ABANDONED At BIRTH-V—John 3:1-21
Concessions For New Birth
Attention:
No Opener Used—Reiterated past points.
OR
The internet company ‘LetGo.com’
Their TV commercials visit the absurdity of holding on to certain things.
Likewise, when you are saved/born again/born from above, you must abandon everything ‘you’ are holding onto for whatever reason. You must let go in order to be & have what God wants you to be & have. Unless you surrender your hold on the things of earth, you are not allowing God to give you the Kingdom of Heaven.
In God’s scheme of life for mankind, New Birth—being born again— is the only means of...growing close to God, finding power in prayer, being faithful in service, finding God’s purpose in life, becoming dedicated to His direction.
Jesus’ encounter with Nicodemus yielded the essentials of being born again.
Being born again is essential to God’s plan.
What is essential to achieve new birth?
What is essential to be born again?
7 Concessions we all must make to achieve a new birth.
‘Concession’—Something surrendered or given up
We have already found that
Those born from above, Abandon their previous...
1. POSITION(:1-2)
2. LIMITING WISDOM(:3-7)
3. DIRECTION(:8)
4. ACCEPTANCE(:9-13) Accept Jesus & His testimony
5—Those born from above, Abandon their previous...
BELIEF(:14-18)
Explanation: (:14-18) Belief/Trust/Confidence
:14—“And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up,”
cf.—Numbers 21:4-9
Num. 21:4-9—“Then they journeyed from Mount Hor by the Way of the Red Sea, to go around the land of Edom; & the soul of the people became very discouraged on the way. And the people spoke against God & against Moses: “Why have you brought us up out of Egypt to die in the wilderness? For there is no food & no water, & our soul loathes this worthless bread.” So the LORD sent fiery serpents among the people, & they bit the people; & many of the people of Israel died. Therefore the people came to Moses, & said, “We have sinned, for we have spoken against the LORD & against you; pray to the LORD that He take away the serpents from us.” So Moses prayed for the people. Then the LORD said to Moses, “Make a fiery serpent, & set it on a pole; & it shall be that everyone who is bitten, when he looks at it, shall live.” So Moses made a bronze serpent, & put it on a pole; & so it was, if a serpent had bitten anyone, when he looked at the bronze serpent, he lived.
In Numbers 21:4-9 the details are given of an incident where the people were grumbling due their misery of limited food & water in the wilderness. Because of their lack of faith, “Fiery serpents” were thus sent among the people, which caused them to pray to YHWH for the removal of the serpents.
However, rather than simply removing the serpents from among the Israelites, God told Moses to make a molded bronze image of a(“fiery”) serpent which was then set on a pole for all to see.
All who had been bitten, & then looked at the molded serpent thereby lived rather than dying.
Whoever believes, as the people dying of viper bites believed, that in obeying God by looking to the serpent, will have eternal life just as those people gained physical life while unbelievers perished.
You must accept the need for salvation!
You must accept that true salvation comes from outside your ability!
You must look to God for salvation!...rather than to yourself, or others, or things, or religion, spirituality, or philosophy, or morality, or good deeds, or popularity, etc.
You must exercise simple trust/belief in God’s available cure!
“Lifted up”—uqow—1) To lift up on high, to exalt; 2) metaph.—2a) To raise to the very summit of opulence & prosperity, 2b) To exalt, to raise to dignity, honor & happiness.
“Must”—dei—1) It is necessary, there is need of, it behooves, is right & properIy. Seems to be more suggestive of moral obligation, denoting esp. that constrain which arises from divine appointment. Dei indicates a necessity in the nature of things rather than a personal obligation; it describes that which must be done.
:15—“that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life.”
Here Jesus reveals to Nic that these truths(:3-13)—he is faced with accepting or rejecting—should not be so new & foreign to Israel’s thinking at all. This is because they are seminally present early in her history involving Moses.
