Sermon in Seattle 11.06.2006

In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, let us quieten our hearts in opening prayer and thanksgiving.

Dear Heavenly Father, we Thy children come before Thee this morning with thankful hearts. Jesus, we thank Thee, dear Father, for this new day of grace and for that most precious gift, the gift of Thy dear Son, our Lord Jesus. We thank Thee for this heaven-sent gift, dear Father, and that Thou hast called us, Thy children, into this most precious kingdom, Thy kingdom, and hast given us this gift of faith. This is the highest of blessings and the greatest of blessings, dear Father. We cannot even truly comprehend this great gift. But through faith, we wish to call on Thee, dear Father, that even this day Thou would continue to strengthen and to nourish us in this faith. Give us Thy children strength to travel on this pathway which leads one day to heaven.

We also this morning, Father, yet remember those many temporal blessings, too, that Thou hast so richly bestowed upon us. We wish to even give thanks also for these, dear Father. And we would remember in prayer all those on the outside of Thy kingdom, dear Father, that if it would be Thy will, while there is yet time, while those grace doors are yet opened, that Thou would prick the hearts and conscience and cause them to seek Thy kingdom, dear Father, and to find this most wondrous kingdom, that they could also humble themselves under repentance and receive this gift of faith in their hearts as well.

We remember, too, dear Father, those of Thy children in faraway places, our soldiers and even those on sick beds. We remember them in prayer, too, dear Father. Grant unto them strength to endure and strength to believe. And we, yet this morning, would pray, dear Father, even for Thy service blessing here today. Grant unto us Thy holy and precious Word. We would pray that Thou would open it according to Thy will. And grant unto the listener ears to hear and hearts to believe.

And we ask all of these in the name of Thy dear Son, Jesus. And would yet pray unto Thee, Father, as He has taught, that our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be Thy name. Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. For Thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, forever and ever. Amen.

For our study of God's Word this morning, we shall read from the Gospel of John, the third chapter, verses 1 through 15. And these words are in Jesus' name as follows:

There was a man of the Pharisees named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews. The same came to Jesus by night and said unto him, Rabbi, we know that Thou art a teacher come from God, for no man can do these miracles that Thou doest, except God be with him.

Jesus answered and said unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.

Nicodemus saith unto him, How can a man be born when he is old? Can he enter the second time into his mother's womb and be born?

Jesus answered, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God. That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. Marvel not that I said unto thee, ye must be born again.

The wind bloweth where it listeth, and thou hearest the sound thereof, but canst not tell whence it cometh, and whither it goeth. So is everyone that is born of the Spirit.

Nicodemus answered and said unto him, How can these things be?

Jesus answered and said unto him, Art thou a master of Israel, and knowest not these things? Verily, verily, I say unto thee, we speak that we do know, and testify that we have seen, and ye receive not our witness. If I have told you earthly things, and ye believe not, how shall ye believe if I tell you of heavenly things? And no man hath ascended up to heaven, but he that came down from heaven, even the Son of Man, which is in heaven.

And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have eternal life. Amen.

This portion of God's Word is one of the texts for this day. It's not from this church calendar year, but one of the ones set aside. Today in our church calendar is Trinity Sunday, which speaks of the Father, the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. And this theme for today is of the hidden God.

When we look around us in nature, we can see the work of creation, the work of our Heavenly Father. And many people are granted to see this, many even on the outside of God's kingdom. God reveals Himself through different ways, through nature. But the true picture of God is only revealed through the Holy Spirit, through His kingdom, through the mouthpieces, the children of God, which dwell in God's kingdom.

Here in our text, this man, this Nicodemus, was a Pharisee, a ruler of the Jews. So it's interesting to note here that He wasn't only just a Pharisee, but was a ruler of the Jews. This would, we know from Scripture, from God's Word, how it is even spoken of these Pharisees, how they were of the upper class of Jews. Most, if not all, were very self-righteous. They were trusting, believing on their own works, their own merit. Devout or very studious, they studied much of God's Word, which during their time would have been the Old Testament, books of Moses, the law. They were scholars in this law, knew it inside and out. And here Nicodemus was a ruler of them, so this would even, in man's eyes, put him even a step higher. One of the best of them, we could say.

