Good morning, he's point. Today's scripture reading is actually two scriptures. It's John 2, 23 through 25 and also John 3, 1 through 15. Again, that's John 2, 23 through 25 and then John 3, 1 through 15. The scripture says, now when he was in Jerusalem at the Passover Feast, many believed in his name when they saw the signs that he was doing. But Jesus on his part did not entrust himself to them because he knew all people and needed no one to bear witness about man for he himself knew what was in man. 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 are a teacher come from God, for no one can do these signs that you do unless God is with him. Jesus answered 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 room and be born? Jesus answered, truly, truly I say to you, unless one is born of water and the spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God. That which is born of flesh is flesh and that which is born of spirit is spirit. Do not moral that I said to you, you must be born again. The wind blows, where it wishes, you bear it sound, you hear a sound, but you do not know where it comes from or where it goes. So is it with everyone who is born of the spirit? Nicodemus said, how can these things be? Jesus answered him, are you the teacher of Israel and yet you do not understand these things? Truly, truly I say to you, we speak of what we know and bear witness to what we have seen, but you do not receive our testimony. If I had told you earthly things and you do not believe, how can you believe if I tell you heavenly things? No one has ascended into heaven except he who has descended from heaven, the son of man. And as Moses lifted up the servant in the wilderness, so must the son of man be lifted up that whoever believes in him may have eternal life. May the Lord add a blessing to the hearing and the reading of his word. Perhaps you've had a conversation in your past that has changed your life in a sense. A conversation that has kind of altered the trajectory of where you are going. The direction your life is headed in. I was 19 years old, I'm still living at home, and I was dealing with life. I now know that the Lord was stirring up in my heart and revealing to me the sin that was deep within it and that I needed him, as it says. I didn't know that at the time, but it was early in the morning, roughly around two or three o'clock and I woke up my parents because I was just so disturbed in my spirit and I had a conversation with them and the Lord used that conversation to change the trajectory of my life. He would use that conversation as a catalyst to bring me unto himself. I looked back on that conversation and it was one that in many respects changed my life. I've never had a conversation that changed your life, changed the trajectory where you were headed. Well, this morning our text introduces us to a man who had a conversation that changed his life. He had an encounter with Jesus that not just only changed his life, but I believe changed his soul and we come and see the encounter here in John 3. We are introduced this morning to a man named Nicodemus and John gives us quite a bit of information about this man. We learn that Nicodemus is a Pharisee and he is a religious man. He is a ruler of the Jews. Later in the text we discover that he is also a teacher, a teacher of the Jews. Now based upon this description we can deduce, we can deduce that Nicodemus was probably a well-respected man in Israel. He would have been considered no doubt based upon this description of being a Pharisee and a ruler of the Jews and a teacher that he was a husband who knew the law extremely well and sought to follow it to a tea he was a Pharisee. Now on the surface those judging Nicodemus from the outside would have concluded that he was a lock, a lock to get into heaven. I mean a Pharisee, a ruler of the Jews, a teacher he would have been one who was a sure in when it came to the kingdom of God. But John in this description and the surrounding context that we have I believe is saying a lot more about Nicodemus than it first appears. Indeed Nicodemus was a ruler of the Jews. Yes he was a Pharisee but I believe the text is also wanting to communicate to us that Nicodemus is a faithless believer, faithless believer. And by faithless I don't mean a believer who was demonstrating little faith like some of us, perhaps we have placed our faith in Jesus but there is little faith within us to trust Jesus. No, no, Nicodemus was a man who lacked saving faith, saving faith. I get this when you look at the end of chapter 2. We are told that Jesus evidently performed and demonstrated additional signs during the Passover Feast and many believed in him and when they saw these signs and these miracles that he was performing at the Feast. But John also tells us that Jesus did not trust these men and women who believed in him. He didn't trust himself to them because he knew what was in their hearts. Jesus could see the, could see past the facade of superficial