John Chapter 3:4-16

See Nicodemus is trying at this point to get his mind wrapped around this and he's having a hard time. But I like that Nicodemus came to Jesus. He knew where to go with his questions. He didn't send somebody else to him. He went to him. Personally.

And that's the way it is. You've got to check out Jesus personally. You can't check him out to this guy or that guy or this book or that book or even some well-meaning preacher on television. You have to check Jesus out personally. You have to come to Jesus personally. I believe Nicodemus was born again after this. I believe Nicodemus got saved. Now, I know that some people think no Pharisees got saved. That's, that's anti-scriptural.

A lot of Jewish people, a lot of Jewish leaders received Jesus as the Messiah. Welcome to Cross the Bridge with David McGee. David is a senior pastor of the Bridge in Kernersville, North Carolina. And we're glad to have one of David McGee's associate pastors, D.A. Brown, here with us as Pastor David continues through the book of John. Bob, it's important to remember that Jesus isn't dead. He rose from the dead and he's alive right now. And we can have a personal relationship with him.

Now, how does that work? Just like me and you talking right now, we can talk to Jesus, Bob. And man, the things he has to say exceed what anyone else has to say for sure. I know we'll find out more about this personal relationship that each one of us can have today as David McGee continues teaching verse by verse in the Gospel of John chapter 3. Turn with me to John chapter 3. So last week, Jesus spoke of being born again. Well, we studied Jesus saying you need to be born again.

It's more exact. And you know, we need to be reminded of that central truth because we've actually have the distinction somehow twisted of Christians and born-again Christians. I'm confused about what somebody that's not a born-again Christian is. I don't think you can be a Christian and not be born again. I think you take the literal words of Jesus. We're in verse 4 here. And Nicodemus said to him, how can a man be born when he is old? Can he enter a second time into his mother's womb and be born? Jesus answered, most assuredly 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. Verse 7, do not marvel that I said to you, you must be born again. He says it twice. He said it in verse 3.

He says it again in verse 7. It's an awesome thing when you're born again. What happens? Your past. All your mistakes. Gone. Doesn't matter how much you messed up. Gone. Forgiven. Isn't that an amazing thing? I mean, guys, if we took, you know, if we compared notes here, I'm probably one of the chiefest sinners in here.

I know I'd be in the top five. And yet, it's all gone. It's over.

It's done. You don't have a past that can condemn you anymore. Now, that doesn't mean that well-intended Christians won't condemn your past, but God Himself doesn't condemn you.

We don't sit and think about that very much. Your sins are forgiven and forgotten, and you have a bright future and hope. Oh, man, this is good stuff, isn't it? No wonder it's called the good news.

No wonder it's called the good news. Jesus doesn't say, well, we need to fix you up a little bit. There's a couple things that are wrong with you, but we can fix it. What you need? You need a retreat. That's what you need. You need to go to retreat, and you'll be up. No, that's... Or more seminars, or more conferences, or, you know, oh, you hear wacky things.

You need more self-esteem. That's what'll heal you, brother. No, it's being born again. It's asking Jesus to be forgiven and receiving it, and we have to start over. And in order for Nicodemus to realize this, he needed to realize he didn't have it. Guys, that's part of the process, and whenever you're sharing the good news, it's got to start with the bad news.

Because if somebody doesn't realize that they're a sinner, they're not going to understand they need saving. I like what Ray Comfort does with it. You know, if you're on a flight and somebody comes by and says, hey, you know, wear this parachute. You're thinking, why do I need a parachute?

I don't... No, it's all right. You know, the flight seems to be going well. But if somebody comes by your seat and says, you know what? In five minutes, plane is going to crash. Everybody in here is going down. Here's a parachute. Let me ask, which time will the parachute have the most meaning?

I mean, if the guy says the plane's going down, you're all over the parachute. Sometimes we don't paint the bad news. I'm not talking about hellfire and brimstone and, you know, beating somebody up and hitting them over the head with your Bible, but understanding that they can't trust in themselves to achieve salvation. Verse 8, the wind blows where it wishes, and you hear the sound of it, but cannot tell where it comes from and where it goes. So is everyone who is born of the Spirit. Jesus is not saying it's okay if you're filled with the Spirit to be weird. I've heard some people use this verse and go, see, you know, nobody understands me.