But he comes here to Jesus, and he didn't come in the day, out in the open. We could even wonder why was this? Why did he come to Jesus by night? Our text doesn't tell us here, perhaps he was fearful of his other companions, those other Pharisees. Perhaps Nicodemus had an awakened conscience, and wanted to visit further of faith matters with Jesus, but he came in the evening or in the night where he wouldn't be seen by the others to visit with Jesus.

And he acknowledges Jesus to be this teacher, and we know through faith, and believe through faith how Jesus was the greatest of teachers. And here even Nicodemus could see that there was something about this Jesus. He acknowledges that he was a teacher come from God, for no man can do these miracles that thou doest, except God be with him. So Nicodemus could see this much about Jesus, that there was something there that was different from the others.

But yet, we see here then how Jesus answered Nicodemus, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.

Our text also doesn't tell us here what Nicodemus thought when he approached Jesus. Perhaps he may have wanted acceptance from Jesus for this outwardly good life that he lived, how he was a Pharisee and a real student of the law and a keeper of the commandments. But Jesus doesn't acknowledge or say anything about that, but cuts to the very core matter that except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.

One, the works of man, all of the self-righteous works or the deeds, everything that man doeth, is nothing in the eyes of the heavenly Father, in the eyes of the Lord Jesus. And Jesus comes and tells him this straightly. And we see here how Nicodemus did not understand what Jesus was getting at. For he raised this question then, that how can a man be born when he is old? Can he enter the second time into his mother's womb and be born? So he was thinking again with man's carnal reasoning, being born again, he's like, how can this be?

And we know that Jesus knew as well that this isn't how it was, that a man would go into his mother's womb and be born again, but it's speaking in a spiritual sense, that one would, once one receives that grace of repentance, hears the gospel and believes the gospel, then through the power of the Holy Spirit, one is then born again.

And what do we mean by this? It means that the old way, the flesh and the way of the flesh is put behind and one begins to travel then, following after the spirit and living of the spirit. The old, this doesn't mean that that sin which we daily carry is instantly and forever gone, that the sin of unbelief, one, it is forgiven and it is gone. But we know we carry this sin-corrupt portion, where we are prone to err and to stray and to continually fall back into sin.

It was only Jesus who was able to live and travel the same walk that we do, but without sin. We know Jesus was perfect.

Jesus explains this matter of being born again to Nicodemus here. He speaks of being born of water and of the Spirit. In another portion, in the very next chapter of this gospel of John, we can even recall how that woman of Samaria came to the well and she was asking for, she was, Jesus had asked her for water to give him drink. And so they began to visit about water. She had given him water then, but Jesus went on to explain about not this temporal water which we each need to live. You know, all of our bodies need water to live. But he was speaking for the spiritual portion, that spiritual water, the gospel.

In the fourth chapter of this gospel of John, in the fourteenth verse, Jesus speaks of this. Actually, in the thirteenth, he was speaking of the temporal water. Jesus answered and said unto her, Whosoever drinketh of this water shall thirst again. Then he goes on to speak of the living water, the gospel, in the fourteenth verse. But whosoever drinketh of the water that I shall give him shall never thirst. But the water that I shall give him shall be in him a well of water, springing up into everlasting life.

This is that water which Jesus is talking about. And it is connected with the Holy Spirit. He speaks of the water and of the Spirit. And without this, one cannot enter into the kingdom of God.

That which is born of the flesh is flesh. And that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. Each of us carries this fleshly portion. We are born with this sinful, corrupt flesh. And we know that we will carry this flesh all the days of our life. But as a believer, we also carry the Spirit, the Holy Spirit. And these two are in battle constantly and all the time. The flesh and the Spirit are at odds or at enmity, at warfare with one another. But we carry this gift of faith in an earthen vessel. As Paul writes to the Corinthians, that the excellency of the power may be of God and not of man.

