Christ the Teacher

Introduction.

Story about a teacher I had (funny)

Have you ever had a teacher that you really just loved in school?

what was it about them that you jsut loved?

For me I remember a teacher I had in High- Mr. Fisher, He taught some of my Econ classes and government classes and History classes. Now the reason i loved him as a teacher wasn’t necessarily the subject, but the way he made it clear to understand. He made it fun to learn.

He would use stories and illustrations all the time to help us learn the subjects in a way that made sense to us as high schoolers.

there were times when the whole class would go out side for the hour just so he could illustrate one point in his lesson, there were other times he brought stuff into the class so we could see visually how it all works.

I loved learning because he made the hard things make sense through stories and illustrations that i could understand.

Trans; this morning as we are n John Chapter 3. and Jesus is about to sit down with a man name nicodemus.

Let’s jump into our text together......

Nicodemus

vs 1 “Now there was a man of the Pharisees named Nicodemus a ruler of the Jews. 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.” 3 Jesus answered him

- here we have a story of a jewish religious man who was a leader among the Jews

John says that he was a Pharisee-

to be a Pharisee meant that he lived by the strictest possible religious rules.

He followed the O.T. Law to a t- He followed it in such a way that it brought him honor among the other Jewish leaders.

He was not hypocritical in his life. He apparently lived what he believed to be truth. and from our passage this morning we will see that he was deeply sincere in his quest for truth.

listen to what He said ...

vs 2 “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.”

Nicodemus wanted to meet with jesus because he believed that Jesus was a new teacher from God, who had God’s truth to share.

He had a curiosity to learn more, but still fell far short in believing that the one he was speaking with was the messiah.

Although he wasn't acknowledging Jesus as God, His approach was much different than we saw in Chapter one, where the religious leaders came to question the authority and message of John the Baptist and accuse him of blasphemy.

Nicodemus wanted to learn from Jesus NOT convict him of blasphemy.

He saw the miraculous signs that Jesus did and wanted to know more, He wanted to know if Jesus was more than Just a good teacher.

John says that He came to Jesus by night

on occasion, John uses the word night to refer to the time of day, but he also uses it to describe moral and spiritual darkness.

John 11:10 “But if anyone walks in the night, he stumbles, because the light is not in him.”

Either way- it bears the same spiritual symbolism for Nicodemus

He came to Jesus as a devout religious man who was still in spiritual darkness. - he did not understand the truths of salvation that Jesus was proclaiming.

but Even though he was in darkness He wanted to know the truth of the light .

He came to Jesus at night and said “Rabbi,” which means teacher.

- as a respected teacher of the jews, Nicodemus was showing Jesus respect as one sent from God, and he wanted to learn from him.

Transition : This morning Our Big idea is

BIG IDEA: Jesus Taught that Salvation only comes through Belief in Jesus

Jesus, throughout his earthly ministry, takes no time in getting to the heart of the people he came to minister to.

Most of the time we read about his ministry he quickly meets peoples physical needs so that he can address their spiritual needs.

in our text this morning Jesus uses Four illustrations to teach Nicodemus the truths of Salvation.

this morning I want us to look at

Four Illustrations to Teach Christ’s Salvation

Salvation is like New Birth

John 3:3-7 “Jesus answered Nicodemus, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God.” 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 answered, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God. That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. Do not marvel that I said to you, ‘You must be born again.’”

Jesus begins his response:” I tell you the solemn truth, Unless a man is born again he can not see the kingdom of God,

He is saying to Nicodemus “ there is only one thing that can gain a person entrance into heaven and that is being born again.

There are no other options for you to gain eternal life but to be born again.

Nicodemus RESPONDS TO JESUS “ vs 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?”

He is confused and responds to Jesus by saying how can a grown man go back into his mothers womb to be bor n again? That makes no sense Jesus. That would be Impossible!

So Jesus Goes on to explain to Nicodemus what He means by born again

Jesus answered, “I tell you the solemn truth, unless a person is born of water and spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God. 3:6 What is born of the flesh is flesh, and what is born of the Spirit is spirit. 3:7 Do not be amazed that I said to you, ‘You must all be born from above.’ NET

Jesus in this one teaching is taking everything Nicodemus believes as truth and flips it upside down.

Because Nicodemus was a religious Jewish leader - and Pharisee, he would had lived his whole life trying to be perfect on the outside so that his eternal destiny would be secured.

He believed that being Part of God’s kingdom had everything to do with his physical birth.

He was a Jew born into a family of Jews.- He was born into God’s chosen nation and the Jewish people believed that If a person was born a Jew ,His place in God’s kingdom was already secure.

and as a Pharisee, he believed that the only thing that could keep him from entering God’s kingdom was if he blasphemed the name of God or lived a wicked life apart from God. and so as a Pharisee He lived a good life working hard at not having wickedness in him .

