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1:13Now there was a man of the Pharisees named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews. This man came to Jesus by night and said to him, Rabbi, we know that you have come from God as a teacher, for no one can do these signs that you do unless he is with him. Jesus answered and said to him, Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God. Nicodemus said to him, How can a man be born when he is old? He cannot enter a second time into his mother's womb and be born, can he? Jesus answered, Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born of the water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God. That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. Do not be amazed that I said to you, you must be born again. The wind blows where it wishes, and you hear the sound of it, but do not know where it comes from and where it is going. So is everyone who is born of the Spirit. Nicodemus said to him, How can these things be? Jesus answered and said to him, Are you the teacher of Israel and do not understand these things?

2:29Well, you know, what does it mean to be born again? Really, what is the miracle of Christmas? We celebrate this. And I want to encourage everyone to be deliberate with your Christmas celebrations. Why do we celebrate Christmas? I know many sometimes scratched their head and said, Should we? Well, I can tell you, there's nothing like the incarnation of God in any religion. Across the globe. No one has anything like it. It is something to celebrate. Celebrate the fact that God became flesh and walked among us. But we need to be deliberate with our Christmas celebrations. And as you're thinking this year, and especially for those of you who have children and young children, I encourage you to center your celebrations on Christ.

3:29It's very easy to get caught up in a whole lot of distractions and celebrations during this time of year. And if you're not careful, they will become part of your kids' tradition. They will be part of your family's tradition. I mean, every year it comes around, I'm like, and why do we watch this movie every year? Certain things come up that just somehow made it in. I'm like, and what were we thinking? And why is this here?

4:02And if you're not careful, all of a sudden a lot of things will hijack and take over literally what is one of the most profound times on our calendars. And that is that time when we celebrate and remember the Lord taking upon human flesh. It's a great time to teach some of the greatest doctrines of the Bible. As you hear, This is one of my favorite doctrines of them all. I teach systematic theology, as you know, and this incarnation of our Lord, God becoming flesh, is certainly one of the most profound, and it paves the way for understanding sin, for understanding us, understanding salvation, and all that takes place. And so, as you know, through the years, I've always sought to be deliberate and meaningful in teaching some of these truths to my children. And you have been around, you've certainly heard me read some of these stories, these Advent parables that are intended to communicate rich theological truth in a very simple, almost like an illustration parable type format. And so, what I want to do this season is I want to come back and revisit one of these each Lord's Day evening, but not so much to retell the story that I, the parable, but to go back and go through the exegesis and the text that underlies this and the incredible profound truths that I found in the text that gave rise to me trying to communicate these profound truths to. Little children. And so that's what I want to do, and to encourage you, no matter who you are or where you're at in life, to think and be deliberate with how you celebrate, how you remember the incarnation. And especially if you have little children, you'll do something, and all of a sudden that'll become passed on and become a tradition and have a long longevity, maybe a lot longer than you ever realized. Well, the first parable that I think want to share with you is this one of the Christmas cat. I tried to write this to illustrate Nicodemus. And let me just read this to you. You get an idea. This cat is a personification of Nicodemus. And let me just share this with you. And it happened on a Christmas day long ago in a time of kings and queens, princes and princesses, ladies and lords, and true nobility. In one prosperous kingdom, there lived an old wife. Sage. He was known for his great wisdom, and the kingdom prospered due to his wise counsel. Kings treasured his advice, and one of his main proverbs was: True nobility comes by birth. And every year the king held a grand Christmas Day celebration in his castle, and everyone in the kingdom was invited, from prince to pauper, and of course the old wise sage. It was always a spectacular celebration, decorations, food, music, and conversation. One year, a young prince criticized the sage's proverb as old, outdated, and wrong. True nobility is not a matter of one's birth, but of one's education. It is a skill that can be learned. The prince challenged the sage to a public debate. The king was somewhat amused by his son's impertinent challenge, but he knew that his son had to learn his lesson. The king set the date for a public debate. The following year, on Christmas Day, each side was to present his case to a watching world. Each was to give a year to study, research, and prepare. The issue needed to be settled. Was nobility a function of one's training or of something much deeper? Well, the young prince wasted no time. He thought to himself that if he could train his cat to be a gentleman, then he would easily win the debate without saying anything.