The event in Numbers is thus a ‘Type’(earthly picture) of the forgiveness which will be fulfilled & available for all, in the Messiah to come. In fact it pictures His future crucifixion perfectly in that the Messiah would likewise be “lifted up.”
Thus the crucifixion is integral to bringing whoever “believes” in Jesus—as the Christ & Savior of their very lives both physically & spiritually—to salvation from eternal hell.
Acceptance is a first step to ‘belief’ that effects lifestyle, & ‘belief’ that effects lifestyle is secondary to initial acceptance.
The “perishing” spoken of is that of eternal separation from the very God who is the source/origin & embodiment of love. The opposite of eternal life is eternal death & not annihilation.
Rev. 14:9-11; 19:20; 20:10—“Then a third angel followed them, saying with a loud voice, “If anyone worships the beast & his image, & receives his mark on his forehead or on his hand, “he himself shall also drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which is poured out full strength into the cup of His indignation. He shall be tormented with fire & brimstone in the presence of the holy angels & in the presence of the Lamb. And the smoke of their torment ascends forever & ever; & they have no rest day or night, who worship the beast & his image, & whoever receives the mark of his name.””....19:20—“Then the beast was captured, & with him the false prophet who worked signs in his presence, by which he deceived those who received the mark of the beast & those who worshiped his image. These two were cast alive into the lake of fire burning with brimstone[before the 1000 yrs. begin].”....20:10—“The devil, who deceived them, was cast into the lake of fire & brimstone where the beast & the false prophet are[After the 1000 yrs. ends]. And they will be tormented day & night forever & ever.”
Heb. 11:7, 9-10, 13-16, 39-40—“By faith Noah, being divinely warned of things not yet seen, moved with godly fear, prepared an ark for the saving of his household, by which he condemned the world & became heir of the righteousness which is according to faith.”.....“By faith he[Abraham] dwelt in the land of promise as in a foreign country, dwelling in tents with Isaac & Jacob, the heirs with him of the same promise; for he waited for the city which has foundations, whose builder & maker is God.”.....“These all died in faith, not having received the promises, but having seen them afar off were assured of them, embraced them & confessed that they were strangers & pilgrims on the earth. For those who say such things declare plainly that they seek a homeland. And truly if they had called to mind that country from which they had come out, they would have had opportunity to return. But now they desire a better, that is, a heavenly country. Therefore God is not ashamed to be called their God, for He has prepared a city for them.”.....“And all these, having obtained a good testimony through faith, did not receive the promise, God having provided something better for us, that they should not be made perfect apart from us.”.....
...Heb. 12:1-2—“Therefore we also, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, & the sin which so easily ensnares us, & let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking unto Jesus, the author & finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, & has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.”
“Whoever”—pav—1) individually—1a) Each, every, any, all, the whole, everyone, all things, everything; 2) collectively—2a) Some of all types. Strong—All, any, every, the whole:-- All (manner of, means), alway(-s), any (one), X daily, + ever, every (one, way), as many as, + no(-thing), X thoroughly, whatsoever, whole, whosoever.
“Believes”—(See :12, 16, 18)—pisteuw—Strong—To have faith (in, upon, or with respect to, a person or thing), i.e. Credit; by implication, To entrust (especially one's spiritual well-being to Christ):-- Believe(-r), commit (to trust), put in trust with.
“Perish”—apollumi—To destroy fully (reflexively, to perish, or lose), literally or figuratively:-- destroy, die, lose, mar, perish.
“Eternal”—aiwniov—1) Without beginning & end, that which always has been & always will be; 2) Without beginning; 3) Without end, never to cease, everlasting. Strong—Perpetual (also used of past time, or past & future as well). :16—“For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.”
The life-changing event of rebirth is due only to God’s great all encompassing “love” for His “world,” which He created “very good” in the beginning prior to sin’s entrance.
God’s love is what produced for mankind, “His only begotten Son.” This unique salvatory Son was what God “gave” for the simple purpose of granting eternal life to any & all who believe.
