You must be born again, from above
The Gospel of John • Sermon • Submitted • Presented • 37:06
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Introduction
Introduction
As I was talking with Matt one day after service, he shared with me that he loves airplanes. You can ask Matt just about any question you want about airplanes and he will probably know the answer. He can identify them by their various types, and he knows very well how the mechanics of flight work. But one thing you won’t get Matt to do is to fly in one! Matt believes airplanes can fly, but he isn’t willing to put his trust in one and get both feet off the ground.
I’m not trying to pick on Matt here. The fact is that we all have areas of our life where we believe certain things, but our belief doesn’t move us to action. I believe that parachutes work, but I’m not willing to put them to the test unless I’m forced to! And this is just human nature.
FCF: As humans, we like to have it both ways, and many people bring that attitude with them to the topic of faith. We like to profess our faith in Christ so that we get our “fire insurance,” but then keep on living as we wish. We like to say that we believe but we’re reluctant to place our trust in Christ. This passage reveals that without being born again—born from above—we are unable to exercise saving faith and we remain in our sins.
FCF: As humans, we like to have it both ways, and many people bring that attitude with them to the topic of faith. We like to profess our faith in Christ so that we get our “fire insurance,” but then keep on living as we wish. We like to say that we believe but we’re reluctant to place our trust in Christ. This passage reveals that without being born again—born from above—we are unable to exercise saving faith and we remain in our sins.
Main Idea: But, in John chapter 3, Jesus reveals that God has laid before every man two options. We can believe and repent, placing our trust in Christ and thereby gaining eternal life, or we can reject him and perish.
Main Idea: But, in John chapter 3, Jesus reveals that God has laid before every man two options. We can believe and repent, placing our trust in Christ and thereby gaining eternal life, or we can reject him and perish.
Turn with me in your Bibles to the end of John chapter 2. We’re going to look today at Jesus’ conversation with Nicodemus, starting in John 2:23-3:21
23 Now when he was in Jerusalem at the Passover Feast, many believed in his name when they saw the signs that he was doing. 24 But Jesus on his part did not entrust himself to them, because he knew all people 25 and needed no one to bear witness about man, for he himself knew what was in man. 1 Now there was a man of the Pharisees named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews. 2 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.” 3 Jesus answered him, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God.” 4 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?” 5 Jesus answered, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God. 6 That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. 7 Do not marvel that I said to you, ‘You must be born again.’ 8 The wind blows where it wishes, and you hear its sound, but you do not know where it comes from or where it goes. So it is with everyone who is born of the Spirit.” 9 Nicodemus said to him, “How can these things be?” 10 Jesus answered him, “Are you the teacher of Israel and yet you do not understand these things? 11 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. 12 If I have told you earthly things and you do not believe, how can you believe if I tell you heavenly things? 13 No one has ascended into heaven except he who descended from heaven, the Son of Man. 14 And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, so must the Son of Man be lifted up, 15 that whoever believes in him may have eternal life. 16 “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. 17 For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him. 18 Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God. 19 And this is the judgment: the light has come into the world, and people loved the darkness rather than the light because their works were evil. 20 For everyone who does wicked things hates the light and does not come to the light, lest his works should be exposed. 21 But whoever does what is true comes to the light, so that it may be clearly seen that his works have been carried out in God.”
By nature, we are all like Nicodemus.
By nature, we are all like Nicodemus.
This passage serves to exemplify “what was in man” from Jn. 2:25—insincere belief.
This passage serves to exemplify “what was in man” from Jn. 2:25—insincere belief.
23 Now when he was in Jerusalem at the Passover Feast, many believed in his name when they saw the signs that he was doing. 24 But Jesus on his part did not entrust himself to them, because he knew all people 25 and needed no one to bear witness about man, for he himself knew what was in man.
After seeing Jesus clear the Temple, Jn. 2:23 says that “man believed in his hame when they saw the signs that he was doing” but it also says that Jesus did not “commit himself” or “entrust himself” to anyone, “for he himself knew what was in man.”
This is a wordplay on the Greek word for “believe” or “trust.” In essence, what the verse is saying is that while many people believed Jesus, he didn’t believe them.
Jesus isn’t just being cynical here, he knows that the belief of many of these people is very shallow, perhaps even false belief.
This conversation with Nicodemus is positioned immediately following this statement as a classic example of someone who had insufficient belief.
Nicodemus isn’t antagonistic towards Christ. He seems to be genuinely seeking Jesus. He acknowledges that Jesus is from God
2 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.”
Later in the passage Jesus seems to indicate that Nicodemus, despite his profession of faith, does not yet truly believe. He is still like the other Pharisees.
11 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. 12 If I have told you earthly things and you do not believe, how can you believe if I tell you heavenly things?
Jesus’ insightful reply to Nicodemus in Jn. 3:3 reveals that some types of belief are not sufficient to save.
