Jesus Commanded New Birth

The Book of John focuses on Who Jesus is, and who we are not. A few weeks ago we looked at the first command of Jesus, which is to “Repent”:

(Matthew 4:17 KJV) From that time Jesus began to preach, and to say, REPENT: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.

John the Baptist had just been imprisoned, and Jesus’ ministry was starting. He preached “REPENT”, which means to reject yourself and receive the Lord Jesus Christ as Savior. To choose a new god, a god better than the god you have been following. Jesus is the Good Shepherd Who loves His sheep, and lays His life down for His sheep (John 10).

If you’re going to go to Heaven, if you’re going to walk with Jesus, you must be a sheep, not a dog or a pig. Sheep follow the Shepherd. You must be born again.

We’re going to be in chapter 3 of John tonight, but before we go to chapter 3 let’s look at chapter 2. In chapter 2, Jesus is invited to a Wedding Feast in Cana, and they are out of wine. Jesus’ mother asks Jesus to intervene. Jesus has the servants fill six water pots to the brim with water. Each pot held from 102-162 gallons of water. Jesus turned that water into wine (vs 10), the “good wine” that out-shined all wine that had been served up to this point.

Jesus changed common water into exceptional wine. Water can be found anywhere. Wine requires special care and handling of grapes.

Then Jesus went to the Passover, and drove all out of the Temple that were using it as a money making endeavor. The Temple is where you worship God. They were worshiping not God, but money. Jesus ran them out of the House of God. Chapter 2 ends with these words:

John 2:23-25 Now when {Jesus} was in Jerusalem at the Passover, in the feast day, MANY BELIEVED IN HIS NAME, when they saw the miracles which he did. 24 But JESUS DID NOT COMMIT HIMSELF TO THEM, because HE KNEW ALL MEN, 25 And needed not that any should testify of man: for HE KNEW WHAT WAS IN MAN.

People saw Jesus turn water into wine, and “BELIEVED IN HIS NAME”. They saw Jesus chase the moneychangers out of the Temple. They saw the miracles that Jesus did. Oh, they “BELIEVED IN HIS NAME”. Jesus was a miracle worker! He did great things! But notice that:

JESUS DID NOT COMMIT HIMSELF TO THEM, because HE KNEW ALL MEN

Jesus is the “GOOD SHEPHERD Who gives His life for His sheep.” (John 10:11). Jesus is the “GOOD SHEPHERD Who knows His sheep, and is known by His sheep” (John 10:14). The people in Jerusalem “BELIEVED IN HIS NAME”, but NOT UNTO SALVATION.

Jesus looked in their hearts. He knew what was in their hearts. He could not be their Shepherd, because they were not sheep. Oh, they believed He could do the miracles. But they had not surrendered their lives to Him. They were not born again. God spoke through the Prophet:

(Jeremiah 17:9-10 KJV) The heart [is] deceitful above all [things], and DESPERATELY WICKED: who can know it? [10] I THE LORD SEARCH THE HEART, [I] try the reins, even to give every man according to his ways, [and] according to the fruit of his doings.

People came to Jesus believing He was a miracle man. They followed Him because He could improve the quality of their lives. Yet Jesus was not their Shepherd. He would not commit Himself to them, because their hearts were not changed. YOU MUST BE BORN AGAIN. Jesus does not Shepherd the lost. YOU MUST BE BORN AGAIN. Your heart must be changed.

The Shepherd Will Only Commit Himself To His Sheep

John 3:1-3 There was a man of the Pharisees, named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews: 2 The same came to Jesus BY NIGHT, and said unto him, Rabbi, we know that thou art A teacher come from God: for no man can do these miracles that thou doest, except God be with him. 3 Jesus answered and said unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.

The Shepherd loves His sheep, and is concerned for His sheep. He loves everyone. But Jesus will not commit Himself to those who are not “born again”. That doesn’t mean that God doesn’t love us all. The Bible says:

1 John 4:19 We love him, because He first loved us.

Jesus will tell Nicodemus later in this chapter:

John 3:14-17 And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of man be lifted up: 15 That WHOSOEVER BELIEVETH IN HIM should not perish, but have eternal life. 16 For GOD SO LOVED THE WORLD, that He gave His only begotten Son, that WHOSOEVER BELIEVETH IN HIM should not perish, but have everlasting life. 17 For God sent not His Son into the world to condemn the world; but that THE WORLD THROUGH HI MIGHT BE SAVED.

