Nicodemus was a powerful, intelligent and religious man. He came to talk with Jesus.
Jesus tells him immediately that he had to be born again. This was almost too much for Nicodemus. He couldn't get his head around the idea of becoming a baby again. But Jesus was talking about spiritual birth. When you start again with a new life. When you wake up and see that Jesus is your Lord and Saviour.
Jesus goes on to say that he is going to be crucified so that this new life can begin.
The reason God is doing this is simple and profound. In one of the most famous verses in the Bible we're told that God loved the world. He loved a world of people who oppose him. He loved people like you and me. In fact, he loved them so much that he gave up the most precious thing - his Son.
But there's another love in John 3. The love of darkness. Most people don't want to believe in Jesus. It's not for intellectual reasons. The explanation of the Bible is pretty reasonable. The proofs that Jesus rose from the dead are convincing. People don't really reject Christianity for those reasons, but for moral reasons. It's because people will not like admitting that they are wrong and God is right and that they need to have the death of Jesus for them to make them clean and right with God.
What about you? Do you love light or darkness?
To listen to sermons in the John series click here
Tuesday 9 November 2010
John 2:12-25 Who do you think you are?
Some people when they hear the things Christians claim, respond by asking "who do you think you are?"
Do Christians have the right to make statements about what is, what should be and what will be?
It's a question of authority, and in the end it's a question of the authority of the leader of Christianity - Jesus Christ. Does he have the right to say how things are, how they should be and how they will be?
In this text the Jews were indignant when Jesus threw all the traders out of the temple. They demanded that he did a miracle to prove he had the authority to decide what should happen in the temple courts.
Jesus reply was about the fact that his bodily temple would be destroyed and three days later it would be raised. He would be killed but he would return to life. That's the ultimate proof you need that
Jesus has the authority.
That's why you need to listen to him.
To listen to sermons in the John series click here
Do Christians have the right to make statements about what is, what should be and what will be?
It's a question of authority, and in the end it's a question of the authority of the leader of Christianity - Jesus Christ. Does he have the right to say how things are, how they should be and how they will be?
In this text the Jews were indignant when Jesus threw all the traders out of the temple. They demanded that he did a miracle to prove he had the authority to decide what should happen in the temple courts.
Jesus reply was about the fact that his bodily temple would be destroyed and three days later it would be raised. He would be killed but he would return to life. That's the ultimate proof you need that
Jesus has the authority.
That's why you need to listen to him.
To listen to sermons in the John series click here
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