A lot of people say, I'm waiting on God.
When God's answer is, I'm waiting on you. Dr. Tony Evans says we may be the ones blocking our own miracles. We all need miracles, but are you giving God something to work with? This is the alternative broadcast, featuring the timeless biblical teachings from the archives of Dr. Tony Evans. Parents will give responsibilities to their children based on their maturity, and in a similar way, God does the same for us. Today, Dr. Evans takes a look at how Jesus challenges his followers to consider not just the desire for spiritual growth, but their capacity to receive it.
Let's join him in the first chapter of the Gospel of John. We have this miracle of the wedding at Canaan, and the mother of Jesus was there, and Jesus and his disciples were invited to the wedding. This was a joyful occasion, and the wine had run out. The mother of Jesus says to him in verse 3, they have no wine.
It ran out. So why don't we use this wedding as an opportunity for you to reveal your deity? He says, my hour has not come. This is not the time and the place to manifest my supernatural activity. However, I will solve the problem.
I just won't advertise me when I do it. His mother said to the servants, whatever—and there's a great lesson here—whatever he says to you, do it. Now this is the lesson that we must all learn and grow to learn. God often doesn't explain himself in advance of our action. He tells us what to do, but he doesn't always explain how he's going to do what he's going to do based on what we've done.
You give God something to work with if he tells you to do something, even though you don't understand how you doing something will affect the situation that you're facing. So by the time they get to the head waiter, he tastes the water, which becomes wine, and did not know where it came from. And the head waiter called the bridegroom. He said, where's this wine?
Because last time I checked, we didn't have anything. He said to him, every man serves the good wine first. And when the people have drunk freely, then he serves the poor wine. But you have kept the good wine until now. Now what does that tell you about Jesus?
When he moves, it's going to be the best thing for you. They thought the best was already gone and the best hadn't even happened yet because Jesus hadn't gotten involved yet. This is the beginning of his signs. Verse 11 says, in other words, he's just getting started, that Jesus did in Cana of Galilee and manifested his glory and his disciples believed in him. So this was for the benefit of the disciples, not for the crowd.
The crowd never found out how this happened. If God wants to take you to a deeper spiritual level, he will let you get on empty. And then when you obey, at the right time, the transformation of whatever is in the context of that particular situation, according to his will, can happen. It's now the Passover, verse 13, and Jesus then went up to Jerusalem and he found in the temple those who were selling oxen and sheep and doves and the money changers seated at their tables. And he made a scourge of cords and drove them out of the temple with the sheep and the oxen and he poured out the coins of the money changers and overturned the tables. And to those who were selling the doves, he said, take these things away.
Stop making my father's house a place of business. God is not against commerce, but they had misused the temple and turned it into a business deal. What sign, the Jews say, do you show us of your authority for doing such things? You turned over the temple, run us up out of here.
Who gave you permission? Who died and made you boss? And this is when Jesus speaks. He says, destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up. Because he knew they were threatening him, basically.
The Jews says, it took 46 years. So they didn't know what he was talking about. It took 46 years to build this temple and you will raise it up in three days? Because they're thinking physical, but he's speaking spiritual. By this, he was speaking of the temple of his body. Jesus will often speak in parables or something that is vague or camouflaged, because when he is rejected, he will not give you more light. The Scripture puts it this way, he that has more shall be given to him, but he that does not have that which he has shall be taken away. That means he will give more light to people who really want light, but to people who are rejecting, then he will remove light. And so he would speak in ways that the disciples could understand, but the people couldn't. Many believed on him—that means got saved—but he wouldn't entrust himself to them. In other words, they were Christians, but they weren't trustworthy Christians yet. So even though they'd gotten saved, they had not matured in their faith, so God will only give you as much of himself as you can handle.
That's why spiritual growth is important, because it expands your capacity to experience more. So he wouldn't even give his disciples. God did not treat all of his disciples at the same level. He had different levels. He had Peter, James, and John.
Those were the inner circle. Those were the only three he took up to the Mount of Transfiguration. And of the three, Peter, James, and John, John was the closest. He was the beloved disciple because they were so intimate—chapter 15, abiding—they were so close that he could reveal more to John, which is why John wrote the book of Revelation. So the question is not how much of Jesus do you want. It's how much of Jesus can you handle? Because he will only give you as much as he knows.
He can trust you with, even though you're saved. Now we come to chapter 3. Now there was a man of the Pharisees named Nicodemus, ruler of the Jews, and this man came to Jesus by night. He's coming at nighttime when his posse is asleep, because then they're going to want to know what in the world you're doing talking to him. We just challenged him.
He's just messing up our temple situation. So Nicodemus comes at night, and he says, Rabbi, teacher, we know that you have come from God as a teacher, for no one can do these signs that you do unless God is with him. So I got to admit, I'm a little different than my boys. God's got to be with you for you to be pulling off some of this stuff you're pulling off. But I can't say that in the daytime.
