Being a father today is not easy because there’s a lot of pressure on dads to be in the delivery room. I’m not discounting the importance of being involved in this way because I certainly wanted to be there…I just wasn’t sure if I could handle it. I think my dad had it easier in the 60s when he just paced the floor in the waiting room.
When Emily was born, I was totally into the Lamaze training. Beth and I took classes together, and I had my role down cold. I did well in the delivery room, but the room started spinning and a nurse had to find a chair for me. I don’t understand why women say giving birth is hard – it’s pretty tough on us dads, too.
When Beth was expecting Lydia, I took a much more laid-back approach. No birthing classes for me. I knew what to do. It was no big deal. When Beth went into labor, I just called her a cab so I could go back to sleep…just kidding.
When we got to the hospital, Beth settled into her comfortable bed while I sat next to her in a hard, uncomfortable chair. See, it’s tough on us fathers, isn’t it? I looked around for the remote control and started channel surfing. I finally settled on a good show but had to keep turning the volume up every few minutes when Beth would get a contraction. Finally, she grabbed my hand and said, “Give me that remote!”
You know, there’s nothing like the birth of a baby. I will forever remember the births of each of our four daughters – though I hope Beth forgets how I acted in the delivery room.
We’re continuing in our series called, “Re.” Last weekend, we were challenged to resolve to live convictionally without compromise from Daniel 1.
• Build your convictions on God’s Word.
• Behave respectfully toward others.
• Believe God will make a way.
How well did you do at putting the action steps into practice?
• Cultivate your convictions ahead of time.
• Expect incessant opposition from our ungodly world.
• Draw a line in your soul.
I want to add one more biblical conviction to last week’s list. We’re reminded in Genesis 1:27 that everyone is created in the image of God and therefore has great worth, value, and dignity: “So God created man in His own image; in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them.” Physical differences, racial background, and ethnic distinctions are secondary to being made in the image of God.
James 3 prohibits all prejudice, especially in the church. The gospel is the answer to racism, and we must stand against this sin in every form. The insidious evil exhibited last Saturday in Buffalo when a white man targeted and intentionally murdered 10 black people is abhorrent. Last Sunday, there was a California church shooting motivated by hatred for Taiwanese people. This week, Dallas police arrested a suspect in an attack on three women of Korean descent.
We gather together no matter our skin color or background. We grow together because we can’t grow alone. We give to each other because of what we’ve been given. And we go with the gospel to all people even if they are different from us because as Ephesians 2 teaches, the dividing wall of hostility between the races has been knocked down by the gospel. Here’s the bottom line: Grace must affect how we look at race.
Today we’re going to look at what Jesus said about another kind of birth. Our topic is Rebirth, which is defined as, “being born again from above, having a new or a second birth.” We see this concept in several passages of Scripture.
• 1 Peter 1:3: “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! According to His great mercy, He has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead.”
• 1 Peter 1:23: “Since you have been born again, not of perishable seed but of imperishable, through the living and abiding word of God.”
• Galatians 6:15: “For neither circumcision counts for anything, nor uncircumcision, but a new creation.”
• Titus 3:5: “He saved us, not because of works done by us in righteousness, but according to His own mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewal of the Holy Spirit.”
• 1 John 5:1: “Everyone who believes that Jesus is the Christ has been born of God, and everyone who loves the Father loves whoever has been born of him.”
• John 3:3: “Jesus answered him, ‘Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God.’”
Please turn to John 3 as we listen in on a spiritual birthing class Jesus conducted with a man. Here’s our main idea: You’re not in, until you are born again.
I’ve adapted and expanded another pastor’s outline to help us catch the flow of this conversation.
1. The seeker’s worry. John 3:1: “Now there was a man of the Pharisees named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews.” In John 2:23 we read many believed in Jesus because of the signs they saw Him do, like turning water into wine and cleansing the Temple. One was a man named Nicodemus. Here’s what we know about him.
• A Pharisee. In the first century, the Pharisees were widely respected for their intense piety and deep scholarship. These men had taken a solemn vow to devote their entire life to keeping the Ten Commandments and to live separated from sin. They studied the Scriptures diligently, prayed two hours a day, and gave a tithe of all they possessed. However, the Pharisees made a couple basic and very tragic errors – they externalized their religion and they believed if they just worked hard enough, they could make their way to heaven. Some of you may be on that same road this morning.
