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Source: https://www.sermonindex.net/speakers/gary-sharp/nicodemus-meets-the-savior/
Gospel of John, please. John's Gospel, chapter 2. And let's read together, please, at verse 23. John, chapter 2, and verse 23. Now, when he was in Jerusalem at the Passover. Oh, what a time of year that was.
That was the time when God's people, Israel, remembered the great night of their deliverance. And what a treasure and a pleasure it is to every believer to remember the night that God delivered them. Let's read on, please.
When he was in Jerusalem at the Passover, in the feast day, many believed in his name. When they saw the miracles which he did, or the signs that he performed, but Jesus did not commit himself unto them because he knew all men, and needed not that any should testify of man, for he knew what was in man.
There was a man of the Pharisees, a strictest religion, named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews, the teacher 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, these signs 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, born anew, born from above, he cannot see the kingdom of God.
Nicodemus saith unto him, How? 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. Down to verse 9 please. Nicodemus answered and said unto him, How?
How can these things be? Jesus answered and said unto him, Art thou a master, the teacher of Israel, and knowest not these things? Verse 12. If I have told you earthly things and you believe not, how shall you believe if I tell you of heavenly things?
Interesting. His questions come to an end. He stands silently to hear the answer. Verse 14. And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up. You've been hearing it with the cross.
Even so must the Son of Man be lifted up, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish but have eternal life. And we trust that God will bless what we've read from His precious Word. Word has already been spoken tonight about 9 -11.
And I know there's lots of stories that go around about it. And it reminded me of Linda Swain. Linda Swain worked in one of those World Trade Center buildings. She was a department manager for a large insurance company.
She was a Christian. And because she was a Christian, she tried to speak about her Savior to the people in her department and others that she'd gotten to know. She had tried to tell them of her Savior.
The first aircraft, Flight 11, a Boeing 767 from Boston bound for Los Angeles, with 81 passengers and 20 ,000 gallons of fuel, crashed into that North Tower. And the floor of her insurance company was on at 8 .45.
Killing all 250 people who worked for the company that she worked for. Linda was late for work that day. Her dog had died the night before. She had to make arrangements for that dog. She didn't catch the express train that would have put her on the spot in the office at 8 .45 in the morning.
She was stopped just one stop away when the accident occurred. You can maybe understand what kind of an impact that had on Linda Swaim, a Christian, who knew all eight members of her department had gone out into eternity in a moment.
And all the others in her company swept out into the great eternity. Linda Swaim couldn't get over it. And as she thought about those that she worked with, she was heard saying these words more than once.
Did I tell them enough? Did I tell them clear enough? Did I tell them enough? Did I tell them clearly enough? Some items in our life, some events, impact us greatly. Linda Swaim will never be the same.
But for her, she knows she has eternal life. And while she was saved that day from that great accident, she's thankful that she was saved from a far greater catastrophe when she was saved from her sins and made right with God.
And I want to tell you that got her attention, as it ought to get the attention of every believer. And that's why we have a concern for the souls of men and women, boys and girls. And that's why we proclaim the gospel.
To tell you. To tell you clear enough. To tell you plain enough. To tell you straightforwardly enough. This man that we have read of, you can stop and think about his life and the miracles that caught his attention.
It tells us in chapter 2 that they saw the miracles. They saw the signs that the Lord Jesus did. And some of them, yes, they were persuaded there was something different about them. But here's a man, and he knew that those miracles, they were from God.
You see, they weren't just happenings. They weren't just events. They weren't just glorious things. But they displayed the might of God, the power of God. And they also pointed to the One who had come from heaven.
And this man, Nicodemus, with all his religious thinking and all his knowledge, he knew. He knew. And he says so. He says he knew God was with him. The Lord Jesus was right there. And he knew it. Imagine meeting Him.
Imagine standing face to face with someone who was come down from God. Imagine speaking to someone like Him. He knew God had sent Him. He knew that no one could do those miracles that He had done unless God was with him.
And here's a man who's at the very top of the religious world of his day. He's a man who has so much knowledge and understanding. As you know, he was well aware. Not everybody shared his view about the Lord Jesus.
And not everybody understood what he understood. And he had to ask himself, am I willing to risk being wrong to find out the truth? Here's a man with all his position and all his knowledge. He's going to put it on the line.
He's going to follow up on what he knows is true. He's going to seek more diligently, more earnestly, and answer to his question. You see, he knew there was something different about this Savior. And I'm speaking to those tonight.
I'm absolutely positive. You know. You know from the testimony of the Word of God. And you know from what you have seen in the lives of others. That there's something real about this. I knew it when I was just a boy.
