SERMON
10-21-07
MYSTERY OF THE NEW BIRTH
Mark 4:1-20
4:1 The Parable of the Sower
(Matt 13:1-9; Luke 8:4-8)
And again He began to teach by the sea. And a great multitude was gathered to Him, so that He got into a boat and sat in it on the sea; and the whole multitude was on the land facing the sea. 2 Then He taught them many things by parables, and said to them in His teaching:
3 "Listen! Behold, a sower went out to sow. 4 And it happened, as he sowed, that some seed fell by the wayside; and the birds of the air came and devoured it. 5 Some fell on stony ground, where it did not have much earth; and immediately it sprang up because it had no depth of earth. 6 But when the sun was up it was scorched, and because it had no root it withered away. 7 And some seed fell among thorns; and the thorns grew up and choked it, and it yielded no crop. 8 But other seed fell on good ground and yielded a crop that sprang up, increased and produced: some thirtyfold, some sixty, and some a hundred."
9 And He said to them, "He who has ears to hear, let him hear!"
10 The Purpose of Parables
(Matt 13:10-17; Luke 8:9,10)
But when He was alone, those around Him with the twelve asked Him about the parable. 11 And He said to them, "To you it has been given to know the mystery of the kingdom of God; but to those who are outside, all things come in parables, 12 so that
'Seeing they may see and not perceive,And hearing they may hear and not understand;Lest they should turn,And their sins be forgiven them.'"
13 The Parable of the Sower Explained
(Matt 13:18-23; Luke 8:11-15)
And He said to them, "Do you not understand this parable? How then will you understand all the parables? 14 The sower sows the word. 15 And these are the ones by the wayside where the word is sown. When they hear, Satan comes immediately and takes away the word that was sown in their hearts. 16 These likewise are the ones sown on stony ground who, when they hear the word, immediately receive it with gladness; 17 and they have no root in themselves, and so endure only for a time. Afterward, when tribulation or persecution arises for the word's sake, immediately they stumble. 18 Now these are the ones sown among thorns; they are the ones who hear the word, 19 and the cares of this world, the deceitfulness of riches, and the desires for other things entering in choke the word, and it becomes unfruitful. 20 But these are the ones sown on good ground, those who hear the word, accept it, and bear fruit: some thirtyfold, some sixty, and some a hundred."
NKJV
1. TO HEAR AND SEE INTO THE KINGDOM OF GOD ONE MUST BE BORN AGAIN
John 3:1-9
3:1 The New Birth
There was a man of the Pharisees named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews. 2 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 and said to him, "Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born again, 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, "Most assuredly, 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. 7 Do not marvel that I said to you, 'You must be born again.' 8 The wind blows where it wishes, and you hear the sound of it, but cannot tell where it comes from and where it goes. So is everyone who is born of the Spirit." YOU CANNOT SEE SOMEONE BEING BORN AGAIN, BUT YOU CAN SEE THE WIND OF THE SPIRIT BLOWING THROUGH THEIR LIVES --- YOU CAN’T SEE THE WIND, BUT YOU CAN SEE THE LEAVES BLOWING --- WHEN THE WIND OF THE SPIRIT BLOWS THROUGH YOUR LIFE, SUDDENLY YOU BEGIN TO UNDERSTAND THE BIBLE
THE WIND WAS BLOWING THROUGH PETER’S LIFE
Gen 1:1 - Matt 16:19
When Jesus came into the region of Caesarea Philippi, He asked His disciples, saying, "Who do men say that I, the Son of Man, am?"
14 So they said,"Some say John the Baptist, some Elijah, and others Jeremiah or one of the prophets."
15 He said to them, "But who do you say that I am?"
16 Simon Peter answered and said,"You are the Christ, the Son of the living God."
17 Jesus answered and said to him, "Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah, for flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but My Father who is in heaven. 18 And I also say to you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build My church, and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it. 19 And I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven."
NKJV
As a child I wondered where God lived in outer space and how long it would take to get there. Far beyond intergalactic space with its billions of swirling nebulae and novas lies another dimension. Some speculate it's the fifth dimension. Wherever it is and however far out, the Bible calls it the highest of heavens.
You cannot go there in a rocket ship. That's because heaven exists beyond even speeded-up time. Traveling at a zillion miles per hour might catapult you instantly to the edge of our universe, but to take a step into the third heaven requires something different, for our flesh and blood cannot enter it. You must be born again or you cannot, as Jesus warned, "see the kingdom of God."
n Joni Eareckson Tada,
Eph 2:1-13
2:1 And you He made alive, who were dead in trespasses and sins, 2 in which you once walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit who now works in the sons of disobedience, 3 among whom also we all once conducted ourselves in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, just as the others.
