Now there was a man of the Pharisees named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews. 2 This man came to Jesus[a] 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, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again[b] he cannot see the kingdom of God.” 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?” 5 Jesus answered, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God. 6 That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit.[c] 7 Do not marvel that I said to you, ‘You[d] must be born again.’8 The wind[e] 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.” – John 3:1-8
Introduction
There is significance in the fact that John details that Nicodemus came to Jesus by night. Some people say it is because he feared to be seen with Jesus, or did not want to be seen with Jesus for various reasons about what others would say, do, or think. Or it could have been that he simply wanted some quiet, uninterrupted time to talk with Jesus. We cannot be certain about his motive. But I believe the night is significant for another reason. The night is representative of the dark spiritual state of Nicodemus, who is a representative of Israel at that time. The night is not only representative of the dark spiritual state of Nicodemus or Israel, but of all apart from Christ who have not been born again. But for Nicodemus, D. A. Carson says this, “Predominant religious thought in Jesus’ day affirmed that all Jews would be admitted to that Kingdom apart from those guilty of deliberate apostasy or extraordinary wickedness.” But here, Jesus says that you cannot even see the kingdom of God, let alone enter it, unless you are born again, individually.
The New Birth is Necessary
Jesus says that unless one is born again of water and spirit, he cannot see or enter the kingdom of God, in verse 3 and 5. Jesus is essentially saying to Nicodemus that he is unable to understand the signs that Jesus does, and that he is unable to believe in Jesus, or be a part of God’s kingdom, in his carnal state – he must be born again. This of course was not just for Nicodemus and what was going on then; but it rings true and so vitally important for all of us today and everyone throughout history. You must be born again! You cannot enter heaven without it!
The New Birth is Spiritual
There are many different views on what is meant by the phrase, “water and spirit.” I don’t want to spend time talking about all the different understandings of this phrase; I just want to acknowledge the complex aspect of the saying and tell you what I believe the Scripture is getting at. The Greek construction of this phrase – “water and spirit” – does not favor two different types of birth here, but one birth. So essentially the “water” and the “spirit” are not two totally separate things, but they both signify the same thing – which is regeneration. Regeneration is an act of the Holy Spirit in which He gives life to a spiritually dead person and gives them spiritual life – in other words, this is what happens in conversion, when someone comes to Christ.
Water symbolizes a washing away, or a putting off of the old; while the Spirit creates something new.
But notice verse 6 on this point that the New Birth is Spiritual.
This is the undeniable rules of the creation order: Dogs give birth to dogs, insects produce insects, and humans give birth to humans. Darwinian Evolution is wrong! Jesus uses the common sense of nature to show that being born from above is not something of the flesh – it is not something man can do. It is not a man-made religious work to be done. If we are to be born of water and Spirit, the Spirit must give us life. We are what we are born of. The Spirit must make us into something that we are not! The Spirit must give us a new nature. 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 New Birth is Impossible
Nicodemus did not understand how the new birth was possible. Indeed, it is impossible, unless God does it.
The new birth is impossible with man, but possible with the Spirit of God. I want us to now consider the nature of the Spirit’s work in the new birth. Jesus compares the work of the Spirit to the wind in verse 8.
The Spirit’s Work is Sovereign
The wind blows where it wishes…so it is with the Spirit. When someone is born again it is a sovereign work of God’s grace. We can’t control the Holy Spirit, we can’t put the Spirit in a jar and keep it that way. We can’t summon the Spirit like a genie in a bottle. He comes and goes as He wishes. But we know when He’s been somewhere. We know when He has worked in someone’s heart to give them the new birth and a new nature. Because though we cannot see or touch the Spirit, we see it’s effects. Just like the wind. We see flags waving, leaves blowing, hair flowing, but we never see the wind. But we see it’s effects. Someone who has been born from above is going to be changed. Things in their life are going to be different. There is going to be fruit of the Spirit.