9:01For if a cat could be trained, then certainly any human being could be trained. So the prince hired a team of the best teachers and tailors in the land to teach his cat how to walk and talk and dress and act like a true gentleman. The training was a huge success. The cat learned to walk on his two hind legs, to wait tables in the most noble fashion, and to converse intelligently on any subject in every language spoken in the land. News spread about the young prince's cat. Everyone was amazed. Surely the prince was right. Nobility was a function of one's training, not one's birth. Well, the next Christmas Day celebration came, and with it the eagerly anticipated public debate. The king took his seat in the royal court. Suddenly, the prince's cat appeared, dressed in the finest tuxedo, perfectly suited for a Christmas celebration. He approached the king in the most dignified manner. He graciously bowed with tray table in hand and his top hat in the other. The cat elegantly served the king a glass of wine and conversed with the king on a number of the most important issues. And the king was amazed. I mean this was some cat.

10:24The king was amazed. Perhaps the son was right. Nobility. Really is a matter of training, not one's birth. And everyone in the room was sure the young prince had won. They even felt pity for the old sage, and the king glanced at the sage and gestured as if to ask, Do you concede? The sage slowly reached into his coat pocket, pulled out a little box, and opened it. Three little mice came running out. The cat lost all composure, dropped his tray, and ran after the mice. The noise, the chaos, and the carnage absolutely horrified the crowd. And 15 minutes later, the cat reappeared, purring in the most satisfied manner. His tux was shredded, his hat was gone, and it was evident to all that the cat was still a cat.

11:22And so I use that to try to illustrate this text. There are two kinds of faith that we encounter in this world. There's a kind of faith that is born from the earth, and there's the kind of faith that comes down from above. And you really have to understand this new birth. If you're going to lead anyone to Christ, if you yourself are ever going to come to Christ, it's because you have to be born again. And I find many times. And we sing about it a lot, Christ being born, but what in the world does born again mean? In fact, many Christians don't understand. And if there's one teaching that needs to be understood in your home, it's this concept of the new birth. No one goes to heaven unless they are born again. What does that mean?

12:26Well, just to give you a little context here, in John chapter 2, several things are put on display. In the first 12 verses, the power of Jesus is put on display. Jesus changes water into wine. He takes something common and he is able to transform it into something noble. And then in verses 13 through 17, the passion of Jesus is put on display as he goes in and cleans out the temple. And then in chapter, in verses 18 through 22, the opposition to Jesus is manifest. What authority do you do this? Show us a sign. As what authority are you doing all this? You're coming here wreaking havoc and cleaning up all this temple. Why don't you show us a sign for your authority to do this? And Jesus says, Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it again. The authority I do this is going to be evident in that I will be resurrected from you, will destroy this body, and I will raise it to life in three days.

13:46And then this chapter ends by stressing the kind of faith that Jesus has no faith in. Look at verse 23. Now, when he was in Jerusalem at the Passover during the feast, many believed in his name. That's the word for faith. They were having faith in him. They were believed. Kind of a census. They believed in his name, observing his signs, which he was doing. But Jesus, on his part, was not entrusting himself to them. The word for entrusting is also the word faith or believing. They were believing in him, but he was not believing in them. That kind of thing. But Jesus, on his part, was not entrusting himself to them, for he knew all men, and because he did not need anyone to testify concerning man, for he himself knew what was in man. He understood humanity's fallen nature. He understood this propensity of man to get excited, to have some kind of a sense, to be emoted, to be wowed by a miracle. But Jesus had no faith in their kind of faith. Faith. And so it's in this context. Now there was a man of the Pharisees named Nicodemus who comes.

