Jesus Instructs a Great Teacher

John 3:1-16

GOLDEN TEXT: “For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life.”—John 3:16

NICODEMUS, an influential man among the Jews, a member of the Sanhedrin, a Pharisee, hence widely known as a professor of holiness, came to Jesus by night. We may not be sure that it was fear that prompted Nicodemus to come at night. Possibly he came then because he would have a better opportunity for private conversation with the Master. As a student of the Scriptures he no doubt knew to expect the Kingdom, and that it was God’s provision for the blessing and uplifting of Israel and ultimately the fulfillment of the promise to Abraham, “In thy seed shall all the families of the earth be blessed.”

Having confidence in Jesus, he wished to learn the particulars respecting this Kingdom, for neither John the Baptist nor Jesus had revealed anything to indicate how the Kingdom was to be brought about—where the soldiers were to be obtained, where the implements of warfare were to come from, as well as the large amount of money necessary to equip and provide for an army. Such a question is implied by our Lord’s statement, “Verily, verily, I say unto thee, except a man be born again [anew] he cannot see the Kingdom of God.”

We can well imagine the perplexity of Nicodemus, who was looking for a king with a glorious retinue, more grand than any monarch of the past, inasmuch as the expected Messiah-King was to represent heavenly authority and power amongst men. The chaos of this thought is shown by his rejoinder, How can a full grown man, advanced in years, be born again? With our Lord’s answer he began to get a little light on the subject: Jesus said, “I say unto thee, except a man be born of 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 spirit is spirit.”

Putting these matters together we have the thought that our regeneration or begetting again of the Holy Spirit, and our renewing by it, come to us in conjunction with the washing or cleansing which is effected in us by the operation of the truth—the divine message. This is beautifully symbolized in Israel’s Tabernacle service, in which the priests, before entering the Holy and thus typically becoming new creatures, first washed at the laver which represented the Word of God, the truth, the water of regeneration, by which we come into that condition of consecration to the Lord in which He is pleased to accept us, and grant us the spirit of adoption into His heavenly or spiritual family.

Nicodemus was astonished at such a presentation of the Kingdom and of the methods and conditions upon which it could be seen and entered into. Our Lord rejoined; “Marvel not at the words, Ye must be born again.” Then He gave him an illustration of what one would be like who would be born of the Spirit. He drew his attention to the invisibility of spirit beings and yet their reality. He took as an illustration the wind—invisible. We know not whence it comes, we, know not whither it goes; but we do know its power, we can hear the sound, can see its effects. This, our Lord declared, would, give Nicodemus an illustration of those born of the Spirit; they would be intangible, invisible, while present and powerful. Such would be the Kingdom when it should be established.

Nicodemus had called our Lord Master, Teacher, and declared that he believed. Him to be sent of God, and yet was so bound to his preconceptions that he was unready to receive the testimony of the only one who was capable of giving him instruction. Our Lord intimated that He could tell much more about the heavenly Kingdom, but it would not be proper to do so, since His hearer was not in a condition to appreciate spiritual things. “If I have told you earthly things and ye believe not, how could you believe if I explain to you heavenly things?”

QUESTIONS:

Who was Nicodemus, and what was his viewpoint respecting the Messiah?

What characteristics of a spirit-born being are illustrated by the wind?

What does it mean to be born of water?

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