@JLB
Brother, it may be simple, but not always simple to answer in a few words.
I have more than once done an exposition verses by verse on John 3:1-8, maybe someone who knows how to navigate this forum better than me can find it. But, will briefly do so again with you so as to cover this point as good as I can without spending much time.
John 3:1,2
“There was a man of the Pharisees, named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews: The same came to Jesus by night, and said unto him, Rabbi, we know that thou art a teacher come from God: for no man can do these miracles that thou doest, except God be with him.”
I consider this discourse between our Lord and Nicodemus to be one of the most important discourses Jesus had one on one with any one in the scriptures, and without question it is. We both know that
God is all wise, and would never waste space in his word given to us for our exhortations, and learning, concerning certain vital truths, that are
so essential to our overall understanding of the gospel of Jesus Christ.
Our Lord in this discourse with Nicodemus was
not warning,
nor condemning him for not being born again,
nor exhorting him to be born again, (as so many believe and teach) but was
revealing to him that what he professes to believe in was a proof/sign of one born again! Consider carefully to the
words of the context, which will drive the interpretation for us.
1.) First consider Nicodemus' child like confession, which is as scriptural as anyone on this forum, or in any churches throughout this world.
"Rabbi, we know that thou art a teacher come from God: for no man can do these miracles that thou doest, except God be with him.” Nicodemus' testimony concerning Jesus was
so much different than other Pharisees, who said that Jesus did miracles by the power of the prince of the devils ~ Beelzebub.
Matthew 12:24
“But when the Pharisees heard
it, they said, This
fellow doth not cast out devils, but by Beelzebub the prince of the devils.”
Nicodemus humbly confessed that Jesus could not do his miracles
except God be with him.
Based upon Nicodemus' confession concerning Jesus we read these words in John 3:3:
John 3:3
“Jesus answered and said unto him,
Verily, verily, I say unto thee,
Except a man be born again, he
cannot see the kingdom of God.”
Here we see a double verily, which our Lord used when we was about to make a statement,
that few would believe when hearing what he was about to say. Again,
CONTEXT is King, and we must pay careful attention to what is being said back and forth in order to receive the truth being set forth for us to see and understand. Those to whom it is given to see,
will see, and others will just harden their hearts to the truth, and refuse to see, regardless how much time is spent trying to help others to understand.
Our Lord said explicitly ~
Except a man be born again,
he cannot see the kingdom of God! But, Nicodemus did SEE and
confessed that except God be with him, he could have done the miracles that HE DID, thereby, he saw, which means he was born again, because
EXCEPT a person is born again,
he would never be able to see, but would remain like the other wicked Pharisees who attributed Jesus' miracles to the devil!
Though this regenerated child of God saw, his knowledge was much to be desired, by the next words that came form his mouth.
John 3:4
“Nicodemus saith unto him, How can a man be born when he is old? can he enter the second time into his mother's womb, and be born?”
We know that Jesus used the words:
born again, by what Nicodemus said back to him ~
the second time into his mother's womb and be born?” Even if this was possible, and we know that it is not, STILL one would be born of flesh, which is sinful, and still would need to be born again. If Nicodemus had not asked that child like question, then Jesus would have never used water in the next verse.
John 3:5
“Jesus answered, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water and
of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God.”
The flow of the context is so important. Again, Jesus would have never mention water, if Nicodemus had not asked what he asked:
"can he enter the second time into his mother's womb, and be born?” Our first natural birth takes place when the water breaks and the child is born. The New birth is a birth of the Spirit of God, more on this later. Water is never mentioned again when our Lord explains the new birth and how it takes place. Seeing the things within the kingdom of God comes after one enters the kingdom of God through being born of the Spirit.
John 3:6
“That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit.”
That which is born of the flesh, IS FLESH and must be born again by the Spirit of God, and once that takes place that person is spiritual can from that point forward see, hear, and believe, yet it comes slowly over time, some quicker than others, there're many factors that determines just how fast one begins to see, hears and believes ~ all are not the same, even Nicodemus was slow coming around, if we follow his life what little we have recorded of it.
John 7:50; 19:39.
John 3:7,8
“Marvel not that I said unto thee, Ye must be born again. The wind bloweth where it listeth, and thou hearest the sound thereof, but canst not tell whence it cometh, and whither it goeth: so is every one that is born of the Spirit.”
“Marvel not that I said unto thee, Ye must be born again."~
"BEFORE" one an see, hear, and understand! Which proves beyond a shallow of doubt, that the new birth
MUST proceed faith, works acceptable by God.
Question: who made the different between Nicodemus and the rest of the rulers of the Jews? Certainly not Nicodemus ability, for his spiritual light was at this moment very dim, yet it was there, only by the grace of God and the birth of the Spirit of God.
"The wind bloweth where it listeth, and thou hearest the sound thereof, but canst not tell whence it cometh, and whither it goeth: so is every one that is born of the Spirit.”
The new birth is much like the wind so said our Savior. The wind is sovereign and blows where it pleases. The wind is invisible, you can only see the effect of it, yet not the wind itself.
JLB, that's one reason I asked you did you consider the thief on the cross ~ at one moment he just like the other railed on Christ, and out of nowhere, he said what he did that's recorded for us in Luke 23:39-43! The thief was born by the Spirit of God even while Christ was on the cross dying for his sins! Selah! That's the only reason we have that recorded for us to consider. If you have a better reason, then share it with me.
The new birth is a birth where God is the ONLY active person working ~ it takes place in our subconsciousness, we are totally unware of it happening. We could sleeping, working, even dying like the thief, and many other things one could be doing, you name it. The new birth can take place even in our mother's womb, like John the Baptist. Man is dead spiritually speaking until the new birth. The new birth, allows us to NOW see, hear, and believe, but not until then. The preacher is only needed for the born again person to be able to hear, and believe the testimony of God concerning. Faith is the evidence of one born of God, not the means thereof!
1st John 5:1
“Whosoever believeth that Jesus is the Christ
is born of God: and every one that loveth him that begat loveth him also that is begotten of him.”