Nobody knows where I come from, where I go, because I'm born of the Spirit. That's not what Jesus is talking about here. That's really ripping it out of context. He's talking about we can't fully understand the operation of the Holy Spirit. Does that mean that whatever is okay in the churches? No, no, because Paul wrote very specifically in 1 Corinthians 12, 1 Corinthians 14, about the way our meetings should be conducted in regards to the Holy Spirit.

Paul lays it out very plain. He says things should be done decently and in order. Now, I've been in both types of churches. I've been in churches where they just weren't done. And I've been in churches where they were done, but they weren't done decently and in order.

And there's a balance here. Yes, there is a, well, if you'll permit me the use of the word, there is a scriptural mysticism, if you will, in regards to the scriptures and the workings of the Holy Spirit. But the scriptures set down the guidelines of what happens in regards to fellowship and the Holy Spirit. I think we need to be careful.

I think we need to look to Scripture. And I don't, you know, a lot of times people do all sorts of crazy stuff and they go, well, you know, and you can go, why you do that? Oh, it's just the Spirit. What kind of Spirit? I mean, guys, I've been in meetings where, boy, it just turned my stomach.

You know what? I am, this is ministering to somebody, hopefully, because this is not in my notes and I didn't intend to go off on this first. But, you know, so many times we say, well, you know, this happened and that happened and it was the Holy Spirit. Really, show me in Scripture where it says that that happens. And if you can't show me in here, we're not doing it in this church. I don't care what other church does it.

Don't say, well, the church down the road's doing it. I don't care. You show me in this book and we'll do it. It's not in here.

We're not doing it. And if that offends you, I can't apologize. But you know what? It should make you feel safe that nothing's going to go on here that we don't see in here. Because, guys, there's a lot of weirdness out there.

There is a lot of weirdness out there. In verse 9, Nicodemus answered and said to him, how can these things be? See, Nicodemus is trying at this point to get his mind wrapped around this and he's having a hard time.

But I like that Nicodemus came to Jesus. He knew where to go with his questions. He didn't send somebody else to him. He went to him. He went to him personally.

And that's the way it is. You've got to check out Jesus personally. You can't check him out to this guy or that guy or this book or that book or even some well-meaning preacher on television. You have to check Jesus out personally.

That's life lesson number two. You have to come to Jesus personally. I believe Nicodemus was born again after this. I believe Nicodemus got saved. Now I know that some people think no Pharisees got saved. That's anti-scriptural. A lot of Jewish people, a lot of Jewish leaders received Jesus as the Messiah. Church tradition taught us something else. The Bible tells us a lot did. The reason I believe that Nicodemus got saved is two other scriptures that he's mentioned in the Gospel of John.

We'll dig into them deeper when we're there. But John chapter 7 verse 50, Nicodemus, he who came to Jesus by night being one of them, said to them, does our law judge a man before it hears him and knows what he's doing? He's defending Jesus to the Pharisees and he was a Pharisee. They answered and said to him, are you also from Galilee? Search and look for no prophet has risen out of Galilee. So here Nicodemus is defending Jesus. John chapter 19 verse 39 says, and Nicodemus who at first came to Jesus by night also came bringing a mixture of myrrh and aloes about a hundred pounds.

He came to minister to the Lord after his death. Now what's interesting about this, and again we'll dig deeper into this when we get there, but the second passage there's something in there that is kind of hidden until you realize what's going on in the passage, in the verses. It's Passover. What's the big deal there? Passover is a holy day. It's where we get our word for holiday. And let me ask you a question.

Where would you run out and get a hundred pound of aloe? Couldn't. Everything was closed. It's the Sabbath. It's the way it used to be here on Sunday.

