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EVERYONE WHO BELIEVES
John 3:4-18
What do you most look forward to with the start of a new year?
A new year represents a fresh start. This is the day we start new diets, commit to finish old projects, and set new goals. The new year begins with no history and no regrets.
Jesus told Nicodemus that his life could be characterized with newness if he would believe in Him.
Key Doctrine For This Study:
The Kingdom is the realm of salvation into which men enter by trustful, childlike commitment to Jesus Christ.
Luke 18:15-17 NLT
[15] One day some parents brought their little children to Jesus so he could touch and bless them. But when the disciples saw this, they scolded the parents for bothering him. [16] Then Jesus called for the children and said to the disciples, “Let the children come to me. Don’t stop them! For the Kingdom of God belongs to those who are like these children. [17] I tell you the truth, anyone who doesn’t receive the Kingdom of God like a child will never enter it.”
Colossians 1:13-14 NLT
For he has rescued us from the kingdom of darkness and transferred us into the Kingdom of his dear Son, [14] who purchased our freedom and forgave our sins.
BORN AGAIN
Responding to Jesus’s statement about needing to be born again, Nicodemus questioned what He meant. Jesus explained that people must also experience spiritual birth to enter God’s kingdom.
Jesus went on to emphasize that He was talking about a spiritual mystery facilitated by the Holy Spirit.
John 3:4-8 NLT
[4] “What do you mean?” exclaimed Nicodemus. “How can an old man go back into his mother’s womb and be born again?” [5] Jesus replied, “I assure you, no one can enter the Kingdom of God without being born of water and the Spirit. [6] Humans can reproduce only human life, but the Holy Spirit gives birth to spiritual life. [7] So don’t be surprised when I say, ‘You must be born again.’ [8] The wind blows wherever it wants. Just as you can hear the wind but can’t tell where it comes from or where it is going, so you can’t explain how people are born of the Spirit.”
What do people find confusing about salvation coming through faith in Jesus alone?
Nicodemus was a good and religious man—one with a firm grasp of the law’s take on salvation. A man could not become a Pharisee and a member of the Sanhedrin if he were otherwise.
Jesus responded to Nicodemus’s heart and mind rather than his words. But Nicodemus’s questions revealed that he did not understand what Jesus was sharing with him.
No one can enter God’s kingdom by human effort or natural means. God’s Spirit moves within the human spirit to convince us that we are sinners. As we respond in repentance and faith, God accomplishes that mysterious act of salvation and we are born again.
Jesus offers eternal life to all who believe in Him.
HOW?
In response to Nicodemus, Jesus questioned the leader’s understanding of the Old Testament and his ability to discern spiritual truths.
Jesus then declared Himself to be the Messiah who descended from heaven.
John 3:9-13 NLT
[9] “How are these things possible?” Nicodemus asked. [10] Jesus replied, “You are a respected Jewish teacher, and yet you don’t understand these things? [11] I assure you, we tell you what we know and have seen, and yet you won’t believe our testimony. [12] But if you don’t believe me when I tell you about earthly things, how can you possibly believe if I tell you about heavenly things? [13] No one has ever gone to heaven and returned. But the Son of Man has come down from heaven.
How might Nicodemus’s religious heritage and training have hindered him from understanding what Jesus meant?
For years, Nicodemus had taught about the kingdom of God. Those teachings would have included legalistic rituals that observant Jews saw as keys to the kingdom.
Nicodemus believed righteous works and achievements made a person right with God. In contrast, Jesus was teaching something radically different.
Jesus believed Nicodemus should have understood what He was saying. The Old Testament had several verses that linked God’s Spirit and water with new life.
Isaiah 32:15-20 NLT
[15] until at last the Spirit is poured out on us from heaven. Then the wilderness will become a fertile field, and the fertile field will yield bountiful crops. [16] Justice will rule in the wilderness and righteousness in the fertile field. [17] And this righteousness will bring peace. Yes, it will bring quietness and confidence forever. [18] My people will live in safety, quietly at home. They will be at rest. [19] Even if the forest should be destroyed and the city torn down, [20] the LORD will greatly bless his people. Wherever they plant seed, bountiful crops will spring up. Their cattle and donkeys will graze freely.
