“From Religion to Relationship”
John 3:1-16
Billy Graham tells the story of the time early in His ministry when he arrived in a small town to preach a revival meeting. He had arrived a bit early so he decided to finish a letter he was writing and get it in the mail. He finished the letter, got in his car and immediately so a young boy so he asked him, “can you tell me where the post office is?” So the boy gave him directions. Dr. Graham thanked him and said, “son if you will come to the Baptist church this evening you can hear me tell everyone how to get to heaven. The boy said well I don’t think I will be there then. You don’t even know how to get to the post office, so how could you tell me how to get to heaven?
We come this morning to one of the most familiar passages of scripture in the Bible. Certainly most of us have memorized John 3:16 than any other verse ion the Bible. Preschoolers can recite it. Football fans paint it on signs and sit in the end zone. Tim Tebow writes it on his face for games. It’s short enough that you could write it on a napkin over lunch to share with someone but this verse is solid enough that it has helped change the lives of millions of people. Here’s the thing .. If you know nothing in the Bible at all you should start with this passage and if you know everything in the Bble then you should return to this passage.
But before we get to this verse we have to set the stage. Nicodemus was one of the Pharisees. He was a part of the religious “elite” of the day. This crowd rejected Jesus because when Jesus came the power structure of that day was knocked completely down. The Pharisees were in charge of religion and Jesus came and brought in a whole new system ... this one based on grace.
Because Nicodemus was a part of this group he had to seek Jesus privately. No doubt this is why he went at night. To avoid the crowd.
Nicodemus says ... v.2 .
Jesus replies ... v. 3.
We see right away that Nicodemus was not an average citizen. He was wealthy. Respected. And very religious. He was a ruler. He had it all. Fortunately he also had a deep respect for Jesus. Nicodemus recognized that the ministry of Jesus was recognized by God. He says in v. 2.. No one can do ... Nicodemus believes in Jesus but only because of the miracles. Jesus knows His heart (2:24) so He cuts right to the heart of the matter and says ... v. 5. Former President Jimmy Carter helped make this phrase “born again” popular. He became president the year we got married. It was funny that a lot of people thought that he came up with the phrase. Obviously Jesus did. When Jesus uses this term He is describing a supernatural event. That is why Nicodemus didn’t understand. They believed that most jews except for the very worst of them were assured of a spot in heaven. But here Jesus is telling Nicodemus who was a respected scholar that he cannot enter God’s kingdom unless he is born again.
Nicodemus responds, “how can a person be born again when He is old?” Jesus is speaking on a spiritual level. Nicodemus is thinking on a physical level. How can I be born again? Any women here today who want to give birth to a 200 lb. man? Didn’t think so. Jesus goes further to explain. “Nicodemus, i am speaking of a spiritual birth. Unless one is born of the water and the spirit he cannot see the kingdom of God. You and I must be twice born. 1st time, physically, a woman’s water breaks... so we are born of water and then the 2nd time born of the spirit.
Jesus then tells Nicodemus that he should not be surprised by these words. He should not be shocked or confused. Just as we cannot explain the wind ...we see it’s effect but we can’t see it’s source; in the same way it is God that gives us new life. We can’t see Him but we can see the effect it has on people. But Nicodemus is still confused. He says ...v.. Jesus then replies ... v.10. “Nicodemus, you’re one of the main guys.” You have studied spiritual matters all of your life yet you don’t understand this one basic spiritual truth. You don’t know what it means to be born from above. You are very religious but you are also very lost.
Vv. 11-12. Jesus is basically saying that it should come as no surprise that your sinful mind cannot grasp this. You cannot understand God’s truth unless you have been born again. V. 14. To illustrate his point Jesus refers to an OT example/story. When the Israelites are wandering in the wilderness God sent poisonous snakes into the camp to judge them for their sin. As these snakes began to strike the Israelites, God told Moses to make a serpent from bronze and stand it up there in the wilderness. And the Bible says “all those who looked up at the serpent were saved. In the NT, Jesus would be lifted up on a cross and those who looked to Him would be saved. And that is the key to being born again. Trusting in Jesus ... looking to Him and Him alone for our salvation.