15:10And so it's a man with this kind of faith, a man who has a kind of faith that Jesus has no faith in. And this is how chapter 3 begins. Look at verse 1. Now there was a man of the Pharisees named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews. He was a man of the Pharisees. Notice that? Of the Pharisees. He was a privileged sort, relatively few. He had to take a pledge in order to become a Pharisee, to spend his whole life observing every detail of the scribal law. Very devout, very highly esteemed. But notice he was also a ruler of the Jews. He was not only a man of the Pharisees, but he was also a man of the Jews, a ruler. He was a member of the Sanhedrin, basically the Supreme Court, another privileged sort. So he was a man of the Pharisees, a man of the Jews. And notice in verse 2, he came to Jesus by night. He came to Jesus by night, and without reading too much into that, he came to Jesus by night because he wanted to know more about Jesus. We'll leave it at that. He wanted to speak to Jesus without expressing privilege. Public allegiance to him and without disruption. He wanted to have a conversation.

16:40Rabbi, verse 2: We know you have come from God as a teacher, for no one can do these signs that you do unless God is with him. Nicodemus comes, he wants to know more, but he really has in his mind a question: Are you perhaps more than a teacher? Now, think about what Nicodemus has been watching. He's been seeing the miracles. Let me advance our slide a little bit. He had seen Jesus come in and cleanse the temple. And no doubt, Malachi 3 must have come to his mind. This is someone who is waiting for the arrival of Christ. He's very educated. He's a very well-educated man and a very thinking man. Malachi 3:1 says, This, Behold, I'm going to send my messenger, and he will clear the way before me. And the Lord whom you seek will suddenly come to his temple. And the messenger of the covenant in whom you delight, behold, he is coming, says the Lord. But who can endure the day of his coming? And who can stand when he appears? For he is like a refiner's fire and like a fuller's soap. He will sit as a smelter and purifier of silver, and he will purify the sons of Levi. Refine them like gold and silver, so that they may present to the Lord offerings in righteousness. So here's Nicodemus. He's seen all of these miracles. He's hearing all these miracles. He saw what Jesus did. And he's kind of like, and he probably himself, yeah, there's a lot of things going on in that temple that I'm not on board with.

18:21And so deep down, he's asking a deeper question: Are you more than a teacher? Look at verse 3. Jesus cuts right to the chase and shocks Nicodemus. Jesus answered and said to him, Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God. Nicodemus says, I know you're from God. And Jesus says, Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again, you cannot see the kingdom of God. You cannot see, you cannot comprehend, but even beyond that, you cannot enter. Nicodemus said to him, How can a man be born when he is old? He cannot enter a second time into his mother's womb and be born, can he? See how quickly this conversation got right to the heart of things. Nicodemus, you cannot enter heaven unless you are born again.

19:23The same is true with us, you, me. And the way he uses the word kingdom of God, In John's gospel, he uses it very sparingly. How did Nicodemus understand the kingdom of God, this phrase? Well, certainly it involves participation in the kingdom at the end of the age, and to experience the eternal and resurrection life and all that goes with that. The kingdom in its present dominion phase and in its future, no participation in it at all unless you are born again. So, these first few verses, Nicodemus, the question is: who goes to heaven? So, what we have right here in John 3 is this age-old question: who goes to heaven? And here you have the king of heaven is speaking about his kingdom, and he's saying, Who goes to heaven and why?

20:35Only those who are born again. That's what he says in the first four verses. But then in verses five through eight, the question becomes: what does being born again mean? What does it involve? And Jesus is going to explain. And really, if you're going to explain the gospel to anyone, you're going to have to get your mind around what this is, what has to take. Place and why. And then, as you continue looking in verses 10 through 11, Nicodemus said to him, How can these things be? He clearly doesn't get it. Jesus answered and said, Are you a teacher of Israel and you do not understand these things? And so I'm going to zero in on these verses of five to eight and answer the question: What does born again involve? What does it mean?