I got to tell you this at night. This is called, you know, this is the movement of a potential secret disciple, all right? So he says this, and now he comes to Jesus, and Jesus says, truly, truly. And when Jesus hits you twice, that means he's underscoring something. Truly, truly means, for real, for real. I say to you, unless one is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.
Amen. That statement seems to have absolutely no connection to what Nicodemus just said. Nicodemus has just paid Jesus a compliment. Nobody could do these miracles, Rabbi, unless God is with him.
God sure must be with you. Jesus said, Nicodemus, that ain't why you came here. You ain't sneak out at night to pay me a compliment. You snuck out here at night because you want to make sure you in the kingdom. You want to make sure you saved. So I ain't gonna beat around the bush. I ain't gonna say, oh, you complimented me.
I feel so much better. Let's get to the real deal here, Nic. Truly, truly, for real, for real, sure enough, sure enough. I say unto you, unless a man is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God. The Greek word born again means to be born from above, born from above. The Jews were looking toward a kingdom, the messianic kingdom. The whole Old Testament looked forward to the day when Messiah would come. In fact, the Jews now in Israel are still looking for a Messiah because they rejected Jesus as the Messiah. But they were looking for Messiah to come to set up his kingdom.
That's what the Jews were looking forward to. Passionate about one day Messiah is coming. Jesus comes on the scene and behold the Lamb of God, which takes away the sins of the world. He is Messiah. Philip sees him as Messiah. Nathaniel sees him as Messiah. Andrew, Peter, they see him as Messiah. And they were looking because Messiah, the king of Israel, would set up the kingdom of God on earth. Nicodemus, unless you are spiritually reborn, you'll not see this kingdom. You won't experience the kingdom unless there is a spiritual rebirth.
Being a religious leader of the Jews won't cut it. Unfortunately today, we have far too many people who think they're saved by religion. They're saved by church anody.
They're saved by some work, not understanding that a new birth is required. Dr. Evans will expand on that thought when he returns with more of today's message in just a moment. First though, I want to tell you about an encouraging book from Tony that focuses on renewal and transformation.
It's called Dry Bones Dancing, a study of Ezekiel's vision of brittle bones brought to life by the Spirit's breath. It's a work that will renew and energize your faith like never before. And it's yours as our thank you gift when you make a contribution in support of Tony's ministry. And right now we're packaging this book along with all 14 full-length messages in Tony's current two-volume teaching series on the Gospel of John. Get all the details and make your request right away at tonyevans.org or call our 24-hour resource request line at 1-800-800-3222.
That's 1-800-800-3222. We'll hear more from Dr. Evans right after this. What if you could unlock the mysteries of life, the universe, and everything in between? Genesis 1 to 11 is the foundation for everything. The Tony Evans Training Center presents a transformative course from special guest lecturer Ken Ham, founder CEO of Answers in Genesis. If you want to understand anything about the universe and anything about life and this earth, we have to jump into God's Word. This course dives deep into the origins of life, the harmony of science and scripture, and how to build a solid biblical worldview. Does science conflict with the Bible?
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Explore the kingdom anytime, anywhere. So Nicodemus says to him, because now he's been thrown for a loop, because he doesn't know what in the world Jesus is talking about. How, verse 4, can a man be born when he is old? Can he enter a second time into his mother's womb and be born, can he?
What are you talking about? You say, I need to be born again. To which Jesus says, truly, truly, Jesus says in verse 11, I say to you, we speak of what we know and testify of what we have seen, and you do not accept our testimony. If I told you of earthly things, physical things, and you do not believe, how will you believe if I tell you of heavenly things, that is, spiritual things? No one has ascended into heaven, but he who has descended from heaven, the Son of Man. So here Jesus Christ identifies himself as having ascended from heaven. As Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so the Son of Man must be lifted up. He uses that Old Testament story to teach this New Testament truth. Verse 15, so that whosoever believes in him have eternal life. Jesus now gives us the theme of the book, The Good News of Eternal Life, which leads to our famous verse. For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that is, one of a kind, unique Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have everlasting life. This is probably the most well-known verse in the Bible.
Let me just say a word about it. God loved the world. That means the world of people. And His love prompted an action. That action was to give His one of a kind Son, the second member of the Trinity, as a substitute for sin.
And there was only one condition. Whoever believes in Him will get eternal life and not perish. There's a whole lot in that. There's the love of God. There's the sacrifice of Jesus Christ, gave His only begotten Son. There is a requirement in the faith of the Son and His sacrifice, believe in Him.
And watch this. He says in verse 16 that once you do that, you will not perish, but have everlasting life. And you get everlasting life when you believe. So when you trust Jesus Christ as your personal sin-bearer, you are given eternal life right then and judgment is removed right then. What you are believing God for when you look to Christ for the forgiveness of your sins, you're believing Him for the eternal life He promised to give you.
That's what you're believing Him for. The Father says, I'm going to give you eternal life if you believe in My Son and His sacrifice for you to get it. You believe in His Son and His sacrifice for you to get it. He says, when you do that, you have this.
So you don't have to do this and then hope that you'll wind up with that. That is in this. The security is in the salvation and it is embedded in the promise of God. Let's understand Jesus, verse 17. God did not send His Son into the world to judge the world. He sent His Son in the world that the world might be saved through Him.