• A member of the Sanhedrin. Nicodemus was called a “ruler of the Jews,” which means, “chief authority.” He was part of the 70-member Jewish ruling council called the Sanhedrin. In our culture, he would be like a college professor, a judge on the Supreme Court, a United States Senator, and a bishop in the church – all rolled into one.
• A highly regarded teacher. Verse 10 refers to him as “the teacher of Israel.” He’s the instructor of Israel. He was at the top religiously, morally, socially, and politically…and yet something was missing.
Incidentally, the most difficult people to reach with the gospel are not those who are rebellious, but rather the religious because they think they’re already in. But You’re not in, until you are born again.
John 3:2 reads, “This man came to Jesus by night and said to him, ‘Rabbi, we know you are a teacher come from God, for no one can do these signs that you do unless God is with him.’” Since he came to Jesus after dark, we could call him “Nick at Night.” Why did Nick come at night? Perhaps because he knew Jesus was controversial, and he couldn’t risk being seen publicly. Or maybe he wished to have time for a longer private discussion.
The fact he risked his own position to come to Jesus speaks of his own personal need and worry that he was missing something. The word “night” might also be a symbol of his own spiritual condition because at this point, he is still in the dark. Notice he called Jesus “Rabbi,” even though He didn’t attend an approved rabbinical school. The title “Rabbi” means, “The Great One, the Master Instructor.” Nick also stated, “We know you are a teacher come from God.” This an emphatic statement in Greek. This is high praise coming from a well-known teacher like Nicodemus.
2. The Savior’s word. This brings us to the answer Jesus gave to this cultured, educated, well-respected religious leader who was filled with worry. His response was abrupt and not in response to a stated question, though it was the question Nicodemus was asking in his heart. Look at John 3:3, “Jesus answered him, ‘Truly, truly, I say to you unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God.’”
Jesus elevated the importance of what He was about to say by leading with “Truly, truly,” which means, “most assuredly, so be it.” This expression is like an exclamation point and is used 24 times in John’s gospel alone. It was the way Jesus introduced something incredibly profound and monumental. In the original language, the word is “Amen,” which is a word of finality as in Revelation 3:14: “The words of the Amen, the faithful and true witness.”
In the original language, the phrase “born again” means, “again” and “above.” This double meaning shows Nicodemus must be reborn from above. The word “unless” signals a necessary condition. It’s an imperative revealing there are no other options. The only way to see and experience the kingdom of God is through being born again from above.
Despite all his learning, Nicodemus was utterly baffled by this thought. Instead of reforming himself, or becoming more religious, he needed to be reborn. In this one sentence, the Savior swept away everything this religious man stood for. As a Jew, he thought he was already in. As a faithful Pharisee, a member of the Sanhedrin, and the top teacher in the land, he was certainly good to go, right? Jesus made it clear to Nicodemus as He does to each of us: You’re not in, until you are born again.
Someone has said religious people often struggle with 3Rs.
• Rote – just going through the motions.
• Rut – this leads to spiritual inertia.
• Rot – if something doesn’t change, the soul starts to decay.
Does that describe you? Has your rote religion put you in a rut which is leading to rot in your soul? Being good is never good enough because it’s not about religion; it’s about rebirth.
In verse 4, Nick is ready to head back to the delivery room: “How can a man be born when he is old? Can he enter a second time into his mother’s womb and be born?” Nicodemus missed the point because Jesus was not talking about a second physical birth, but about a completely different kind of birth, a spiritual birth. Your physical birth introduces you to the physical world. But if you want to enter the kingdom of God (the world of spiritual reality), you need a spiritual birth.
3. The Spirit’s work. Jesus replied in verses 5-6: “Jesus answered, ‘Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God. That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit.’”
Once again, Jesus got his attention with “Truly, truly” and then He used two strong and exclusive words: “unless” and “cannot” to show there is no other way. He declared something similar in Luke 13:3: “But unless you repent, you will all likewise perish.”
Some think “water” refers to our physical birth because we were swimming around in water for 9 months before birth, and “being born of the spirit” refers to our spiritual birth. Others think this verse refers to baptism, but the water Jesus speaks of here symbolizes the cleansing which comes from the Holy Spirit.
I believe Jesus was referencing Ezekiel 36:25-27, a passage Nicodemus would have known well: “I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you shall be clean…I will give you a new heart, and a new spirit I will put within you…and I will put my Spirit within you.”
Trying to clean ourselves up doesn’t work because our fallen flesh cannot achieve lasting fruit. It’s only the Holy Spirit who can affect permanent change. It’s not about rules, regulations, or religion because none of this can give you a clean heart and a new spirit.
