If you´re not dead, then you?re not done!

John 3:7-15

Jesus said to Nicodemus: “‘You must be born from above.’ The wind blows where it wills, and you can hear the sound it makes, but you do not know where it comes from or where it goes; so it is with everyone who is born of the Spirit.” Nicodemus answered and said to him, ‘How can this happen?” Jesus answered and said to him, “You are the teacher of Israel and you do not understand this? Amen, amen, I say to you, we speak of what we know and we testify to what we have seen, but you people do not accept our testimony. If I tell you about earthly things and you do not believe, how will you believe if I tell you about heavenly things? No one has gone up to heaven except the one who has come down from heaven, the Son of Man. And just as Moses lifted up the serpent in the desert, so must the Son of Man be lifted up, so that everyone who believes in him may have eternal life.”

Food for thought!

A

s we said yesterday, Nicodemus was one of the most powerful and influential men in all of Israel during his time. Nicodemus is a wealthy, powerful man. Yet, he is a man with an itch that neither he, nor his money, nor his power can scratch. During the course of the learning, Jesus refers to Nicodemus as “Teacher of Israel”. This tells us that Nicodemus was an educated man, but despite his learning, there were some things this man did not know. But, one night, this rch, powerful, educated man found himself alone in the presence of the Lord Jesus Christ. What Nicodemus learned that night would prove to be the greatest lessons of his life!

Let us consider what Nicodemus learnt that night. We all know that human birth is a marvel that no one can fully explain! When Jesus talks of a "new" birth, he is indirectly talking of the first birth, the physical birth, as a necessary condition for the spiritual birth. He is telling us that for a man to get to heaven he must hav e two birthdays. There must be a day when he was born into the kingdom of men and a day when he is born into the kingdom of God! There are a few ways that physical birth can be used to illustrate spiritual birth.

1. Physical birth provides life – All babies have life because they are born! Likewise, spiritual birth provides a person with spiritual life, 1 John 5:12.

2. Physical birth only happens once – Physically speaking, you can only be born once. Spiritually, the same thing is true! Your spiritual birth is a one time event. It cannot be undone and it cannot be repeated!

3. Physical birth takes place because of the suffering on another – A mother enters the very jaws of death to bring life into this world. Jesus entered the cruel jaws of death so that we might be born again. The new birth rests squarely upon the pain and suffering of another! Jesus!

4. Physical birth gives the infant a brand new start – No baby is born with a pa st! Babies have no past, only a present and a future! So it is with the new birth. When you get born again, you get a brand new start. Your past is deleted, wiped away and a new, clean future lies in front of you! It is like you get a brand new slate on which nothing is written. This is the invitation Jesus is making to you and me as long ago he made it to Nicodemus. Start anew; live the old ways; the old habits; the old friends; the old places; the old life; the old mentality. Get a fresh Start!

Whoever you are, wherever you are, whatever you’ve been through, it’s never too late to begin again. Regardless of your past failure or your present struggle, God offers you a new beginning. God always offers a new chance. A new opportunity. A new life. At one time or another, all of us get lost in the middle of our song. A failed marriage, a broken dream, a disappointing career, a financial setback, or a family struggle causes us to hang our heads low and wonder where things went wrong. We assume others are watching us like a panel of unforgiving judges, marking our missed notes with enthusiasm. Even worse, we assume God is the head judge, giving disapproving attention to our forgotten melody. With each mistake or setback, we grow ever more nervous, certain we’ll receive a failing grade. Good or bad, clean or dirty, lost or found, every part of your life can be given to God. If you’re not dead, then you’re not done! Why not claim today as a day of new beginnings?

"Dear brothers, I am still not all I should be, but I am bringing all my energies to bear on this one thing: Forgetting the past and looking forward to what lies ahead, I strain to reach the end of the race and receive the prize for which God is calling us up to heaven because of what Christ Jesus did for us." (Phillipians 3:13-14)

(More on this tomorrow)