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JOHN CHAPTER THREE
VERSE 1
There was a man of the Pharisees named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews.
Well, we have spoke before about the Pharisees, and where their hearts were, and how they were rebuked often by our Lord for their greed, hypocrisy, and self exalted lifestyle. We read here that Nicodemus was a ruler of the Jews which tells us that he was a member of the Sanhedrin.
The ruling and governing body of the Jewish nation. As a matter of a fact, he was a leader of these leaders.
VERSE 2
This man came to Jesus by night and said to Him, "Rabbi, we know that You are a teacher come from God; for no one can do these signs that You do unless God is with him."
This man came to Jesus by night........
That is, he came to Jesus in secret. Long after dark, after his friends and the leaders that were his normal company had fallen asleep, we see Nicodemus sneak over to see Jesus. The reason that we see him come in secret is that Jesus was already being ostracized by the leaders of the Jews. We saw in chapter two that he had fulfilled scripture when He had cleared the temple for the first time. Openly rebuking the leaders for turning Gods house of prayer into a den of thieves. By this time, Jesus had already declared Himself to be The Bread of Life, The Water of Life, The Light of the world, The Door, and The Good Shepherd! None of these things had escaped the notice of this governing body of the Sanhedrin. These men in their pseudo holiness had already set their plans to undermine Jesus because He had openly undermined their authority and challenged their views. Nicodemus was clearly interested in learning more about Jesus, but was not yet fully committed to Him, caring more about his position of authority with his peers, so, he came to Jesus by night. Some scholars believe that this showed great readiness and respect, for it was common for the teachers to meet after dark, and discuss the law. In the Talmud, it is written `whoever studies in the law in the night, the holy blessed God draws a thread of mercy upon him in the day:''; while some hold that salutations among the Jews were forbidden in the night. Either way;
He gets to Jesus and says to Him....
"Rabbi, we know that You are a teacher come from God; for no one can do these signs that You do unless God is with him."
Now, I have spoke about this before, and if we go back to the original language of the text, we can clearly see that Nicodemus has, and is taking the first step towards eternal security. He said to Jesus......
I know that you are a teacher come from God........
Remember, that in their culture, and language, that even of the greatest revered prophets, such as Moses, Isaiah, and Jeremiah, that they would say of them....... We know that you were sent BY God.....never, never would they say FROM God.
One of the things that the Jews expected of the Messiah that was to come, is that He would come as a teacher, which they might learn from. There are many prophecies about this. A couple of them are; Isa 2:2,3 48:17 61:1. Nicodemus understood that these taught; Speaking of their Messiah, that "He will teach us of his ways",
Nicodemus here is clearly agreeing with the author of our text in proclaiming his belief that Jesus claims were true. He was agreeing with the claim that Jesus made in (Matthew 5:17) it is there that we read Jesus saying....... "Do not think that I came to destroy the Law or the Prophets. I did not come to destroy but to fulfill.
Now, even though according to the time line, this verse in Matthew happened after this verse in John, the point is, that Nicodemus was confessing with his mouth, that Jesus claims of Himself, were true. He is saying that he realized that Christ is divinely commissioned.
He continues his profession of belief by saying... for no one can do these signs that You do unless God is with him."
That word with in the Greek ismeta or, more literally translated...
within.
To paraphrase Nicodemus here, I would say that he has said
Teacher, I know that you have come here from the Father, and that the Father is within you. I believe that you are who you say that you are, and indeed that the things that the prophets have written of our Messiah who is to come is fulfilled in you. Jesus knew what was on the heart of Nicodemus. He was there seeking what it would take for his eternal security to be established. Made sure. And he believed that Jesus had the answer to his quest. Jesus wastes no time in giving Nicodemus the answer to what he was seeking.
VERSE 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."
It is clear by the next verse, that this statement by our Lord really threw Nicodemus for a loop. The word again here in the Greek, is anothen, and is literally translated From Above. = unless one is born from above. Nicodemus missed the point though. He was thinking along the lines of the nature of this second birth, Rather than the source , which is made clear by his response.
VERSE 4
Nicodemus said to Him, "How can a man be born when he is old? Can he enter a second time into his mother's womb and be born?"
Jesus, simply goes on to explain exactly what he meant.
VERSE 5
Jesus answered, "Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God.