Shabbat. You couldn't get them. So here I already have them. Why did he have a hundred pounds laying around for? I believe when Jesus said he was going to be crucified, dead and buried, that Nicodemus believed him. And this is a time when all the disciples had ran off, but Nicodemus not only listened, but he heard him, and he believed him, and he was ready for the burial after the crucifixion. And guys, there is no other way. We've talked about this before. Jesus says you must be born again. This is the deal. There's no end around.

There's no plan B. So if you believe the words of Jesus for you to say that there's other ways to heaven, it's calling Jesus a liar. So you can't be a Christian and say there's other ways to heaven when Jesus said there's not. And if you're calling Jesus a liar, you can't call yourself a Christian. Because Jesus himself, you all probably know the verse, John 14 six, Jesus said to him, I am the way, the truth, and the life.

No one comes to the father except through me. There's no other way. So either you call Jesus a liar and you say there's other ways to heaven, or you say, you know what? Jesus is the only way. Jesus is the only way. And then Acts 4 12 says, nor is there salvation in any other for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved.

That's what the Bible says. And instead of being weird that there's not more than one way, I'm just thankful there's one way. I'm thankful there is a way. I praise God that there's a way outside of my own works and my own righteousness. You'll be able to tell me in heaven because I'll be the one running around going, man, I made it. Praise God.

This is awesome. No other way. In verse 10, Jesus answered and said to him, are you the teacher of Israel and you do not know these things? Boy, that would be a good question to ask a lot of liberal theologians. Are you a teacher and you do not know these things? It's a lot of people know a lot of stuff about the Bible, but they don't know the author. And if you don't know the author, you can't really know the book.

Knowing the author is the main thing. Verse 11, most assuredly I say to you, we speak what we know and testify what we have seen and you do not receive our witness. If I told you earthly things and you do not believe, how will you believe if I tell you heavenly things? If I told you earthly things and you do not believe, how will you believe if I tell you heavenly things? Told you earthly things.

You told you earthly things. You mean like how the earth got here? It says in the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth. You throw that verse out, what do you do with the rest of the book? I know how the earth got here.

God created it. Verse 13, no one has ascended to heaven, but he who came down from heaven, that is the son of man who is in heaven. Wow, so Jesus never said he was God, huh? Well, this sure sounds like a claim to divinity to me, that he came down from heaven and he was the only one.

He also forgave sins, and he said only God can forgive sins. That's another big clue, isn't it? We'll be right back with more from David Magee on Cross the Bridge. Right now, here's a word from associate pastor D.A.

Brown. Hey, Bob, we want to take a minute to pray for our listening audience and those living in these cities in California, Oroville, Paso Robles, Pine Grove, Quartz Hill, Red Bluff, Reading, and Ridgecrest. God, we thank you for those listening in these cities and the surrounding areas. Lord, we pray that you would speak right to them right where they're at today, that they would be excited about following you, that they wouldn't fear that they're going to fall short because you're going to do the work in them.

God, we pray that they would get plugged into a Bible-teaching, Bible-believing church. And Father, did you give the pastors in those churches wisdom on how to encourage those whom God brings? In Jesus' name, amen. Amen.

Thank you, brother. And now, let's get back to David Magee as he continues teaching verse by verse. 32 and 33 kind of illuminate this a little bit when Jesus says, And I, if I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all peoples to myself. This, he said, signifying by what death he would die. Now, this is referring to a passage in Numbers, Numbers 21, verse 5 through 9. And the people spoke against God and against Moses. Why have you brought us up out of Egypt to die in the wilderness?

For there is no food and no water, and our soul loathes this worthless bread. So the Lord sent fiery serpents among the people, and they bit the people, and many of the people of Israel died. Therefore, the people came to Moses and said, We have sinned, for we have spoken against the Lord and against you.

Pray to the Lord that he takes away the serpents from us. So Moses prayed for the people. Then the Lord said to Moses, Make a fiery serpent and set it on a pole, and it shall be that everyone who is bitten, when he looks at it, shall live. So Moses made a bronze serpent and put it on a pole, and so it was, if a serpent had bitten anyone, when he looked at the bronze serpent, he lived. That's interesting that Jesus used this as an example. What did the people have to do in order to be healed, in order to be saved?