belief. He could see that men and women were simply enamored with the miracles and were not interested in hearing the message in which he was proclaiming. Jesus knew, he knew the heart of man, just like Jeremiah tells us what the heart of man is like in Jeremiah 17 and 9. That the heart is deceitful above all things and desperately wicked. Who can understand it? We cannot understand it. We can't even understand our own hearts but Jesus understood what was in the hearts of men. And so as to demonstrate or perhaps give us an example, John records for us a conversation between Jesus and Nicodemus. Nicodemus was one of those who believed. He had believed based upon the signs and the miracles that he saw Jesus perform. He observed the miracles and came to some accurate conclusions about Jesus. Look at what we read in John 3 and verse 2. This man, speaking of Nicodemus, came to Jesus by night and said to him, rabbi, rabbi, we know that you are a teacher come from God for no one can do these signs that you do unless God is with him. Notice how Nicodemus begins the conversation. He himself, a respected ruler and teacher in Israel, submits himself under Jesus, authority by referring to him as rabbi. He himself a teacher calls Jesus a teacher, rabbi. But not only that, he correctly asserts that what Jesus is saying and doing could only mean that he is from God. Nicodemus is making some right assertions. And I actually don't think he has any ill motives. I don't think he's coming to Jesus here with any ill motives or ill intentions. He is coming to Jesus. He's coming to Jesus seems to be very genuine. He wants to know. He wants to engage this man who has been forming these miracles and these signs. But let's not be fool brothers and sisters. It is possible to know a lot about Jesus. You can know true and accurate facts about him and still not have saving faith. Sadly, pulpits and seminaries are filled with men and women who know a lot about Jesus but don't know him as savior. Many, many who only know half the story, they are respectful and even reverent when it comes to speaking about Jesus and all that he has done. But there is a heart that doesn't know the saving power of Jesus. This is Nicodemus. Nicodemus was right. Jesus was from God. But in his mind, Jesus was simply a good prophet, a good teacher whom God perhaps empowered to do these things. He saw Jesus in the same vein. He might consider Moses or even Elijah. He certainly, what Nicodemus certainly didn't believe was that standing before him in the middle of the night was the Son of God. He did not believe that and so and so here we have a faithless believer approaching Jesus. So while Nicodemus is appearing to have some faith, he actually has no faith. And unfortunately, it is about to get worse for Nicodemus before it gets better. He is about to discover, here's what Nicodemus is about to discover in this conversation. He is about to discover that he has a problem that in his mind has an impossible solution. Nicodemus might not have fully grasped who he was talking to but Jesus knew who stood before him. Jesus didn't just know his name but Jesus knew what was in Nicodemus's heart because he responds to Nicodemus' statement with a question Nicodemus didn't ask. Nicodemus makes a statement and John says Jesus answers him, but where's the question? Nicodemus didn't ask the question because we have discovered and we'll discover over and over again throughout our study of the book of John. Jesus gets to the heart of the matter. He always seeks to shoot straight. He is not interested in your platitudes or your flattery when you come to him. He wants to get to the heart of the matter. Nicodemus had a question on his heart and that's what Jesus was going to answer. He moved past the flatteries and the platitudes and got straight to Nicodemus's heart. John 3-3. Jesus answered him truly, truly. I say to you unless one is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God. This is this is Jesus' answer to Nicodemus. Now we have said it throughout the study thus far that Jesus has come to usher in the kingdom of God. That is what he was about. Mark says that he came proclaiming the gospel of the kingdom of God was at hand and that men and women should repent and believe the gospel. And so this is not unusual that this would be on the top of Jesus' mind, that he would be seeking to address this discussion with Nicodemus but his answer to Nicodemus also gives us a clue to what was on Nicodemus' heart. Nicodemus wanted to understand nature of this kingdom that Jesus was ushering in. Talk to me about this kingdom, Jesus. I want to know about this kingdom. He wanted to make sure that he was on the right path. Would he be part of this kingdom that Jesus was ushering in? Because the Bible has revealed to us the nature of the human heart, it is probably safe to assume that Nicodemus believed that he was good enough to be part of the kingdom. He assumed that he had done everything right and order to get into the