Jesus' purpose was to bring salvation to all men. He who believes in Him is not judged because the judgment is already on Christ. But he who does not believe has been judged already because you're already under condemnation because he has not believed in the name—that is, the person—of the only begotten Son of God.
God didn't go through all this trouble for you to reject Him. This is the judgment. What's the judgment? That light has come into the world, Jesus Christ, and men loved darkness rather than light, for their deeds were evil.
Okay? So why does judgment exist? Judgment exists because a rejection occurs. Once you reject the light because you prefer the dark, that brings the condemnation.
That brings the condemnation. The condemnation is tied to a rejection of the provision. If a doctor offers you medicine to save your life and you say, I won't take it, the consequence is built into the rejection. The doctor didn't kill you.
It's the rejection that killed you. That is the judgment that you do not believe. That is, that you have rejected the light that has been made manifest in the personal work of Christ. But he who practices truth, he who wants the truth, comes to the light so that his deeds may be manifested as having been wrought in God. In verse 22, after these things, Jesus and His disciples came into the land of Judah, spending time there with them and baptizing. And John also was baptizing because there was much water in the air when he was baptizing. And there rose a discussion on the part of John's disciples with a Jew about purification, this process of cleansing that the Jews had. And they came to John and said to him, Rabbi, teacher, he who was with you beyond the Jordan to whom you have testified, behold, he is baptizing and all are coming to him.
Wait a minute. The guy who was with you, everybody now going to him, and less of them are coming to you. Less of them are coming to you. John said, a man can receive nothing unless it has been granted to him from heaven. You yourselves are my witnesses that I said, I am not the Christ, but I have been sent ahead of him.
I'm sent to prepare the way for the Christ. So it's not bothering me that they leaving me. They supposed to leave me when he shows up. He who has the bride is the bridegroom, but the friend of the bridegroom who stands and hears him rejoices greatly because of the bridegroom's voice. So this is the joy of mine that's been made for. I am not the bridegroom.
I'm just a friend. So don't get all excited about the friend at a wedding. You get excited about the bridegroom. Jesus is that bridegroom. He must increase and I must decrease.
I'm going to shrink when he shows up because he's the, he's the star attraction. You know, when you go to concerts, they have the upfront entertainment. They have the upfront entertainment. You don't want them on there too long. You know what their job is? To warm the crowd up.
That's what they did. They warming the crowd up. They getting the crowd excited. You don't then say, okay, let me go home, because that's not why you came. You didn't come to see the, you know, the start of the show.
You came to see the main attraction. John is saying, let me get off the stage because the main attraction is here. He who comes from above is above all. So he says, Jesus came from above.
That is, he's not just a man. And he who is of the earth is from the earth and speaks of the earth. He who comes from heaven is above all. What he has seen and heard, of that he testifies, and no one receives his testimony. He who has received his testimony has set his seal on this, that God is true.
Okay, here's an interview. God has spoken about his son. When you reject his son based on the evidence that God has demonstrated, you have called God a liar.
You gotta let that sink in. God, I reject Jesus, therefore you are a liar. For he whom God has sent speaks the words of God, for he gives the Spirit without measure. The Father loves the Son and has given all things in his hand. And he who believes in the Son has eternal life, but he who does not obey the Son, that is by believing in him, will not see life, but the wrath of God abides on him.
So the issue is simple. What you gonna do with Jesus? Because God has handed everything over to the Son. Dr. Tony Evans, wrapping up today's message with the most important question you'll face in life. What are you going to do with Jesus?
He's back with this follow-up. If you want to know for certain that you're on your way to heaven when you die, then I invite you right now to go to Jesus Christ and let Him know that you believe He died for you, that you believe He arose for you, and that you want to put your trust in Him alone for the forgiveness of your sins and the gift of eternal life. If you really want to go to heaven, He'll give you a free ticket there, but you must go to Him for it and believe Him to give it to you. If you do that, you'll be saved right now. If you're ready to accept that free ticket to heaven, take the time to visit tonyevans.org and click on the link at the top of the home page that simply says Jesus. Tony has more information there about becoming a follower of Christ, as well as free resources to help in your journey. Now if you'd like to receive a copy of today's message to review on your own or pass along to a friend, just contact us for details on the message called A Lesson in Faith.
Better yet, get it as a part of the special offer I mentioned earlier. All 14 messages from both volumes of Tony's current sermon series on the Gospel of John, along with his encouraging book Dry Bones Dancing. They're yours with our thanks when you make a donation to help keep this listener-supported program coming your way. Just visit tonyevans.org to make the arrangements or call our resource center at 1-800-800-3222, where team members are standing by to assist with your request. That's 1-800-800-3222 or online at tonyevans.org. A road sign isn't the destination, but it points the way there. Next time on the alternative broadcast, Dr. Evans looks at how Jesus used physical acts as signposts to reveal deeper spiritual truths that still hold true today. I hope you'll tune in for that.