There is no credit or nothing that man can do. All of our works, all of the good that we inherit, all of the things that we do in this life, the work that we do, the things that we strive towards, even those earthly goods, homes, and possessions, none of those merit anything before the eyes of the Heavenly Father.

To be heaven acceptable, one has to be granted that grace, this gift to humble oneself, to be completely stripped of anything from man. It is only completely through the Spirit to comprehend that we are in complete need of the grace of God, in need of the gospel, that there is nothing one can do but are entirely grace beggars.

But here Nicodemus, he could not comprehend this, and it is because he was trying through his own reason, through man's reason.

Jesus continues and uses this example of the wind, how it bloweth where it listeth, and thou hearest the sound whereof, but cannot tell where it cometh, and whither it goeth. So is everyone that is born of the Spirit.

When we even think of the wind, it is actually, we know scientists explain the wind with science, how it moves from because of differences in pressure, but when we think of here even Jesus using this simple example, we can hear it in the trees, or when we look at a field, the grass, or a cornfield, or there in nature, we can see the wind play upon the branches, but where did that wind come from, and where is it going? That is hard for our minds to comprehend, and Jesus even uses this as a picture, that even these spiritual matters cannot be comprehended with the mind, but it is only through the power of the Holy Spirit.

Even when we think in this connection of God's Spirit, how it moves according to God's will, thinking of the places the gospel travels, there to Ecuador or Togo in our time, but in the time of the apostles, how it went through Asia Minor and these many different places, we see here how it wasn't directed by man, but by the Spirit to go where God chose it to go, and to bear fruit how God sees it to bear fruit.

Luther, in an example of this, subjecting one's reason, used this example of our forefather Abraham. It is a good example even this morning to think of, not that we put any emphasis on Abraham, for he was our forefather in faith, but it is recorded in Scripture for us to see this example.

This specific example is when Abraham went there to sacrifice his only son, Isaac. How that if he had trusted in his own reason, and listened to the voice of the enemy speak those doubts, that, well, did God really mean this? Here God has promised you that your seed, your inheritance, those chosen children of yours would be as the sands of the seashore, but yet now you're tasked to go and slay your only son. How could this be? You know, what's going to happen here then? And this would be the voice of reason, the voice of questions coming in.

Well, what did Abraham do there? Abraham was able to be obedient only through faith, we see that picture of trust, trust in the heavenly father, that to go and to follow through with this plan, to take his only son, to gather up those branches for the sacrifice, and to take that knife, to raise up that knife to follow through.

But then we see even God's plan there, how God was testing Abraham, testing his faith, but how God then stopped, sent that angel and stopped Abraham from going through, but he saw how Abraham in his heart would have been obedient, completely surrendering to the will of the heavenly father, trusting that God knows best, even here, that he is the creator, the maker of all, and even in this matter, I must trust in the heavenly father and let matters take their course, as God sees.

And this is a good example even for us, dear brothers and sisters, in our own time, in our own lives. Surely there are, each of us have different trials, different stumbling blocks that we struggle with. But if we could even remember here to place our trust upon the heavenly father, that in his hands, he knows all, and he knows our pathway, he knows every step of our journey. We can't, we can only see in our past, and we do not, are not able to see into the future. And this is a good thing here even also, is the wisdom of the heavenly father, for he knows what we must face, and we can trust that he will be there for us.

Nicodemus here, returning to our text, could not truly comprehend this, our Lord Jesus, the Lord and Savior. He then questioned Jesus, that how can these things be? And Jesus answered his question with a question, art thou a master of Israel, and knowest not these things? Verily, verily, I say unto thee, we speak that we do know, and testify that we have seen, and ye receive not our witness. If I have told you earthly things, and ye believe not, how shall ye believe if I tell you of heavenly things?

Nicodemus, in his condition, wasn't able to truly comprehend the Lord Jesus. He could acknowledge that he was a teacher from God, but he could not humble himself to put aside all of those earthly teachings that he had or those self-righteous ideas and those self-righteous rags of the flesh that he clung to.