I have heard people who have no real understanding of the Word of God, and representatives of various cults try and tell me, and try and teach others that this verse where our Lord tells us that
unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God.......... Refers to a water baptism, and the filling of the Spirit. Now, dont get me wrong here...... a water baptism is a step that every believer who confesses the name of Jesus Christ must take. It is in submission to Him. Jesus showed us the importance of this step by being baptized Himself! That is not what this verse is saying however. Lets stay Bereans, rightly dividing the word of truth, and keeping the scriptures within context of what is being said. Jesus in His sovereign foreknowledge, knowing that this mistake of the word would be taught, goes on further to give us a clear definition of what He is saying here.
One of the first lessons that we can learn from this point, is that as believers, anytime a verse is used; in any point made, or any teaching, is that we need to read many verses before, and then many verses AFTER the verse being used, making sure that we are understanding what the scripture being used is saying WITHIN CONTEXT of the message.
Not wanting this critical truth to be misunderstood, Jesus goes further to define His answer
VERSE 6
"That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is Spirit.
Clearly, this verse is speaking of the clear, biblical separation between the flesh and the Spirit. We are all born physically, and it is clear that our flesh is depraved, corrupt, and we are born in sin. ("That which is born of the flesh is flesh...) yet all who desire eternal security, and have the great desire to spend eternity in the glorious presence of the Father, must unconditionally be born of His Spirit. (That which is born of the Spirit is spirit.) Something cool that I learned from a commentary, stated that with Christ saying you.. Must be born again.....in saying you He is holding Himself separate from sinners!
VERSE 7
"Do not marvel that I said to you, 'You must be born again.'
John 1:12-13 says;
But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, to those who believe in His name: who were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.
And 1 John 5:1
Whoever believes that Jesus is the Christ is born of God, and everyone who loves Him who begot also loves him who is begotten of Him.
Born of the spirit. Born of God. Our flesh dies, and our Spirit, the Spirit that the Father places within us , becomes a Holy deposit, God seals Himself upon us. He seals us with His Spirit, declaring upon us the righteousness of Christ, imparting to us the justification, which is only a beginning, as he continues working His great work of sanctification, and giving us that wonderful eternal security.
2 Corinthians 1:20-22 says of these..... For all the promises of God in Him are Yes, and in Him Amen, to the glory of God through us.
Now He who establishes us with you in Christ and has anointed us is God, who also has sealed us and given us the Spirit in our hearts as a guarantee.
There should be no doubt of the eternal security for those who have the Seal of the Living and only God placed within them. That Seal is the Holy Spirit. Born of the Spirit of God. Born again. Once again;
VERSE 7
"Do not marvel that I said to you, 'You must be born again.'
This is an absolute requirement that must unconditionally be fulfilled for ones name to be written within the pages of the Lambs Book of Life.
I would like to share just a few verses that speak of being born again.
1 JOHN, 4:4,7
You are of God, little children, and have overcome them, because He who is in you is greater than he who is in the world.Beloved, let us love one another, for love is of God; and everyone who loves is born of God and knows God.
1 JOHN 5:1-5,18
Whoever believes that Jesus is the Christ is born of God, and everyone who loves Him who begot also loves him who is begotten of Him. By this we know that we love the children of God, when we love God and keep His commandments. For this is the love of God, that we keep His commandments. And His commandments are not burdensome. For whatever is born of God overcomes the world. And this is the victory that has overcome the world our faith. Who is he who overcomes the world, but he who believes that Jesus is the Son of God?
1 PETER 1:18-23
Knowing that you were not redeemed with corruptible things, like silver or gold, from your aimless conduct received by tradition from your fathers, but with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot. He indeed was foreordained before the foundation of the world, but was manifest in these last times for you who through Him believe in God, who raised Him from the dead and gave Him glory, so that your faith and hope are in God. Since you have purified your souls in obeying the truth through the Spirit in sincere love of the brethren, love one another fervently with a pure heart, having been born again, not of corruptible seed but incorruptible, through the word of God which lives and abides forever,
VERSE 8
"The wind blows where it wishes, and you hear the sound of it, but cannot tell where it comes from and where it goes. So is everyone who is born of the Spirit."
The word wind here, does not imply a gale. It is pnuema which is translated..... Breath and is the same word used to describe the Holy Spirit.
It is also the same word used in the scriptures that is used to describe Life.
In the old and the new testament, the words Breath and Spirit and Life are commonly interchanged.
