“Now there was a Pharisee, a man named Nicodemus who came to Jesus at night and said, “Rabbi, we know that you are a teacher who has come from God. For no one could perform the signs you are doing if God were not with him.” Jesus replied, “Very truly I tell you, NO ONE CAN SEE THE KINGDOM OF GOD UNLESS THEY ARE BORN AGAIN.” “How can someone be born when they are old?” Nicodemus asked. “Surely they cannot enter a second time into their mother’s womb to be born!” (John 3:1-4)
Nicodemus was a well-respected teacher of the law but he had NO IDEA of what Jesus was teaching him. He came to Jesus to learn because he respected Jesus because of the miraculous things he saw Jesus do. Nicodemus ought to have known and understood what Jesus was saying. He professed to be a student of the Hebrew Bible. The necessity of the new birth ought not to have appeared strange to him. Because of what the Prophet Ezekiel taught, “I will give you a NEW HEART and put a NEW SPIRIT IN YOU; I will remove from you your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh. And I will put MY SPIRIT IN YOU.” (Ezekiel 36:26,27).
Nicodemus set of lenses through which he viewed his life, and the world was the result of his training. They reduced reality to WHAT WAS PHYSICALLY POSSIBLE. Jesus goes on to say to Nicodemus, “I tell you the truth, we speak of what we know, and we testify to what we have seen, but still, you people do not accept our testimony. I have spoken to you of earthly things, and you do not believe; how then will you believe IF I SPEAK OF HEAVENLY THINGS?” (John 3:11-12)
Then Jesus makes this profound statement, “For this is how God loved the world: He gave His one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in Him will not perish but HAVE ETERNAL LIFE. God sent His Son into the world not to judge the world, but TO SAVE THE WORLD THROUGH HIM.” (John 3:16-17)
TELL JESUS YOU ARE SORRY FOR YOU SINS AND ASK HIM TO FORGIVE YOU.
Your Personal Pastor -Bill Stockham