Isaiah 44:3-4 NLT
[3] For I will pour out water to quench your thirst and to irrigate your parched fields. And I will pour out my Spirit on your descendants, and my blessing on your children. [4] They will thrive like watered grass, like willows on a riverbank.
Ezekiel 39:29 NLT
[29] And I will never again turn my face from them, for I will pour out my Spirit upon the people of Israel. I, the Sovereign LORD, have spoken!”
How do a person’s questions about Jesus reveal what they trust for truth?
Jesus “descended from heaven,” indicating a unique event in history. This uniqueness set Jesus apart and affirmed the fact He was (and is) the Messiah.
As we talk with others about Jesus, we must be careful to move them toward Jesus. He is the true answer for their questions.
Believers must help others understand the truth about salvation.
Believers can have confidence in knowing that Jesus is the Messiah.
BELIEVE
Pointing to Moses lifting up the bronze snake in the wilderness (Numbers 21:6-9), Jesus explained that His being lifted up at His crucifixion would be the means to eternal life for all who believed in Him.
Numbers 21:6-9 NLT
[6] So the LORD sent poisonous snakes among the people, and many were bitten and died. [7] Then the people came to Moses and cried out, “We have sinned by speaking against the LORD and against you. Pray that the LORD will take away the snakes.” So Moses prayed for the people. [8] Then the LORD told him, “Make a replica of a poisonous snake and attach it to a pole. All who are bitten will live if they simply look at it!” [9] So Moses made a snake out of bronze and attached it to a pole. Then anyone who was bitten by a snake could look at the bronze snake and be healed!
Jesus declared that God had sent Him as a demonstration of divine love for His creation. He emphasized that His purpose was not to condemn anyone but to save all who believe in Him.
John 3:14-18 NLT
[14] And as Moses lifted up the bronze snake on a pole in the wilderness, so the Son of Man must be lifted up, [15] so that everyone who believes in him will have eternal life. [16] “For this is how God loved the world: He gave his one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life. [17] God sent his Son into the world not to judge the world, but to save the world through him. [18] “There is no judgment against anyone who believes in him. But anyone who does not believe in him has already been judged for not believing in God’s one and only Son.
Why is it so important for people to understand that salvation is available to everyone who believes in Jesus?
Jesus spoke about being lifted up. While the story referred to Israel in the wilderness (Numbers 21), Jesus was actually foretelling His death. He would soon be lifted up on a cross.
Jesus explained how the life He offered was different from what the Israelites experienced in the desert. The life He provides is eternal, and the only requirement is believing in Him. Those who look to Him with faith as the crucified and risen Savior will receive eternal life.
How does spending one-on-one time with Jesus, in prayer and in the Word, help us to grow in our faith?
For God to give “his one and only Son” referred both to the Messiah coming to earth in human form and to His atoning sacrifice on Calvary. This one statement emphasizes the Father’s sacrificial self-giving love.
Scripture divides the world into two groups: those who believe and those who do not. Those who do not believe are condemned; those who believe are saved.
People are condemned only when they refuse to put their faith in Jesus. God’s intention and desire is to save individuals, not condemn them.
Individuals believe in Christ as they come to know Him. While God uses many channels to reveal our need and Jesus’s ability to meet that need, He speaks to us through His Word. We speak to Him through prayer.
How is coming to faith in Jesus sometimes a process? How did the process play out in your life?
God lovingly offers salvation to all who will accept Jesus.
CHALLENGE
What are the ramifications of salvation being offered to all who believe in Jesus.
Who do you know, friend or family member, who is not a believer?
How can you use what Jesus shared with Nicodemus to initiate a conversation with them about Jesus?