God loves His world. Jesus loves us, and laid His life down for us. But before Jesus can be our Shepherd, before we can be saved, we must do more than “BELIEVE IN HIS NAME”. A lot of people saw Jesus’ miracles and “BELIEVED IN HIS NAME”, but Jesus would not commit Himself to them. Why? They were NOT born again.

John 3:2 (Nicodemus) came to Jesus BY NIGHT

Nicodemus was curious. He was a Pharisee, and His friends were Pharisees. Nicodemus “BELIEVED IN HIS NAME”. He didn’t believe Jesus was the Christ, the Savior of the world. Nicodemus said what he believed about Jesus:

John 3:2 … we {Pharisees} know that Thou art A TEACHER COME FROM GOD: for no man can DO THESE MIRACLES that thou doest, except GOD BE WITH HIM.

There are a lot of people on the Church rolls today who believe the same things about Jesus. There are people who believe that Jesus is “ A TEACHER COME FROM GOD”. There’s a lot of teachers that God that God sent. He sent Moses, and Elijah, and Elisha. God sent Samuel, and David, and Hosea. Your Bible is filled with teachers sent by God, good men of God who wrote Holy Scripture. Beloved, Jesus is not just another teacher sent by God.

Jesus is THE SON OF MAN, the Christ, the Messiah that Daniel prophesied of. As the SON OF MAN Jesus speaks as God for God.

Jesus told Nicodemus:

John 3:11-13 Verily, verily, I say unto thee, WE speak that WE do know, and testify that WE have seen; and ye receive not OUR witness. 12 If I have told you earthly things, and ye believe not, how shall ye believe, if I tell you of heavenly things? 13 And NO MAN HATH ASCENDED UP TO HEAVEN, but HE THAT CAME DOWN FROM HEAVEN, even THE SON OF MAN WHICH IS IN HEAVEN.

As Jesus talks to Nicodemus, He says “WE speak that WE do know, and testify that WE have seen”. Who is the “WE” Jesus is speaking of? It can’t be Nicodemus, for Jesus said “YE RECEIVE NOT OUR WITNESS”. Some have said that Jesus was referring to Himself, and John the Baptist. It can’t be this, because Jesus is talking about things that “WE KNOW, AND WE HAVE SEEN”. Jesus said “NO MAN HATH ASCENDED UP TO HEAVEN, but HE THAT CAME DOWN FROM HEAVEN”. John the Baptist has not ascended unto Heaven. So just Who is the WE Jesus speaks of? It is the Triune God. Jesus said, “I am telling you things that WE – Father, Son and Spirit, know … and YOU WILL NOT RECEIVE OUR WITNESS”. Then notice what Jesus says:

NO MAN HATH ASCENDED UP TO HEAVEN, but HE THAT CAME DOWN FROM HEAVEN, even THE SON OF MAN WHICH IS IN HEAVEN

John the Baptist has not ascended to Heaven – but Jesus has. Jesus came down from Heaven. And Jesus – AT THIS VERY MOMENT – as Messiah “IS IN HEAVEN” as He speaks to Nicodemus. Jesus is not just A teacher sent from God. Jesus is God Himself. Jesus is the Son of God. The Father addresses Jesus:

(Hebrews 1:5-8 NKJV) For to which of the angels did {God the Father} ever say: “You are My Son, Today I have begotten You”? And again: “I will be to Him a Father, And He shall be to Me a Son”? [6] But when He again brings the Firstborn into the world, He says: “Let all the angels of God worship Him.” [7] And of the angels He says: “Who makes His angels spirits And His ministers a flame of fire.” [8] But TO THE SON HE SAYS: “Your throne, O God, [is] forever and ever; A scepter of righteousness [is] the scepter of Your kingdom.

Nicodemus has “believed in His name”, but not as God, not as the Son of God, but as A teacher Whom God has sent. He came at night, because he was afraid of what the other Pharisees would say. Nicodemus is religiously lost. He must be born again.

Jesus Commanded Nicodemus To Do Something He Could Not Do. Only God Can Make Us Born Again.

