Jesus and Nicodemus
Text: John 3:1-15
Core Idea: We must be born again because this is the only way we’ll get into the Kingdom of God. The good news is that we can be born again because Jesus has been lifted up. Then the invitation is available to all of us: look to Him, believe in Him, and receive life in Him.
INTRODUCTION
Thank you, Sarah, for sharing your story with us – and reminding us that God isn’t just sovereign in our lives but also deeply compassionate, that He not only comforts us in our pain but also grieves with us. I pray that we were all strengthened in our faith by her story. And if you want to share your story with us, please let me know – it would be a huge blessing for us to hear how God has been journeying with you.
Well, it’s Palm Sunday – the day Jesus entered Jerusalem, knowing that it will lead to His death on the cross. Then this coming week could be a great opportunity for us to pause and ponder, slow down to trace the steps that Jesus took – remembering that His journey to the cross was a demonstration of His unwavering love for us. I pray that all of us would immerse ourselves in the gospel this week so that we would freshly experience and be grounded in His radical love for us.
Today, we’ll take a break from our regular sermon series and look at John 3 for the next two weeks for two reasons. First, this chapter contains one of the clearest demonstrations of God’s love for the world shown through His Son, Jesus Christ – and arguably the most famous verse in the Bible (John 3:16). We’ll actually go deeper into this verse next week; so, I encourage you to invite your family and friends to come and hear this life-giving, life-transforming gospel truth on Easter Sunday. But the second reason is that this encounter between Jesus and Nicodemus provides a stunning overview of what Christianity is all about – what Jesus came to do and what it means for us. Then if you’re exploring Christianity or re-engaging with the Christian faith, we’re so thankful that you’re here with us because this could be a great place to begin that journey. What we’re about to see constitutes the beating heart of the Christian faith. Now, if you’re a Christian and you’re seeking to faithfully walk with Jesus, this is so important for you as well because it’s this truth that you should realign and reconfigure your lives around. Then with that in mind, let’s turn our Bibles to John 3:1-15. Let me read this for us.
1 Now there was a Pharisee, a man named Nicodemus who was a member of the Jewish ruling council. 2 He came to Jesus at night and said, “Rabbi, we know that You are a teacher who has come from God. For no one could perform the signs You are doing if God were not with Him.” 3 Jesus replied, “Very truly I tell you, no one can see the kingdom of God unless they are born again.” 4 “How can someone be born when they are old?” Nicodemus asked. “Surely they cannot enter a second time into their mother’s womb to be born!” 5 Jesus answered, “Very truly I tell you, no one can enter the kingdom of God unless they are born of water and the Spirit. 6 Flesh gives birth to flesh, but the Spirit gives birth to spirit. 7 You should not be surprised at My saying, ‘You must be born again.’ 8 The wind blows wherever it pleases. You hear its sound, but you cannot tell where it comes from or where it is going. So it is with everyone born of the Spirit.” 9 “How can this be?” Nicodemus asked. 10 “You are Israel’s teacher,” said Jesus, “and do you not understand these things? 11 Very truly I tell you, we speak of what we know, and we testify to what we have seen, but still you people do not accept our testimony. 12 I have spoken to you of earthly things and you do not believe; how then will you believe if I speak of heavenly things? 13 No one has ever gone into heaven except the one who came from heaven – the Son of Man. 14 Just as Moses lifted up the snake in the wilderness, so the Son of Man must be lifted up, 15 that everyone who believes may have eternal life in Him.”
Amen. This is the Word of God for you today.
