, for no one can do these signs that you do unless God is with him. Here Nicodemus presents to Jesus Christ by night, secretly, that is, because he is a Jewish ruler, and those rulers, or most of the rulers, were not believing in Jesus Christ's testimony. But Nicodemus is concerned in his heart. So secretly he goes to Jesus Christ and he asks a question. But he reveals himself when he says in verse 2, We know that you come from God, because no one can do these things unless God is with him. He's already determined that Jesus Christ is a great teacher. But in verse three, Jesus reveals him. Verse three, Jesus says, Jesus answered and said to him, Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God. Jesus is saying in verse three, Nicodemus, you have come to me, and you're trying to find out who I am, so that you can determine whether you can enter into the kingdom of heaven or whether you are saved. But I, Jesus, tell you, you will never know who I am, unless something happens to you. Look at verse 4. Nicodemus said to him, How can a man be born when he is old? He cannot enter a second time into his mother's womb, can he? Jesus Christ tells Nicodemus that he must be changed. He must be born again. Nicodemus in verse 4 declares, Well, how can a man be born again? This reveals to us that Nicodemus is thinking physical. Jesus Christ is speaking spiritually. So in verse 5 we read, Jesus answers, Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God. Jesus is telling Nicodemus, You have come to me, and you presume that I am a great teacher. But I have been telling you that I am the Messiah. I am the promised one to come. I am the Savior of the world. I am from on high, from heaven. But you do not believe this, and you'll never be able to believe it unless you are born again. And then he says in verse 5 that you must be born of water, and you must be born of the Spirit. What we're saying, what he's saying here is that you must be born through the Word, the washing, the cleansing of the Word of God, which is the gospel of Jesus Christ, and the Spirit of God, God the Holy Spirit. You must have those two to be born again, to see the kingdom of God. You will not be able to know who I am, you will not be able to enter the kingdom of God unless you have been born again. Look at verse 6. That which is born of flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the spirit is spirit. He tells Nicodemus, The flesh is flesh. Those who are born physically are physical, but to be born of the Spirit is to be born of God. That is a work of God Himself. To be born again is a work of the Holy Spirit, Jesus Christ. Verse 7. Jesus tells him, Do not be amazed that I said to you, You must be born again. What he's telling Nicodemus, you will never know who I am. I am not a teacher, I am God Himself, come in the flesh on earth, that you might live and not die. But you will never be able to see that. You'll never be able to understand who I am in your unsaved state. You'll never be able to know who I am as a sinner. You must be changed in the spirit, and that will occur only when you are born again. Let's go a little further. Verse eight. The wind blows where it wishes, and you hear the sound of it, but do not know where it comes from or where it is going. I'm in verse eight. So is everyone who is born of the Spirit. Let me read verse eight again. Jesus tells Nicodemus, The wind blows where it wishes, and you hear the sound of it, but you do not know where it comes from and where it is going. And then he says, So is everyone who is born of the Spirit. And what Jesus Christ is saying to Nicodemus in verse eight is that no one knows where the Spirit comes from. It comes from God, but no one knows who that it will land on, who Jesus Christ would choose to blow on, who Jesus Christ would choose to give eternal life to. You won't know that. But you don't know where it comes from. And verse 8 reveals that you must be born again. But what he's saying is that you have nothing to do with it, Nicodemus. It is a work of God. Salvation being saved, being born again, being born again, that you might understand what the kingdom is all about is a work of God. He will save who he will save. That's what he's saying in verse 8. The wind blows where it will. And Jesus Christ in verse 3 tells him, That's not true. He says in verse 3, Jesus answers and said to him, Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again, that means if you have not been changed spiritually, you'll never know who I am. You will not be saved. You must be born again. But salvation, born again, is a work of God through the Spirit. That's the one who will come upon you and enable you to be born again. Verse 1. Jesus answered and said to Nicodemus to him, Are you a teacher of Israel and do not understand these things? That's a wonderful question. Do you understand salvation? Nicodemus didn't. But Jesus Christ will continue to explain it to him as we go through the rest of these verses in John chapter 3. But my question now, have you been born again? Do you know that you've been born again? Do you know how being born again occurs? Let's look at verse 14 and find out. Look at John chapter 3, verse 14, and this is what we read. As Moses, you see, on are you on verse 14? Listen, verse 14. As Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up. What is he saying? I asked a question that you must be born again. Well, how can I be born again? How does that happen? Verse 14 tells us, as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man, that means Jesus Christ, the man who came down to this earth and became a man, Jesus Christ, he must be lifted up. He must be lifted up. What do you mean, Jesus Christ must be lifted up? Jesus Christ must be exalted, he must be declared through the gospel of Jesus Christ. You must tell the story of Jesus Christ. Why? Look at verse 15. So that, listen to me, verse 15, so that whoever believes will in him have eternal life. Well, what are you saying out of verse 14 and verse 15? How might I receive eternal life? How might I be born again? Jesus Christ must be lifted up. All a witness is to do is to tell the story of Jesus Christ. We call that the gospel, presenting the gospel. I'm to