To make sure Nick didn’t misunderstand this truth, Jesus added another exclamation point in verse 7: “Do not marvel that I said to you, ‘You must be born again.’” I wonder if Nicodemus had his mouth open with a surprised and confused look on his face. No doubt he was astonished so Jesus used the phrase, “You must be born again.” This is a strong imperative which is universally binding and absolutely necessary.
The new birth is not optional for any of us. Jesus didn’t say, “I recommend you be born again” or “You should be born again if after investigation it seems to meet your personal need” or “I think it would be a good idea to try out being born again.” Jesus used the urgent language of a forceful command: You must be born again. In addition, the second use of “you” is in the plural, meaning this message is for each of us, not just Nicodemus.
Jesus spoke these words not to some immoral outcast, but to one of the most religious men of His day. By all human standards Nicodemus was a very good person and certainly a man we would admire for his intense devotion to God. Yet Jesus told him, “You must be born again.”
If he needed to be born again, what about you and me? Do any of you have the religious pedigree Nicodemus had? I doubt it. The truth is we are much less religious than Nicodemus was. If he needed to be born again, we surely do as well. Question: Have you ever been born again? I’m going to give you an opportunity to be born again from above at the end of the sermon.
Just in case I haven’t made myself clear, I’m not asking about your church membership, your baptism, your giving record, your Growth Group attendance, or your personal morality. Nicodemus had all those things down cold, but Jesus said to him, “You must be born again.” You’re not in, until you are born again.
If we want to go to heaven, we must be born again. If we’re not, we won’t see the kingdom of God. Nicodemus was a good man who knew about God, but he didn’t know God personally. His search reminds us that being good is not good enough because it’s not about systems it’s about the Spirit.
This is all a bit mysterious, isn’t it? How does this actually work? How does someone get saved? Look at verse 8: “The wind blows where it wishes, and you hear its sound, but you do not know where it comes from or where it goes. So it is with everyone who is born of the Spirit.” In Greek, wind and spirit come from the same word.
I enjoy going on long bike rides. This past Monday, I jumped on the bike path at Ben Butterworth and made my way across the new I-74 bridge. Then, I rode on the bike path in Davenport and took the Arsenal bridge back to Rock Island and on home. It seemed no matter which direction I went, the wind was in my face! As I was puffing while peddling hard, I tried to figure out where the wind was coming from, and I couldn’t do it. I could hear it whistling through my helmet and could see the waves on the river, but I could not see the wind.
In a similar way, the Holy Spirit blows where He wishes, causing some to be born again. We can’t see Him, but we can sure see His impact. In a meal with the Missions Committee after church last weekend, Paul and Roxanne Wilson shared how the church in Mexico is being revived, people are getting saved, and many are being mobilized for missions. Paul said he’s never seen anything like it before. When he was done, I raised my hand and asked if he knew what factors are contributing to this. He shrugged his shoulders and said something like, “I can only explain it as the supernatural work of the Holy Spirit.” Oh, may the Spirit blow the winds of revival through our country like this!
4. The sinner’s welcome. Some of us think we just need to find the correct career, or that right person, or purchase the perfect possession and then we’ll find our purpose. If we can just be “good,” then things will be great. Listen. You don’t need to try a new principle; you need to trust in a person, the Lord Jesus Christ.
Drop down to these very familiar words from John 3:16: “For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.” This verse starts with what God does and ends with what we must do.
• God loves. I love that little word “so” because it shows God doesn’t love a little, but a lot. The volume of His love is cranked up high. The word “love” is the word agape, which refers to an unconditional covenant kind of love. It’s a verb, meaning it’s a word of action. While you may not feel loved by others, God loves you more than you can even imagine! You matter to the Majesty! He takes great delight in you, no matter what you’ve done. He loves you no matter how you’ve been living. He treasures you in spite of all your transgressions.
• God lavishes. The next phrase helps us see God loves us so much that He lavishes on us the gift of His Son: “…that He gave His only Son…” The word “gave” has the idea of sacrifice.
• We lean. While it’s helpful to know that God loves and God lavishes, we also need to lean into Him: “…that whoever believes in Him…” God loves the whole world, which means everyone, and He offers salvation to whoever, which means you! He loves the whole mass of people, and He loves me in my mess! Being good is not good enough because no one is good enough. The issue is not right behavior, but right belief.
• We live. I love how this verse ends: “…should not perish but have eternal life.” Would you notice that the only negative aspect of this verse is found in this phrase? To “perish” means to be eternally separated from God. Another word for this is Hell, which is a place of eternal and conscious judgment, described as a place of darkness, weeping, gnashing of teeth, eternal fire, and torment. The word “but” shows a contrast - we don’t have to perish, but can instead have “eternal life.”