Here, we’re introduced to a man named Nicodemus, and John gives us a few descriptions of who he was. First, he was a Pharisee. Now, the Pharisees were the religious conservatives who rigorously followed the law of Moses. They studied the law carefully and thoroughly because they really wanted to obey it perfectly. It’s true that the term “Pharisee” is often associated with hypocrisy and legalism today but not so in first-century Israel. They were some of the most respected and revered people in their culture – a figure of wealth, intelligence, social status, and great devotion to God. Second, he was also a member of the Jewish ruling council. This council, which was also known as the Sanhedrin, was the governing body of the Jewish people. In other words, Nicodemus wasn’t just an impressive religious figure, he was also an influential political figure in their culture. Not only that, notice what he says to Jesus in verse 2. He calls Him, “Rabbi” and “teacher” when all the other religious leaders of his days accused Jesus of being demon-possessed. In other words, there was humility in the way he approached Jesus. The reason why it’s so important for us to see who Nicodemus was is because it seems like if anyone could earn their way to God, impress God, it would’ve been him. It seems like he’s got it all. And yet to this man, Jesus says in verse 7: “You must be born again.” He was basically saying, “All your goodness, all your status, all that you have achieved – they’re in one sense worthless when it comes to entering this Kingdom. Nicodemus, you must start from the beginning. What you need is to be born again.”
Now, this could be a little uncomfortable and even offensive to the world today because many see all religions including Christianity just as a mechanism for self-improvement. They would say, “Look, Jesus, most of my life is on track, most of my life is going the way it should. But it’s true, there are a couple of parts that I would like to get an upgrade. So, Jesus, what can you do to help me? How can you come into my life and make it better? How can you help me improve?” But Jesus is about to shatter that false notion and reveal to us that Christianity is not an addition to what we’ve done; it’s about being made new. Then there are three things I want to address from this passage:
WHAT DOES IT MEAN TO BE BORN AGAIN?
WHY MUST WE BE BORN AGAIN?
HOW CAN WE BE BORN AGAIN?
1) WHAT DOES IT MEAN TO BE BORN AGAIN?
Let me walk you through the conversation between Jesus and Nicodemus starting in verse 2. I’ll paraphrase it to help you understand better. Here, Nicodemus said, “Jesus, I see that You’re a teacher from God. I can’t deny that you have wisdom, power, and authority. Then why are You here? What can You teach me?” To which Jesus said, “I’m here to tell you about a Kingdom – the kind of Kingdom that you cannot see, that you cannot enter unless you are born again.” Verse 4 – Nicodemus responded, “What does that even mean? Are you talking about going back to my mother’s womb for the second time? Because if it is, I probably have no hope for this Kingdom.” To which Jesus said in verse 5, “Very truly I tell you, no one can enter the kingdom of God unless they are born of water and the Spirit.” Here, Jesus was explaining what He meant in verse 3 – to be born again is to be born of water and the Spirit. Then what does that mean? The imagery actually comes from Ezekiel 36 where God told the Israelites how He was going to restore them – not what they needed to do to get back to God, but the things that He was going to do to make this possible. Ezekiel 36:24-26 says, “For I will take you out of the nations; I will gather you from all the countries and bring you back into your own land. I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you will be clean; I will cleanse you from all your impurities and from all your idols. I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit in you; I will remove from you your heart of stone and give you a heart of flesh.” Let me break this down for us.
First, to be born of water means that He cleanses us. He is washing us clean from all our impurities and sin. Now, what is sin according to the Bible? Sin is not merely a set of actions, a set of bad things that we do that displeases God – though it certainly includes that. But sin, at a much more fundamental level, isn’t just a set of actions but a set of attitudes – it’s a state of our heart that is rebellious and defiant against God. It’s saying to God, “I don’t need You to be my King. I don’t want You to be my King. I want to sit on the throne of my heart. I want to call the shots. I want to be in control. And I’m going to look to the things that I think will give me meaning, value, and satisfaction in life.” Now, Romans 6:23 says, “The wages of sin is death.” But when we are born of water, it means that God graciously forgives us, cleanses us, and washes us of sin in our hearts – to have it wiped away.
