GOD’S PLAN
JOHN 3:1-17
:1-2
:1—“There was a man of the Pharisees named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews.”
:2—“This man came to Jesus by night and said to Him, “Rabbi, we know that You are a teacher come from God; for no one can do these signs that You do unless God is with him.”
“Nicodemus”—A Pharisee—Traditionalist/Influenced(by others)/Student(of Bible)
What kind of a man was Nicodemus?—Pharisee—Respected Ruler—
“Ruler”—Sanhedrin(Council of the Seventy)—Controlled &/or set legal precedence for all Jewish civil & religious affairs—Judiciary, Legislative & Executive body.
Jn. 19:38-39—“And after these things Joseph of Arimathea, being a disciple of Jesus, but a secret one, for fear of the Jews, asked Pilate that he might take away the body of Jesus; & Pilate granted permission. He came therefore, & took away His body. And Nicodemus came also, who had first come to Him by night; bringing a mixture of myrrh & aloes, about a hundred pounds weight.”
Why did Nicodemus approach Jesus in the manner he did?
•Why by night?—
Probably, Nic did not want to be seen by the other Council members as seriously approaching Jesus for answers.
•Why did Nicodemus recognize Jesus as a Rabbi?—“Rabbi”—Title of honor & high respect. Nic recognized a lack of arrogance in Jesus’ manner, as well as a godly ‘authority’ in Jesus’ teaching.
•Why did Nicodemus recognize Jesus as a teacher?—Nicodemus saw good reason to hear Jesus out. Nicodemus had experienced nothing in Jesus teaching that was odd or out of place regarding God’s revealed word. However, Nicodemus knew that Jesus’ word did NOT sit comfortably within the context of men’s interpretations & expansions of God’s word! So thru that, Nicodemus reasoned that Jesus was sent by God to teach.
•Why did Nicodemus drawn by Jesus’ signs?—Nicodemus recognized Jesus’ manner, authority, & miracles—for the signs that they were—signs of God.
*Nicodemus didn’t completely understand God’s Plan as it encompassed Jesus, but he did recognize God at work in Jesus’ life.
:3
:3—“Jesus answered and said to him, “Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.”
Nicodemus’ statement to Jesus was intended to draw an answer from Jesus.
•Why did Jesus respond to Nicodemus’ statement as He did?
Jesus knew that Nicodemus had perceived some aspect of the Kingdom of God thru Jesus’ life, miracles, & teaching. Jesus knew that Nicodemus’ assessment was only partial, & drew his attention, because Jesus’ manner & message presented a challenge to Nicodemus’ own belief system. Jesus knew that though He was personally interesting & intriguing to Nicodemus at that time, Nicodemus was still limited to head knowledge.
“Unless”—No exceptions
“One”—Anyone regardless of race, creed, nationality, religion, etc...
“Born Again”—‘Born from above’ or ‘Twice born’
“See”—Lay eyes upon—Perceive with the senses.
“Kingdom of God”
What is this Kingdom of God?—All that is within God’s free control.
So...
Jesus tells Nicodemus with absolute authority, that without being “born” from above, a person has no power to perceive “the kingdom of God.” Thus the perceptions of the Pharisees—conservatively driven legalists, serving & directing the people with Nic—have largely been limited to human reasonings. They can thereby not rightly understand the very things of God of which they claim to have a grasp.
Here we receive the revelation that “unless” a person is “born” in a different way than they have experienced—“again” or more properly, ‘from above’—then it is utterly impossible for such a person to “see” the “kingdom” to which God invites them!
•The Greek behind the term translated as “again”, actually more accurately designates that which is ‘from above.’
Of course this term—“born” ‘from above’—carries with it, the unavoidable implication & intention that God has created humanity in such a way that every individual is capable of experiencing a ‘second birth’ of sorts. So there must be another “birth” or an “again”! That is, IF a person want to “see”, wants to grasp all that is entailed in “the kingdom of God” then they must be “born again”!
So for every individual who is naturally born—physically, once, from the earth—there exists the potential for every one of them to “see the kingdom of God”! But only if they willingly experience a second birth(“again”), which is ‘from above.’
There must be a point in one’s life where you come to grips with your sinful nature...surrenders it to God, & thus gains insight to previously unperceived but ever present things of spiritual importance.
It is also obvious here that IF personal inattention to spiritual matters makes it is impossible for a certain person &/or certain people to “see” “the kingdom of God”—that is, people who are NOT “born again”—Then as a consequence, neither is it possible for such a person, such people, to “enter” God’s kingdom(:5).
