Sermon Tone Analysis

Nick at Night

JOHN, the Book, the Man – Part 6

Feb 25, 2007    Dr.

Rick Isbell

 

 

*READ – John 3: 1-21*

* *

3:1  There was a man from the Pharisees named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews. 2 This man came to Him at night and said, “Rabbi, we know that You have come from God as a teacher, for no one could perform these signs You do unless God were with him.”

3 Jesus replied, “I assure you: Unless someone is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.”

4 “But how can anyone be born when he is old?” Nicodemus asked Him.

“Can he enter his mother’s womb a second time and be born?”

5 Jesus answered, “I assure you: Unless someone is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God. 6 Whatever is born of the flesh is flesh, and whatever is born of the Spirit is spirit.

7 Do not be amazed that I told you that you must be born again.

8 The wind blows where it pleases, and you hear its sound, but you don’t know where it comes from or where it is going.

So it is with everyone born of the Spirit.”

9 “How can these things be?” asked Nicodemus.

10 “Are you a teacher of Israel and don’t know these things?”

Jesus replied.

11 “I assure you: We speak what We know and We testify to what We have seen, but you do not accept Our testimony.

12 If I have told you about things that happen on earth and you don’t believe, how will you believe if I tell you about things of heaven?

13 No one has ascended into heaven except the One who descended from heaven—the Son of Man. 14 Just as Moses lifted up the snake in the wilderness, so the Son of Man must be lifted up, 15 so that everyone who believes in Him will have eternal life.

16 “For God loved the world in this way: He gave His One and Only Son, so that everyone who believes in Him will not perish but have eternal life.

17 For God did not send His Son into the world that He might judge the world, but that the world might be saved through Him.

18 Anyone who believes in Him is not judged, but anyone who does not believe is already judged, because he has not believed in the name of the One and Only Son of God.

19 “This, then, is the judgment: the light has come into the world, and people loved darkness rather than the light because their deeds were evil.

20 For everyone who practices wicked things hates the light and avoids it, so that his deeds may not be exposed.

21 But anyone who lives by the truth comes to the light, so that his works may be shown to be accomplished by God.”

 

 

*3:1.*

*Nicodemus *represented the best in the nation.

He was a teacher (v.10), a Pharisee, and *a member of *the Sanhedrin, *a ruler of the Jews.

*

-        The Sanhedrin had 70 members who were responsible for religious decisions and also, under the Romans, for civil rule.

-        The Sanhedrin put Jesus on trial (Luke 22:66).

-        Nicodemus later rebuked the Pharisees for condemning Jesus without hearing Him (John 7:50-51), and he helped Joseph of Arimathea bury Jesus (19:39-40).

* *

\\ *3:2.*

Why did Nicodemus go *to Jesus at night? *

-        Because of fear?

-        Because it was the normal time for visits?

-        Because he wanted a time of uninterrupted conversation without the distractions of the ever-present crowds?

-        John did not say why, but throughout this fourth Gospel, nighttime has a slightly sinister tone

-        Nicodemus began, *Rabbi, we know that You have come from God as a Teacher.*

o   * *“We” probably means the favorable ones on the council.

o   The titles “Rabbi” and “Teacher” are polite and flattering on one hand, but they showed Nicodemus’ inadequate comprehension of who Jesus is.

o   The words “from God” are in an emphatic position in the Greek

o   Nicodemus wanted to talk to Him as one Rabbi to another.

* *

*3:3*  But *Jesus *was not on the same level with Nicodemus.

-        *I assure you, unless someone is born again*

-        anōthen “from above” – both meaning to have spiritual transformation which takes a person from the kingdom of darkness into the Kingdom of Light or the *Kingdom of God *(as Jesus expressed it).

* *

*3:4* *Nicodemus *was certain Jesus did not mean something absurd such as a reincarnation or

-        a *second *physical birth where you have to go back into the womb

-        but yet he could not grasp the nature of this regeneration that Jesus was referring to.

*3:5  *Threre are various opinions on what Jesus meant by the words in this verse when He spoke of being *born of water and the Spirit*

-        Instead of taking the time to rehearse all the views, let me give you the one that rings truest with me

-        The “water” refers to the repentance ministry of John the Baptist

o   Water would remind Nicodemus that he would have to repent in order to truly know God

-        The “Spirit” refers to the regeneration of a person’s heart by the Spirit of God through Christ.

application of the Holy Spirit through Christ to an individual.

