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Proverbs 10:19-32
19 When words are many, sin is not absent, but
he who holds his tongue is wise.
20 The tongue of the righteous is choice silver,
but the heart of the wicked is of little value.
21 The lips of the righteous nourish many, but
fools die for lack of judgment.
22 The blessing of the LORD brings wealth, and
he adds no trouble to it.
23 A fool finds pleasure in evil conduct, but a
man of understanding delights in wisdom.
24 What the wicked dreads will overtake him;
what the righteous desire will be granted.
25 When the storm has swept by, the wicked are
gone, but the righteous stand firm forever.
26 As vinegar to the teeth and smoke to the
eyes, so is a sluggard to those who send him.
27 The fear of the LORD adds length to life, but
the years of the wicked are cut short.
28 The prospect of the righteous is joy, but the
hopes of the wicked come to nothing.
29 The way of the LORD is a refuge for the
righteous, but it is the ruin of those who do evil.
30 The righteous will never be uprooted, but the
wicked will not remain in the land.
31 The mouth of the righteous brings forth
wisdom, but a perverse tongue will be cut out.
32 The lips
of the righteous know what is fitting, but the mouth of the wicked only what is
perverse.
Father God, I ask that you touch the
hearts of people during this season that we celebrate your Resurrection and
that people will place their faith in you and not a religion. In Jesus name we pray, Amen!
Gospel of John 3:1-3 NKJV
This
week’s lesson and the next couple are in my opinion the most important verses
in the Bible because Jesus tells us what we must do to become a child of God
and go to Heaven when we physically die. There are denominations that tell you
to practice this ritual or that ceremony, do this and that, but Jesus tells us
we must be Born Again by faith in Him and only that to go to Heaven. I for one
believe what Jesus says and forsake all of man’s formulas for salvation.
1 Now there
was a man of the Pharisees named Nicodemus, a member of the Jewish ruling
council.
Now there was a man of the Pharisees; The
Pharisees were the most numerous and wealthy sect of the Jews. They derived
their name from the Hebrew word Pharash, which signifies to set apart, or to
separate, because they separated themselves from the rest of their countrymen,
and professedly devoted themselves to special strictness in religion. Their
leading system of belief were the following: that the world was governed by
fate, or by a fixed decree of God; that the souls of men were immortal, and
were either eternally happy or miserable beyond the grave; that the dead would
be raised; that there were angels, good and bad; that God was under obligation
to bestow special favor on the Jews; and that they were justified by their own
conformity to the law. They were proud, haughty, self-righteous, and held the
common people in great disrespect. They sought the offices of the state, and
affected great dignity. They were showy in their religious worship, praying on
the corners of the streets, and seeking publicity in the bestowment of alms.
They sought principally external cleanliness, and dealt much in ceremonial
washings of themselves and utensils.
They maintained some of the laws of Moses very strictly. In addition
to the written laws, they held to a multitude which they maintained had come
down from Moses by tradition. These they felt themselves as much bound to
observe as the written Law. Under the influence of these laws they washed
themselves before meals with great thoroughness; they fasted twice a week, on
Thursday, when they supposed that Moses ascended Mount Sinai, and on Monday,
when he descended; they wore broad phylacteries, and enlarged the fringe or
borders of their garments; they loved the chief rooms at feasts, and the chief
seats in the synagogues. In general, they were a corrupt, hypocritical,
office-seeking, haughty class of men. There are, however, some honorable
exceptions recorded, Acts 5:34; Mark 15:43; Luke 2:25;
Luke 23:51; John
19:38-42; John 3:1; John 7:50.
Named Nicodemus, a member of the
Jewish ruling council; One
of the “Sanhedrin,” or great council of the nation. He is mentioned two other
times in this Gospel of John; in the first instance as advocating Jesus cause,
and defending Him against the unjust suspicion of the Jews John 7:50, and in the second instance as one who
came to aid in the burial of Jesus body, John 19:39. Nicodemus
was said to be one of the three richest men in Jerusalem.
2 He 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."
He came to Jesus at night; Nicodemus
came to Jesus in the dark of night and there are several speculations as to
why. It could be that he was afraid to be seen conversing with Jesus in the
daylight; or maybe there was such a crowd around Jesus all the time during the
day he couldn’t have a conversation with Him; or maybe being one of the head
rulers of the Sanhedrin he was so busy during the day he couldn’t get away and
talk with Jesus; based on the rest of this verse Nicodemus may have seen some
of the miracles and listened to some of the teachings of Jesus and his spirit
was directing him to seek Jesus with his heart and not his mind. (Matthew 7:7 "Ask and it will be
given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you.) We don’t
know why exactly he came at night.