Here we also see the two natures of Christ in His being the Son of God as well as “the Son of Man”(:13).
*“Perishing” is contrasted with “Eternal life.” The absence of “eternal life” in a person’s life is to “perish.”
The real focus of this passage is to make Nic, & thereby you, realize that God’s purpose is not to condemn but to rescue!(as :17 makes plain).
You may say, “Sure, I believe in Jesus,” similarly to the way you/others ‘believe’ in Santa Claus! THUS, if your belief is based on false information about Jesus then your belief is not truly in Jesus is it?—Failed belief is about some do-gooder loosely associated with the church, that helps people live better lives(as far as what you believe a better life is), & not be selfish but think of others(particularly at Christmas-time), Who is the Champion of the little guy, etc.
“Loved”(See :19)—agapaw—1) of persons—1a) To welcome, to entertain, to be fond of, to love dearly; 2) of things—2a) To be well pleased, to be contented at or with a thing. Strong—To love(in a social or moral sense). RWP—“the highest form of love.”
“World”—kosmov—Strong—Orderly arrangement, i.e. Decoration; by implication, The world (in a wide or narrow sense, including its inhabitants, literally or figuratively [morally]). “The whole cosmos of men, including Gentiles, the whole human race.”—RWP
“Gave”—didwmi—Strong—To give(used in a very wide application, properly, or by implication, literally or figuratively; greatly modified by the connection).
“Only begotten”—monogenhv—1) Single of its kind, only—1a) Used of only sons or daughters(viewed in relation to their parents), 1b) Used of Christ, denotes the only begotten son of God. Strong—Only-born, i.e. Sole.
:17—“For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved.”
God actively “sent” “His Son” “into” His creation. He did this for a positive reason & not a negative one...Although both are affected in Christ Jesus!
God’s intent thru His Son is that the entire creation may be saved, specifically mankind, which is the only part of His creation made in God’s image.
Rom. 8:18-23—“For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us. For the earnest expectation of the creation eagerly waits for the revealing of the sons of God. For the creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, but because of Him who subjected it in hope; because the creation itself also will be delivered from the bondage of corruption into the glorious liberty of the children of God. For we know that the whole creation groans & labors with birth pangs together until now. Not only that, but we also who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, eagerly waiting for the adoption, the redemption of our body.”
“Condemn” is contrasted with “Saved.” Both operate in & effect “the world.”
The “world” is in need of salvation. In fact, the “condemnation” is already upon mankind(:18), thereby salvation —thru being born-from above(:3, 6-7)—is absolutely essential.
Lk. 19:2-10—“Now behold, there was a man named Zacchaeus who was a chief tax collector, & he was rich. And he sought to see who Jesus was, but could not because of the crowd, for he was of short stature. So he ran ahead & climbed up into a sycamore tree to see Him, for He was going to pass that way. And when Jesus came to the place, He looked up & saw him, & said to him, “Zacchaeus, make haste & come down, for today I must stay at your house.” So he made haste & came down, & received Him joyfully. But when they saw it, they all complained, saying, “He has gone to be a guest with a man who is a sinner.” Then Zacchaeus stood & said to the Lord, “Look, Lord, I give half of my goods to the poor; & if I have taken anything from anyone by false accusation, I restore fourfold.” And Jesus said to him, “Today salvation has come to this house, because he also is a son of Abraham; for the Son of Man has come to seek & to save that which was lost.””
“Send”—apostellw—1) To order(one) to go to a place appointed; 2) To send away, dismiss. Strong—From—stellw—properly--To set fast (“stall”), i.e. figuratively--To repress(reflexively--Abstain from associating with).
“Condemn”—krinw—1) To separate, put asunder, to pick out, select, choose; 2) To approve, esteem, to prefer; 3) To be of opinion, deem, think, to be of opinion; 4) To determine, resolve, decree; 5) To judge; 6) To rule, govern; 7) To contend together, of warriors & combatants. Strong—properly--To distinguish, i.e. Decide(mentally or judicially); by implication--To try, condemn, punish.