21:30Because I think any meaningful celebration of Advent, it must begin here. You don't understand what being born again means. You do not understand what Advent is all about and why Jesus took upon, or why God took upon flesh and dwelt among us. You see, he was born of humanity, so humanity could be born of God. God was born of us so that we could be born of him. That's the miracle of Christmas, and that is what Jesus is going to explain to Nicodemus in verses five through eight. So, I'm going to make four observations about what, based on the text here, what is implied in the words being born. Again. And I'm going to, first of all, just there's certainly in the imagery itself is, there are things implied. I won't really get into those. I'll get specifically at the text. But just off the, you know, being born again, really, the word means being born from above. You really, instead of being born from earth, you need to be born from above. You need to put on a heavenly nature, a nature that is alive to God, not a nature that is dead to God. That is what has happened as a result of Adam's fall. We're born into this world, alienated from God. Sin factories. Sin factories by choice. Not just by hereditary, but by choice. Alienated from God.

23:22And in order for you to go to heaven, you must be born of the Spirit. Born again, born from above, a new nature. But it's so being born again is certainly it's being born from above, but it certainly implies being born again. And so you'll hear that language, being born. It's the expression for regeneration. Jesus is talking about the regenerating work of the Spirit of God in a person. And this is how you come to know him, is by his work. And by the way, you don't participate in your You're not the cause of your birth. Yeah, you participate, you're being born, but you're not, you didn't participate in causing your physical birth. Somebody else did that. Mama.

24:20So there's a lot of those thoughts and observations that are implied in the imagery of being born. But I'm going to make four observations that are based on Jesus' teaching in verses 5 through 8. First of all, being born again is the same as being born of the water and the Spirit. Look back at verse 5. Jesus answered Nicodemus' question: How can a man be born again when he's old? Jesus answered, Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born of the water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God. So he makes a parallel statement in verse 3 and verse 5.

25:14Being born again in verse 3, he says, unless one is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God. And in verse 5, unless one is born of the water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God. So being born again in verse 3, Is equivalent, same expression as being born of the water and of the Spirit in verse 5. Both grant the same outcome, entrance, access, understanding, participation in the kingdom of God. So being born again is also the same as being born of the water and the Spirit.

25:53So what does this expression mean? What does it imply? Well, I'll spare you many of the speculations or many of the different positions, and there are many. But I'll say this about a couple. I mean, there's some like, okay, this is physical birth and then spiritual birth. There's a number of things, and I will spare you a lot of those. But I will intend, I will deal with two of the interpretations because I think these have caused some of the most confusion in the church. And then I'll explain which is the best interpretation and why. First of all, there is this view that being born again or born of the water and of the Spirit speaks of water baptism only, water baptism only, one event. Water baptism is equivalent to being born of the water and of the Spirit. And those who inflict. Favor this interpretation, argue that Jesus is teaching that Christian baptizing, just right up here, just like, is absolutely necessary in order to go to heaven. That the water and the Spirit is speaking about one event, baptismal regeneration, you may have heard this.

27:19But there are several problems with this view. If water baptism is what this is all about, it's surprising that the rest of the discussion never mentions it again. You see, in verse 8, the focus is on the work of the Spirit. Verse 14 and 15, the work of the Son, the cross, whoever believes in him. Even in verses 16 and 17, the work of God, for God loved the world. Verse 15 and 16 also speak about faith.

27:51It's also a very strange analogy between the mysterious wind and the sovereign work of the Spirit. If spirit birth is tied firmly to baptism, then it's hard to understand, well, why then this mysterious wind, if it was so discreet? Another problem with this view is that it simply cannot be reconciled with the thief on the cross. You remember what Jesus said to the thief on the cross in Luke 23, 43? Truly I say to you, Today you shall be with me in paradise. Now, Jesus told Nicodemus, Truly, truly I say to you, unless one is born of the water and the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God. And here we have another truly statement of Jesus to the thief on the cross, saying, Truly, I say to you, Today you shall be with me in paradise.