And said, "Rabbi, we know you are
a teacher who has come from God; The class distinction in Israel was
great at this time. Considering the fact Jesus was a Peasant and for Nicodemus
a member of the Sanhedrin to come to Jesus at all, shows that he had been
greatly moved by the things Jesus had said and the Miracles performed. However,
in no way does he recognize Jesus as the Messiah, but rather a “Teacher,” and
that He is of God, and more particularly has “Come from God.”
By
the use of the pronoun “we,” it is most probable that Nicodemus represented other
members of the Sanhedrin.
For no one could perform the
miraculous signs you are doing if God were not with him; Nicodemus
had this phrase 100% correct. Miracles show that a prophet or religious teacher
comes from God by the power to work a miracle, a true miracle.
As
Christians we have to be aware of things that may seem to be a miracle, but in
reality it could be deception to get one to believe and follow a false teacher
or religion. Do be aware Satan can perform miracles also. He is a great
deceiver and that is why we must know God’s Word so that we can discern the
deception from the truth. Our world is filled with deception at the present
time. Just use the upcoming elections as an example. Exodus 7:11 Pharaoh
then summoned wise men and sorcerers, and the Egyptian magicians also did the
same things by their secret arts: Matthew 7:22 Many will say to me
on that day, 'Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and in your name
drive out demons and perform many miracles?' 2
Thessalonians 2:9 The coming of
the lawless one will be in accordance with the work of Satan displayed in all
kinds of counterfeit miracles, signs and wonders. Revelation
13:11-15 Then I saw another
beast, coming out of the earth. He had two horns like a lamb, but he spoke like
a dragon. 12
He exercised all the authority of the
first beast on his behalf, and made the earth and its inhabitants worship the
first beast, whose fatal wound had been healed.
13
And he performed great and miraculous signs, even causing fire to come
down from heaven to earth in full view of men.
14
Because of the signs he was given power to do on behalf of the first
beast, he deceived the inhabitants of the earth. He ordered them to set up an
image in honor of the beast who was wounded by the sword and yet lived. 15 He was given power to give breath to the
image of the first beast, so that it could speak and cause all who refused to
worship the image to be killed.
3 In reply
Jesus declared, "I tell you the truth, no one can
see the kingdom of God unless he is born again."
In
reply Jesus declare; This
reply that Jesus gives Nicodemus must have cause him to express a huge facial
expression in the form of a question mark and possibly saying, “what”? Jesus
replied the way He did because Jesus saw Nicodemus heart and knew he was there
to dispute His teaching or seeking salvation. Jesus got right to the point to
clarify what was spinning around in Nicodemus mind.
“I tell you the truth, no one can see the kingdom of God unless he
is born again.”; The
Kingdom of God is personal, not national or ethnic or denominational, and its
entrance requirements are repentance and spiritual rebirth. Nicodemus along
with the Sanhedrin and the Jewish people believed that since they were of Jewish
descent and practiced the law they were bound for Heaven and all that didn’t
practice their beliefs and laws were bound for Hell. So this Born Again thing
Jesus is speaking of probably baffled Nicodemus greatly, because Jesus is telling
him he is no better than the Gentiles. It is a wonder Nicodemus didn’t turn
around and run out the door he came in. The fact that he didn’t, shows us that
he was an open minded individual about religion and seeking the Kingdom of God.
We as individuals must also be open minded like Nicodemus when it comes to
salvation, because what we have been taught as we grew up may not be true, it
may be false manmade doctrine that sounds really good to our ego. We need to verify
what we believe according to Bible verses.
All
men, meaning male and female, are sinners, actually having been born in sin,
which is referred to by many as “original sin.” This was brought about due to
the Fall of man in the Garden of Eden.
The
term, “born again,” means that man has already had a natural birth, but now
must have a Spiritual Birth, which comes by Faith in Christ, and is available
to all (John 3:16; Revelation 22:17).