4 But God, who is rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, 5 even when we were dead in trespasses, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved), 6 and raised us up together, and made us sit together in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, 7 that in the ages to come He might show the exceeding riches of His grace in His kindness toward us in Christ Jesus. 8 For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, 9 not of works, lest anyone should boast. 10 For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them.
11 Brought Near by His Blood
Therefore remember that you, once Gentiles in the flesh — who are called Uncircumcision by what is called the Circumcision made in the flesh by hands — 12 that at that time you were without Christ, being aliens from the commonwealth of Israel and strangers from the covenants of promise, having no hope and without God in the world. 13 But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ.
NKJV
When translator Des Oatridge, working in Papua New Guinea, came to the words "born again" in John's Gospel, he asked his native co-translator to think of a good way to express it. The man explained this custom:
"Sometimes a person goes wrong and will not listen to anybody. We all get together in the village and place that person in the midst of us. The elders talk to him for a long time. 'You have gone wrong!' they say. 'All your thoughts, intentions, and values are wrong. Now you have to become a baby again and start to relearn everything right.'"
It was the answer Des was looking for. Today the words of John 3:3 in Binumarien reads "No one can see the Kingdom of God unless he becomes like a baby again and relearns everything from God's Word."
Titus 3:1-8
Titus 3
3:1 Graces of the Heirs of Grace
Remind them to be subject to rulers and authorities, to obey, to be ready for every good work, 2 to speak evil of no one, to be peaceable, gentle, showing all humility to all men. 3 For we ourselves were also once foolish, disobedient, deceived, serving various lusts and pleasures, living in malice and envy, hateful and hating one another. 4 But when the kindness and the love of God our Savior toward man appeared, 5 not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to His mercy He saved us, through the washing of regeneration and renewing of the Holy Spirit, 6 whom He poured out on us abundantly through Jesus Christ our Savior, 7 that having been justified by His grace we should become heirs according to the hope of eternal life.
8 This is a faithful saying, and these things I want you to affirm constantly, that those who have believed in God should be careful to maintain good works. These things are good and profitable to men.
NKJV
Yesterday morning I was on the phone with our daughter who lives with her husband in North Carolina. We were having a great conversation. I was using a wireless phone, and suddenly the phone went dead, and her voice was cut off. I heard only static. I looked at the phone. A little red light was on, and I realized the battery had run out. Suddenly there was no contact.
God created us with the capacity to hear and send signals back and forth to heaven, but sin ruined that. It deadened the batteries of the soul. And Paul, in modern-day terminology, might say we're people with dead batteries. We have the ability to commune with God, but we can't because we're dead. Someone has to recharge the battery. Someone has to put a new battery in.
1 John 5:1-5
5:1 Obedience by Faith
Whoever believes that Jesus is the Christ is born of God, and everyone who loves Him who begot also loves him who is begotten of Him. 2 By this we know that we love the children of God, when we love God and keep His commandments. 3 For this is the love of God, that we keep His commandments. And His commandments are not burdensome. 4 For whatever is born of God overcomes the world. And this is the victory that has overcome the world — our faith. 5 Who is he who overcomes the world, but he who believes that Jesus is the Son of God?
NKJV
IT IS ALONE WITH JESUS THAT THE MYSTERIES ARE EXPLAINED TO US --- YOU MAY BE IN A CROWD BUT THE REVELATION IS GIVEN BY JESUS IN THE PERSON OF THE HOLY SPIRIT
Mark 4:34
34 But without a parable spake he not unto them: and when they were alone, he expounded all things to his disciples.
KJV
3. YOU WILL NEVER KNOW IT ALL --- NOR SEE THE PICTURE CLEARLY, CONSISTENTLY (IT IS A MYSTERY)
IT IS ON PURPOSE THAT THE MYSTERY IS LEFT
The mystery of the humanity of Christ, that He sunk Himself into our flesh, is beyond all human understanding.
In what way, or by what manner of working God changes a soul from evil to good-how he impregnates the barren rock with priceless gems and gold-is, to the human mind, an impenetrable mystery.
Samuel Taylor Coleridge (1772-1834)
It is not necessary that we should be able to tell where or how we have been converted, but it is important that we should be able to tell that we are converted.
Dwight Lyman Moody (1837-1899)
The Trinity, the Incarnation, and the Resurrection: your faith and my faith must include these three mysteries. They are difficult to understand. They are not unintelligible-God understands them. But for us there is an element of mystery. The greatest error anyone can make is to think they can fully understand these three mysteries. It makes a mockery of faith.