kingdom. In fact, this is what the teachers of Israel believed and taught. At the end of the age the kingdom of God would be ushered in and good God-fearing Jews would be able to enter in. He, Nicodemus, like the rich young ruler comes to Jesus in the middle of the night and he wants to know. He wants to get confirmation that he had lived up to the standard in order to get into the kingdom. That's what was on Nicodemus' heart. That's what Jesus was answering. Well, brothers and sisters, the problem of the sinful heart is that it convinces us. It makes us think that our good works are good enough. Too many people believe that entrance into the kingdom of God is old to them. That it's old to them. That it is a reward for our life. Live well on this earth. If I do my part, then God will have no choice but to let me into his kingdom. So we think we fail to read what Isaiah says and Isaiah 64 and 6. We have all become like one who was unclean. All of our righteous deeds are like a polluted garment. We all fade like a leaf and our iniquities like the wind take us away. This was the heart of Nicodemus. This is your heart. If you somehow think Jesus is impressed with your list of accomplishments. But Jesus is answered to Nicodemus. This revealed in his mind a problem that had an impossible solution. What Nicodemus and engaging Jesus that night discovered was that his title, his titles, his lineage, his piotistic lifestyle was not going to gain him entrance into the kingdom of God. Jesus declared to Nicodemus in the middle of the night in the darkness of the night that evening. He said anyone that is going to enter into the kingdom of God was going to have to be born again. Born again. Now this both shocked Nicodemus and left him a bit confused and we can tell that by his response. Look at what Nicodemus says in John 4.4. How can a man be born when he is old? Can he enter a second time into his mother's womb and be born? Nicodemus in a sort of snarky way says, come on Jesus. That's impossible. How do you expect a person to be born again? They can't go into their mother's womb and be born a second time. You are describing an impossible solution without hesitation. Without hesitation, Jesus answers him again in John 3 and 5. Truly, truly, I say to you unless one is born of water and the spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God. Jesus is not missing words. He wants Nicodemus and all who are reading this to understand. He says truly, truly. Again, he had said that the first time, which means or the King James verses as verily, verily, I say unto you. But Jesus using this says listen, pay attention. Listen. Don't miss this. If you are going to enter into the kingdom of God, Nicodemus, your first birth is not going to be enough. You are going to need to be born again, born again. Born again. You must, he says, be born again. Now, you're perhaps all familiar with that term. Even if you are not a Christian, you have heard the term, born again. It has been used by believers to describe themselves when they, when asked, if you are a Christian, you'll say, I'm a born, no, I'm a born again, Christian. Some of you said that, right? The media has used it to sometimes describe a more conservative bent of Christianity. When they wanted to identify a more serious or orthodox Christian, they refer to them as born again. Christians. If you've ever wondered where that term comes from, born again, it comes from here. What this conversation that Nicodemus has with Jesus comes from this conversation. The fact of the matter, however it is used, it's accurate. It's an accurate term. If you are trusting Christ today, if he is your Savior and Lord, if he is the one your heart adores, brothers and sisters, the only reason is so is because you have been born again. Born again. Jesus goes on to describe the reason why it has to be this way. Why you have to be born again. Psalm 3 and 6. Jesus says that which is born of the flesh is flesh and that which is born of the spirit is spirit. Jesus says, essentially, dead men and women don't just get up and walk. Sinners who one day hated Jesus and wanted no part of following him, don't all of the sudden the next day start loving Jesus and following his commands. No, no, these things happen apart from a super natural work taking place in the heart of men and women. You must be born again is what Jesus is saying. Flesh. Flesh can't respond to the spirit. Nearly 20 years ago, almost 20 years ago, I sat in a Bible study, Magaspal of John. We were working line by line through the gospel of John and we got to chapter 3 on the account with Nicodemus. And the question was ask, does faith come before regeneration or does regeneration come before faith? In other words, in other words, turns out that we might better understand, do you believe in Jesus have faith and then your heart and your affections are changed regeneration or are your heart and affections changed and then you believe in Jesus. This is an important question. It's