John 3:1-9 Now there was a man of the Pharisees named Nicodemus, a member of the Jewish ruling council. He came to Jesus at night and said, “Rabbi, we know you are a teacher who has come from God. For no one could perform the miraculous signs you are doing if God were not with him.”
In reply Jesus declared, “I tell you the truth, no one can see the kingdom of God unless he is born again."
“How can a man be born when he is old?” Nicodemus asked. “Surely he cannot enter a second time into his mother's womb to be born!”
Jesus answered, “I tell you the truth, no one can enter the kingdom of God unless he is born of water and the Spirit. Flesh gives birth to flesh, but the Spirit gives birth to spirit. You should not be surprised at my saying, ‘You must be born again.’ The wind blows wherever it pleases. You hear its sound, but you cannot tell where it comes from or where it is going. So it is with everyone born of the Spirit.”
Observations for living today:
Unless a man be “born of God” (Jn 1:13) – “born again/anew – born from above” he cannot see or know the kingdom of God!
Unless God calls to a soul, they will never know the truth of God. Just as He called out to Adam and Eve (Gen 3:9) as they hid in the garden, God now calls to the living souls/human beings who are dead in their sins (Jn 5:24-27), to come to Jesus and believe His testimony, to learn from Him and find rest for their souls (Mt 11:25-30).
The living souls / human beings God created cannot inherit the “Kingdom of God” for they are subject to sin and death, i.e., corrupt and/or mortal, which is why He said His Spirit could not remain in man, limiting life to 120 years (Gen 6:3). “Flesh gives birth to flesh” and only the Spirit can give birth to spiritual beings, just as Paul explained that “flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God, nor does the perishable inherit the imperishable” (1 Co 15:44-50).
One must be “born of water and the Spirit.” One must be “born again/anew – from above” to be able to enter into God’s Kingdom. Unless you believe the testimony of Jesus you will not be able to see the path to freedom from sin, know/understand the truth about the reality God has for man or enter into the life God desires for you (2 Peter 3:10-13; Rev 21:1-8).
Reality in Christ:
When confronting the failing religious leadership who broke God’s command for the sake of their traditions, Jesus warned His disciples that “every plant my heavenly Father has not planted will be pulled up by the roots” (Mt 15:1-20). Our birth as a Christian is from above when we respond to God’s call and believe the testimony of His only begotten Son (2 Cor 5:17-20; Gal 6:15; Jn 5:19-23; Eph 2:1-10).
Born “again/anew/from above” declares the source and authority for all power. John used the same word “from above” when quoting Jesus’ response to Pilate, who thought his power as governor, came from Caesar. Jesus knew the truth/reality; Pilate had no power to kill Him or grant freedom if it were not given/authorized “from above” by God (Jn 19:8-16).
The reality is the same today as it was for Pilate then. Some claim there is no absolute truth and reality is a matter of perception – if enough people think the same thing, then it becomes a reality. God’s reality is the only truth; wanting it to be different or thinking it could happen because it makes sense to you does not change the truth of God’s reality.
Some think faith is given by God, the will of man being evil, separate and distinct from God, could never accept or reject God, for if man did have such a choice it would somehow diminish the power and authority of God. And yet the will of man, the power to believe and act in accordance with God’s will, was never impossible, ask Enoch, Elijah or Abraham. Or ask Jesus, who did not hold on to His equality with God, but emptied Himself (Php 2:5-11) and became like us in every way, to include being tempted to not believe God’s truth/reality (Heb 2:17-18; Heb 4:14-16; Mt 26:36-44; Mk 14:32-42; Lk 22:39-46).
Jesus clearly tells us we must respond to God to receive His promises; only those who “do God’s will” can see, know and enter the kingdom of God (Mt 7:21-23). Another time He said, “Why do you call me ‘Lord, Lord’ and do not do what I say?” and then taught them a parable to show hearing His words without practicing them is like building a house without a foundation – its destruction will be complete when calamity strikes (Lk 6:46-49). And yet another time He said, “the Son of Man is going to come in his Father's glory with his angels, and then he will reward each person according to what he has done” (Mt 16:27).
Jesus clearly said there is an absolute truth, a reality established by God, which if you think differently now and only become convinced on the Day of Judgment (Heb 2 & 3), it will be too late for you: those who do not enter the Kingdom of God will experience the “second death” (Rev 21:8).
Jesus said not to be afraid of what you see in this life. He wants you to know God loves you. Not one sparrow falls to the ground without it being within His will, that is, in harmony with God’s knowledge/authority (Mt 10:28-29). You are more important than a sparrow in a field.
From the minute one starts to believe the testimony of Jesus, they are “born from above,” and God’s Spirit begins to enable His child to grow in every way according to His power and in accordance with His will (Eph 4:10-16; Titus 3:3-7; 1 Pet 1:3-9).