Jesus is explaining here that just as you did not, nor could you have controlled your physical birth, in the same manner, you are completely unable to control your Spiritual birth. It is the Gift of God. We cannot control the work of the Holy Spirit. He works in ways that we cannot predict or understand, and the ways of His Spirit are a mystery to mankind.
Nicodemus still is baffled by these things that Jesus is telling Him, but still wants to understand...... so, he asks Jesus for further clarification.
VERSE 9
Nicodemus answered and said to Him, "How can these things be?"
The Holy Spirit was clearly misunderstood by Nicodemus at this point. Even though God had promised His Spirit through the old testament Prophets.
Ezekiel 36:25-27 says
Then will I sprinkle clean water upon you, and ye shall be clean: from all your filthiness, and from all your idols, will I cleanse you. A new heart also will I give you, and a new spirit will I put within you: and I will take away the stony heart out of your flesh, and I will give you an heart of flesh. And I will put my spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statutes, and ye shall keep my judgments, and do [them].
As a matter of a fact, the theme message of the prophet Ezekiel was God Almighty telling us I will put my spirit within you.
Jeremiah 24:7
And I will give them an heart to know me, that I [am] the LORD: and they shall be my people, and I will be their God: for they shall return unto me with their whole heart. ISAIAH 44:3
For I will pour water upon him that is thirsty, and floods upon the dry ground: I will pour my spirit upon thy seed, and my blessing upon thine offspring:
These are only a few, there are many, many references to this wonderful promise of the Father in the Bible.
The mind set of the Pharisees was that they had all of the answers. But clearly, we see here that the Spirit is already at work within Nicodemus, showing him that he still had much to learn and to understand. I see here a teacher, now become a student, and the heart of one who is about to become a disciple; who has found his true teacher.
VERSE 10
Jesus answered and said to him, "Are you the teacher of Israel, and do not know these things?
Yes, Jesus backs this thought up by this very statement. As a Jewish leader and teacher, and not the least of the teachers, for the text and original language here tells us that Nicodemus was even the leader of the leaders!! he knew the old testament. However, he did not understand the truth about the Messiah. Salvation is was not, is not, nor will it ever be found in knowledge. I like this question that was placed in the heart and mind of Nicodemus. I can see in my minds eye; Nicodemus; running home to open his scriptures and searching these things out for himself. I can see him saying to himself after this gentle rebuke by Jesus; well, yes, I am a teacher of Israel, I had better go search this out, I wont look too cool if I am uniformed!
VERSE 11
"Most assuredly, I say to you, We speak what We know and testify what We have seen, and you do not receive Our witness.
Jesus here is referring to the class of which Nicodemus belonged, but was now beginning to be separated. We will see later in our studies, this same man of the Sanhedrin boldly stand up and defend Jesus. By the very things that he says, later on, it is clear that he did indeed go home, and do his homework!! The work within him is far from complete, yet we see clearly that it had undoubtedly begun.
VERSE 12
"If I have told you earthly things and you do not believe, how will you believe if I tell you heavenly things?
Jesus had just told him about earthly things that is; that there is an unconditional necessity for a Spiritual regeneration. And then said and you do not believe that is; he did not yet understand. How can anyone fully believe anything that he does not understand? He goes on to say how will you believe if I tell you heavenly things? The things that Jesus is probably referring to here, is the eternal truth about salvation, by faith, in the atoning death of Christ upon the cross of calvary. At this point, this truth was at best, dimly unfolded. Although prophesied, was not fully understood until it had taken place, and the pouring out of his Spirit had taken place on the day of Pentecost, after our Lord had risen and ascended to His throne on high.
VERSE 13
"No one has ascended to heaven but He who came down from heaven, that is, the Son of Man who is in heaven.
The first thing that reaches out and grabs me here, is Jesus Christ clearly proclaiming His OMNIPRESENCE!!! Jesus is clearly standing, right here on earth, talking to Nicodemus, He clearly is speaking of Himself, and He says
The Son of Man who is in heaven.!!!