Jesus’ insightful reply to Nicodemus in Jn. 3:3 reveals that some types of belief are not sufficient to save.
Nicodemus states “We know that you are a teacher come from God” and Jesus replies: “Unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God.” Jesus’ reply seems to indicate a question which Nicodemus doesn’t state out loud.
Think about it. Someone says to you, “I know that you’re a teacher from God because of the signs that you’ve done.” What would your response be? Would it be: “Unless you’re born again, you can’t see the kingdom of God?” Probably not…Unless, you could tell that there was some itching question which the person wasn’t stating out loud.
When my wife says, “Trash day is tomorrow,” do you think that she’s merely informing me of some random fact concerning the days of the week? I used to, but after a few corrections, I’ve learned that “Trash day is tomorrow” is woman-ese for, “Honey, would you take out the trash?” There’s an implied question that I had better not miss, or I will entirely miss the point of what she’s saying.
The reason that Jesus’ reply is so strange and seems so unsuited to the preceeding statement is that he’s picking up on an unverbalized concern Nicodemus has. If we read between the lines, I think we might piece together Nicodemus’ itching question like this: “Jesus, we can’t refute the miracles you’ve done—they’re clearly from God—but we’re not convinced just yet that you’re the Son of God.”
Or, we could generalize the concern a bit in a way that applies to us today: “Why is it that some people seem to accept the facts about Jesus being the Son of God and dying for their sins but don’t seem to be following him?”
The answer that Jesus gives answers this question: “Unless you’re born again, born from above, you cannot see the kingdom of God.”
Those who accept a surface level gospel but never have the corresponding fruit in their lives are NOT BORN AGAIN.
Going back to the parable of the forgetful sower from last week’s sermon—the reason they have no tomatoes on their tomato vine is because they are not a tomato vine!
Now, we can dig in the dirt all we want to try to see what that seed looks like. We can compare it to a tomato seed, and maybe it looks indistinguishable from a tomato seed.
But if it doesn’t make tomatoes, it will be ripped out and cast aside with the weeds.
Faith that doesn’t produce discipleship in our lives in insufficient to save. It is worthless. It is salt without saltiness. It’s like believing in planes but refusing to fly in one. It’s a fig tree that doesn’t make figs. It’s like seeing someone shivering in the cold and saying “God bless you, I hope you get warm” without giving the man a coat! Faith without works is dead.
18 But someone will say, “You have faith and I have works.” Show me your faith apart from your works, and I will show you my faith by my works. 19 You believe that God is one; you do well. Even the demons believe—and shudder!
And without God’s intervention, every one of us is like that. Every one of us would be left in our sins as fruitless vines destined to be cast aside and burned on the day of judgment.
So what is a fruitless vine to do? What is an unsaved, self-righteous Pharisee supposed to do?
You must be born again, born from above.
You must be born again, born from above.
There is no hope for those who see the truth of the gospel but refuse to accept it! They cannot, in their own strength, come to Christ any more than a weed can produce tomatoes! The only solution is to be reborn a new person.
There is no hope for those who see the truth of the gospel but refuse to accept it! They cannot, in their own strength, come to Christ any more than a weed can produce tomatoes! The only solution is to be reborn a new person.
The word Jesus uses here (ἀνωθεν) actually has a dual meaning. It’s one of many instances where John uses a wordplay in his gospel (we already saw one in Jn. 2:24!). The word ἀνωθεν can mean either “again” or “from above.”
In English, we don’t have a word which can carry both of those meanings— “again” and “from above”—so translators have to choose one or the other. Most translations choose “again” because that’s how Nicodemus understood it.
4 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?”
But Jesus’ reply to Nicodemus indicates that he had primarily the other meaning in mind— “You must be born from above.”
Jesus contrasts the physical with the spiritual, the earthly with the heavenly.
Jesus’ point is that in order to be able to accept spiritual truths you have to be born of God, born of the Spirit.
John has already stated this in the first few verses of his book:
9 The true light, which gives light to everyone, was coming into the world. 10 He was in the world, and the world was made through him, yet the world did not know him. 11 He came to his own, and his own people did not receive him. 12 But to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God, 13 who were born, not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God.
Now this doesn’t mean that we can’t talk about being “born again,” because it definitely is like a second birth, and Jesus probably meant both. “You must be born again, this time from above.” His point was simply that the new birth is a spiritual one, not a physical one.
Jesus also points out that this birth is the work of the Holy Spirit, not of man.
Jesus also points out that this birth is the work of the Holy Spirit, not of man.
8 The wind blows where it wishes, and you hear its sound, but you do not know where it comes from or where it goes. So it is with everyone who is born of the Spirit.”
Again, we have another wordplay here, this time from Hebrew. The Hebrew word for “spirit” is the same as that for “wind,” ruach.
Jesus is comparing the Spirit’s movements to that of the wind—unseen and unpredictable by humans. Just as you can’t tell where the wind came from or where it will go, so you can’t tell where the Spirit is coming from and where he will go. The Spirit goes where he wishes and to whom he wishes.
