Untitled Sermon

1.Why are we in need of being born again?

A.Christ knows what was, not only in Nicodemus’ heart, but the rest of mankind’s heart.

John 2:24–25 ESV

But Jesus on his part did not entrust himself to them, because he knew all people and needed no one to bear witness about man, for he himself knew what was in man.

B.We have been wicked since the beginning of mankind.

Genesis 6:5–6 ESV

The Lord saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every intention of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually. And the Lord regretted that he had made man on the earth, and it grieved him to his heart.

Genesis 6:

C.Spiritually we are dead

Ezekiel 36:25–28 ESV

I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you shall be clean from all your uncleannesses, and from all your idols I will cleanse you. And I will give you a new heart, and a new spirit I will put within you. And I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. And I will put my Spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statutes and be careful to obey my rules. You shall dwell in the land that I gave to your fathers, and you shall be my people, and I will be your God.

Ezekiel

Even dead from birth. For those of you who have kids, even those little ones are going to need Jesus.

Ephesians 2:1–3 ESV

And you were dead in the trespasses and sins in which you once walked, following the course of this world, following the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that is now at work in the sons of disobedience— among whom we all once lived in the passions of our flesh, carrying out the desires of the body and the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, like the rest of mankind.

This is where Nicodemus was. It is why he came by night.

1.He wanted to hide the fact that he was going to see Jesus.

2.Also, the night signifies the darkness that he may have been feeling in his life.

a.A fake, phony, hypocrite

What’s next? Nicodemus knew that he was in desperate need of help and nothing he we was doing religiously was saving him.

2.How are we born again?

Only by the atoning work of Christ on the cross, accepting that, and then allowing the Spirit of God to change our hearts of stone into a heart of flesh.

There is faith involved:

However, the reincarnation is more than faith. It is initiated and completed by God. Only He can wash us white as snow.

1.The wickedness of the great sin of David called for reincarnation.

Psalm 51:2 ESV

Wash me thoroughly from my iniquity, and cleanse me from my sin!

Ezekiel 36:25–26 ESV

I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you shall be clean from all your uncleannesses, and from all your idols I will cleanse you. And I will give you a new heart, and a new spirit I will put within you. And I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh.

Ezekiel 36:25 ESV

I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you shall be clean from all your uncleannesses, and from all your idols I will cleanse you.

Ezekiel

2.You have no control over your new birth, God does.

1 Corinthians 15:50 ESV

I tell you this, brothers: flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God, nor does the perishable inherit the imperishable.

3.Our flesh desires all things that are evil. Even Paul said more than once, that he wants to do what is right and good, but can’t due to him being in the flesh. Let’s rejoice in the fact that...

Ephesians 2:4–6 ESV

But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ—by grace you have been saved— and raised us up with him and seated us with him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus,

3.When are we born again?

When will this reincarnation happen and will we be prepared for it?

The simple answer is no, because scripture tells over and over again that no one knows the times at which God works, time is irrelevant to Him.

The wind in this situation can also be translated as pneuma.

a.power

b.spirit

Just as the wind comes down from the heavens, so does God.

Just as the wind has no place of origin, neither does God.

Just as the power of the wind can destroy homes or yet cool us on a hot summer day, so can God.

Hurricane Harvey and the power of the winds have changed peoples’ lives forever. Allow God’s to change yours today. Just as He has to the three beautiful women that surrendered their life’s to Christ today.

PRAYER:

FATHER GOD, CHANGE OUR HEARTS TODAY. COME DOWN INTO THIS SANCTUARY AND BE PRESENT WITH US TODAY. LORD, WE UNDERSTAND THAT NOTHING WE CAN DO CAN SAVE OUR SOULS, AND BY KNOWING THAT, WE ASK FOR YOUR GRACE AND MERCY. LORD, FOR THOSE THREE WOMEN WHO HAVE CHOSEN TO PROCLAIM CHRIST AS LORD IN THEIR LIVES, WE THANK YOU FOR THEM AND THE EXAMPLE THEY HAVE GIVEN US TODAY. I PRAY THAT NOT ONE SOUL LEAVES HERE TODAY YEARNING FOR A NEW LIFE IN YOUR SON, JESUS.