It is believed by some that the reason that Jesus said this, is that there was a false teaching, a teaching that is still around today. These say that Jesus was secretly caught up to heaven to receive His instructions, and then returned to earth to reveal them. This statement made by Jesus should certainly squash that! However; if I were to put this in my own words, I would tell you that this verse says.... He who has come down from heaven, is now here, and is present with you to reveal to you the things of His kingdom! By saying no one has ascended , Christ is saying that no one has gone up to heaven and returned to reveal Gods eternal truths, and that He alone reveals these things, and that is why he is here now. Another point to be made here, is that we see from the scriptures, as we study the resurrection of Christ, is that the scriptures tell us that You have ascended on high, You have led captivity captive, and gave gifts unto men. That is, at this point in time as He is speaking to Nicodemus, His work of the resurrection was yet not complete. One more thing cool to note, is that in the original text, we see a double negative.... in English, original King James version, it reads NO MAN..... That word.... no literally translates as
none....no one. The definition is the same for the word man
none, no one has, but the Son of Man who is!!
HE has indeed ascended. He is seated upon the throne of Glory.
He loves you with an everlasting love. A love that is so completely undescribable, and impossible to fully comprehend, that He was brutally beaten, and then, hung upon the cross of calvary that as many who would turn, and give their hearts and their lives to Him would be able to spend eternity in the glorious splendor of His presence. He desires only the very best for each of us, only the best that a loving Father could desire to give to His child. He has unconditionally made it absolutely clear exactly how this desire of his heart must be accomplished within our lives.
WE MUST BE BORN AGAIN. , He wants to place His Holy Spirit within us, as a deposit, and a guarantee, so that without any shadow of doubt, we can know that we know, that we belong to Him!!
JOHN 1:14-18
"And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up, "that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life.
"For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.
"For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved.
"He who believes in Him is not condemned; but he who does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.
as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness.................
Lets look at this for a second. Turn in your Bibles to numbers 21:9
As Moses lifted up the serpent......
First of all, in turning back to Numbers 21:8-9, we will gain an understanding of what is being said here.
Then the LORD said to Moses, "Make a fiery serpent, and set it on a pole; and it shall be that everyone who is bitten, when he looks at it, shall live. So Moses made a bronze serpent, and put it on a pole; and so it was, if a serpent had bitten anyone, when he looked at the bronze serpent, he lived.
Back in the days of Moses, and in this verse, we see a clear shadow of The Christ, The Messiah who was to come referred to in this verse by the apostle John.
Only those who truly believed in God, and looked upon the standard when they were bitten by the deadly vipers, were they saved from death. In the same way, only those now who look upon the cross can be saved from death. Indeed, and our viper today is one that we are all bitten by.... that viper is sin!
John clearly knew that Jesus had fulfilled scriptures, and used this verse to draw the parallel. He goes on without even a pause to show his hearers that this is exactly what he meant .
"And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up, "that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life.
Jesus called His crucifixion His lifting up Turn to John 12:32-33
"And I, if I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all peoples to Myself."
This He said, signifying by what death He would die.
What a parallel here!!! Just think.... just as the venom of the fiery serpents would run through the veins of the children of Israel, causing death throughout their camp, even so, sin runs through our veins, with the same result. Death. God has said For the wages of sin is death. and indeed, all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God!
In both cases, healing and life came to those that were afflicted by lifting up their eyes to the remedy
AND WHAT A REMEDY WE HAVE IN JESUS!
Truly looking to Him brings certain and instant healing to anyone who is perishing!
Now, we come to the greatest of all verses in the entire text of the Holy Bible. It is the most widely recognized, most often quoted, and most well known verse in the scriptures. Even the most hardened atheist or occultist, who has never cracked the cover of a bible can quote this one off of the top of their head without even blinking an eye. It is the very foundation of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. The whole message of God; revealed to man; revolves around this wonderful truth. The word Gospel means good news and there is no news that could ever even begin to compare with JOHN 3:16 .
"For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.
For God...... The Divine Creator of heaven and earth, and everything that is in them. The Eternal Alpha and the Omega, the First and the Last, the Beginning and the End. The Great I AM.
So loved........ This word loved used here in the Greek language is
Agapao. It is the most intense, and complete word for love used in the Bible. It means completely and without reservation. Uniquely enough, this word agapao comes from a Hebrew word. That word is agab and that word means to breath after and divine love. Truly enough, when one comes into a knowledge, and accepts Gods awesome sacrifice, the giving of His only begotten Son, The Almighty God does indeed breath His Breath of Life upon them, and they are Born again, born by the Spirit of God!!
The world...... the word world here is kosmos and it includes the world, and all of its inhabitants, ready to perish through its sin.
