Grace Bible Church
PastorTeacher
Robert R. McLaughlin
Sunday, December 22, 2013
Our Lord’s physical birth has a resemblance with our spiritual birth.
We all need a spiritual birth.
Nicodemus was a very devout and religious man. He was a member of the Sanhedrin which was the ruling body of the Jews.
The Sanhedrin was comprised of Scribes, Sadducees and Pharisees.
The Scribes were the guardians and the scholars of the Old Testament Scriptures. The Sadducees were the highly educated rationalists who denied the supernatural, such as the resurrection and eternal life.
The Pharisees were very religious and filled with legalism.
Pharisees – prayed seven times a day. They went to the temple three times a day. They worked overtime at being good and doing good, however, what does the Bible says about the righteousness of man?
ISA 64:6 For all of us have become like one who is unclean, And all our righteous deeds are like a filthy garment; And all of us wither like a leaf, And our iniquities, like the wind, take us away.
The Pharisees gave money to the poor, they prayed the longest and performed sacred rituals in a manner that attracted a lot of attention.
Nicodemus was a typical Pharisee, he was fat-headed, religious, self-righteous, proud, and vain. He was one of those who our Lord described in Matthew 23:27.
Matthew 23:27“>MAT 23:27 “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you are like whitewashed tombs which on the outside appear beautiful, but inside they are full of dead men’s bones and all uncleanness.”
Many individuals just believe depravity relates to those in the gutter.
The sins of religious people are much worse than the sins of those in the gutter.
The sin of pride is the number one sin found in the religious person who thinks they can impress God with their good deeds.
Although his life was filled with good deeds and he was trying to earn his way into heaven, he did have some concern that he needed help.
Some say, he was embarrassed, others say, he didn’t want any of the other Pharisees to see him, still others say he was so busy in doing good deeds that he simply did not have the time during the day.
The true purpose of miracles was to gain and focus attention on the message.
He was and is interested in the eternal safety of the soul more than the physical healing of the body.
LUK 9:25 “For what is a man profited if he gains the whole world, and loses or forfeits himself?
JOH 3:2, – Nicodemus recognized that Jesus was a teacher who came come from God for He admitted, “No man can do these miracles that you do except God be with Him.”
He is talking to a man who is very proud of all his merit badges and yet Jesus insults him by saying this.
The problem with Nicodemus was not his personal sin but his birth.
The problem that we all have, not our physical birth but our spiritual birth.
Man’s problem is basically his birth.
ROM 3:23– For all have sinned and comes short of the glory of God.
The Bible says that we are in union with TLJC.
1. This means You share His life which is eternal life. He who has the Son, has life.
2. We share Christ’s righteousness. we have a double perfect righteousness: that of the Father’s from imputation at salvation, and that of the Son’s through union with Him.
2CO 5:21, “He who knew no sin was made sin for us, that we might be made the righteousness of God in Him.”
3. We also share the election of Christ, an escrow election, EPH 1:3‑4.
4. We also share the destiny of Christ, predestination, EPH 1:5‑6
5. We share the sonship of Christ, GAL 3:26. He is the Son of God; “we are sons of God by faith in Christ Jesus,” JOH 1:12; GAL 3:26.
GAL 3:26 For you are all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus.
We are also the heirs of God and joint-heirs with the Son of God; ROM 8:16‑17; 1PE 1:4.
ROM 8:16 The Spirit Himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God,
ROM 8:17 and if children, heirs also, heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, if indeed we suffer with Him in order that we may also be glorified with Him.
7. We are a royal priesthood, sharing the priesthood of Christ, 1PE 2:5,9.
8. We have eternal security; we can never get out of union with Christ whether we are winners or losers, JOH 10:28; 1PE 1:5.
JOH 10:28 and I give eternal life to them, and they shall never perish; and no one shall snatch them out of My hand.
9. We are adopted into the royal family of God, EPH 1:5.
EPH 1:5 He predestined us to adoption as sons through Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the kind intention of His will,
10. We are a royal family of kings.
The point being is that we share everything Christ is and has, for the head and the body are united into one spiritual entity.
His physical birth is analogous to our spiritual birth.
On the day of the virgin birth, which is when our Lord became true humanity, it was the beginning of a brand new life for Him as well as the day that we were born again and shared His eternal life with us.
So that we can say on this Christmas day, that as we celebrate our Lord’s birthday, because of being in union with Him, we should be celebrating our new birth as well.
It’s more blessed to give than to receive, ACT 20:35.
MAT 25:40 ‘Truly I say to you, to the extent that you did it to one of these brothers of Mine, {even} the least {of them,} you did it to Me.’