Put simply, Nicodemus believed that because he was physically born a Jew and lived a righteous life that he already had a place secured in God’s Kingdom.

HE like many Pharisees believed that God would be be pleased with their Radical external conformity to the law

and when He comes to Jesus He is looking for the Rabbi to confirm his theology and to approve of his lifestyle as being worthy of God’s acceptance, he believes that idf there is any more that he could do to earn God’s gfavor than Jesus would be the one who could tell him.

But instead of confirmation, Jesus absolutely destroys this theology and He says your physical birth does not matter- Being a Jew does not matter, your good works do not matter when it comes to entering Gods kingdom,

Jesus is saying no one is good enough because of who they are Physically

“ What is born of the flesh is just flesh

Jesus is telling nicodemus that No matter who a person is, no matter who their parents are ,or what their parents believed, no matter what nation or ethnicity they belong to, Everyone is automatically kept out of God’s kingdom because of their own sin.

and so Jesus is saying no one is good enough because of their physical birth. In order to gain eternal life everyone must be Born -not in the flesh- but in the spirit,

Jesus said YOU MUST BE BORN AGAIN- your physical birth has no weight on your eternal destiny.

So what is Spiritual Birth?

Spiritual birth is not a physical change but a heart transformation.

Look how Jesus describes spiritual birth

unnless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God. That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit.

God doesn’t want to clean us up on the outside. He does not want to just scrub all the sinful dirt from our physical bodies and make us more presentable- he wants to make us brand-new on the inside .

When jesus says that which is born of the flesh is flesh- he is referring back to Genesis where we read that every living thing will reproduce its own kind.

meaning ”that which is born from a human is human

Mankind reproduce mankind.

and the Bible is very clear- when we are physically born of the flesh we are born with the sin nature of mankind.

we are sinners by nature.

So understand that Spiritual birth is not natural to mankind.

Only Mankind can give birth to mankind.

and only the Spirit of God can give us new Spiritual birth.

Jesus says, “that which is born of the spirit is spirit,”

Our Spiritual birth (our salvation) is the sovereign work of God’s spirit in our lives.

No one seeks for God

Romans 3:10-11 “as it is written: “None is righteous, no, not one; no one understands; no one seeks for God.”

No one on their own seeks now birth from God

Our human nature does not look for spiritual birth. We want to clean up what’s on the outside and hope that God doesn’t see whats really on the inside.

we may not seek after God but....

God seeks us out

Luke 19:10 “For the Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost.”

God seeks us out He ant s to bring us new life

The Bible says that it is the H.S. that convicts man of their sin

The Spirit convicts man of sin

John 16:7-8 “Nevertheless, I tell you the truth: it is to your advantage that I go away, for if I do not go away, the Helper will not come to you. But if I go, I will send him to you. And when he comes, he will convict the world concerning sin and righteousness and judgment:”

The H.S. is the one who brings spiritual birth to those who believe.

Romans 8:10-11 “But if Christ is in you, although the body is dead because of sin, the Spirit is life because of righteousness. If the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, he who raised Christ Jesus from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through his Spirit who dwells in you.”

This is describing Spiritual birth- God gives life to those who are dead spiritually.

They are born again- They no longer ajust born in the flesh but they are born spiritually.

I love how Paul writes it in .......

2 Corinthians 5:17 “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come.”

the first teaching Jesus Gives Nicodemus on Salvation e is that there is no other way to enter the kingdom of God but through Spiritual

You must be born again- your Physical birth or economic status or radically moral lifestyle is not good enough to gain God’s favor-

there is nothing you can do as mankind to pay the debt of sin against your account

You cannot be good enough for God to accept you as you are,

Salvation Requires spiritual birth.

Trans: the 2nd illustration Jesus Gives Nicodemus about salvation is that...

Salvation is like the Wind

in verse 8 Jesus goes on and gives Nicodemus another illustration to help him understand the truths of Salvation

John3:8 “The wind blows where it wishes, and you hear its sound, but you do not know where it comes from or where it goes. So it is with everyone who is born of the Spirit.””

Illustration of the wind.

a few years ago at camp we had a wind storm that swept through and destroyed many of the trees around the campground. It was the wall of wind that swept North Iowa.

My family and I were on I-35 when that wall came across us. Every car stopped on the side of the road and just waited to see what was going to happen. .

As we sat there in our vehicle- the wind did whatever it wanted to do- We had no control over its direction, or its destruction. We just sat there helpless listing to it roar past us and destroying things in its path.

we cannot see the wind but we can see the evidence of the winds effect in nature

the leaves flicker on the branches of the tree

the waves come across the lake and onto the shore-

the fields show the power of the wind by the destruction that it can cause.

jesus uses the power of wind as an illustration to help Nicodemus understand that Salvation is out of his control. It’s beyond what he can understand because it is born of the spirit and not of the Flesh.