28:53How can you reconcile these two truly statements? Because they're both true. That's how you reconcile them. They're both true. The reality is that something took place in the heart of the thief. He was born of the water and the Spirit, even though he never went through water baptism. Also, there's another viewpoint. I won't spend time on a lot of viewpoints. There's more I want to talk about. But another viewpoint is that water baptism is the means of conveying grace of the rebirth. So it's the idea that it's there at the water, there, that is where the grace of the rebirth occurs. And so those who favor this interpretation argue that Jesus is teaching us that Christian baptism is the means. That's the way. That's the means through which the grace of regeneration comes. Of course, I can read you paragraph after paragraph out of the catechism.

30:01But here is, let me just read one to you, paragraph 1250. Born with a fallen human nature and tainted by original sin, children also have need of the new birth in baptism to be freed from the power of darkness and brought into the realm of the freedom of the children of God, to which all men are called. The sure gratuitousness of the grace of salvation is particularly manifest in infant baptism. The church and the parents would deny a child the priceless grace of becoming a child of God were they not to confirm baptism shortly after birth. So look, if you don't baptize your child right after birth, you are denying them the grace of becoming a child of God. Catholic Catechism 1250 paragraph. I could read you more, but you get the view. But there's some more problems with this view. In addition, this conversation goes in a different direction, as I already mentioned. Still have a problem with the thief on the cross. But it's also very clear that Simon the sorcerer of Acts chapter 8 was baptized, and it's clear that he was not born from above. Peter gets on to him and says, This, For I see that you are in the gall of bitterness and in the bondage of iniquity. Clearly, a man who.

31:30Had gone through water baptism and at the hands of the apostolic community, and clearly was not born of the water and of the Spirit. It's also, I could go on. If Jesus were telling Nicodemus that water baptism brings with it the grace of entering the kingdom of God, Nicodemus would not have been shocked. He very much understood that proselytite conversion involved being baptized, the mikvahs, going through ceremonial cleansing. Okay, so moving on, if being born of the water and of the Spirit is not water baptism or water baptism as the necessary means to spirit baptism, what is it? What is being born of the water and the spirit? Two things. Being born of the water, the cleansing work, being born of the Spirit, the life-giving work of God.

32:41You see, being born of the Spirit is being cleansed from sin, being born of the water is being cleansed from sin, and being born of the Spirit is being resurrected by the Spirit of God. This is Spirit baptism, and it's all work. One event. The water refers to the cleansing work of the Spirit, and the Spirit refers to the life-giving vitality of the Spirit. You see, it doesn't do any good just to clean a dead person, it doesn't do any good to forgive us and cleanse us if we are to remain dead in sin. Not only do we need to be forgiven, we need to be resurrected.

33:29We don't need to remain dead in sin. We need to remain, we need to become alive to God. And so, God, in order to do that, He must forgive our sin, and then in order to give us life. So, He takes away our sin and He awakens us to life with Him. And this certainly fits within the context of John's Gospel. In chapter 2, the whole water into wine, you've got all these water pots, custom of purification, water for purification. Chapter 3, there's going to be much talk about purification in chapter 3 and verse 25. So, it fits within the context, but it also fits within the greater context of the scriptures. Throughout scripture, water and washing are commonly used metaphorically to describe the spiritual cleansing of the work of God. Listen to Psalm 51:7. Here's David, wash me. And I shall be whiter than snow. He's not talking about give me a bath. He's talking about giving me a spiritual bath, not a physical one. Create in me a clean heart and renew a steadfast spirit within me. Listen to Jeremiah 4:14 as he's speaking out against Jerusalem. Wash your heart from evil, O Jerusalem, that you may be saved.

