The Gospel in Miniature
John 3:1-17

Jn. 2:23-25...In the previous verses we read of those false “believers” who followed Jesus just for what they could get out of Him. They were superficial and false disciples and Jesus knew it which is why He did not commit Himself to them.
As you have heard me say before, There are three kinds of Believers: True Believers, False Believers, and Make Believers and they are in every church.

Now we have a man by the name of Nicodemus who came to Jesus by night, he was a Pharisee and a leader of the Jews.
He was not afraid of the Jews and what they would think, Jn 7:50; 19:39
He was sincere, and wanted answers to his honest questions and Jesus who can see the heart, knew it and that’s why He committed Himself to Nicodemus in a way that He didn’t to the shallow followers who went away in Jn 6:66.

Jesus knows those who are His, Jn 10:27-29; 17:9.

V. 2...A faith that rests solely on miracles is not a saving faith. “Signs and wonders” brings no one to salvation.
God gave miracles to authenticate His Word, but faith rests on something better.
The miracles were to be a sign to point us to something higher and better.

Nicodemus was like a lot of people today; honestly seeking God with many questions and a reverence for the things of the Lord,...but unsaved. God fearing, but lost.
He hadn’t yet come to faith; mere respect won’t save.
Nicodemus, it won’t help you to say flattering and nice things about me, you need to be born again.
Lip service amounts to nothing,...your lifestyle must back up your confession.
“I’d rather see a sermon any day as to hear one.”

V. 5…”Born of water” is not baptism as Christian baptism had not been instituted yet. (John’s baptism was different in meaning).
Baptism is never associated with birth, but always with death,...death to the old way of life and resurrection to a new life. Pictures our identification with the death, burial, and resurrection of Christ.
Water here is not a symbol of baptism , but the word of God, Ps. 119:9; Eph. 5:25,26.

God uses the Word and the Holy Spirit to affect salvation in the true Believer, Rom. 10:14,17.

The New Birth is not only necessary, it is a mystery.
V. 7,8...There are mysteries in nature we cannot completely understand,...like the wind. The Spirit of God is like the wind:
You can’t tell where it’s coming from, when or where it’s going. But you can see it’s effects. No one denies the existence of the wind, even though they can’t see it. We can feel it, and see what it does.
The Spirit of God changes people, Isa. 44:3; Ezek. 36:25-27

V. 13...No one has ever ascended up into Heaven and returned by his own power and decision.
Near death experiences often disagree with what the Bible says about God and Heaven.
Which would you rather trust,...the Word of God or someone who has had the oxygen cut off to their brain for a few minutes?
Jesus is the one who came from Heaven and we can trust only Him to tell us what Heaven is like and how to get there.

Physical birth isn’t enough, no matter who your parents were.
V. 3...Jesus excommunicated the whole nation of Israel with His statement in v. 3 because just being a descendant of Abraham isn’t good enough.

V. 4...Even if we could go back and live our lives over again, knowing what we know now, we are still sinner and would make mistakes and commit sins.

V. 8...Don’t try to figure it out intellectually, just accept it by faith.
And by the way, don’t wait for some great Hallelujah Experience complete with angels, trumpets, thunder and lightning, or some big emotional display.
God speaks to us most often in the still, small voice as He did to Elijah.

And don’t think you have to clean up your life first before you come to God because you can’t.
God will cleanse your life and make you a new person through His Word and His Spirit.

II Cor 5:17

Titus 3:5...The “double cure” for sin is God’s cleansing and renewing us by faith in Christ alone.

Don’t make it harder than it is, just like Nicodemus we need a simple faith which believes God and embraces the truth of His Word, v. 16.