-        John the Baptizer had stirred the people to repent

-        Jesus was going to stir them to change

* *

*3:6-7*  Jesus points out that there are two very distinct realms:

-        One is of fallen man (the *flesh*)

-        The other is of God (*the Spirit*)

-        A fallen person cannot regenerate himself – Only God’s Holy Spirit can regenerate a human spirit.

-        They *must be born *from above.

* *

*3:8  *There is a little wordplay here in this statement

-        The word /pneuma/ means both wind and Spirit

-        The work of *the Spirit *(/pneuma/) is invisible and mysterious like the blowing of *the wind *(/pneuma/)

-        The point is – Man controls neither.

* *

\\ *3:9-10 * *Nicodemus asked . . .

how *this spiritual transformation takes place.

-        *Jesus *answered that Nicodemus, as the *teacher *of Israel, ought to know.

-        The Old Testament prophets spoke of the new Age with its working of the Spirit (Isa.

32:15; Ezek.

36:25-27; Joel 2:28-29).

-        Jesus is implying that the nation’s outstanding teacher ought to *understand *how God by His sovereign grace can give someone a new heart (1 Sam.

10:6; Jer.

31:33).

* *

*3:11 * But Nicodemus was ignorant of the realm of which Jesus spoke.

-        He represented the nation’s unbelief and lack of knowledge.

-        *We speak what We know… *Jesus and the prophets, spoke to the nation about divine themes but the Jews rejected His witness.

-        /Martyrian/  -- “Witness” (or *testimony*;) is a common word in John’s Gospel

* *

*3:12  *Since Nicodemus could not grasp the basic teachings which Jesus presented in an *earthly *context, how could he ever hope to understand and *believe *the more abstract *heavenly *matters such as the Trinity, the Incarnation of Christ, and Glorification of Christ and many more?

* *

*3:13  *Jesus said, *No one has ever ascended into heaven *and then come back to earth, able to give clear teaching about heavenly matters.

-        *Except the One who descended from heaven*

-        He is the “Ladder” between heaven and earth with access to both realms

-        We know from God’s Word that He “descended” in the Incarnation (became a human baby) and “ascended” in the Ascension shortly after the resurrection.

-        Also, we must not forget what we learned in the first verse of John, that He also was in *heaven *before the Incarnation, from the very beginning of time.

* *

*3:14-15 * This idea of Jesus being lifted up is repeated in a number of places.

-        Jesus refers back to story of Moses leading God’s people out of captivity and how they began to take their freedom for granted and turn their backs on God.

-        *Numbers 21:4*  /Then they set out from Mount Hor by way of the Red Sea to bypass the land of Edom, but the people became impatient because of the journey.

5 The people spoke against God and Moses: “Why have you led us up from Egypt to die in the wilderness?

There is no bread or water, and we detest this wretched food!” 6 Then the Lord sent poisonous snakes among the people, and they bit them so that many Israelites died.

7 The people then came to Moses and said, “We have sinned by speaking against the Lord and against you.

Intercede with the Lord so that He will take the snakes away from us.”

And Moses interceded for the people.

8 Then the Lord said to Moses, “Make a snake //⌊//image//⌋// and mount it on a pole.

When anyone who is bitten looks at it, he will recover.

9 So Moses made a bronze snake and mounted it on a pole.

Whenever someone was bitten, and he looked at the bronze snake, he recovered/

-        *Just as Moses lifted up the snake in the wilderness, so the Son of Man *(Jesus) *must be lifted up.*

-        Moses lifted up the snake on a stick to cure the disobedience and sin of his people

-        We know now that Jesus was talking about Himself, being lifted up on a stick to cure your disobedience and mine.

-        Just as those dying sinners in the wilderness looked upon the image of the snake for their salvation, we/ /look upon the battered and bruised, yet radiant face of Jesus for our salvation.

o   No longer doomed to die because of the venom of sin in our lives

o   Not perfect… not sinless… just forgiven

 

*3:16 * One of the most recognizable and most often quoted verses in all of the Bible