“Saved”—swzw—1) To save, keep safe & sound, to rescue from danger or destruction. Strong—To save, i.e. Deliver or protect (literally or figuratively).
:18—“He who believes in Him is not condemned; but he who does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.”
Regarding “belief” “in” this only-begotten Son of God, the one(anyone) who willingly places their trust in Him is not condemned at all.
Rom. 8:1-16—“There is therefore now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus, who do not walk according to the flesh, but according to the Spirit. For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has made me free from the law of sin & death. For what the law could not do in that it was weak through the flesh, God did by sending His own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, on account of sin: He condemned sin in the flesh, that the righteous requirement of the law might be fulfilled in us who do not walk according to the flesh but according to the Spirit. For those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit, the things of the Spirit. For to be carnally minded is death, but to be spiritually minded is life & peace. Because the carnal mind is enmity against God; for it is not subject to the law of God, nor indeed can be. So then, those who are in the flesh cannot please God. But you are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if indeed the Spirit of God dwells in you. Now if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he is not His. And if Christ is in you, the body is dead because of sin, but the Spirit is life because of righteousness. But if the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, He who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through His Spirit who dwells in you. Therefore, brethren, we are debtors--not to the flesh, to live according to the flesh. For if you live according to the flesh you will die; but if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live. For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, these are sons of God. For you did not receive the spirit of bondage again to fear, but you received the Spirit of adoption by whom we cry out, “Abba, Father.” The Spirit Himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, & if children, then heirs--heirs of God & joint heirs with Christ, if indeed we suffer with Him, that we may also be glorified together.”
Contrarily, however, the one(anyone) who does not willingly place their faith in the only-begotten is before-the-fact condemned/judged. He/she lives in a continual state of condemnation or God’s dismissive judgment. He/she remains in this continuous state for the simple & obvious reason that he/she has obstinately & continuously refused trust “in the name of” the Son of God whom God has sent to save.
This is the heart of the doctrine of ‘Justification by Faith’ alone. The unbeliever is “condemned” even prior to the initiation of the Son’s earth-bound mission. Their guilt is compounded at the Son’s appearance.
Jn. 9:39-41—“And Jesus said, “For judgment I have come into this world, that those who do not see may see, & that those who see may be made blind.” Then some of the Pharisees who were with Him heard these words, & said to Him, “Are we blind also?” Jesus said to them, “If you were blind, you would have no sin; but now you say, ‘We see.’ Therefore your sin remains.”
‘The potential for condemnation is bound up with the mission of the Son to bring salvation.’—D. A. Carson
Why is “the name” so important rather than ‘the person’ of Jesus Himself? After all, later in this very Gospel, Jesus declares Himself to be “the way the truth & the life”(14:6). Because “the name” incorporates every aspect of that associated with it & which is called into play by it! “The name” itself is a declaration of the depth & universality of God’s love wrought in the sole means of salvation by His living Christ/Messiah.
“Because he hath not believed”(oti mh pepisteuken). Perfect active indicative of pisteuw, has taken a permanent attitude of refusal.”...This pictures “the man who is not willing to come to Christ for life...”—RWP
“Already”—hdh—Now, already—with a suggested reference to some other time or to some expectation, the subjective present.
“Name”—onoma—1) Name: universal of proper names; 2) The name is used for everything which the name covers, everything the thought or feeling of which is aroused in the mind by mentioning, hearing, remembering, the name, i.e. for one's rank, authority, interests, pleasure, command, excellences, deeds etc.; 3) Persons reckoned up by name; 4) The cause or reason named: on this account, because he suffers as a Christian, for this reason. Strong—A"name"(literally or figuratively) [authority, character].
Argumentation:
**Rom. 10:9 -10—“that if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus & believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart one believes unto righteousness, & with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.”