In reply Jesus declared, “I tell you the truth, no one can see the kingdom of God unless he is born again."
“How can a man be born when he is old?” Nicodemus asked. “Surely he cannot enter a second time into his mother's womb to be born!”
Jesus answered, “I tell you the truth, no one can enter the kingdom of God unless he is born of water and the Spirit. Flesh gives birth to flesh, but the Spirit gives birth to spirit. You should not be surprised at my saying, ‘You must be born again.’ The wind blows wherever it pleases. You hear its sound, but you cannot tell where it comes from or where it is going. So it is with everyone born of the Spirit.”
Observations for living today:
Unless a man be “born of God” (Jn 1:13) – “born again/anew – born from above” he cannot see or know the kingdom of God!
Unless God calls to a soul, they will never know the truth of God. Just as He called out to Adam and Eve (Gen 3:9) as they hid in the garden, God now calls to the living souls/human beings who are dead in their sins (Jn 5:24-27), to come to Jesus and believe His testimony, to learn from Him and find rest for their souls (Mt 11:25-30).
The living souls / human beings God created cannot inherit the “Kingdom of God” for they are subject to sin and death, i.e., corrupt and/or mortal, which is why He said His Spirit could not remain in man, limiting life to 120 years (Gen 6:3). “Flesh gives birth to flesh” and only the Spirit can give birth to spiritual beings, just as Paul explained that “flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God, nor does the perishable inherit the imperishable” (1 Co 15:44-50).
One must be “born of water and the Spirit.” One must be “born again/anew – from above” to be able to enter into God’s Kingdom. Unless you believe the testimony of Jesus you will not be able to see the path to freedom from sin, know/understand the truth about the reality God has for man or enter into the life God desires for you (2 Peter 3:10-13; Rev 21:1-8).
Reality in Christ:
When confronting the failing religious leadership who broke God’s command for the sake of their traditions, Jesus warned His disciples that “every plant my heavenly Father has not planted will be pulled up by the roots” (Mt 15:1-20). Our birth as a Christian is from above when we respond to God’s call and believe the testimony of His only begotten Son (2 Cor 5:17-20; Gal 6:15; Jn 5:19-23; Eph 2:1-10).
Born “again/anew/from above” declares the source and authority for all power. John used the same word “from above” when quoting Jesus’ response to Pilate, who thought his power as governor, came from Caesar. Jesus knew the truth/reality; Pilate had no power to kill Him or grant freedom if it were not given/authorized “from above” by God (Jn 19:8-16).
The reality is the same today as it was for Pilate then. Some claim there is no absolute truth and reality is a matter of perception – if enough people think the same thing, then it becomes a reality. God’s reality is the only truth; wanting it to be different or thinking it could happen because it makes sense to you does not change the truth of God’s reality.
Some think faith is given by God, the will of man being evil, separate and distinct from God, could never accept or reject God, for if man did have such a choice it would somehow diminish the power and authority of God. And yet the will of man, the power to believe and act in accordance with God’s will, was never impossible, ask Enoch, Elijah or Abraham. Or ask Jesus, who did not hold on to His equality with God, but emptied Himself (Php 2:5-11) and became like us in every way, to include being tempted to not believe God’s truth/reality (Heb 2:17-18; Heb 4:14-16; Mt 26:36-44; Mk 14:32-42; Lk 22:39-46).
Jesus clearly tells us we must respond to God to receive His promises; only those who “do God’s will” can see, know and enter the kingdom of God (Mt 7:21-23). Another time He said, “Why do you call me ‘Lord, Lord’ and do not do what I say?” and then taught them a parable to show hearing His words without practicing them is like building a house without a foundation – its destruction will be complete when calamity strikes (Lk 6:46-49). And yet another time He said, “the Son of Man is going to come in his Father's glory with his angels, and then he will reward each person according to what he has done” (Mt 16:27).
Jesus clearly said there is an absolute truth, a reality established by God, which if you think differently now and only become convinced on the Day of Judgment (Heb 2 & 3), it will be too late for you: those who do not enter the Kingdom of God will experience the “second death” (Rev 21:8).
Jesus said not to be afraid of what you see in this life. He wants you to know God loves you. Not one sparrow falls to the ground without it being within His will, that is, in harmony with God’s knowledge/authority (Mt 10:28-29). You are more important than a sparrow in a field.
From the minute one starts to believe the testimony of Jesus, they are “born from above,” and God’s Spirit begins to enable His child to grow in every way according to His power and in accordance with His will (Eph 4:10-16; Titus 3:3-7; 1 Pet 1:3-9).
RSS Feed