Second, to be born of the Spirit means that He implants a new heart, and He indwells us. Think about how incredible this is: God is living in us – and not just dwell in us, but begin to empower us, encourage us, equip us to live a brand-new life in Him. We have a new heart that can actually value and cherish Christ as beautiful, that can actually produce a set of new attitude, new appetite, and new ambition. This isn’t just rearranging, reordering of our old life; it’s the uprooting of our old life and implanting, re-planting of new life. Think of it this way. Some time ago, I shared that our family planted pepper plants in our backyard during the lockdown to teach my four-year-old the responsibility of watering and taking care of the plant – though it quickly became my responsibility. But what if, this year, we wanted to get tomatoes instead? What do we need to do? What if we just watered the plant better and fertilized the soil better hoping that tomatoes would grow? That would obviously be foolish because without uprooting the old plant, we would still end up with peppers. We must uproot the old plant and put tomato plants there instead. In the same way, new life comes only when we are completely re-planted – and this is what happens when we are born of the Spirit. Listen to how Paul describes it in 2 Corinthians 5:17, “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here!”
There’s a story that illustrates this idea well – what happens when you become new. It’s about Augustine of Hippo who is recognized as one of the greatest theologians the church has ever witnessed. This is what happened when he was born again: “Augustine, a great saint of God had lived with a prostitute before his conversion. After he was wonderfully saved, he was walking down the street and this prostitute saw him. She shouted his name and he kept walking. He saw her, but kept his eyes straightforward and walked. She continued crying after him and ran after him. And finally, she said, ‘Augustine, it is I.’ To which he replied, ‘I know, but it is no longer I.’” When we are born again, we are not the same. There’s a shift in our identity. This means that we won’t see God the way we used to, we won’t see others or ourselves the way we used to, we won’t respond to suffering or temptations the way we used to, we won’t approach work or school the way we used to, we won’t approach marriage or parenting the way we used to, we won’t use our money the way we used to – success in our lives won’t lead to pride but to thanksgiving and praise; failures and disappointments in our lives won’t lead to bitterness or despair but to faith in Christ. I could literally go on and on about different examples, but the point is this: we cannot remain the same when we are born again because we have been re-planted. We cannot expect the same fruit. Then let me ask those who are born again in Christ, saved by grace, “Do you see these transformations in your life? Even if they’re not drastic changes, are you seeing growing changes in your life? When temptation strikes you, do you have faith to say to its face, ‘It is no longer I’? Are you uprooting more of your old life and re-planting this new life with Christ – or for whatever reason, do you see more of your old self seeping back into your life?” Now, before you get discouraged because you’re not seeing these changes in your life, I want to remind you that the key to experiencing this transformation is in remembering that the Spirit lives in us. This transformation doesn’t happen by trying harder (it’s not by watering and fertilizing it better); it happens because the Spirit has given us a new heart and is working in our lives to bring those changes in us. In other words, we must learn to rely on Him, depend on Him every single day as we desperately, earnestly ask Him to do what only He can do – that’s the key to living born-again. Of course, holiness requires our effort as well – but I’m talking about that heart transformation because from our hearts, life flows. We cannot change our hearts; we can only receive a new one.
Brothers and sisters, in Christ, we are cleansed of our sin and the Spirit implants a new heart as He makes His home in us. This is what it means to be born again.
2) WHY MUST WE BE BORN AGAIN?
Now, Nicodemus could’ve said, “Why does it all matter? I’m doing fine – I’m wealthy, respected, and deeply spiritual. Why must I be born again?” Or another way to ask this is, “What would I lose if I’m not born again?” Well, according to verses 3 and 5, we would lose the Kingdom of God or eternal life as Jesus says in verse 15, which are synonymous in meaning. Then we must be born again because it’s the pre-condition for seeing and experiencing God’s Kingdom.
When Christians talk about the Kingdom of God, it’s true that it could sound very abstract – and in some ways, not very attractive. John Eldredge wrote, “Nearly every Christian I have spoken with has some idea that eternity is an unending church service. We have settled on an image of the never-ending sing-along in the sky, one great hymn after another, forever and ever. And our hearts sink. ‘Forever and ever? That’s the good news?’ And then we sigh and feel guilty that we’re not more spiritual. We lose heart, and we turn once more to the present to find what life we can.” I wonder if this is how some of us think about our eternal life with God. Sure, it could be better than the alternative (hell), but this doesn’t sound that appealing. But the Bible tells us that the Kingdom of God is what we’ve been seeking our entire lives whether we know it or not. Jonathan Edwards says, “God is the highest good of the reasonable creature. The enjoyment of Him is our proper; and is the only happiness with which our souls can be satisfied. To go to heaven, fully to enjoy God, is infinitely better than the most pleasant accommodations here. Better than fathers and mothers, husbands, wives, or children, or the company of any, or all earthly friends. These are but shadows, but the enjoyment of God is the substance. These are but scattered beams, but God is the sun. These are but streams, but God is the fountain. These are but drops, but God is the ocean.” God is the Giver of life – all the joys and pleasures we find in this life are from Him. And now we get to be with Him – the source of all good things. Everything we need and desire is found in Him – how can we possibly think that eternal life with Him would be boring?