Jesus again is making sure Nicodemus understands that mankind has no part in Salvation. It only comes through the work of the spirit.

We only get to experience the results.

Salvation is Only possible through Spiritual birth by the H.S. and man’s only role is to believe in the work that has been done by the spirit.

We have no control over our Salvation- We bring nothing to the table

Transition: Nicodemus response to Jesus in vs 9 and he says

john 3:9 “How can these things be?” (Jesus You have blown my mind- I dont get it)

Even with all of his religious training and understand Nicodemus was still spiritually blind to the truths of Jesus

and so jesus Goes on in verses 10 -12 and says to him “I have given you illustrations from Nature to help you understand salvation, but yet you still do not believe it.”

and so in verse 14 Jesus Gives Nicodemus a 3rd illustration from his history to help him understand the truths of Salvation.

As a Religious leader - Nicodemus would have known this story well.

Jesus rd illustration is.....

Salvation is like the Serpent on the Pole

John 3:13-15 “No one has ascended into heaven except he who descended from heaven, the Son of Man. And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, so must the Son of Man be lifted up, that whoever believes in him may have eternal life.”

Jesus Goes back to the book of Numbers - a book that Nicodemus most likely had memorized as a Pharisee.

He knew this story of mans sin and of Gods grace

This is a story of sin.

because the nation of Israel - Nicodemus’s ancestors ,had rebelled against God .They were made at him because they didn’t like the food that He provided for them to eat in the wilderness.

and because of this rebelious sin So God sent poisonous snakes that bit the people causing many to die.

But this is also a story of God’s grace.

God gave the people something they didnt deserve.

God didn't leave his people alone to die in the wilderness but he provided a way of escape.

God told moses to make a brass serpent and lift it up on a pole for everyone to see. and If anyone who had been bitten by a snake would look at the serpent on the pole they would be immediately healed.

But we need to understand that This is also a story of man’s faith

In order for anyone to be healed he had to trust God and do what he asked- he had to look at the pole.

and When the people followed God’s plan for salvation from the snake bites they were instantly healed. and the penalty that God put upon them for their sin of rebellion was removed from their account.

Jesus is using this story of mans sin God’s Grace and man’s faith to illustrate the salvation that He was bringing mankind.

Just like the serpent lifted up on the pole in the wilderness brought physical healing, jesus - the son of man was lifted up on a cross. and he brings spiritual healing to all those who look to him for salvation

The solution to healing the snake bite wasn't to get rid of the snakes, it wasn't to move away from the snakes, it wasnt to ignore the venom that was flowing into their veins, it wasn't to make laws about the snakes, it was to look in faith at the uplifted pole.

The son of man was lifted up on the cross to bring life to those condemned to die because of our sin.

Romans 3:23 “for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,”

Every one of us has been bitten by the snake of sin, We are all condemned to die. “

and the only way we can be immediately healed is to look to Jesus through Faith.

Faith is complete belief that Jesus will do what he says he will do.

Look again at what Jesus say to nicodemus at the end of vs 15

john 3:15 “that whoever believes in the Son of Man (Jesus) may have eternal life.”

Jesus is the only eternal cure for the sin that has condemned us to eternal seperation from God in hell.

Jesus now gives Nicodemus the most clear explanation of Salvation in all of scripture

John 3:16-18 ““For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him. Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God.”

The only difference between perishing in Hell and eternal Life in Heaven is belief in jesus

Jesus gives us the simple Gospel story.

Salvation only comes through Belief in HIm.

Remember - Luke 19:10 “For the Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost.””

jesus entire purpose in coming to earth was not to impart spiritual knowledge to those who would listen, it was not to condemn those who failed at keeping the law, but it was to save mankind from their debt of sin.

and he held nothing back when it came to this mission

Jesus was telling nicodemus - I am not just a spiritual teacher sent by God to help you clean up your exterior actions so that sins don’t seem so great and you can look better before God,

He was saying

I am the Solution for your sin debt- I am the Messiah the one who has the power to pay your debt of sin in full.

Just like the Israelites in the wilderness needed to look to the pole for salvation -we must look to the one who hung on a cross to pay our debt of sin.

Salvation only comes through Jesus

Transition: Jesus moves on and gives Nicodemus a final illustration to help him understand His great need of salvation

Jesus compares salvation to light from Darkness

Salvation is like Light & Not Darkness

John 3:19-21 “And this is the judgment: the light has come into the world, and people loved the darkness rather than the light because their works were evil. For everyone who does wicked things hates the light and does not come to the light, lest his works should be exposed. But whoever does what is true comes to the light, so that it may be clearly seen that his works have been carried out in God.”