Mortimer Jerome Adler (1902- )
-- Martin Luther in Table Talk
10-21-07
MYSTERY OF THE NEW BIRTH
Mark 4:1-20
4:1 The Parable of the Sower
(Matt 13:1-9; Luke 8:4-8)
And again He began to teach by the sea. And a great multitude was gathered to Him, so that He got into a boat and sat in it on the sea; and the whole multitude was on the land facing the sea. 2 Then He taught them many things by parables, and said to them in His teaching:
3 "Listen! Behold, a sower went out to sow. 4 And it happened, as he sowed, that some seed fell by the wayside; and the birds of the air came and devoured it. 5 Some fell on stony ground, where it did not have much earth; and immediately it sprang up because it had no depth of earth. 6 But when the sun was up it was scorched, and because it had no root it withered away. 7 And some seed fell among thorns; and the thorns grew up and choked it, and it yielded no crop. 8 But other seed fell on good ground and yielded a crop that sprang up, increased and produced: some thirtyfold, some sixty, and some a hundred."
9 And He said to them, "He who has ears to hear, let him hear!"
10 The Purpose of Parables
(Matt 13:10-17; Luke 8:9,10)
But when He was alone, those around Him with the twelve asked Him about the parable. 11 And He said to them, "To you it has been given to know the mystery of the kingdom of God; but to those who are outside, all things come in parables, 12 so that
'Seeing they may see and not perceive,And hearing they may hear and not understand;Lest they should turn,And their sins be forgiven them.'"
13 The Parable of the Sower Explained
(Matt 13:18-23; Luke 8:11-15)
And He said to them, "Do you not understand this parable? How then will you understand all the parables? 14 The sower sows the word. 15 And these are the ones by the wayside where the word is sown. When they hear, Satan comes immediately and takes away the word that was sown in their hearts. 16 These likewise are the ones sown on stony ground who, when they hear the word, immediately receive it with gladness; 17 and they have no root in themselves, and so endure only for a time. Afterward, when tribulation or persecution arises for the word's sake, immediately they stumble. 18 Now these are the ones sown among thorns; they are the ones who hear the word, 19 and the cares of this world, the deceitfulness of riches, and the desires for other things entering in choke the word, and it becomes unfruitful. 20 But these are the ones sown on good ground, those who hear the word, accept it, and bear fruit: some thirtyfold, some sixty, and some a hundred."
NKJV
1. TO HEAR AND SEE INTO THE KINGDOM OF GOD ONE MUST BE BORN AGAIN
John 3:1-9
3:1 The New Birth
There was a man of the Pharisees named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews. 2 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 and said to him, "Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born again, 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, "Most assuredly, 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. 7 Do not marvel that I said to you, 'You must be born again.' 8 The wind blows where it wishes, and you hear the sound of it, but cannot tell where it comes from and where it goes. So is everyone who is born of the Spirit." YOU CANNOT SEE SOMEONE BEING BORN AGAIN, BUT YOU CAN SEE THE WIND OF THE SPIRIT BLOWING THROUGH THEIR LIVES --- YOU CAN’T SEE THE WIND, BUT YOU CAN SEE THE LEAVES BLOWING --- WHEN THE WIND OF THE SPIRIT BLOWS THROUGH YOUR LIFE, SUDDENLY YOU BEGIN TO UNDERSTAND THE BIBLE
THE WIND WAS BLOWING THROUGH PETER’S LIFE
Gen 1:1 - Matt 16:19
When Jesus came into the region of Caesarea Philippi, He asked His disciples, saying, "Who do men say that I, the Son of Man, am?"
14 So they said,"Some say John the Baptist, some Elijah, and others Jeremiah or one of the prophets."
15 He said to them, "But who do you say that I am?"
16 Simon Peter answered and said,"You are the Christ, the Son of the living God."
17 Jesus answered and said to him, "Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah, for flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but My Father who is in heaven. 18 And I also say to you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build My church, and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it. 19 And I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven."
NKJV
As a child I wondered where God lived in outer space and how long it would take to get there. Far beyond intergalactic space with its billions of swirling nebulae and novas lies another dimension. Some speculate it's the fifth dimension. Wherever it is and however far out, the Bible calls it the highest of heavens.
You cannot go there in a rocket ship. That's because heaven exists beyond even speeded-up time. Traveling at a zillion miles per hour might catapult you instantly to the edge of our universe, but to take a step into the third heaven requires something different, for our flesh and blood cannot enter it. You must be born again or you cannot, as Jesus warned, "see the kingdom of God."
n Joni Eareckson Tada,
Eph 2:1-13
2:1 And you He made alive, who were dead in trespasses and sins, 2 in which you once walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit who now works in the sons of disobedience, 3 among whom also we all once conducted ourselves in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, just as the others.
