John- Believe In Jesus And Live!! Part 2- "For God So Loved" Series

John- Believe in Jesus and live!! Part 2---“For God so Loved”

John chapter 3:1-21

I know that I am not alone when I say that I have been places where I really hoped no one saw me.

I cringe at the thought of my fireman or cowboy buddies seeing me at stein mart

Yes

I have been there and yes I know I am telling on myself

‘But none of you saw me there

I kind of slipped out of the car- looked both ways then rushed inside

Hoping that no one I knew would see me go in

Once inside I relaxed a bit

I figure if you saw me there—inside the store

That means you were there also –

So

You don’t hurt me and I won’t hurt you kind of goes into effect

I am sure you all have similar stories

I can tell you

That

Shopping in one of those” secret places” in the mall

You know the ones I’m talking about

Always make me very self conscious

With all those people looking at me

I can’t help but believe they are thinking all sorts of bad things about my character

I always end Wishing I was somewhere else

Of at least that no one will see me

You get it

Girls

I am not one of you so I can’t really say I know what places cause you these feeling

But

Even though I don’t understand women—even a little bit

I know enough about ya’ll to know that ya’ll have issues being seen in certain places

Just like we men do

So I think ya’ll will get this also

Today I want to introduce you to a well known figure in the bible

I like to call him Nick

But his real name is Nicodemus

We read about Nick in the bible in John chapters 3- 7 and 19

And through the bible we see Nick change

Let me tell you a bit about him

He is a Pharisee

This means that he has the right credentials

To be a jewfish leader

He has the right family heritage

Only Jews with verifiable 100% Jewish lineage could be considered for such a prestigious and important position

But lineage and ancestory was not enough

In addition to the right family

He had to have the right education

This means that he had spent years in the study of God’s word

He knew scripture

He knew the law

He had been taught and instructed

Mentored by powerful men in the Jewish religious system

And Nick passed the tests with flying colors

You see in addition to being a Pharisee

His wisdom-knowledge

His understanding of scripture

His ability to read and interpret the law

Caused him to be elevated in the Jewish system

Promoted, if you want to think of it in that way

Because he had all the right requirements he became a member of the highest

Jewish ruling authority

The Sanhedrin

The Great Sanhedrin was the supreme court of ancient Israel,

It was made up of 70 men

Pharisees and Sadducees

And the high priest.

They were the only ones who could try the king or extend the boundaries of the Temple and Jerusalem, and were the ones to whom all questions of law were finally put.

In common terms they had the final say on matters of Jewish law

Being a member of the Sanhedrin was a big deal

And

Its members were respected

Loved in some cases

Feared in others

Someone holding such a position as this would be very aware of where they went and where they were seen

This is where we come to this morning

Please open your bibles to John chapter 3

We are going to continue with our study of John and his purpose for writing

And

We are going to take prayerfully a different and better look at the most well know verse in all of scripture

John 3:1-21

3 There was a man named Nicodemus, a Jewish religious leader who was a Pharisee. 2 After dark one evening, he came to speak with Jesus. “Rabbi,” he said, “we all know that God has sent you to teach us. Your miraculous signs are evidence that God is with you.”

3 Jesus replied, “I tell you the truth, unless you are born again,[a] you cannot see the Kingdom of God.”

4 “What do you mean?” exclaimed Nicodemus. “How can an old man go back into his mother’s womb and be born again?”

5 Jesus replied, “I assure you, no one can enter the Kingdom of God without being born of water and the Spirit.[b] 6 Humans can reproduce only human life, but the Holy Spirit gives birth to spiritual life.[c] 7 So don’t be surprised when I say, ‘You[d] must be born again.’ 8 The wind blows wherever it wants. Just as you can hear the wind but can’t tell where it comes from or where it is going, so you can’t explain how people are born of the Spirit.”