an important question because that is the question Jesus is answering here. Well, until that Bible, so I had an Nicodemus type encounter conversation until that Bible study. I had believed that it was my faith in Jesus that led to my changed heart. I thought the reason for my changed heart was because I had decided to follow Jesus. I decided to follow Jesus and then he began to do a work in my heart. I follow Jesus and then all of a sudden now he can do the work and start changing things in my life. But what I discovered and what Nicodemus got that night, that was possible. Flesh can only give birth to flesh and spirit only birth to spirit. The apple tree is going to produce apples. It can't produce oranges. Your stony heart won't give birth to faith. It will only give birth to sin. You must be born again. Therefore, it has to be regeneration before faith. A work has to be done in your heart and order for you to exercise faith in Jesus. Your heart of stone has to be changed into a heart of flesh so that you can believe in Jesus. Is this not what the prophet Ezekiel told the people of God in Ezekiel 36, 26 and 27? He says, and I will give you a new heart and a new spirit I will put within you. I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh and I will put my spirit within you and cause you and cause you to walk in my statues and be careful to obey my rules. You need a new heart in order to believe.
I'm still wondering why does that matter? Why are you spending so much time discussing this? Why does that matter? I mean, it seems like this is a chicken before the egg discussion. What? I mean, does it matter? Oh, it matters. It matters. It matters because it is a clear reminder brothers and sisters don't save ourselves. We don't save ourselves. It flies in the face of any thought that perhaps you were smart enough to figure out salvation on your own. No, no, no. Peter tells us in first Peter one and three. Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, according to his great mercy. What has he done? He has caused us to be born again to a living hope. He caused that. It matters because knowing this causes you to bless the Lord. Blessed be the God and Savior of our Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. We bless his name at all times. You praise him for bringing to life your dead soul and causing you, causing you to believe in him. But it also matters. It also matters because it reminds us that it is not your first birth that matters in the kingdom of God. It is the second one that makes all the difference. It's the second one that makes all the differences. It means the situations or circumstances into which you are born don't eliminate you from the kingdom of God. They don't eliminate you entrance into the kingdom of God. Doesn't have anything to do with your first birth. Being born again is the work of the Spirit who regenerates you according to the prerogative of God. According to the prerogative of God, notice what Jesus says in verse 8. The wind blows where it wishes and you hear it sound, but you do not know where it comes from or where it goes. So it is with everyone who was born of the Spirit. God, the Spirit, Holy Spirit regenerates the hearts of men and women according to His divine prerogative. And we don't know whose heart has been alive until we see the effects. Namely, they place their faith in Christ. That's how you know. Just like the wind, you don't know where it comes from but you see its effects. We have an example of this in Acts chapter 16 and verse 14. Paul is by the river and he's preaching in Philippi. In one of the women it says in verse 14 one who heard us was a woman named Lydia from the city of Thyatira, a seller of purple goods who was a worshiper of God. And the Lord opened her heart to pay attention to what was said by Paul. There were others there who heard Paul preaching that day, but it was the Lord who opened up the heart of Lydia to hear what Paul was saying. Oh, brothers and sisters, this is why we share the gospel without discrimination. We do not know whose heart God has opened to the gospel, but we have the confidence that those whose hearts have been open will respond in faith because the spirit gives birth to the spirit. You have a wonder? You have a wonder why you believed and a brother or sister didn't. You have a wonder why in the midst of a congregation as the word of God goes for some belief and some didn't. It wasn't because they were smart enough to get it. They didn't reason their way to believe. No, the Holy Spirit opened up the eyes of their heart. He turned that stony heart into a heart of flesh so that when the gospel message went forth, it landed on fertile ground so that I could take root so that you could believe and all those who trust that in Christ and hear that gospel message believe. I could be in this. After hearing about this problem with an impossible solution, it seems like from our texts more confused than before. So much so that he exclaims in verse 9, how