We were not saved because we came to Christ. We were saved because the Spirit brought us to Christ.
1 And you were dead in the trespasses and sins 2 in which you once walked, following the course of this world, following the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that is now at work in the sons of disobedience— 3 among whom we all once lived in the passions of our flesh, carrying out the desires of the body and the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, like the rest of mankind. 4 But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, 5 even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ—by grace you have been saved— 6 and raised us up with him and seated us with him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, 7 so that in the coming ages he might show the immeasurable riches of his grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus. 8 For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, 9 not a result of works, so that no one may boast. 10 For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.
Can a dead man give himself life? NO!
The work of salvation is primarily a work of God in our lives! It’s not a matter of willing oneself to repentance.
12 But to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God, 13 who were born, not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God.
We’re not born again because of the “will of the flesh nor the will of man.” We’re able to be born again because God willed it.
The implications for this are huge! When we’re trying to win someone to Christ, many times we approach evangelism as if it depended upon us, as if we had to have clever arguments and be able to overcome every objection that they throw at us. But ultimately, it depends upon God!
1 Unless the Lord builds the house, those who build it labor in vain. Unless the Lord watches over the city, the watchman stays awake in vain.
37 Who has spoken and it came to pass, unless the Lord has commanded it?
18 When they heard these things they fell silent. And they glorified God, saying, “Then to the Gentiles also God has granted repentance that leads to life.”
24 And the Lord’s servant must not be quarrelsome but kind to everyone, able to teach, patiently enduring evil, 25 correcting his opponents with gentleness. God may perhaps grant them repentance leading to a knowledge of the truth,
When we urge sinners to be born again we must understand that we are speaking to a dead body, telling it to resurrect itself. And unless the Lord opens their eyes, breathes life into their lungs, they will not repent.
27 John answered, “A person cannot receive even one thing unless it is given him from heaven.
16 So then it depends not on human will or exertion, but on God, who has mercy.
So, if salvation depends upon the Spirit opening blind eyes and if the Spirit goes where and to whom he wishes, how are we to bring people to Christ?
So, if salvation depends upon the Spirit opening blind eyes and if the Spirit goes where and to whom he wishes, how are we to bring people to Christ?
We pray and we obey.
We pray for the Spirit to open the eyes of the blind, to breathe life into dry bones
And we boldly share the gospel as we have been commanded with a confidence rooted in the goodness of God
14 And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, so must the Son of Man be lifted up, 15 that whoever believes in him may have eternal life. 16 “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. 17 For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him. 18 Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God. 19 And this is the judgment: the light has come into the world, and people loved the darkness rather than the light because their works were evil. 20 For everyone who does wicked things hates the light and does not come to the light, lest his works should be exposed. 21 But whoever does what is true comes to the light, so that it may be clearly seen that his works have been carried out in God.”
God loved us so much that he gave his only Son to pay the penalty for our sins.
When Christ died on that cross it was to pay for your sins. For my sins.
We were enemies of Christ, yet he willingly gave up his life for us.
We deserved condemnation and judgment, but God has provided eternal life for us instead, made possible because Christ paid the price for our sins.
But if we reject that offer of grace, there remains nothing for us but judgement
18 Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God.
4 But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us,
Some argue that they’re a good person, they don’t deserve eternal punishment.
If the greatest commandment is:
30 And you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.’
…then it follows that the greatest sin is a failure to do that.
All of us are guilty by that standard.
23 for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,
The most serious sin in the Bible isn’t suicide, murder, or adultery. It’s the rejection of God’s free offer of salvation. The rejection of his Son. A failure to love God completely.
And the punishment for that sin is the death penalty. Not just physical death, because this sin is a spiritual one, so there is a spiritual penalty.
23 For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.
Conclusion:
Conclusion:
There is a penalty for rejecting Christ. But you don’t have to pay it! The penalty has been paid and can be credited to your account if you simply accept it.
At the beginning of this passage, Nicodemus comes to Jesus by cover of darkness. He doesn’t want anyone to know that he’s inquiring to Jesus. He’s in spiritual darkness. But look how this passage concludes. Jesus is urging Nicodemus to come to the Light:
19 And this is the judgment: the light has come into the world, and people loved the darkness rather than the light because their works were evil. 20 For everyone who does wicked things hates the light and does not come to the light, lest his works should be exposed. 21 But whoever does what is true comes to the light, so that it may be clearly seen that his works have been carried out in God.”
At the beginning of this passage, we saw that Jesus knows what’s in our hearts. Maybe this morning you came to church with darkness in your heart. You said you believe in Jesus, but you were unwilling to fully give yourself to him, to give him complete control over your life. You were holding on to something. Jesus offers you salvation today. His Spirit is drawing you to repentance. Will you submit your life to him, to serve him and love him for what he has done for you?
16 “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. 17 For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him. 18 Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God.