present the gospel to those who are lost, those who are not sure of their salvation, those who know that they have not been born again, those who know they have not received Jesus Christ, those of them who are not sure as to whether they're going to heaven when they die, those who know they do not have eternal life if they were to die today. I am to do what verse 14 and 15 says. Lift up Jesus Christ to them. Well, how can I lift up Jesus Christ to them? Look at John chapter 3 verse 16. Look at John chapter 3 verse 16 and listen. This is lifting up Jesus Christ. Verse 16, for God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son, Jesus Christ, that whoever believes in him shall not perish, that means shall not die, but have eternal life. I'm going to read that again. I'm getting ready to lift up Jesus Christ. Listen now to what verse 16 says. For God in heaven so loved the world, he loved all of us, that he gave his only begotten son, that means God who art in heaven, sent his son Jesus Christ, down here to this earth because he loved us so much. Why did he send him? That means when you understand the reason why Jesus Christ came to this earth, and if you believe who he is, and if you believe what he did on your account, the Bible says that you will have eternal life. If whoever believes what they have said about Jesus Christ, well, will you tell me the story of Jesus Christ? Yes, I'll tell you that story. Listen, the Bible tells us that all of us are sinners. We have sinned against God. And because all of us are sinners, we are not holy and worthy to enter the presence of Almighty God in heaven. And it is because that we are sinners and we're not perfect, we cannot enter into heaven. But the Bible says, because that you and I are sinners, God has a raft against us. Because the Bible says the wages of sin or the penalty of sin is death. And this death is death physically and death spiritually. That means we're separated from God forever. Why? Because we are sinners and not worthy to come into the presence of God. Then some people will say, Well, I'll just stop sinning and I'll be good, and I'll clean up my life and I'll get into heaven. But God says, no matter how much you try to clean up your life, to straighten things out, you still have filth and sin and dirt on you and me. So no matter how much you clean up your life, you'll never be worthy to come into my presence. So because of that, simple fact, Jesus Christ, God who art in heaven, sent down to this earth his son, his perfect son, Jesus Christ, who knew no sin, who was sinless, but he sent him down to this earth. John chapter one, verse fourteen tells us that. That he sent Jesus Christ to this earth. But why did he send him? Because he was perfect. And because he was perfect, he could become our substitute. Because if we were to die for our sins, we're going to rot in hell. But if Jesus Christ comes, who is pure and perfect, he was worthy of dying in our place. Well, why was he worthy of dying in our place? Because the Bible says that Jesus Christ came to this earth and he was nailed to a cross, and he died, and he stayed buried for three days. But the Bible says, but on the third day Jesus Christ rose from the dead. And when he rose from the dead, the Bible says he rose from the dead with all power in his hands. Power in heaven and power on earth. And that God was pleased with what he had done, and he rose up into heaven. And the Bible says that Jesus Christ now sits at the right hand of God, looking down at you and looking down at me. And he says, I died for you because you weren't worthy of dying for yourself. But I paid the penalty of your sins. For you remember, the penalty of sin is death, but I paid that sin debt for you. I came down from heaven as a man, and I died on a cross. I took the pain and I took the misery and I took the suffering that you were supposed to take. But I rose from the dead, conquering sin and Satan. And now I'm sitting in heaven and I'm looking down at you, saying that if you believe what I did for you, if you believe that I died for you, if you believe that I rose and went to heaven for you, and that I'm preparing a place for you to come and live with me when you die, that you will live eternally with me in glory. If you believe that story, that Jesus Christ did it himself for you, the Bible says that you have eternal life. The Bible says that you are saved. The Bible says that you have been born again. If you believe in your heart that Jesus Christ died for your sins, and if you believe it, he says you are saved. And at that moment that you're saved, the Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the Holy Spirit will help you, will enable you to live the way God would have you to live. As you open the Word of God and read it, the Holy Spirit will help you understand what you're reading, that you might live worthy of your calling in Jesus' name. So if you've heard this story about Jesus Christ, and if you believe, then know that you are a sinner and that you couldn't save yourself and that you can't change yourself. But you heard the story about Jesus Christ, and you desire to change, and you want to live for Jesus Christ, you want to turn from your wicked ways, you want to stop sinning, believe the story of Jesus Christ, that He's your Savior, and He will transform your life. Believe upon the name of Jesus Christ, and you are saved. And to confirm that, turn to John chapter six, verse forty-seven. Turn with me in your Bible to John chapter six verse forty-seven. I'm turning there now. John chapter six verse forty-seven. And I'm going to read to you what Jesus says that has happened to you if you have believed the story about Jesus Christ, who he is, and what he has done for you, that you might receive eternal life, being saved and being born again. John chapter six, verse forty-seven reads, Jesus is speaking, and he says, Truly, truly, I say to you, he who believes has eternal life. If you have believed this story, not me, but the Bible says, You are saved. God bless you. And believe. He will grant you assurance to know that truly you are on your way to heaven if you were to die right now. You have been listening to the word with Dr. John P. Johnson.