1	John 2:23-3:21
2	Introduction: When Jesus came into our world, he brought light and hope and salvation.
3	John 2:1-11 – The First Miracle (Sign) It’s about the transforming power of Christ.
4	John 2:12-22 – The Cleansing of the Temple It’s about Jesus’ authority. The Jewish leaders demanded a sign. “Destroy this temple, and I will raise it again in three days.” The ultimate sign that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, would be his death and resurrection.
5	Under the Old Covenant, the Jewish believers came to a place, the Temple, to worship God. Today, we come not to a place, but to a person. We come to Jesus Christ and we can worship him anywhere.
6	How can Jesus turn sinners into saints? It all begins with the new birth.
7	I. We cannot come to God by human merit or wisdom. John 2:23-3:3 Jesus knows the heart of every man, woman and child. Only God can know that and Jesus is God.
8	What is the heart of man like? “The heart is deceitful above all things and beyond cure. Who can understand it?” Jeremiah 17:9
9	Nicodemus is a man. His story is a test case. A religious man – a Pharisee, devout and moral. An educated man – “Israel’s Teacher” and a scholar. A leader in government – the Sanhedrin, the highest legislative body in Israel An aristocrat – a member of a respected family. A Jewish man – God’s chosen people.
10	Nicodemus was like the best of men, but is he good enough?
11	Jesus cuts right to the heart. “I tell you the truth, no one can see the kingdom of God unless he is born again.”
12	We cannot enter the kingdom of God without a new birth.
13	II. We must be born again. John 3:4-21 How can this be? How can a man be born a second time?
14	All men are born spiritually dead, because of sin. We need to be given new life by the Spirit of God.
15	We must be born of “water and the Spirit”.
16	What is the water? Suggested answers Natural birth – “flesh gives birth to flesh” John’s Baptism – repentance Christian Baptism – not likely The Word of God – a metaphor (Boice) The Holy Spirit – as in John 7:37-39 (Wuest)
17	How do we know if someone is born again? It’s like the wind. (Verse 8) We can see the effect.
18	What are the evidences of grace? Faith – Romans 10:9-10 Assurance – Romans 8:16 Fruit – Galatians 5:22-23, I John 2:3-6
19	What must we do to be born again? Look and live.
20	“They traveled from Mount Hor along the route to the Red Sea, to go around Edom. But the people grew impatient on the way; they spoke against God and against Moses, and said, "Why have you brought us up out of Egypt to die in the desert? There is no bread! There is no water! And we detest this miserable food!"
21	Then the LORD sent venomous snakes among them; they bit the people and many Israelites died. The people came to Moses and said, "We sinned when we spoke against the LORD and against you. Pray that the LORD will take the snakes away from us."
22	So Moses prayed for the people. The LORD said to Moses, "Make a snake and put it up on a pole; anyone who is bitten can look at it and live." So Moses made a bronze snake and put it up on a pole. Then when anyone was bitten by a snake and looked at the bronze snake, he lived.” Numbers 21:4-9 NIV
23	Points of Comparison: The Israelites were guilty of disobedience. They were under condemnation by God. They could not rescue themselves. The venom was deadly and there was no cure. The object lifted up before them was a symbol of their judgment. They were urged to look and live.
24	Conclusion: Jesus is God’s provision for our sin. John 3:16-18
25	Look to Jesus and live.