**Mat. 10:32-33—““Therefore whoever confesses Me before men, him I will also confess before My Father who is in heaven. But whoever denies Me before men, him I will also deny before My Father who is in heaven.”
**Jn. 6:63-71—“It is the Spirit who gives life; the flesh profits nothing. The words that I speak to you are spirit, & they are life. But there are some of you[disciples/followers] who do not believe.” For Jesus knew from the beginning who they were who did not believe, & who would betray Him.” And He said, “Therefore I have said to you that no one can come to Me unless it has been granted to him by My Father.” From that time many of His disciples went back & walked with Him no more. Then Jesus said to the twelve, “Do you also want to go away?” But Simon Peter answered Him, “Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life. Also we have come to believe & know that You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” Jesus answered them, “Did I not choose you, the twelve, & one of you is a devil?” He spoke of Judas Iscariot, the son of Simon, for it was he who would betray Him, being one of the twelve.”
**Jn. 20:24-29—“Now Thomas, called the Twin, one of the twelve, was not with them when Jesus came. The other disciples therefore said to him, “We have seen the Lord.” So he said to them, “Unless I see in His hands the print of the nails, & put my finger into the print of the nails, & put my hand into His side, I will not believe.” And after eight days His[Jesus’] disciples were again inside, & Thomas with them. Jesus came, the doors being shut, & stood in the midst, & said, “Peace to you!” Then He said to Thomas, “Reach your finger here, & look at My hands; & reach your hand here, & put it into My side. Do not be unbelieving, but believing.” And Thomas answered & said to Him, “My Lord & my God!” Jesus said to him, “Thomas, because you have seen Me, you have believed. Blessed are those who have not seen & yet have believed.””
**1Pet. 1:17-21—“And if you call on the Father, who without partiality judges according to each one’s work, conduct yourselves throughout the time of your stay here in fear; knowing that you were not redeemed with corruptible things, like silver or gold, from your aimless conduct received by tradition from your fathers, but with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish & without spot. He indeed was foreordained before the foundation of the world, but was manifest in these last times for you who through Him believe in God, who raised Him from the dead & gave Him glory, so that your faith & hope are in God.”
**1Cor. 1:20-21—“Where is the wise? Where is the scribe? Where is the disputer of this age? Has not God made foolish the wisdom of this world? For since, in the wisdom of God, the world through wisdom did not know God, it pleased God through the foolishness of the message preached to save those who believe.”
Apart from a BELIEF Fulfilled by Christ Jesus, your ‘belief’ is not based on fact, but upon feeling & falsehood.
Illustration:
LED & Fluorescent(CFLs) light bulbs to replace incandescents /Use 7.5--4X less energy/The scientists, designers & manufacturers of them had a BELIEF that a comparable small fluorescent could be made....& that they could be made to replace & improve incandescent bulbs in the same receptacles currently in use/BELIEF
A child faced with swimming for the first time/Sees others having fun in the water/But the child remains hot & dry on land/The child must first-of-all Accept(:9-13) that it is indeed possible for people to swim/But, in order to experience the joy swimming brings, He must also have a Believe that he himself can learn to swim/BELIEF
Application:
?Did you Abandon previous BELIEF at birth?
?What did you Abandon at birth?
CONCLUSION:
Visualization:
No Opener Used—Reiterated past points.
Action:
Those born from above, Abandon previous...
5. BELIEF(:14-18)
1. POSITION(:1-2)
2. LIMITING WISDOM(:3-7)
3. DIRECTION(:8)
4. ACCEPTANCE(:9-13) Accept Jesus & His testimony
Pts. 5-only! Presented 10/30/2016am to:
FBC Cbelle
206 Storrs Ave SE(Ave A)
Carrabelle, FL 32322
Pts. 4-6 Presented 01/09/2010 am To:
Needmore Baptist Church
1620 Mt. Vernon Rd.
Woodleaf, NC 27054