But not only that, the Kingdom of God is also a place where death cannot touch. The Bible calls death the great enemy, the great interrupter that brings an end to all that we love and desire. And we experienced this when we saw the passing of our loved ones. We know the kind of sadness, grief, and despair death brings to our lives. But the Bible says, “Jesus Christ and His resurrection defeated death, and one day when the Kingdom comes, death and all of its forms will be finally and forever gone. In this Kingdom, death is no more – it’s defeated. We will be freed from its shackles.”
But not only that, this Kingdom is compared to a great banquet. Luke 22:29-30 says, “And I confer on you a kingdom, just as My Father conferred one on Me, so that you may eat and drink at My table in My kingdom.” The idea of feast includes celebration and fun but more importantly, it’s profoundly relational. In other words, we’ll not only have this victorious King rule over us but also dine with us and do life with us. Think about it: we can have this unbroken, intimate relationship with the King of the universe – we would be understood, valued, cherished, and treasured by the Creator God.
Friends, I could go on and on about this – but I hope that you’re beginning to see how beautiful the Kingdom of God is. And Jesus says, “If you want to see it, if you want to get there, you must be born again.”
3) HOW CAN WE BE BORN AGAIN?
Let’s go back to their conversation. Verse 9. Nicodemus asked, “How can this be? How does that happen? How can anyone be born of water and the Spirit?” Listen to Jesus’ answer in verse 14 (paraphrasing): “Nicodemus, this is exactly the reason why I came: not just to teach these things but to be lifted up like the snake Moses lifted up in the wilderness so that you can be born again. I must be lifted up that everyone who believes in me may have eternal life.”
What was Jesus talking about? In John’s Gospel, the phrase “be lifted up” always referred to Jesus’ death on the cross. What’s interesting is that in order for Jesus to illustrate what His death on the cross was about, He turns to a very interesting OT story from Numbers 21. Here’s the context. The Israelites have been liberated from slavery in Egypt. Now, they found themselves wandering, somewhat aimlessly, in the wilderness. To make matters worse, they ran out of food and water, and they began to question if Moses knew what he was doing. So, they went to Moses and said, “Look, when we were in Egypt, our lives were fine. And then you brought us out here. Did you do that to see us die? Were there no graves in Egypt that you brought us out here in the wilderness?” Essentially, they were complaining. So, God, in an act of judgment, sent venomous snakes that bit the people and many of them died. So, the Israelites came back to Moses and cried out, “We’re so sorry. We’ve sinned against God. Please pray for us! You have to do something to get these snakes out of here – people are dying!” Then God told Moses in Numbers 21:8-9, “‘Make a snake and put it up on a pole; anyone who is bitten can look at it and live.’ So Moses made a bronze snake and put it up on a pole. Then when anyone was bitten by a snake and looked at the bronze snake, they lived.”
