John 3:9-15 Final

John 3:9–15 “9 Nicodemus said to him, “How can these things be?” 10 Jesus answered him, “Are you the teacher of Israel and yet you do not understand these things? 11 Truly, truly, I say to you, we speak of what we know, and bear witness to what we have seen, but you do not receive our testimony. 12 If I have told you earthly things and you do not believe, how can you believe if I tell you heavenly things? 13 No one has ascended into heaven except he who descended from heaven, the Son of Man. 14 And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, so must the Son of Man be lifted up, 15 that whoever believes in him may have eternal life.”

Introduction:

Debate in break room

The need for belief in true testimony

Jesus points the false believer Nicodemus to the need to believe in true testimony because it is both the means God uses for rebirth, and the fruit of rebirth

True testimony is brought to the unbeliever, God uses it to bring rebirth to the unbeliever, which enables belief in the testimony

And Nicodemus, the false believer responds with the teaching of Jesus on rebirth with disbelief:

John 3:9 “9 Nicodemus said to him, “How can these things be?””

And the following teaching from Jesus will be on what true testimony is, and what the marks of false belief is.

John 3:10 “10 Jesus answered him, “Are you the teacher of Israel and yet you do not understand these things?”

True testimony is found in the Old Testament: Who God is, who we are, what God has enabled for man by his power.

False belief is to know the facts of the Scriptures yet not know its central testimony

2 Timothy 3:7 “7 always learning and never able to arrive at a knowledge of the truth.”

Ecclesiastes 12:12 “12 My son, beware of anything beyond these. Of making many books there is no end, and much study is a weariness of the flesh.”

Study that is not grounded in the powerful work of God in salvation is weariness, leads astray, is a mark of false belief.

Jesus gives further teaching into true testimony when he says:

John 3:11 “11 Truly, truly, I say to you, we speak of what we know, and bear witness to what we have seen, but you do not receive our testimony.”

True testimony is:

“We” Jesus did not come and contradict the testimony of old

What we know and bear witness to what we have seen

God has revealed truth to certain people so they can be witnesses to the rest of the people.

The religious leaders like Nicodemus had proven to be persecutors of the instruments instead of believers

Matthew 23:29–31 “29 “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you build the tombs of the prophets and decorate the monuments of the righteous, 30 saying, ‘If we had lived in the days of our fathers, we would not have taken part with them in shedding the blood of the prophets.’ 31 Thus you witness against yourselves that you are sons of those who murdered the prophets.”

John 3:11 “11 Truly, truly, I say to you, we speak of what we know, and bear witness to what we have seen, but you do not receive our testimony.”

Understand—receive

False belief is a sinful rejection of true testimony

John 12:48 “48 The one who rejects me and does not receive my words has a judge; the word that I have spoken will judge him on the last day.”

Ephesians 4:17–18 “17 Now this I say and testify in the Lord, that you must no longer walk as the Gentiles do, in the futility of their minds. 18 They are darkened in their understanding, alienated from the life of God because of the ignorance that is in them, due to their hardness of heart.”

False belief is not simple ignorance, but moral rejection. And such a sin makes any understanding impossible:

John 3:12 “12 If I have told you earthly things and you do not believe, how can you believe if I tell you heavenly things?”

Notice how Jesus went from understanding, to rejection, to belief.

And he is saying, if you reject what you can see happening on earth, you will not accept the witness of what is in heaven.

Salvation, the new birth is invisible of itself, but its effects in someone is revealed on earth-a changed life for God

And Jesus is saying, if you reject the effects you can see here, you won’t believe the hidden things that you cannot see in heaven.

Now what exactly does Jesus mean, the hidden things in heaven he will not believe?

Nicodemus was a card carrying pharisee, he certainly believed in the one God who’s abode is in heaven.

To get an understanding of what exactly Jesus means, I think we need to jump to the next verse where he mentions heaven as well, and what is going on there:

John 3:13 “13 No one has ascended into heaven except he who descended from heaven, the Son of Man.”

Revelation 4 and 5

Revelation 19:10 “10 Then I fell down at his feet to worship him, but he said to me, “You must not do that! I am a fellow servant with you and your brothers who hold to the testimony of Jesus. Worship God.” For the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy.”

So, here is Jesus, the center of heaven come down to earth...the very center and fulfillment of all testimony....and Nicodemus in false belief is too embarrassed to approach him in the day light

This is like a football player being too embarrassed to raise up the trophy after winning the superbowl

Or you not wanting to grab your master’s degree from your school and use it to find a job

The whole point of it all is Jesus and Nicodemus is revealing his lack of new birth by not wanting to be with him

Thankfully, for us fallen humanity, the fulillment of true witness is not just who Jesus is but what he has done:

John 3:14 “14 And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, so must the Son of Man be lifted up,”

John 3:15 “15 that whoever believes in him may have eternal life.”