4 But God, who is rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, 5 even when we were dead in trespasses, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved), 6 and raised us up together, and made us sit together in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, 7 that in the ages to come He might show the exceeding riches of His grace in His kindness toward us in Christ Jesus. 8 For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, 9 not of works, lest anyone should boast. 10 For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them.
11 Brought Near by His Blood
Therefore remember that you, once Gentiles in the flesh — who are called Uncircumcision by what is called the Circumcision made in the flesh by hands — 12 that at that time you were without Christ, being aliens from the commonwealth of Israel and strangers from the covenants of promise, having no hope and without God in the world. 13 But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ.
NKJV
When translator Des Oatridge, working in Papua New Guinea, came to the words "born again" in John's Gospel, he asked his native co-translator to think of a good way to express it. The man explained this custom:
"Sometimes a person goes wrong and will not listen to anybody. We all get together in the village and place that person in the midst of us. The elders talk to him for a long time. 'You have gone wrong!' they say. 'All your thoughts, intentions, and values are wrong. Now you have to become a baby again and start to relearn everything right.'"
It was the answer Des was looking for. Today the words of John 3:3 in Binumarien reads "No one can see the Kingdom of God unless he becomes like a baby again and relearns everything from God's Word."
Titus 3:1-8
Titus 3
3:1 Graces of the Heirs of Grace
Remind them to be subject to rulers and authorities, to obey, to be ready for every good work, 2 to speak evil of no one, to be peaceable, gentle, showing all humility to all men. 3 For we ourselves were also once foolish, disobedient, deceived, serving various lusts and pleasures, living in malice and envy, hateful and hating one another. 4 But when the kindness and the love of God our Savior toward man appeared, 5 not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to His mercy He saved us, through the washing of regeneration and renewing of the Holy Spirit, 6 whom He poured out on us abundantly through Jesus Christ our Savior, 7 that having been justified by His grace we should become heirs according to the hope of eternal life.
8 This is a faithful saying, and these things I want you to affirm constantly, that those who have believed in God should be careful to maintain good works. These things are good and profitable to men.
NKJV
Yesterday morning I was on the phone with our daughter who lives with her husband in North Carolina. We were having a great conversation. I was using a wireless phone, and suddenly the phone went dead, and her voice was cut off. I heard only static. I looked at the phone. A little red light was on, and I realized the battery had run out. Suddenly there was no contact.
God created us with the capacity to hear and send signals back and forth to heaven, but sin ruined that. It deadened the batteries of the soul. And Paul, in modern-day terminology, might say we're people with dead batteries. We have the ability to commune with God, but we can't because we're dead. Someone has to recharge the battery. Someone has to put a new battery in.
1 John 5:1-5
5:1 Obedience by Faith
Whoever believes that Jesus is the Christ is born of God, and everyone who loves Him who begot also loves him who is begotten of Him. 2 By this we know that we love the children of God, when we love God and keep His commandments. 3 For this is the love of God, that we keep His commandments. And His commandments are not burdensome. 4 For whatever is born of God overcomes the world. And this is the victory that has overcome the world — our faith. 5 Who is he who overcomes the world, but he who believes that Jesus is the Son of God?
NKJV
IT IS ALONE WITH JESUS THAT THE MYSTERIES ARE EXPLAINED TO US --- YOU MAY BE IN A CROWD BUT THE REVELATION IS GIVEN BY JESUS IN THE PERSON OF THE HOLY SPIRIT
Mark 4:34
34 But without a parable spake he not unto them: and when they were alone, he expounded all things to his disciples.
KJV
3. YOU WILL NEVER KNOW IT ALL --- NOR SEE THE PICTURE CLEARLY, CONSISTENTLY (IT IS A MYSTERY)
IT IS ON PURPOSE THAT THE MYSTERY IS LEFT
The mystery of the humanity of Christ, that He sunk Himself into our flesh, is beyond all human understanding.
In what way, or by what manner of working God changes a soul from evil to good-how he impregnates the barren rock with priceless gems and gold-is, to the human mind, an impenetrable mystery.
Samuel Taylor Coleridge (1772-1834)
It is not necessary that we should be able to tell where or how we have been converted, but it is important that we should be able to tell that we are converted.
Dwight Lyman Moody (1837-1899)
The Trinity, the Incarnation, and the Resurrection: your faith and my faith must include these three mysteries. They are difficult to understand. They are not unintelligible-God understands them. But for us there is an element of mystery. The greatest error anyone can make is to think they can fully understand these three mysteries. It makes a mockery of faith.
Mortimer Jerome Adler (1902- )
-- Martin Luther in Table Talk