So God’s people are not here to satisfy the reasonings of men who sit on Boards & Committees & bark orders, but rather we are here—we are granted life on this earth— to satisfy God’s desire thru Christ Jesus His only-begotten Son. He is the One by whom we--believers, trusters, “born again”-ers, God’s people, true Christians-- not only “see”, but “enter”(:5) & take part in “the kingdom of God”(Mat. 6:33)!
Mat. 6:33—“But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, & all these things shall be added to you.”[every other aspect of your life]
:4—“Nicodemus said to Him, “How can a man be born when he is old? Can he enter a second time into his mother’s womb & be born?”
•Nicodemus is unfamiliar with the spiritual nature of what Jesus is sharing with him. Nicodemus is only familiar with what he has held to throughout his life so far. He knows nothing beyond keeping the law & it’s laws—even God’s laws—which can NEVER save a person!(Acts 13:39).
•Acts 13:38, 39—“Therefore let it be known to you, brethren, that through this Man[Jesus] is preached to you the forgiveness of sins; & by Him everyone who believes is justified from all things from which you could not be justified by the law of Moses.”
*People are saved—from hell to heaven—by grace thru faith, & NOT by law or legalities!
•Rom. 11:56—“Even so then, at this present time there is a remnant according to the election of grace. And if by grace, then it is no longer of works; otherwise grace is no longer grace. But if it is of works, it is no longer grace; otherwise work is no longer work.
:5—“Jesus answered, “Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born of water & the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God.”
“Water”—
•“Water” may signify a ritual &/or symbolic “water” ‘baptism’ by which people commit themselves to a person, a god or a cause.
•“Water” here probably signifies the ‘natural’, or ‘physical birth’ or the ‘first’ birth, versus the “again” or ‘above’ birth Jesus speaks of. So “water” represents the birth all people everywhere & of every era experience.
“and the Spirit”—
•Again there must be two births in order to fully grasp & be part of “the kingdom of God.”
“he cannot enter the kingdom of God.”—
:6-7
:6—“That which is born of the flesh is flesh, & that which is born of the Spirit is spirit.”
:7—“Do not marvel that I said to you, ‘You must be born again.’”
•There is NO middle ground when it comes to being God’s people. You either belong to God or you do not! You either have been born twice or you have not!
•“You “must” be born again”—Plural—‘You all/Ye’ must...
:8
:8—“The wind blows where it wishes, & you hear the sound of it, but cannot tell where it comes from & where it goes. So is everyone who is born of the Spirit."”
•That’s the way born-again people—God’s people—are. In the eyes of non-Christians, the direction of born-again people is incomprehensible. That is, their actions are unable to be fully anticipated. Born-again people are also unable to be contained.
•Those born of the Spirit can neither be controlled by nor be understood by those of a mere natural/fleshy birth(1Cor. 2:14).
1Cor. 2:14—“But the natural man does not receive the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him; nor can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned.”
•That is true because the direction of born-again people is completely dependent upon God to move them.
:9
:9—“Nicodemus answered & said to Him, “How can these things be?”
:10-13
The long & short to Nicodemus’ answer here is that Jesus, being sent from God, knows what He is talking about, & His death & resurrection will prove it!(Rom. 4:25)
Rom. 4:25—“who was delivered up because of our offenses, & was raised because of our justification.” :14-15
:14—“And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up,
:15—that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life.”
Here Jesus reveals to Nicodemus that these truths—he is faced with accepting or rejecting—should not be so new & foreign to Israel’s thinking at all. This is because these truths are seminally present early in her history involving Moses.
•In Numbers 21:5-9 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 YaHoVeH to 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, in the same manner as the people dying of viper bites believed, that were obeying God by looking to the serpent, will have eternal life just as those people gained physical life while unbelievers perished.
The event in Numbers is thus a type of the forgiveness which will be available in the Messiah to come & is now here. 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, to “eternal life” & thus freedom from “perishing.” This Jesus is accepted as the Christ & Savior of their very lives both physically & spiritually.
The “perishing” spoken of is that of eternal separation from the very God who is the embodiment & source 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.”
In regard to “eternal life”—“It is more than endless, for it is sharing in the life of God in Christ”—RWP
:16
: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).
The real focus of this passage is to make Nic & us realize that God’s purpose is not to condemn but to rescue, as :17 makes plain.
:17
: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.
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.
Presented 05/03/2020am to;
1BCCbelle
Per YouTubeVideo via Facebook(shared to First Baptist Church Carrabelle)
206 SE. Ave. A(Storrs Ave.)
Carrabelle, FL 32322