This
Spiritual Birth is totally of God, and not by mans work of rituals, customs,
heritage, denominational religion, etc. This means that man’s good works,
religious rituals, and ceremonies, play no part whatsoever in the “born-again”
experience. Ephesians 2:8-9 “For by Grace are ye saved through Faith; and that not of yourselves:
it is the Gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast”
Do
you think Jesus made this statement about Born Again to avoid and divert
Nicodemus thoughts away from the traditional religion that Nicodemus believed
in? Was Nicodemus there to dispute some of Jesus teachings? If he was, Jesus
took control of the inquisitive visit and really gave Nicodemus something to
think about. Jesus immediately stopped the religious discussion that was about
to happen by telling this most religious man and professed Believer that he was
so sinful, so hopelessly corrupt and fallen, as to be incapable of reformation,
and so darkened morally that he could neither recognize nor experience a spiritual
birth from above. This fundamental Truth is detestable to man, for it humbles
him.
“Despite being one of the rulers in Israel as
a member of the Sanhedrin, and, consequently, extremely religious, I think the
evidence shows that this “good man”
was lost. To be sincere is not necessarily to be saved! Multiple hundreds of
millions, as Nicodemus, think surely their place and position in life, and
especially if they are overly religious, afford them Salvation. However, Jesus
completely shot all of these things down, proclaiming in no uncertain terms,
that they affected nothing towards one’s Salvation. To be saved, one must be “born again.”
To
experience a Spiritual Birth, as we shall see, one must be “born from above.”
This
spiritual rebirth which man must experience, does not come through any natural
process. God is the Actor or Person Who effects the New Birth in those who
believe and receive the Son (John
1:12–13).
The New Birth makes us Children of God and leads to moral transformation. A
glorious change is effected!
For
instance, one who is born of God does what is right, (what is Scriptural) (I John 2:29). While the
Believer may at times fail, no one born of God “Keeps on sinning,” or rather “Practices
sin.” God’s Life is planted within our reborn personality (I John 3:6, 9; 5:18).
Another
expression of the New Life we receive from God is found in our love for one
another (I John 4:7; 5:1–2). Love and
purity of life are sure to follow New Birth, for God’s Own Life swells within
the twice born. We who have become God’s Children through Faith are destined to
grow into Jesus’ Likeness, for that is the purpose of the New Birth.
The
phrase, “He cannot see the Kingdom of
God,” actually means that without the New Birth, one cannot understand or
comprehend the “Kingdom of God.”
This
is the reason that those who are truly born again, have a completely different
world view than those who aren’t. The Believer sees things through the Word of
God, and judges accordingly. He knows and understands, or certainly should, the
Plan of God for the human family, and the entirety of this world for that
matter. The Believer knows that the present scheme of things is temporal. He
knows the world is in rebellion against God, and is filled with evil because of
that rebellion. He knows the only answer is Jesus Christ.
In
this realm of Salvation, afforded by God, brought about by Jesus Christ, and
empowered by the Holy Spirit, the Believer knows Jesus is coming again, and
will ultimately rule the world (Revelation
Chapter 19).”
(JSM)
We will continue this discussion of a Spiritual Birth
next week.
Colossians
1:16 For
by Him all things were created that are in heaven and that are on earth,
visible
and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or principalities or powers.
All things were created through Him and for Him.
Romans
3:23 for
all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,
Romans 6:23 For the wages of sin
is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our
Lord.
John 3:3
Jesus answered and said to him, Most assuredly, I say
to you,
unless one
is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God."
The
Lighthouse Full Gospel Church
Sinners Prayer; Pray this, and if you believe it with
your heart, Jesus will save you!
“Lord
Jesus I know I am a sinner. I confess my
sins to you; I am sorry for my sins; I repent (Meaning, desiring to turn from a
sinful lifestyle.) of all my sins, and I am asking for your forgiveness. I believe that only you can forgive sin. I commit my life to you and ask you to come
into my heart, direct, and take charge of my life. I believe that you died to set me free from
my sinful lifestyle and you rose from the dead to give me eternal life, and
right now you are seated at the Right Hand of God Almighty. I believe you are
the Son of God; the only Way, the only Truth, the only Life, and my
Savior.” I believe this and have faith
you will make a new person out of me, by sending the Holy Spirit to dwell in my
heart and lead me in a new life. In Jesus name I pray Amen.”
(John 3:16,17; Romans
3:23; 6:23; 5:8; 10:9-13; Ephesians
2:8-10; 1 John 5:11-14; 1:6-10)
(Sin: Rom. 1:22-32; Gal. 5:19-21; Eph.
5:3-7)
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