Look at it. That doesn't really work with salvation because there's lots of other things you got to do in order to be saved. You got, because we went through them, right? You got to be baptized. You got to be a member of a church and all that other stuff, right? No. Just look. Just look. Now, if you're a believer, you're probably saying, Whoa, whoa, whoa, what about repentance?

Let me ask you a question. Where does repentance come from? Is that something you generate and work up in yourself? No, it's a gift of God. The Bible tells us that. As a matter of fact, it says there is a worldly sorrow that works to death. There's a godly sorrow that brings you to repentance.

That repentance is a gift from God. When does it come? When you look to Him.

When you look to Him. I'm sure there were people that day that didn't understand. What do you mean, look at it? I'm not going to look at a snake. I'm not, that's stupid. And guess what happened?

They died because looking at a snake was too stupid. The cross is foolishness to some people. You say, Look to Jesus and you'll be saved. I'm not going to do that. That's stupid.

It doesn't have to do with anything. That's where faith comes in. You know, I'm not sure how this heals me.

I'm not sure how this fixes my life or heals me spiritually or physically, but you know what? I'm going to look because He told me to. If for no other reason, trust Jesus who said to look to Him to come to Him. Life lesson number three, you have to make a decision about who Jesus is.

And we talked about this some last week. Jesus was not a good teacher, just a good teacher. Jesus was not just a good man. He was God incarnate, God in flesh who died for the sins of the world. And He took the punishment for our sins upon Himself. And we have a choice. We can allow Jesus to take punishment for our sins, or we can try to pay for them ourselves.

I would not suggest the second one. But when you reject Jesus and you say, You know what? I am not praying that prayer. I am not receiving Him as my Savior.

What you're saying is I want to stand before a holy righteous God in my own works. What man, woman, or child would do that? And you can't get in unless you're trusting Him. It's like trying to push a door that's been latched. You can't open it. You've got to turn the handle.

Why? Because that's the way the door works. And you can push and shove on that door all you want to, but it's not open until you turn that latch. Jesus says, Here's the latch. You've got to be born again. In order to get in, this is what you've got to do. And you can say, Well, it seems like there ought to be another door around here, another way in. You can say that all you want to, but praise God there's a door and He tells us how to get in.

And being good, being nice, I'm sorry, guys, that doesn't get you into heaven. I mean, can you imagine going to a restaurant and getting ready to leave and somebody going, Whoa, whoa, whoa, you've got to pay. What do you mean you've got to pay?

Well, you've got to pay. Well, I was nice to the waitress. I said, Please and thank you.

And other than that one little thing, you know, I was pretty nice the whole time. They're going to look at you like you're crazy. Same thing. It works.

It doesn't do it. Salvation by grace through faith. It's as if if you were at the restaurant and you didn't have any money and you've already eaten the meal and you already ate, but you don't have any way to make the payment. And somebody comes up to the counter and says, You know what? I'll pay.

I'll pay. That's what Jesus does. Again, that's why they call it the good news. Verse 15, That whoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life. For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. This is probably the most quoted verse when it comes to presenting the gospel and for good reason, because it's in there.

It's in there. And look at the words. Look at the verbs that are used to describe God. God loved. God gave. God loved and God gave. And that describes the nature of God, doesn't it? God acted first. God loved us and God gave.

He did something to restore the relationship. And what's our verb? Believes. Well, doesn't it say believes and act right? No, it just says believes.

Now, guys, don't get me wrong. I believe once you're saved, you should begin to be a disciple. You should begin to read the Word of God.

You should begin to apply the Word of God to your life, no doubt about it. But to start with, this is it, believes. He couldn't have made it any easier, guys. And it says, God so loved the world. What awesome two letters. So loved the world. See, we often paint God as angry and vengeful and, you know, trying to wipe the whole world out.

But look at this one little word. God so loved the world. He looked at you and I, and He was heartbroken because there was no way for us to have a relationship with Him.

There was no way for us to get into heaven. And He said, you know what? I love Him so much, I'm willing to pay any cost to bring Him in. I'm even willing to give my son.