When Jesus told Nicodemus “You MUST be BORN AGAIN”, Nicodemus said “How can a man be born when he is old? can he enter the second time into his mother’s womb, and be born?”. He was puzzled. The Bible tells us that:

(1 Corinthians 2:14 NKJV) 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.

The “Natural Man” is detached from the Shepherd, but attached to sin, the flesh, the world and Satan. A mere “Teacher” cannot open the eyes of the soul. God must intervene.

A lost person – even if they are religious – cannot understand the things of the Spirit of God. Nicodemus is a “Teacher of Israel” (vs 10). He intellectually understands great teachings of the Bible. But he cannot receive spiritual truth – EVEN FROM JESUS – until he is born again. The Bible tells us:

(Romans 8:7-8 LSB) because THE MIND SET ON THE FLESH IS AT ENMITY TOWARD GOD, for it does not subject itself to the law of God, for it is not even able [to do so], [8] and those who are in the flesh are not able to please God.

A lost person must be born again. This is something that person cannot do for themselves. They must repent, and lay their lives down to Jesus, believing on Him as both Lord and Savior. They must call on the power of His Name as their Great Shepherd. Jesus told Nicodemus:

John 3:5-7 Jesus answered, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be BORN OF WATER AND OF THE SPIRIT, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God. 6 That which is BORN OF THE FLESH IS FLESH; and that which is BORN OF THE SPIRIT IS SPIRIT. 7 Marvel not that I said unto thee, YE MUST BE BORN AGAIN.

New Birth requires that a person believe on the Name of Jesus as Lord and call on the Name of Jesus as Savior. At that point, God the Holy Spirit effects a change in the seeker.

Adrian Rogers said, “Do you know what we have done? We have begun to talk about Christians in categories. We say, ‘Well, he’s a born-again Christian.’ May I tell you very plainly that saying ‘born-again Christian’ is redundant and besides, that’s the only kind there is! It’s like saying female woman or tooth dentist. Jesus said, ‘Marvel not that I said unto thee, Ye must be born again.’”

You are not a Christian unless you are born again. When Jesus spoke of “being born of WATER and of the SPIRIT”, He was not talking about water baptism. Jesus was appealing to Scripture. God promised His people that there was coming a day when …

(Ezekiel 36:25-27 LSB) … I WILL SPRINKLE CLEAN WATER ON YOU, and YOU WILL BE CLEAN; I WILL CLEANSE YOU from all your uncleanness and from all your idols. [26] “Moreover, I WILL GIVE YOU A NEW HEART and PUT A NEW SPIRIT WITHIN YOU; and I WILL REMOVE THE HEART OF STONE from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. [27] “I WILL PUT MY SPIRIT WITHIN YOU and cause you to walk in My statutes, and you will be careful to do My judgments.

It is God – not man – that saves the believer. It is God Who washes us, “THROUGH THE WASHING OF REGENERATION AND RENEWING BY THE HOLY SPIRIT” (Titus 3:5). It is God Who “GIVES US A NEW HEART” and “PUTS A NEW SPIRIT WITHIN US”. It is God Who gives us His Spirit, and causes us to walk in His ways.

Though Nicodemus was a “teacher” of the Law, he was spiritually dead. Those who are spiritually dead walk apart from God. Jesus told the Pharisees:

(John 8:37-39, 42-44 LSB) I know that you are Abraham’s seed; yet you are seeking to kill Me, because MY WORD HAS NO PLACE IN YOU. [38] “I speak the things which I have seen with [My] Father; therefore you also do the things which you heard from [your] father.” [39] They answered and said to Him, “Abraham is our father.” Jesus said to them, “If you are Abraham’s children, you would do the deeds of Abraham. … [42] Jesus said to them, “IF GOD WERE YOUR FATHER, YOU WOULD LOVE ME, for I proceeded forth and have come from God, for I HAVE NOT EVEN COME OF MYSELF, but THE FATHER SENT ME. [43] “Why do you not understand what I am saying? [It is] because YOU CANNOT HEAR MY WORD. [44] “YOU ARE OF YOUR FATHER, THE DEVIL, and you want to do the desires of your father. He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth because there is no truth in him. Whenever he speaks a lie, he speaks from his own [nature], for he is a liar and the father of lies.