To believe means, “to cling to, rely on, and trust in” Christ so completely you cast all you are, all you have, and all you hope to become, on Jesus Christ as your Savior and Lord, your Forgiver and Leader.
We often stop at John 3:16 but let’s not forget verses 17-18: “For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through Him. Whoever believes in Him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God.”
These verses teach two surprising truths.
• If you believe in Christ, you will not be condemned. Jesus was sent on a search and save mission. He didn’t come to condemn but to convert sinners.
• If you don’t believe, you’re condemned already.
In other words, if you choose not be born again, you are condemned right now, and you’ll be condemned in Hell forever. If you choose not to believe, you’re already condemned. Most of us think someone must do really bad things to go to Hell. Here’s the gospel truth: If you do nothing and never believe in Christ, you’ll end up in Hell because that’s where we’re all headed unless we’re born again from above.
God loves and He lavishes. Let’s lean on Him so we can live.
J.C. Ryle once said:
1. Life is short and uncertain.
2. Death is sure.
3. Judgement is inevitable.
4. Sin is exceedingly sinful.
5. Hell is a dreadful reality.
6. Christ alone can save you.
On Wednesday, Taylor Swift received an honorary doctorate from New York University and gave the commencement speech. Here’s part of what she said, “I know it can be really overwhelming figuring out who to be, and when. Who you are now and how to act in order to get where you want to go. I have some good news: it’s totally up to you. I also have some terrifying news: it’s totally up to you.”
I’m certain I’ve never quoted Ray Pritchard and Taylor Swift back to back but listen to Ray’s helpful corrective: “Don’t get confused about your part in salvation. You provide the sin. Jesus provides everything else.”
Let me say it once again just in case you missed it: “You must be born again.” Isaiah 45:22 says: “Turn to me and be saved, all the ends of the earth! For I am God, and there is no other.”
Jump down to the last verse in the chapter and listen to John 3:36: “Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life; whoever does not obey the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God remains on him.” John 20:31: “By believing, you may have life in His name.”
In the margin of the Bible Martin Luther translated into German, he wrote these words, “Born once, die twice. Born twice, die once.”
I first came across John 3:3 when I was in college and was sitting in a Bible study. I ended up in this gathering because my college roommate had the courage to tell me I wasn’t a Christian. After I blew up at him, I realized he was right. That led me to this group of guys who had open Bibles on their laps. I was using a borrowed Bible and when I saw this verse in red, I knew it must be important: “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God.”
I stopped the Bible study and told these guys I didn’t have a clue what this verse meant. They spent the rest of the time walking me through this chapter to help me see that just has I had a physical birth to give me life, I needed a spiritual birth in order to have eternal life. They helped me see I was not in until I was born again.
After the study, I went back to my dorm room and finished reading the entire Gospel of John. Then, I closed my eyes and prayed, putting my faith and trust in Christ as my substitute, leaning into the Lord as my Savior and Leader. Finally, I understood that God loves, and He lavishes. And because I leaned on Him, I was given eternal life, and was born again from above on October 3, 1979.
I was finally in because I was born again! Are you ready to enter the kingdom of God through rebirth?
You can be reborn right now by praying this prayer:
“I don’t understand how You can accept me when I don’t measure up. But I get it now You love me so lavishly You sent your Son to die for my sins on the cross. I confess I am a sinner and I turn from the way I’ve been living. I need You to be my Savior. You are the Christ, the Son of the Living God. I desire to live under Your lordship for the rest of my life. Thank You for not only being born but for dying in my place and rising again so I can be born again. I lean into you now by faith so I can live with You forever. Make me into the person You want me to be. Amen.”
If you just trusted Christ, may I be the first to enter the delivery room and wish you, “Happy Birthday?” You may be wondering what you should do now. Nicodemus appears two more times in the Gospel of John. If you were just born again, you can follow the example of Nicodemus.
• Stand up for Christ. In John 7:52, Nicodemus spoke up for Christ when a crowd had turned on Him: “Does our law judge a man without first giving him a hearing and learning what he does?”
• Serve Him for the rest of your life. In John 19:39, after Jesus died, Nicodemus helped Joseph of Arimathea with the burial arrangements: “Nicodemus also, who earlier had come to Jesus by night, came bringing a mixture of myrrh and aloes, about seventy-five pounds in weight.”
