NEED FOR A NEW BIRTH

JOHN 3:1–21

In reply Jesus declared, “I tell you the truth, no one can see the kingdom of God unless he is born again”

(John 3:3).

Salvation came to Zacchaeus when he switched sides in the war of sinful humanity against God and embraced Jesus Christ as his Savior and Lord. In John’s gospel, salvation is spoken of as a new birth. This week, we will consider more fully what it means to be “born again.”

It is in John 3 that we find Jesus’ discourse on the new birth. There we read that Nicodemus, a Pharisee, came to see Jesus one night. In Matthew 15, Mark 7, and Luke 11, Jesus made it plain that the Pharisees had obscured the meaning of the Old Testament by their oral law traditions. The confusion of Nicodemus in John 3 is a case in point.

Nicodemus was also a member of the Sanhedrin, the seventy-member ruling council of Judaism. Thus, he was a figure of great national prominence. He approached Jesus courteously, perhaps even with flattery, calling Him “Rabbi.” He addressed Jesus with the respect reserved for the most revered members of the religion. He went on to say that he knew Jesus was sent from God, and that His miracles were genuine.

Jesus spoke straight to what He knew Nicodemus had come to see Him about. Jesus told him that unless he was born again, he could not see the kingdom of God. Jesus introduced this sentence by saying, “Truly, truly.” This expression comes from the Hebrew “Amen, amen,” and indicates that what is being said is absolutely sure and confirmed. Jesus was saying that being born again is a necessary condition for entrance into the kingdom.

Nicodemus’s religious heritage would do him no good unless he was born again. Today we have established that without the new birth, there is no salvation. Tomorrow we will examine what it means to be born again.

CORAM DEO

Isaiah 56–58

1 Thessalonians 3

A “new birth” means a break from our sinful past. The Spirit of God born into the life of the believer is our only claim to righteousness in God’s eyes. Like Nicodemus, many think they are Christians because of their good works or position instead of their faith in Jesus. Think of some of the forms this false faith takes today and, using Jesus’ explanation in John 3, prepare a defense for your faith for the next “Nicodemus” that walks into your life.

For further study: 1 John 4:1–12; Born Again series

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