At first glance, this story didn’t make sense to me. It just seemed that God really hated complaining because the punishment seemed so far out of proportion to the sin committed. At the same time, I was confused about the bronze snake. Think about it: what was killing these people? The snakes. Then how does the very thing that caused the pain become the symbol of healing? Why didn’t God say to Moses to lift up whatever was used as medicine in their culture? Why the snake? Let me explain. In order to understand this better, we must realize that the snake was on the centrepiece of the headdress that Pharaoh wore – there was this golden snake standing upright. What many of us don’t know is that during Israel’s time, a snake was a sign of Egyptian sovereignty and power. Then think back to what was happening in Numbers 21: Israelites were finding themselves in the middle of the wilderness; they were looking back to Egypt and saying, “Egypt was the land of life to us. That was where we flourished. And now God brought us out here to die.” Then God responded by sending the snakes (the symbol of Egypt) and instead of life, these snakes brought death. Do you see this? Then this was God’s way of showing them that what they thought gave them life actually leads them to death. Egypt doesn’t represent life; it’s poisonous; it’s slavery; it’s the land of death. And in order to save them, God tells Moses to put a bronze snake on a pole. Why? Deuteronomy 21:23 says, “Anyone who is hung on a pole is under God’s curse.” In other words, God was saying, “I’m going to curse the very thing that has been bringing you death. And this is how you’ll be saved: look at this snake on the pole and believe that I alone can give you life – not Pharaoh, not Egypt. In fact, this idea that Egypt is your life must be killed in your heart just as this snake is cursed on the pole. Believe that there’s only one King who offers you life.”
Then friends, what’s the thing that you believe today will give you life? What’s one thing in your life that you say, “If only I could have this, then I’ll know that I’m okay, that my life has been worth living, that my life has meaning, purpose, and weight”? Is it a career, or success? Is it finding that romantic love, or having that perfect family? Or is it pursuing that experience of pleasure, or doing something that you’ll always be remembered for and never be forgotten? What is that thing? What Jesus wants to tell you is that whatever that thing is, if it’s not Jesus, it’s not life, it’s slavery. Now, the implication goes deeper than this.
You see, we’re not dying from snakes today, but the Bible tells us that we will die because of our sin. Romans 3:23 says, “For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.” Then just as snakes needed to be killed in order for the Israelites to live, sin needs to be killed in order for us to live. The problem is that we have sinned – we are sinful, the sin is in us, which means that we need to be lifted on the pole, receiving the fullness of God’s just wrath against us. And the tragic reality is that there’s nothing we could do to change that. We deserve death – we were hopeless until hope came to us through the person of Jesus Christ. This is why He came: to be lifted up in our place. Galatians 3:13 says, “Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us, for it is written: ‘Cursed is everyone who is hung on a pole.’” On the cross, Jesus bore the punishment and the penalty of our sin and gave us His righteousness. He was crushed so that we may be healed. He was killed so that we may have life.
Then what does this mean for us? If you’re not yet a believer, I want to invite you to simply look to what Jesus has done on the cross with trust-filled surrender because this is how you receive the Kingdom, eternal life – just by believing. He’s the One that saves. Look to Him who has been lifted up for you. But if you’re a Christian, I want you to remember how loved you are because the cross is God’s visible demonstration of His intense love for you. Jesus Christ loved you to the end. Let this truth sink deep in your hearts. Immerse yourself in it because only then you would be able to live in a manner worthy of the gospel (Phil. 1:27). Now, some of you may be questioning, “How do I know if I’m really born again? What if I’m not?” Then here’s a simple way to test it: lots of religious people come to God because they find Him useful – to get things from God. But those who have been born again don’t find God useful but beautiful. He’s the end in itself. Has God become beautiful to you? Has what Jesus accomplished on the cross ravished your heart? If so, you have been born again.
CONCLUSION
Lighthouse family, we must be born again because this is the only way we’ll get into the Kingdom of God. The good news is that we can be born again because Jesus has been lifted up. Then the invitation is available to all of us: look to Him, believe in Him, and receive life in Him. Let us truly be born again and live born-again.
Discussion questions
Read verses 3-8. What was your understanding of the phrase “born-again”? According to Jesus, what does it mean to be born again? Have you experienced the new birth Jesus was talking about? If so, are you seeing the fruit of living born-again? How can CG help you experience gospel changes in your life?
Why do we need to be born again? What do we lose if we’re not born again? Are the Kingdom of God and eternal life with God something that you’re truly desiring? Why or why not?
Read verses 14-15. What does it mean that Jesus was lifted up? Why did He have to be lifted up? How does this connect with us being born again? How does this impact our lives today?