34:57How long will your wicked thoughts lodge within you? It's a good word for us today. How long will you, and maybe some of you here tonight, how long will your wicked thoughts lodge within you? This is what defiles you. It's your wicked thoughts, and this is what you need to be cleansed from. Ezekiel 36:24 says this, speaking of Israel, what God is going to do in the future for Israel. For I will take you from the nations, gather you from all the lands, and bring you into your own land. Then I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you will be clean. I will cleanse you from all your filthiness and from all your idols. 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. This is why Jesus said, Nicodemus. You should know this. You're the teacher of Israel, and you do not understand the very basic of what needs to happen. You don't understand how to go to heaven. How?

36:13Well, you must be cleansed, and it's a work of God. And He must put His Spirit within us. Titus 3:5 says this: He saved us not on the basis of deeds which we have done in righteousness, but according to His mercy by the washing of regeneration and renewing by the Holy Spirit. That's how He saved us. By the washing of regeneration and renewing of the Holy Spirit. By cleansing us, taking away our sin, washing us, and by putting His Spirit within us, making us alive to Him. That's what salvation is about. And you cannot go to heaven unless you're born from above.

37:05You see, we must be cleansed. We must have a new kind of life given to us. So, what does being born again mean? Well, being born again is being born of the water and the Spirit. Being born again also involves a new nature. Look at verse 6: That which is born of the flesh is flesh, that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. You see, there's two. Kind of fatherings going on here. Two kinds of begetting. There's the fathering that comes from the flesh, and then there's the fathering that comes from the Spirit. See, when you are fathered by the flesh, you have a body and a spiritual disposition that corresponds to the flesh. But when one is born according to the Spirit of God, he or she possesses a spiritual disposition that corresponds with the Spirit.

38:03Why didn't Jesus have faith in the crowd's faith? Because it was a kind of faith that springs from the deficiency of a fallen human heart. Fallen man produces a fallen faith, but like everything in fallen man, it is weak, it is temporal, it is fickle. It may be that at that occasion and that Passover, people are excited, they're seeing the miracles, there's an intellectual ascent, there's an excitement and motion. Some people, like Judas, may even want to use Jesus as a means to an end, but it is not something that came from above.

38:51Like begets like. Everything about us is dying and decaying, even the faith. There is a faith. That is from earth, and because of that, it is earthly and based on self. We have to get out of this paradigm. Can a pig ever act anyway differently than a pig? You can tell it it's a horse, but it's still going to act like a pig because a pig's a pig. Fallen humanity is fallen humanity, and we will always operate within the bounds of our fallen humanity unless something outside from heaven changes us. This is the miracle of Christmas, what we celebrate. God became flesh, God was born of us so that we could be born of Him.

39:54You see, religion without rebirth is a change of the intellectual beliefs or a new set of moral standards. You see, nothing we can do can prevent our children from having a corrupt heart. Well, we can train them. It's what Nicodemus went through all his life. We can train him and we can get him looking pretty good. But a corrupt heart always has an appetite to serve self. That's the fallen human nature. And only that which shares the nature of God can enter the kingdom of God.

40:38And that's why Paul would say: therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creature. The old things pass away. Behold, new things have come. When God puts his Spirit within us, appetites change. Just like when a baby comes into the world, a baby has all kinds of appetites. A corrupt heart has an appetite, and ultimately it is for self. It may clean up, it may look nice, it may have all the appearances of motion and order and godliness, but it's still self, using religion as a means to self.

41:18Only when you're born from above do your appetites change to that which God desires. We need the same kind of faith that Christ had in his father, the same kind of trust that he had. That only comes from above. Jesus could follow the will of his father all the way to the cross. That's the kind of trust we need to have. And it doesn't come from earth. Moving on. Third, being born again should not be a surprise. That's what Jesus says to Nicodemus in verse 7: Do not be amazed that I said to you, you must be born again.

