John 3:1-21
Jesus Teaches Nicodemus
1Now there was a man of the Pharisees named Nicodemus, a member of the Jewish ruling council. 2He came to Jesus at night and said, "Rabbi, we know you are a teacher who has come from God. For no one could perform the miraculous signs you are doing if God were not with him."
3In reply Jesus declared, "I tell you the truth, no one can see the kingdom of God unless he is born again."
4"How can a man be born when he is old?" Nicodemus asked. "Surely he cannot enter a second time into his mother's womb to be born!"
5Jesus answered, "I tell you the truth, no one can enter the kingdom of God unless he is born of water and the Spirit. 6Flesh gives birth to flesh, but the Spirit gives birth to spirit. 7You should not be surprised at my saying, 'You must be born again.' 8The 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? 11I tell you the truth, we speak of what we know, and we testify to what we have seen, but still you people do not accept our testimony. 12I have spoken to you of earthly things and you do not believe; how then will you believe if I speak of heavenly things? 13No one has ever gone into heaven except the one who came from heaven—the Son of Man. 14Just as Moses lifted up the snake in the desert, so the Son of Man must be lifted up, 15that everyone who believes in him may have eternal life.
16"For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. 17For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him. 18Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because he has not believed in the name of God's one and only Son. 19This is the verdict: Light has come into the world, but men loved darkness instead of light because their deeds were evil. 20Everyone who does evil hates the light, and will not come into the light for fear that his deeds will be exposed. 21But whoever lives by the truth comes into the light, so that it may be seen plainly that what he has done has been done through God."
Questions:
1. What does it mean to be born again?
2. What does John 3:16 mean to you?
3. How did you come to believe in Jesus? When did you accept His offer of salvation and how has it changed your life?
2 comments:
1. When you repent from your sins, accept what Jesus did on the cross for you and ask Him to come into your life, you will receive a new life. You will become a new creation.
2. John 3:16 is the bible message in a nutshell. It is the good news that we can find hope in. I love to read it over and over again.
3. The Gospel message was explained to me in a whole new way. I saw the Gospel lived out in a real way and was challenged to seek Him. Taking an Alpha course helped me a lot. I was able to ask questions and seek God in a relaxed environment. If you are searching for God check out the Alpha course at a church near you. If you are in Canada go to http://www.alphacanada.org. Most churches start this September.
Since I accepted Jesus as my personal Saviour, I have a new life. I have hope and joy. Things were not easy when I became a Christian but I know that He has the best plan an purpose for my life. I feel such peace when I pray and read the Bible. God is so good.
Q1: To be born again means to have Jesus take residence in one's heart, having personally put faith in His death and resurrection, and having accepted His offer of complete forgiveness for sins and a transformation of one's mind and life, so that both become pleasing to God. It means to become a co-heir with Christ of the Father's kingdom. It means to be regenerated so that a new, changed life begins, controlled by the Holy Spirit.
Q2: John 3:16 as Once was lost said, is the Bible in a nutshell. It is heard and taken for granted by those whose eyes still have scales on them, as mine once did, but once those scales are removed, the enormity of that one verse becomes more and more evident ... the simplicity of it becomes so moving. One of the things I was most moved by after I got saved was how simple that message in that verse was, yet how often it seemed to totally "go over my head."
Q3: I came to believe in Jesus after recognizing that my life was not pleasing to God. Although I did many religious things, I recognzed from encounters with "salty" Christians that it really did not translate into a full commitment to Jesus. I also began to recognize the compromises in my life (smutty music, etc.) that really could not be pleasing to God ... I was also attending a religious college where it was very evident that the religious symbolism was outward for most of us and not reflective at all of an inner life or lifestyle choices that pleased God.
I accepted Jesus' offer after calling the Mom of a friend whom I knew would understand the dilemma I faced ... how could I explain the contradications between my life and faith and the "born-again" life? How would my family respond? What did God think of a switch of religion?
It has changed my life because God really confirmed in powerful ways that I made the right decision. I was immediately able to give up things I held on tightly to for many years and haven't looked back since. God has also revealed Himself through answered prayer in many ways ... my life has been much more eventful ever since. One of the most rewarding experiences is when friends I shared my testimony with also come to faith after a few years (I have at least two friends that have joined the family of belivers). It is so cool to see the scales finally come off!!! I thank God for the sense of eternal purpose that He has brought to even the quiet, ordinary moments of life. Everything, based on Romans 8:28, counts for something.
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