There are two primary truths I get from this text.
(1) Being born again is not about human efforts. If anyone “deserved” eternal life then it would appear that Nicodemus had all of the right qualifications. But this story reminds us of 4 simple truths.
1. Our Position in life will not save us. Nicodemus was a man of the Pharisees; he was one of the 70 who comprised the Sanhedrin. This was basically the Jewish supreme court. But our position in life will not save us. Being born again is not about human effort.
2. Popularity does not save us. Everyone’s name has a meaning. The name Nicodemus means “well liked or popular.” He was well known. Popular. He was recognized as a leader. Parents would no doubt point to Nicodemus and tell their children-there’s a good man...a good role model. He was popular. But being born again is not about popularity.
3. Prestige does not save us. Jesus identified Nicodemus as “the ruler of the Jews.” He was the spiritual adviser, the religious guru of the day. The one who spent His life studying the scriptures. We think how is it possible that he could study the scriptures all of his life and miss the most basic teaching of all? It is the difference between religion that is in our heads and religions that is in our hearts. It is the difference in knowing about Jesus and knowing Him personally. Religion is man reaching up to God. Christianity is God reaching down to man.
4. Piety does not save us. Nicodemus had plenty of knowledge about religion. He knew the difference in right and wrong. His first words to Jesus in v. 2 were “we know.” Yet the reality is that Nicodemus did not know. He was religious to the core.... he obeyed the law to the letter...he fasted...prayed...studied the scripture...he had all of the external things right... but he was still lost. You see we can go to church, attend Bible study, pray, tithe, worship... do all the things the Bibel says to do but if we do it all with our heads and not with our hearts then we will still be lost. I have heard so many people say, “I live a good life. I try to do what’s right. I go to church” but the truth is piety does not save.
So what does? What does it mean to be born again? Write this down.
2. Being born again is about a personal relationship with Jesus Christ. It is not at all about religion, it is about a relationship. It is about being born again from above. It is about the new birth.
1. The new birth is a spiritual birth. It’s not physical. Being born again means we are born from above. Jesus said, “unless we are born again of the spirit we cannot see the kingdom of God.
2. The new birth is a sovereign birth. In other words it is initiated and controlled by God. He compares it to the wind. We can’t see it or understand it, it’s a God thing.
3. The new birth is a supernatural event. The new birth is not a science, not something we can place in a test tube and examine. It’s not some secret recipe. It comes through the Holy Spirit.
In John chapter 9 a blind man comes to Jesus. Everyone is trying to explain what has happened because Jesus had healed the man. The blind man simply says I can’t explain it. I know just one thing ... I was blind and now I see. And that is the testimony of everyone who is born again. We can’t explain how God can transform a sinner into a saint. I just know that I was lost and now I am found. I was on my way to Hell and now i am on my way to heaven. I was blind but now I see.
Paul Azinger who is a professional golfer was diagnosed with cancer at the age of 33. He had just won the PGA and he had won ten other major tournaments. He wrote these words ... “a genuine feeling of fear came over me. I could die from cancer. Then another reality hit me even harder. I’m going to die eventually anyway, whether from cancer or something else. It’s just a question of when. Everything I had accomplished in golf became meaningless to me. All I wanted to do was live. Then he remembered something that his Bible teacher had said to him, “Paul, we’re not in the land of the living going to the land of the dying. We’re in the land of the dying trying to get to the land of the living. He went through chemotherapy and returned to the PGA tour. But all of this gave him a completely different perspective not only on life but also on death. He said, “I’ve made a lot of money since I’ve been on the tour and I’ve won a lot of tournaments but that happiness is always temporary. The only way you will ever have true contentment is in a personal relationship with Jesus Christ.” And he’s right. Do you have it?