As I went to live with my aunt who raised me. I knew she had something. I knew she was real. I knew there was something different. There was something certain. There was something very, very clear about her that was different from others.
I want you to not only think about the miracles that caught his attention. Because they got his attention. But I want you to think for a moment about the meeting with the Savior. Ah, here's a man. And he comes to the Lord Jesus.
He made it his business to seek Him out. This was first on his list. Now he may have been hindered. And there may have been others that would have criticized him. Some would say that's why he came at night.
Because he was afraid of what people might say or think. Or what they might do. But at least he came. How about you tonight? Do you know that God was in His Son to reconcile the world unto Himself? Do you know that when He came down here, those miracles, those signs, they pointed to the great reality.
He had come from God. He had come on a very special mission. He had come with purpose to save our souls. He had come down here. And He's real. This man came at night. Maybe he came the first chance he had.
Have you had an opportunity to come to the Lord Jesus? Have you ever heard His voice saying, Come unto me. Has the Spirit of God ever prompted your soul? You need to get this settled. You need this Savior.
He came into the world to seek and to save that which was lost. That's a wondrous truth. And you know what this man discovered when he came seeking Jesus? He'd never encountered anybody like Him before.
Because He's unique. He's the only Savior. He's the mighty Savior. He's the one who loved you. And He came down here to reveal that love. The meeting with the Savior. Eye to eye. Face to face. Truth and consequences.
He says, we know. Oh, we know that thou art a teacher come from God because nobody can do these miracles that thou doest unless God is in them. You stop and think about the mystery of it all to this man.
He did not come out on the short end when it came to intelligence. He was the very leader of his religious community. But something challenged his thinking. And the Lord Jesus spoke those words and He said, Unless a man is born again, no matter what religious past he has, no matter what he might have to his credit, unless a man is born again, he'll never see the kingdom of God.
You may have heard the gospel. We've already heard from our brother. There have been those who have been praying for you. That room back there was full of people. Praying for those who are in the center of the gospel tonight.
Because we have come to know Him. You ever seen a miracle? Have you? Say no. Well, you've seen more than you think. But if you've seen a person who knows that they're on their way to heaven, I want to tell you, friend, you've seen a miracle.
Because we weren't always on the way to heaven. We were once on the way to the lost. We were once defiled and dark in our minds. And distant from God. And perishing. And I want to tell you, friend, I'm not on that road anymore.
There came a moment in my life when I was 15 and a half years old. And I realized why it was the Savior came. And I realized why the great plan of salvation was ever begun. This man. Ah, there was a mystery about it.
He was used to a religion of works. And he'd lived all his life in view of it. Thinking that there would be some kind of merit that would come because of what he knew. And he knew! He knew five books of the Bible off by heart.
And large portions of others. And he'd risen to the top. Amongst the Pharisees, the strictest sect of the religions. He's at the top. He's a teacher. The teacher. He's the guide for Israel. And the Lord Jesus says, Are you really the teacher of Israel?
And you don't know this. Maybe tonight I'm speaking to somebody. And with all you know. With all the verses you've learned. With all the gospel you've heard. You still, still don't know. The wonderful truth.
Of sins forgiven. And of peace with God. Yeah, there was a mystery about it. And he asked the word questions. And he asked those questions. How can this be? He didn't get it right away. In spite of his intelligence.
And sometimes you know that puzzles people. They say, I know so much. I can tell those stories better than the preacher can sometimes. Or my Sunday school teacher. Or those who have an interest in me.
And you still don't get it. It was a mystery. He couldn't quite catch the sense of it. I'll tell you what this man must have faced. If my ideas. If my thinking doesn't line up with God's. Then I know who's wrong.
Maybe you've tried to be saved. Maybe there's a certain appeal in the gospel. Something about it's peace that draws you. Something about the confidence of knowing that you'd be ready if the Lord Jesus should come.
And it appeals to you all. And in fact it makes you long after it. But you haven't got it. Somehow you missed it. Maybe you're still looking for a missing piece. If your thoughts and your ideas. Don't line up with God's.
Then somebody's wrong. And it's not God. The Lord Jesus speaks to this man very plainly. He says you must be born again. The must of the new birth. Remember having some children's meetings in a place called Unionville in the city of Toronto.
And one night there was a boy who was out. And he listened very carefully and went home. And he told his mom my verse. You must be born again. Only he said you got to be born again. He got the message.
He didn't get the language quite right. But he went home and told his mom. You know what that man told us? He told us you got to be born again. She said what? She said he says you got to be born again or you can't be in heaven.