You know, there's very few people that can even begin to understand that. And what we need to do is put our trust in Him. What are you relying on this morning in order to go into heaven? I sure hope it's not your goodness. I hope it's not your good works, because it's a gift. And a gift you pay something for, it's not a gift. Jesus paid for it, not you.

He says, I want you to believe. And once you do that, then coming to church is no longer a chore. And reading the Bible is not, it clears up these things and serving is no longer a burden and giving is no longer difficult or as difficult after you realize what He did for you. But realize something, life lesson number four, you're either trusting in your works or trusting in Jesus. You cannot trust in them both.

What are you trusting in this morning? If you're putting your faith in your works, it's going to be sad at the end of your life because Jesus, you're going to be one of those folks that Jesus looks at and says, you know what? I didn't know you. You remember the conversation, people go, I did this, not that, that. And Jesus says, I didn't know you. He didn't say you didn't do enough or you didn't do the right thing.

He says, I didn't know you. Knowing Him and believing Him, trusting Him. And belief does not mean that you academically understand what I'm communicating to you this morning. It means this is what you're trusting in. You're trusting in Jesus, this and nothing else. God so loved the world.

We should give our life to Him because He loved us so much. Maybe you've been trying in your own strength. Maybe you're here this morning. Maybe you're tired. Maybe you're wounded.

Maybe you're beat up, fed up, bound up, dried up. And you know what? It's time to look up. You won't find the answer in you because the God who created you has given you the way to come home and rest. He's provided that for you. He's provided that for you. And what He asks is that you take that step of faith and believe on Him. And we need to take that step of faith. Perhaps some of you who have been born again have started trusting in your works.

Then you need to this morning say, you know what? I can't do that anymore, Lord. I'm sorry I did that.

I'm sorry I began falling into that trap. Again, works without faith is dead. We're told that in the book of James.

But you know what? Don't trust your works to get into heaven. Or maybe some of you have never even trusted by faith and faith alone. And perhaps you've never asked the Lord to forgive you simply on the basis of His grace. Or perhaps you're one of these people that I've described and getting confused about basing it on your works. Because if you base it on your works, brothers, sisters, family, it's only a matter of time until you fail.

And then when you fail, you go, well, that's it. I can't do it. I must not be a Christian because I made a mistake. That's not good news. The good news is you can be forgiven of the mistakes when, not if you make them. I know you don't have anything to offer Him. Your life is broken.

It's messed up. There's things going on that you know you shouldn't be involved in. And that's why He died for you, to forgive you of all these things, to give you a fresh start. And He's come to you.

Won't you come to Him? And I believe you were raised from the dead, that I could have a new life. And I've done wrong things. I have sinned.

And I'm sorry. Please forgive me of all those things. Please give me the power to live for you all of my days. In Jesus' name.

Amen. Friend, if you prayed that prayer, according to the Bible, you've been forgiven. You've been born again. So congratulations, friend.

You just made the greatest decision that you will ever make. God bless you. If you prayed that prayer with David for the first time, we'd love to hear from you. You can visit crossthebridge.com to receive our First Steps package with helpful resources to help you begin your walk with Christ.

Or you can write to Cross the Bridge at P.O. Box 12515, Winston-Salem, North Carolina, 27117, and share how God is working in your life. Well, DA, before we go, what are some ways that we can bless our listeners? Each day, you can wake up with encouragement from Pastor David through the Word of God with his email devotional, life lessons to consider, a daily reading plan, and a thought to meditate on throughout your day from the heart of David McGee.

That sounds good, Pastor DA, and again, it's been great to have you with us on the program today. But tell us, what else can our listeners find on crossthebridge.com? If you're not able to make it to your home church this Sunday, why not join us for our live stream at 10 a.m. Eastern Time, or on Thursday nights at 7 p.m. Eastern Time? Just visit crossthebridge.com and click on our live stream link. There, you'll experience a live service from David's home church, The Bridge, in North Carolina. Again, that website is crossthebridge.com. Thanks again for listening, and join us next time as David McGee continues teaching verse by verse in the Gospel of John.