God, with a love so miraculous, so incredible, and so deep that no words can even begin to give it any justice at all, a love for all of mankind. Jesus said during His brief but majestic ministry upon this earth
even so, it is not the will of your Father, who is in heaven that even one of these little ones should perish. God has abundantly provided the way.............. Even the only way, to remain in His love. That way is so simple that many, many miss the mark, by struggling to win His love, by earnestly striving to achieve His love, and by tirelessly working to try and earn His love, and fail to grasp the fulness of this verse. It is already given. It is a gift. You cannot win, achieve or earn a gift. You only need to accept it!
That beautiful and perfect gift of God, the supreme and most ultimate sacrifice that could ever be made.... HIS SON.
"For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, and
whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.
Whoever....or mor literally translated.. Whosoever... The word in the Greek here is pas and strengthens and backs up the use of the word world here. It is all inclusive... open to all..... And is also literally translated
As many as
Believes...... Ive spoke on this word before... but especially talking about this verse it needs to be gone over again. The word believes in the original language is pisteuo which means TO HAVE FAITH IN,
TO ENTRUST its root is from the word pistos and it means so far much more than just a conviction. The scriptures tell us that even the demons believe, and tremble. This word means ABSOLUTE AND COMPLETE RELIANCE UPON, and not to be overlooked, it means FIDELITY.
IN HIM!!! JESUS IS THE ONLY WAY TO GET TO GOD!!!
THE CROSS OF CALVARY ALONE IS THE MEANS OF YOUR SALVATION! It is by the grace of a loving God, the ultimate sacrifice, Christ; was given to take upon Himself every sin, ever committed by anyone who will but look upon the cross, where Christ was lifted up, and trust Him and anyone who will, He will do exactly what He has promised that He would do..... forgive our sins, cleans us, wash us, make us brand new creatures, born again into the living family of a living God, becoming nothing less than a child of the King of Kings!
"For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.
SHOULD NOT PERISH.......
The perish that we see here is not merely a simple physical death, far, far more than that. John is speaking here of a death that far exceeds just a physical death. He is speaking in eternal terms here. It is the same term that we see used in Romans 6:23
For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.
Even here, the apostle is clear..... there is a crime, that crime has a name. That name is sin. That sin has its penalty, and there is a free offer for a full pardon
There are many verses of this matchless free offer of our God.
1. Whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life
2. The gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.
3.Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ,
4. For when we were still without strength, in due time Christ died for the ungodly.
5. God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. Much more then, having now been justified by His blood, we shall be saved from wrath through Him.
For if when we were enemies we were reconciled to God through the death of His Son, much more, having been reconciled, we shall be saved by His life.
I could go on and on and on with verses that go hand in hand with this one. It is the very core of the Gospel message, the very theme of the entire Bible, and the good news of a God who is full of mercy and truth, freely offering his amazing grace to all.
conti JOHN 3:17
"For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved.
"He who believes in Him is not condemned; but he who does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.
He who believes in Him is not condemned........ not condemned.
Literally translated, this says is not judged. This is an important place to go. And we need to fully understand what the scriptures mean here where it is written , "He who believes in Him is not condemned.......
O.K. We have already discussed what it means to believe so we could rightly say that this says
He who has placed their faith in, and completely entrusted , and has placed their absolute and complete reliance upon no one or nothing other than Jesus, and is looking to The cross of calvary, ALONE as the only means of their salvation, will not be judged.!!!
Now dont loose me here. Turn with me if you will to the Judgment seat of Christ, seen in Revelation chapter 20... this will explain what I have just shown you. That reads..........
Then I saw a great white throne and Him who sat on it, from whose face the earth and the heaven fled away. And there was found no place for them.
12 And I saw the dead, small and great, standing before God, and books (plural) were opened. And another book (singular) was opened, which is the Book of Life. And the dead were judged according to their works, by the things which were written in the books. ( the plural, not the singular.)
13 The sea gave up the dead who were in it, and Death and Hades delivered up the dead who were in them. And they were judged, each one according to his works.
14 Then Death and Hades were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death.
15 And anyone not found written in the Book of Life was cast into the lake of fire.
Ok, the best way that I can explain this to you, is when you accept Jesus Christ as your Savior and your Lord, the shed Blood of Jesus Christ cleanses you from all unrighteousness. The Bible tells us that we are no longer under the law but rather under grace. It is scripturally accurate to say then, only those who are under the law are judged according to their works. Romans 11:5-6
In the same way also at the present time there has come to be a remnant whom God in His grace has selected.