Mom says well I don't know where he got that idea. And she said I'm going to come with you tomorrow night. And she did. In fact she was waiting at the door when I walked in. I was coming down from Midland about a hundred miles.
And I was a little bit late. Kind of pushing the time. And I walked in. Saw her. Said hello. Walked by her. That wasn't her plan. She wanted to ask me what I meant. Anyway she came in. She sat down. She listened.
And after the children's meeting she was standing at the door again. And this time she wasn't going to let me get by her. And I walked back to the door and I thanked her for coming. I said I really appreciate moms and dads who come along to hear what their children hear.
She said well yeah. She says actually that's why I'm here. She says my son came home last night and he said that you got to be born again. And I said yeah. The verse was you must be born again. She said where did you get that idea?
I had my Bible in my hand. I opened it up. John 3. Verse 7. I said just read this. I'll never forget that lady's look. She looked at the Bible. It's a good idea to get your information from the Bible.
She looked at the Bible. She read marvel not that I send to thee. You must be born again. And she looked at me. She said I never knew that before. I would that it had the same impact on your soul tonight.
She had never heard it before. Suddenly she came to understand this is what God says. The Lord Jesus makes the message clear and he makes it plain. And this man is still asking questions. How is this?
You know he's got all kinds of questions. As the Lord Jesus speaks to him. Here's a man who realizes he can continue in the fleshly mind and understanding that he had. And when he was all done he wouldn't be any closer to God's salvation.
What he needed was a life that only God can give. And tonight that's what you need. You need something only God can give. You must be born from above. The life that you got for this world is just for this world.
It fits you to enjoy this world. I love life and I love the life that I have. I'm thankful for it every day. And if you want to be in heaven. You do want to be in heaven don't you? You don't want to miss it do you?
If you want to be in heaven. You need what God alone can give. Eternal life. That's what fits you for heaven. And this man with his questions and all the concerns of his heart. As he stands in the presence of the Lord Jesus.
Comes to silence at last. And the Lord Jesus shows him how. This great truth has been revealed. Down through the ages in the scriptures. He reminds this man of passage in the book of Numbers chapter 21.
A passage this man knew by heart. And had no doubt discussed many times before. About how the people of Israel passing through the desert. Mind you. They could have been free from the desert lifelong before.
But they persisted in their sin. And they'd gone on the way they were. Much like some here tonight. Imagine what it would have been like to have been saved. Before tonight. Maybe a year ago even. When the gospel was presented.
And your soul was stirred. And still you linger. But the people of Israel. Why they begin to murmur against God. As if it was all God's fault. And God sent fiery serpents amongst them. Now Nicodemus knew the story.
And the Lord Jesus only comes to the very central part of it. You know what the central part of it is? A serpent being lifted up. Just like we were hearing tonight about the cross. A serpent lifted up in the wilderness.
So that those who looked to that serpent. After they'd been bitten. After they were dying and nearing eternity. They only had to look. The best part of that story. Nicodemus knew. Was that when God said whosoever looks they'll live.
And they lived. The Lord Jesus said just like that story. Nicodemus you've known for such a long time. He says even so. The son of man. Must be lifted up. You see there was only one way for the Israelites to be saved.
There's only one way God could save you and me. The son of man. The Lord Jesus. Lifted up. In pain and anguish upon a tree. Why? The Lord Jesus tells him. He says right here in this passage. Even so must the son of man be lifted up that whosoever.
You know what that means? It means it takes you in. Just as simple as that. And this man understands the picture that the Lord Jesus gives. Just like that serpent lifted up gave. Life and healing to those who were bitten.
When they looked. So the simplicity of the gospel is presented to this man. That whosoever. Believes in him. Trust him. Depends on him. Even looks to him. He did it all. Would not perish. But have for their own.
Eternal life. And oh what follows is that glorious text of scripture. So many have been reached through God's soul of the world. He loved you. He understood your need. And he so loved the world. He gave his only begotten son.
That whosoever. Would simply. Receive that message. Receive that truth. Receive that savior. Trust that one. Would not perish. Never go to hell. But have. Everlasting life. And tonight. The cross. Is the focus of it all.
Just like that serpent lifted up. Was the answer of God to meet the need of the people who were bitten by those serpents. So Christ. Was lifted up on a cross. To suffer. To endure the wrath of God. To pay the price.
That whosoever. Whosoever. Anyone who will. Whosoever. That means me. And God says. They will not perish. But have. Friend don't go on the way you are. Don't trifle. With the great provision of heaven.
God gave everything. Christ paid it all. The provision goes. Tonight too. Whosoever. Let's ask God's blessing.