42:13You should have known this. Nicodemus should have known it. There are several reasons Nicodemus should have known this. Number one, he should have known because of the enduring nature of the kingdom. The kingdom is eternal. So those who are going to receive the kingdom too must become eternal. So eternal life must have a beginning point. And we know it's not when we're born. Physical life obviously has a physical beginning point. It also has, as we know it, has an ending point.

42:50But eternal life also has a beginning point. It just doesn't have an ending point. And he should have known this. Spiritual resurrection is the beginning point. The dead has to come alive. That's why all of heaven can rejoice when one sinner turns. It is the miracle. It is the creation. He also should have known because of the nature of the king. Heaven is for those who love the king, who love his ways and his Glory. I remember I was like in sixth or seventh grade, and there was kind of this girl who was a little older than us. She kind of looked down on us, and we were going, we said, Hey, you want to come over to a party? She's kind of one of these wild women. And she said, You're welcome to come over. I'm going to a party. She goes, Is it a cake and ice cream party? Yeah.

44:06Yeah, that sounds like your speed. Yeah, but it's got chocolate cake. I mean, she goes, Yeah, exactly. I want something with a little more hard stuff at it. And I remember her looking down. She had no interest in our cake and ice cream party. You see, eternal life must be for those who have a taste for it. And only those who are born from heaven will have a taste for heaven. But Nicodemus also should have known from the clear teaching of Scripture. Listen to what Deuteronomy 30, verse 6 says. He says to Israel, you're going to go into the land, you're going to experience all the curses. You're going to experience a little blessing, and then you're going to experience a whole lot of cursing, and you're going to be dispersed. And then he says, But here's the problem, Israel, in chapter 29. Verse 4, yet to this day the Lord has not given you a heart to know, nor eyes to see, nor ears to hear. Then he says in Deuteronomy 30, verse 6, The Lord your God will circumcise your heart and the heart of your descendants to love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul, so that you will live. It's a work from above that changes the heart, that causes us to put an appetite in us to love Him.

45:32Many today don't know what being born again means. Nicodemus didn't know. But don't you appreciate the love that Jesus had for Nicodemus? He took time. He took time to explain. And so Nicodemus is right to say, teacher, we know that you have come from God. Because truly, that is what Jesus is: teacher. Number four, being born again produces visible effects. Look at verse 8. The wind blows where it wishes, and you hear the sound of it, but do not know where it comes from and where it is going. So is everyone who is born of the Spirit.

46:18You see, wind is an invisible force, invisible force of air movement. You don't see that, you see the effects of it. Likewise, your thoughts, your words, your deeds reveal the presence of an invisible influence that drives you. So, being born of the Spirit, it involves the effects of the Spirit. I remember when I was going through an airport in South Africa on one of the mission trips, and I went into this customs area. I went into this, what is it, duty-free area to buy some gifts for my family. And there was a checker, cashier, that on the way out, he had a game. I guess he is bored, and he's always trying to figure out people's accents. And like, he would guess where they're from. And I came through and I said, hello, or whatever. And he said, you're from Texas.

47:25I said, really? Yes, I am. And I don't think I have a very strong accent at all, but how specific he was. You see, my accent gave me away. And that's the same with those who are born of the Spirit. Our accent will give us away. There are certain things, certain draws, certain things about us. When you're born of the Spirit, there is an accent. And even though, as Jesus is saying here, some of the work of the Spirit is not comprehensible, but the effect of the spirit. Are clear.