Jesus went on to tell him of heavenly things, and no man hath ascended up to heaven, but he that came down from heaven, even the Son of Man which is in heaven.

Jesus was obedient to the will of the Father from, and we know, to the very end where he came and dwelt with mankind here on the earth, in the form of man, but yet he was also true God. And he, in fulfilling that work of the heavenly Father, went to the, there to the cross, to that middle cross of Golgotha. He, there, bore the sins of the entire world, so that you and I, dear brother and sister, this morning, and that every person who has ever been on the earth and will be, could have that hope of heaven.

For it is only through that work that Jesus did, that he died for the sins of the entire world, through those precious drops of blood that he shed. But it even speaks here how the Son of Man which is in heaven, Jesus, we know is through faith we comprehend, how he is part of the triune God, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.

And this even is a matter which is difficult if not impossible to comprehend, to understand how three could be in one. But only we accept these matters through faith, endeavor to believe through faith.

In the book of John, in one of the epistles later on, he speaks of this triune God, if we could even find those words, how John relates of it, but it's one of the places in Scripture where it is directly recorded of the three parts of the Godhead, speaking of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.

If we could even find that portion here. In the fifth chapter of the first epistle of John, in the eighth verse, or the seventh verse, for there are three that bear record in heaven, the Father, the Word, and the Holy Ghost, and these three are one.

And we know that in the gospel of John, in this same gospel that our text is from earlier, begins how in the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God, and it goes on to explain how Jesus was this Word that came from heaven to dwell on earth in the flesh.

And Jesus also then here in returning to our text, after he tells Nicodemus about ascending up to heaven, how he had come down from heaven, he even gives this example for Nicodemus of Moses lifting up the serpent in the wilderness, and relates how even so must the Son of Man be lifted up.

As we recalled earlier, how Nicodemus being a Pharisee would have been very familiar with the Old Testament Word of God, in studying it and whatnot, but not able to comprehend it through faith, for as we already noted, this is only through the power of the Holy Spirit.

But this example of Moses, Nicodemus would have been able to recall this, how there the children of God there in the wilderness murmured against God and how God allowed those fiery serpents to come and bite those children. And whoever was bitten by these serpents, they were killed or they perished.

But then God commanded Moses to lift up this brass serpent and that whosoever would gaze upon this serpent would be spared. And this here was a picture of the Lord Jesus, that whosoever could believe upon the Lord Jesus would not perish, but have eternal life.

This is the hidden gift, dear brothers and sisters, that as God's children, we're able to comprehend through faith. Let us cling to this most precious gift. It is a gift that is not given to every man. And herein also is the great mystery. God only knows who He has given this gift to and who He will give this gift to and those who have been given this gift.

We can only be thankful to give thanks to the Heavenly Father that He has called us His children into this kingdom. And how is it that we are able to even have strength to journey, to have faith? Isn't it through those precious blood drops of Jesus, through the power of the Gospel, which wishes even this morning, dear brothers and sisters, to comfort, to reassure, and to uplift each one of you, to yet believe, believe this morning freely, all sins and doubts forgiven in Jesus' name and precious blood.

This is our source of strength and comfort on this journey. These precious blood drops of Jesus that we need to daily gather and cling to and travel in, dear brothers and sisters. And through faith then, one day this faith will be changed to seeing. No longer then will the trials and temptations of this world bear us and weigh us down, but on that last day we will be able to lay down this journey staff and be there gathered with our Lord Jesus and go to that Father's land in heaven.

It pays to believe, your brothers and sisters. So yet on this day even be encouraged to make those new promises that in spite of those many temptations and shortcomings, they are forgiven in the name and the blood of Jesus and let us put them behind us and make new promises to yet believe.

And in coming here this morning I also find myself to be the greatest of sinners and often plagued with doubts that desiring also to hear this gospel. Can you brothers and sisters bless me also? I desire to believe along with you.

And we can truly be thankful, dear brothers and sisters, for this gift of faith that God has blessed us with. It is the gift of gifts and the most precious of blessings. Let us keep it as a priority near and dear always in our hearts. In Jesus' name, Amen.