The Necessity of the New Birth

Explanation: Nicodemus was one of the spiritual elites of his day. He was a Pharisee, a member of the Sanhedrin, and the premier teacher of the Jewish people. If one looked at a first century copy of Who’s Who in Jerusalem, Nicodemus would be on the front cover. In his thinking, he was to be admired, listened to, respected, and followed.

Nicodemus had heard of Jesus, and possibly witnessed His cleansing of the Temple. He came to Jesus to discuss more fully the latter’s teaching and miracles. Nicodemus and the other Pharisees knew that Jesus was not an official Rabbi, but Nick does Jesus a solid by treating Him as an equal. And therein lies the problem: Jesus was never just a man, and Nicodemus was nowhere near being His equal.

Illustrate: A hypothetical conversation with a “nominal” Christian (i.e., an unbeliever): “Do I know Jesus? Well, of course I do. Good man, that Jesus - did a lot of good things while he was here. Yes, I think quite a lot of Jesus”

Argument: Jesus confronts our misguided notions of morality and kindness. He recognized superficial faith when He encountered it (cf, ). and He confronted those people with the Truth. Nicodemus knows something is going on due to the signs and miracles and all the talk, but he stills sees Jesus as just another teacher, albeit one with something extra. Jesus totally destroys Nicodemus’ complacency when He tells Nick he is wrongheaded in his thinking. Nick was doing some flattery, and Jesus tells him pretty much everything he was trusting in was wrong.

This is the point of tension with unbelievers (including those who are members of churches!) They think they are doing OK and are on the way to Heaven. They are offended and/or confused when confronted with their utter condemnation before a holy God.

Application: Do you have a biblical understanding of who Jesus is and why faith in Him and Him alone is so vital? Don’t make the mistake of thinking your good deeds or your religious credentials are going to “open the gates” for you. They will not!

Jesus declares the spiritual origin and necessity of the New Birth ()

Explanation: Upon being confronted with such a novel idea as being born again, Nicodemus expresses confusion to Jesus. He may have an idea of what Jesus is stating about his way of life, but he isn’t ready to admit everything he has accomplished means nothing, so he ventures a statement about the impossibility of a person undergoing the birth process for the second time

Illustrate: Consider a person who has worked for the same company for 25 years. She started at the bottom and worked up through the ranks. She paid her dues, received additional training, and now has a VP slot and is looking at retirement in 5 years or so (and the parachute is GOLD!) Now imagine someone telling her all she has done is a mistake. What she really needs to do is quit immediately, leave it all behind, and start over here at entry level.

Argument: Natural man does not comprehend or accept the spiritual reality that exists around him (). He is not able to grasp that the spiritual is vastly more important than the physical. He will react with confusion or rejection when faced with this reality. The unsaved, natural man is not seeking the Savior on his own. This is why Jesus stresses the convicting power of the Holy Spirit who draws people to Jesus (; ; )

Jesus makes an analogy between the Spirit and the wind. Neither can be directly observed, but the effects are evident. (Hurricane Hugo left devastating effects - not much left to the imagination. The New Birth has just as dramatic effects in a saved person.

Application: Do not be taken in by the empty promises of worldly accomplishments. Do not be deceived about your family lineage being sufficient for entry into the kingdom (I am an American, I am a Christian). If you haven’t put your faith in the finished work of Jesus Christ, you are not headed for heaven.

The New Birth is a central focus throughout the Bible ()

Explanation: Nicodemus is still not receiving what Jesus is saying. He is in shock and utters, “how can this be?” This statement can best be understood, not as still being confused about a second natural birth, but that Nicodemus is stunned with the possibility of having lived such a devout life and still completely “missing it.”

Jesus responds to Nick’s distress with some chastisement. In effect, Jesus is asking, “ how can you still be confused?” As one of the premier religious teachers, Nicodemus should know this. [At the beginning of the conversation Nick started with what “he knew”, now Jesus is the One telling what He really knows and what Nick should know.

Argument: As a devout man and a religious leader of the Jews, Nicodemus would have been very familiar with the OT. When Jesus declared that “unless one is born of water and the spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God” (v. 5), Nicodemus would have understood that Jesus was referencing the prophecy in . A man of his position and learning should not have been shocked at what Jesus was teaching.

Application: But what about us? Not only do we have the OT prophecies about Christ, we have the complete NT revelation about Jesus, His miraculous birth, His life of power and healing, and His death and Resurrection. We who have the entire Bible are definitely without excuse.

The Holy Spirit brings about the New Birth in a person who places his or her faith in Christ ()

Explanation: Jesus clears up any confusion Nicodemus might have left by making a reference to a well-known OT event during the Wilderness wanderings. He references the bronze serpent () and emphasizes the faith expressed by the people who looked to the image for healing after being bitten.

Argument: After seeing some of your neighbors die after being bitten by these snakes, a person would certainly know they were lethal. When it looks like everyone is going to die, Moses declares that God is providing a cure through an image of a bronze serpent on a pole. When a person is bit, all he or she had to do was move to where he or she could gaze on the image. The image itself did not cure, it was the faith of the people who were trusting the avenue of healing that God had provided.

If you were living at that period of time and you were bit by a serpent, what would you have done? I don’t think a sane person would just go about business - he would be making a bee line for a view of that snake!

Because the timing and occurrence of our deaths are not so dramatic, we don’t react in the same manner. They got bit, they died; unless they gazed at the image on the pole. We sin, we die - but we don’t die immediately, so we don’t think our sin is that big of a deal. But the comparison for us is still valid. We sin, we die eternal death, unless we gave in faith at the the finished work of Christ on the Cross of Calvary

Application: For the nominal christian (the unbeliever). As the Holy Spirit convicts you of your need to experience the New Birth, surrender you will to His and be regenerated.

For the believer: Make sure you share an accurate Gospel to your unbelieving friends. Do not stop at just inviting some one to church or agreeing with them about being a good moral person. Confront them in love with the Necessity of the New Birth

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