can these things be? How can these things be? Nicodemus responded the way Mary did when she was told that she was going to be with child. She too said, how will this be? Her response led to faith whereas Nicodemus is almost like, come on Lord, how can these things be? But you remember what the angel said to Mary when she said, how can these things be? The angel said in Luke 137, for nothing will be impossible with God. Nothing will be impossible with God. Well, Jesus was about to tell Nicodemus what is impossible with man? It is possible with God. It's possible with God. Jesus had come into the world to make the impossible possible, namely unrighteous sinners entering into the kingdom of God. What is impossible with man is made possible with God. Look at verses 13 through 15. No one has ascended into heaven except he who descended from heaven, the Son of Man. And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the world and as so must the Son of Man be lifted up that whoever believes in him may have eternal life. In response to Nicodemus's question, how can these things be? Jesus ultimately says to Nicodemus, brother, brother, this is why I have come. The Son of Man has descended upon the earth from heaven and is here to fulfill God's mission that has been communicated since Genesis. God is saving his people because it is impossible for them to save themselves. And guess what? Nicodemus, teacher of the Jews, these have been foretold. These things have been foreshadowed. You as a teacher have probably taught these things but didn't understand what was being communicated. God was coming to save his people, to usher in his kingdom. He was not coming to save them from the Roman government, but he was coming to save them from the wrath of God. Do their sin. Jesus then points Nicodemus to an old testament account found in Numbers 21. If you are not familiar with it, I encourage you to go back and read Numbers 21. But in Numbers 21, we find Israel in the wilderness and Israel is in the wilderness doing what they normally do. They are complaining, grumbling because there's no food and there's no water and they thought it was better in Egypt and who are they complaining against? They're complaining against Moses and against God. And God gets fed up with their sin and he's going to judge them for their sin. And so he sins, serpents among them. Poisonous serpents that bite the people and those who are bitten end up dying. And it takes us that many died that day. Because of that judgment, the people recognize their sin and they cry out to Moses, Moses, please, plead with the Lord to save us, to rescue us from these serpents. So God instructs Moses to take a fiery serpent, send it on a pole in the middle of the camp. And when people look at that pole, they will live if they are bitten by the serpent. And listen to what Moses does in Numbers 21 and 9. So Moses made a bronze serpent and set it on a pole. And if a serpent bit anyone, he would look at the bronze serpent and live and live. Those who are bitten by the serpents, but look to the bronze serpent, lifted up by Moses lived. Those who obeyed God, doing that lived and those who didn't die. Jesus, in telling Nicodemus, this says that he, Jesus has come to be lifted up just like that serpent in the wilderness. And that he, Jesus, Jesus is the remedy for all those who are under the wrath of God for sin. All those who have been born into this world and whose destiny is death, he will be lifted up. Jesus will be lifted up in any and any of those who believe on him, those who look to Jesus, his death on the cross, his resurrection from the grave, his exaltation, would have eternal life. Jesus, be lifted up, would make the impossible possible entrance into the kingdom of God brothers and sisters does not come by being born into your family. Your earthly family doesn't get you into the kingdom. If you are a teenager or a child here this morning, and you think because your parents are saved, you are saved, no brothers and sisters, doesn't get you in. It is not a result of good works. If you think you're going to get to the end, you're going to be rewarded for your good works, and that's going to get you into the heaven. It's not going to get you in. It only comes about by Holy Spirit causing you to be born again so that you could place your faith in Jesus, the one who is lifted up, punished, condemned, stricken in your place, made possible. Oh, brothers and sisters, you must be born again. That is the message that Jesus shares with Nicodemus that evening, and change the trajectory of his life. Are you born again? Are you born again? And say, well, how do I know if I'm born again? I'm not telling you to be born again. Only the Spirit can do that, but if you believe this morning, if you believe in Jesus, if you place your faith and trust in His work, His death on the cross, His burial, His resurrection from the grave, the fact that He is in the heaven right now, you believe on Him that you have been born again.