The spiritually dead cannot see the spiritual Kingdom of God. Nicodemus was standing next to the King of Kings, but he called Jesus “A teacher”. Humanity is divided into two camps:

those born of the flesh
those born of the Spirit

Jesus said of the Spirit:

John 3:8 The wind bloweth where it listeth, and thou hearest the sound thereof, but canst not tell whence it cometh, and whither it goeth: so is every one that is born of the Spirit.

The wind moves around us without our intervention. The Holy Spirit also moves. When we REPENT, and call on the name of Jesus as Lord and Savior, the Holy Spirit moves into our lives. The Spirit does not improve us morally. The Spirit gives us life. We are given new eyes to see. We are born again.

Before he was born again, Nicodemus came to Jesus “by NIGHT”. Pastor Kyle Idleman wrote:

“At night no one would see him. At night he would avoid awkward questions from the other religious leaders. At night he could spend time with Jesus without anyone knowing. If he could speak with Jesus at night when no one was around, maybe he could begin a relationship with Jesus without having to make any real changes. …. Here is the reality that Nicodemus is about ready to have impressed on him: There is no way to follow Jesus without Him interfering with your life….. Following Jesus always costs something. For Nicodemus it would cost him a powerful position. It would cost him the respect of his co-workers. It would cost him the source of his income and livelihood. It would cost him friendships. It would cost him family relationships.”

Before he was saved, Nicodemus hid his relationship with the Lord Jesus. Jesus said:

(Mark 8:38 LSB) For WHOEVER IS ASHAMED OF ME AND MY WORDS in this adulterous and sinful generation, the SON OF MAN WILL ALSO BE ASHAMED OF HIM when He comes in the glory of His Father with the holy angels.

After Nicodemus was saved by faith in Christ, his heart changed. Sheep love the Shepherd. When the Pharisees plotted to kill Jesus, Nicodemus stood up against them:

(John 7:50-51 LSB) Nicodemus … being one of them (a Pharisee), said to them, [51] “Does our Law judge a man unless it first hears from him and knows what he is doing?”

They were not pleased with Nicodemus, and mocked him. But Nicodemus stood with Christ. Later when Jesus was crucified, Joseph of Arimathea and Nicodemus would retrieve His body from the Cross. Then Nicodemus would provide the supplies to prepare Christ’s body for burial (John 19:39). Whereas he was previously ashamed of Jesus, he was not now. The sheep follows the Shepherd. Period. But we do not make ourselves sheep. God makes us sheep, when we REPENT and RECEIVE the Lord Jesus Christ.

(1 Peter 1:3 LSB) Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who according to HIS GREAT MERCY HAS CAUSED US TO BE BORN AGAIN to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead,

Those who are “born again” are changed forever. We will fail, but we will fail upward. As Jesus rose from the grave to live forever in glory, we will one day rise to walk with Him in glory. The sheep belong to the Shepherd, and we belong to Him. We are no more dogs or pigs, but are sheep, HIS sheep, children of God by faith in Christ.

We who are saved are saved by the Word of God, by His faithfulness. We have His guarantee.

Peter betrayed Jesus at the worst moment of our Savior’s life. Paul murdered Christians before he was saved. We are not saved because we are flawless. We are saved because HE is flawless. Our Shepherd is our Lord Jesus. Peter wrote:

(1 Peter 1:22-25 LSB) Since you have in obedience to the truth purified your souls for a love of the brothers without hypocrisy, fervently love one another from the heart, [23] for you have been BORN AGAIN NOT OF CORRUPTIBLE SEED, BUT INCORRUPTIBLE, [that is], THROUGH THE LIVING AND ENDURING WORD OF GOD. [24] For, “ALL FLESH IS LIKE GRASS, AND ALL ITS GLORY LIKE THE FLOWER OF GRASS. THE GRASS WITHERS, AND THE FLOWER FALLS OFF, [25] BUT THE WORD OF THE LORD ENDURES FOREVER.” And this is the word which was proclaimed to you as good news.

One day you will stand before Almighty God. Imagine this, if you will. God asks you, “Why should you be allowed into My Heaven?” What is the first word you will say to Him? Will you say “Because I”, and then tell Him all the good things you did? If so, you have a problem. Your response should be – if you are sheep – “Because Jesus Christ is my Shepherd. He died for me. He owns me. I am His, and He is mine. I deserve nothing – but I cling to the Word of Christ’s Gospel”. Amen.