The Spirit’s Work is Mysterious
There is an element of mystery to the new birth. There are spiritual things that are beyond our full comprehension. What takes place in the new birth is a miracle! It’s a miraculous act of God! We can’t exactly explain it. It is not something done with human hands or human efforts. It’s not a formula or an equation; it’s a miracle!
The Spirit’s work is also mysterious in the sense that sometimes we just don’t know why the Spirit does what He does. We don’t know why some reject Christ and others come to Him. We don’t know why sometimes in some places with some people He pours out His Spirit and there is great revival and turning to Christ, and at other times and in other places and with other people, there is no revival but a hardening of hearts toward the gospel. We don’t know why two siblings raised in the same home the same way at the same time can turn out so differently – one loving the Lord Jesus Christ, the other hating Him. It’s a mystery to us. We know that all of that is done according to God’s good will and purpose for the sake of His glory in the earth and in history, but we don’t know the specifics to each case. It’s a mystery to us.
I like how A. W. Pink puts it, “Sometimes the wind moves so softly it scarcely rustles a leaf, at other times it blows so loudly that its roar can be heard miles away. So it is in the matter of the new birth. With some the Holy Spirit works so gently His work is imperceptible to onlookers; with others His action is so powerful, so radical, revolutionary, His operations are patent to many. Sometimes the wind is only local in its reach, at other times it is widespread in its scope. So it is with the Spirit. Today He acts on one or two souls, tomorrow, He may – as at Pentecost – ‘prick in the heart’ a whole multitude. But whether He works on few or many He consults not man; He acts as He pleases.”
The Spirit’s Work is Irresistible
One final thing to note about the work of the Spirit is that it is irresistible. When the wind is blowing there is no way you can escape it. You can’t resist feeling it. It just happens to it. You just experience it. If you think you can resist the wind by staying inside your house and never going outside, just wait until a powerful tornado comes through and blows your house away. The wind is powerful far beyond human strength, capacity, and will to resist. But oh how good the power of the Spirit is! What a good thing to have our homes of sin blown away and destroyed by the Spirit! What a good thing to have our futile, foolish efforts of resistance blown down by God so that His Spirit can come and make His home in us and us in Him.
How Can a Man be Born When He is Old?
I want to close by going back to the question Nicodemus asked in verse 4: “How can a man be born when he is old?” I imagine that Nicodemus asks this question because he has become nervous or anxious and worried in this exchange with Jesus. When Jesus tells Nicodemus that he cannot see the kingdom of God unless he be born again, Nicodemus begins to worry! Because though he didn’t understand what it was to be born again, he knew he hadn’t been born again! All of the years of his life’s work of study, and strict adherence to the law, and dedication to his religion was now suddenly in jeopardy. Nicodemus is probably worried that all of his life was all for not! Nicodemus may be thinking that he is too old to change, or that he is too old to change careers or life paths, or too old to give up what he has spent his whole life doing, and that he is too old to do something new and that he is too old to change his life. The possibility of a wasted life looms in that moment. And this is the good news of the gospel: a man can be born again when he is old. With God all things are possible! It doesn’t matter if you live 100 years and are not converted until you are on your deathbed – you can be born again. It doesn’t matter if you’ve just been born a few years, boys and girls, you can be born again. It doesn’t matter if you have spent your entire life in a cult, you can come out of it and be born again into the Kingdom of God! It doesn’t matter if you have wasted years of your life in sin, following the lusts and the passions of this world, you can be born again. The Lord is gracious in giving His Spirit and saving sinners. There are none out of His reach.
Maybe you find yourself in the darkness of night such as Nicodemus was. Maybe you find yourself swallowed up in the blackness of your sin! Well I am here to tell you today that there is a Savior. His name is Jesus. The Lord Jesus Christ does not turn poor sinners away because they are in darkness – he does not wait until they can figure out how to get the lights on – no, the Lord Jesus Christ is Himself the light. He is the Light of the World that outshines the darkness of the night of our sin and He overcomes it. He can do that for you today. Would you call upon the name of the Lord today, and be saved?
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