48:02And so, you know, here's Nicodemus, and he is saying in verse 9, How can this be? And Jesus answers, You're the teacher of Israel, and you don't understand these things. Imagine how Nicodemus must have felt. He was seen as one of the highest authorities in the land, on the most important topics, too. He probably taught on the nature of God, the nature of man, the doctrine of sin, how to be saved, and how to enter the kingdom of God. He was looked at by all as an authority and probably one of the premier authorities on these subjects. And yet, here he's talking to Christ, who he knows you are from God. I have settled that in my mind, because no one can do the things that you are doing unless God is with you. And here he is listening to this teacher, and the teacher tells him, Nicodemus, you have it all wrong. You do not even understand how to get into the kingdom of God. And Jesus, right away, at the very beginning, puts his finger on Nicodemus' problem. You have a faith that's born from the earth. And you've done a lot of cleaning up. You walk the walk. You talk the talk.

49:43But you are the blind leading the blind. You see, in many ways, Nicodemus was the best man Jewish society could produce. He was very religious. He was a Pharisee. He was very influential. He was a ruler. He was very patriotic. He came from a very distinguished family. He had every credential that would commend him to man and to God, or so he thought. And Jesus goes on to tell him why he doesn't believe in the kind of faith that Nicodemus has.

50:32There's a kind of faith that Jesus has no faith in. What's the status of your faith? Is it a kind of faith that Jesus would have no faith in, have no confidence in? You see, what Jesus was telling Nicodemus, remember, he was a man of the Pharisees. He was also a man of the Jews. And what was Jesus? Saying to him, you're going to have to become a man of the Spirit if you're going to enter the kingdom of God.

51:11You see, whatever else you are of, who are you? Answer this. I am of Emmanuel Baptist Church. Some of you are of, and you fill in the blank. Maybe I am of this family. I am of this kind of moral statue. I am of the Aggies. I am whatever else you may be of, if you're going to heaven, you must become born of the Spirit. And here's the thing: in our remaining time, I'll just, this doctrine takes us to the very end of ourselves, doesn't it? You cannot cause yourself to be born from above.

52:00Now, when you honestly realize that you can do nothing to cause your birth from heaven, and you realize your utter need for it, guess what you're ready to do? You're ready to pray and ask for it. That's where this doctrine takes us. You're ready to cast yourself upon God and say, God, I need this is what grace is. Alone is all about. I cannot cause this, but I need it. Now you're ready to ask for it.

52:44You know, you cannot cause your friend or your child to be born from above. Your friend or child cannot himself or herself cause themselves to be born again. And when you realize this, now you're ready to pray for the salvation of others because it's truly a work of God. This teaching that Jesus gives us and gave Nicodemus takes us to the very end of ourselves to where we can truly pray. And these are the prayers that God loves to answer. Heavenly Father, I need you.

53:39I ask you to give me your spirit. Whatever is necessary, I'm asking you to take that prerogative to cause me to be born from above. I see the plain meaning. Here. I understand it. I see my need. I'll close with this parable. Luke 11:11. Jesus says, This, Now, suppose one of your fathers is asked by his son for a fish. He will not give him a snake instead of a fish, will he? Or if he asks for an egg, he will not give him a scorpion, will he?

54:28If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him? That's the miracle of Christmas. Being born from above, and this is what we need, and this is what we are to see and perceive and ask God. God, give me your Spirit. And you have on good authority asked for it, how much more will your heavenly Father give His Spirit to you if you ask Him?

55:09May that be our prayer tonight as we leave. Let's pray. Heavenly Father, we come before you just recognizing that there's a lot of religious talk. There's a lot of religious walk that comes from the earth. There's a lot of our lives that have been built upon the strivings. Of our own flesh, all according to our fallen nature. Father, may that end tonight. There are some here tonight that have never turned to you. They're not born from above. And I ask for your grace that even now you would awaken, cause them. May they cry out for mercy and ask for your spirit to be given to them. And Father, as we go through and we look ahead this coming weeks and months, Father, may we marvel at this truth and may we become more and more driven and influenced and under the control of your spirit.

56:20May we grow out of our fleshly ways. Father, we want more of you, less of us. Please, may you take the prerogative to work in us whatever you want. Lord, please give us your spirit for your glory. In Jesus' name, amen.