Jesus now Contrast Light and Darkness to help Nicodemus understand that there is salvation from the judgement that is upon all mankind.

jesus uses the word Light Four times in these verses to teach Nicodemus about Salvation

He says“ the light has come into the World”

What is the light that has come into the world?- jesus answers this question in

John 8:12 He says “I am the light of the world,. Whoever believes in me will never walk in Darkness, but will have the light of life.

Jesus is declaring to nicodemus and the world that He is the light from God sent into the world to show the way for salvation.

but notice the response of mankind to the light in verse 19 -

John 3:19 “..., and people loved the darkness rather than the light because their works were evil.”

Throughout scripture darkness has represented man without God, We are spiritually blinded because of our sin. We are in such darkness that there is no possible way of escape with out a source of light.

mankind at his core loves his sin more than he loves Salvation.

This is why we need a spiritual birth- Why we need soemthing new and not just to fix what we already have.

our natural self loves sin more than salvation.

Weneed a super natural work to take place in our heart in order for us to come to salvation.

and this is what the holy Spirit does.

he opens our eyes so that we see the the light, so that we see how desperate we are for a perfect Savior.

Do you see how Jesus wraps up his teaching on the light in verse 21

John 3:21 “But whoever does what is true comes to the light, so that it may be clearly seen that his works have been carried out in God.””

“whoever does what is true” - means that those who follow the true path of salvation .

Jesus declared in John 14:6 “ Jesus said I am the way the truth and the life - no one comes to the father but through me>”

“But whoever does what is true”.....

truth os believing the words of Jesus in John 3:16

John 3:16 ““For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.”

those who believe in Jesus will come out of darkness and into the light and this is only possible because of the work of the Holy Spirit in their life.

IN order for anyone to come to salvation He must believe the truth he must come our of darkness and into the light of Christ.

Transition:

Jesus as the Spiritual teacher, gives four illustrations to Nicodemus so that he might understand that salvation only comes through belief in Him.

The beaty of Nicodemus is that his story does not end in chapter 3 of John.

In fact it picks up in John 19 at the crucifixion of Jesus - the one he called teacher.

John 19:38-42 “After these things (after Jesus died on the cross and as his body was still hanging limp, ) Joseph of Arimathea, who was a disciple of Jesus, but secretly for fear of the Jews, asked Pilate that he might take away the body of Jesus, and Pilate gave him permission. So he came and took away his body. Nicodemus also, who earlier had come to Jesus by night, came bringing a mixture of myrrh and aloes, about seventy-five pounds in weight. So they took the body of Jesus and bound it in linen cloths with the spices, as is the burial custom of the Jews. Now in the place where he was crucified there was a garden, and in the garden a new tomb in which no one had yet been laid. So because of the Jewish day of Preparation, since the tomb was close at hand, they laid Jesus there.”

We don’t know when it took place but after Nicodemus sat and learned from Jesus - He eventually became a believer- he accepted Jesus as his savior. and as one of his followers he was there at the crucifixion and was the one who took care of the preparation for his burial .

Nicodemus came to Jesus thinking that he was good enough to enter the kingdom of God based on who he was and what he had done in his life. But he left , understanding that salvation only comes through belief in Jesus.

BRING IT HOME

As we sit under the teaching Of God’s truths -Our lives should change just as Nicodemus's did.

You may be coming to Jesus just like Nicodemus

thinking that you are good enough for God to accept into his eternal kingdom.

Thinking that you are better than most people so God would want you in his kingdom.

you are hoping that your good out weighs your bad

You are hoping that because your parents profess Jesus that you are good to go.

Understand this this morning there is non of us here who are good enough for Jesus to accept into his eternal kingdom. and like nicodemus we need to be born Spiritually.

We are all dead in our trespasses and sins, and in need of spiritual life to be breathed into us by the Holy Spirit.

The only way to enter the kingdom of heaven is to be born again.

To believe on the name of the Lord jesus Christ .

means that you understand that you are filled with Sin

and because of that sin you deserve the condemnation of hell that is upon,

and that the only way for your debt of sin to be paid in full is through a blood sacrifice.

either its your life or one who is perfect without sin.

and the only one who is perfect without sin is the one who came to save you - jesus Christ.

To believe in jesus means that you ask him to take your place and pay your debt in full, and to give you spiritual life. life that only comes through him.

If you have never believed in Jesus- not walk away from the message of hope that god is offering you today- confess your sins, and believe in jesus.

Believers- we are in world that is desperate for spiritual life- you have the hope that the world is looking for. You have the light that can bring them out of darkness. don't waste an opportunity to be that light to those you love. we don’t know how long any of us have on this earth

lets make it count for God’s kingdom.