6 But if it is in His grace that He has selected them, then His choice is no longer determined by human actions. Otherwise grace would be grace no longer.
And also, Galatians 2:16
knowing that a man is not justified by the works of the law but by faith in Jesus Christ, even we have believed in Christ Jesus, that we might be justified by faith in Christ and not by the works of the law; for by the works of the law no flesh shall be justified.
There are many verses in the Bible that show a clear separation from works and the law. Ok... point made... back to that verse in Revelation.
We see two things here in revelation. We see a SET of books, and we also see the BOOK OF LIFE.
If your name is found written within the most holy pages of the book of life, then clearly, the shed blood of Jesus Christ has completely justified you. You will not be judged according to your works, because you are under grace. However, if your name is not found within the pages of the book of life, then you are still under the law, and you will indeed fall under the condemnation of verse 15 anyone not found written in the Book of Life was cast into the lake of fire.
Back to verse 18 in John 3
He who believes in him is not condemned............
he who does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.
One more verse on this thought..... Romans 8:1
There is therefore now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus, who do not walk according to the flesh, but according to the Spirit.
This ends again with a clear warning
he who does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.
John 3:19
"And this is the condemnation, that the light has come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil.
The first thing that I see here, is that the text says and this IS. Not that it will be but that IT IS. There is Great application to Christs final words upon the cross when He cried IT, IS FINISHED!
The light...... Clearly we know, that Jesus is the light! And indeed He clearly came into the world!!
and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil.
"For everyone practicing evil hates the light and does not come to the light, lest his deeds should be exposed.
"But he who does the truth comes to the light, that his deeds may be clearly seen, that they have been done in God."
Many people do not want to come into Gods light, because they do not want their lives exposed to His light, because they are afraid of what will be revealed! They do not want to be changed. Finding themselves comfortable with their sinfulness, and being blinded by these very sins and fear...... and the end result of their unwillingness to face the truth is clearly foretold, as we saw in Revelation.
John 3:22-25
After these things Jesus and His disciples came into the land of Judea, and there He remained with them and baptized.
23 Now John also was baptizing in Aenon near Salim, because there was much water there. And they came and were baptized.
24 For John had not yet been thrown into prison.
John does get thrown into prison, and finds himself martyred, losing his for his testimony of Christ, but that is a later discussion.
25 Then there arose a dispute between some of John's disciples and the Jews about purification.
Purification.......... This was a great issue with the jews, the washing with water to make oneself pure.
And they came to John and said to him, "Rabbi, He who was with you beyond the Jordan, to whom you have testified behold, He is baptizing, and all are coming to Him!"
He who was with thee........... They obviously put john first. They did not say he who you was with.... They had heard john proclaim that I must become lesser and they had heard him say that Jesus was far greater than himself, yet here they put john first.... I think they didnt believe who Jesus was, and thought john was part of a scam. And by saying he who was with you they were trying to trip him up.
Johns response is awesome. He is going to repeat his message again.
John 3: 27-29
John answered and said, "A man can receive nothing unless it has been given to him from heaven. "You yourselves bear me witness, that I said, 'I am not the Christ,' but, 'I have been sent before Him.'
"He who has the bride is the bridegroom; but the friend of the bridegroom, who stands and hears him, rejoices greatly because of the bridegroom's voice. Therefore this joy of mine is fulfilled.
He says,,, look here... I do my heaven prescribed work. The bride does not belong to me!!! I am not the bridegroom!! Why should the bride stay with me??? But I know who the bridegroom is, and He is my friend, in this I rejoice greatly, and my joy is full. The bible clearly portrays Christ as the Bridegroom, and those whos names are found within the pages of the book of life as the bride. The rest of this chapter speaks volumes all by itself.
John 3:30
"He must increase, but I must decrease.
31 "He who comes from above is above all; he who is of the earth is earthly and speaks of the earth. He who comes from heaven is above all.
32 "And what He has seen and heard, that He testifies; and no one receives His testimony.
33 "He who has received His testimony has certified that God is true.
34 "For He whom God has sent speaks the words of God, for God does not give the Spirit by measure.
35 "The Father loves the Son, and has given all things into His hand.
36 "He who believes in the Son has everlasting life; and he who does not believe the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God abides on him."
