Page 33 - The Gospel of John - Student textbook

The wind blows where it pleases, and you hear its sound, but you don’t know where it comes from or where it
is going. So it is with everyone born of the Spirit.” The wind, of course, blows wherever it wants, sometimes
very powerfully, but we cannot see it. We can see only the consequences of it, the manifestations of its power,
but we don’t fully know where it’s coming from or where it’s going. Everyone who is born of the Spirit is
somewhat like that, because spiritual rebirth is the work of God.

Unless you are born of the Spirit of the Living God, whatever

you do in your flesh will avail nothing

The Indictment
John 3:9 “How can these things be?” asked Nicodemus. “Are you a teacher of Israel and don’t know these
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things?” Jesus replied.

Although nothing in this passage suggest Nicodemus was converted that evening (and verse 11 strongly implies
that he was not), he never forgot his discussion with Jesus. Later, he boldly defended Him before the Sanhedrin
(7:50 – 51) and helped Joseph of Arimathea prepare his body for burial (19:38 – 39) actions that indicate the
presence of genuine faith in his life. Sometime after that memorable evening he spent with Jesus but before the
crucifixion, Nicodemus came to understand sovereign grace and experience the reality of the new birth.

Responding to The Divine Offer of Salvation
(John 3:11 – 21)

John 3:11 “I assure you: We speak what We know and We testify to what We have seen, but you do not accept
Our testimony. If I have told you about things that happen on earth and you don’t believe, how will you
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believe if I tell you about things of heaven? No one has ascended into heaven except the One who
descended from heaven—the Son of Man.

He said, in a sense: “Nicodemus, you’re talking to the One who has come down from heaven. You are talking to
the Son of Man in person, and you don’t understand these basic truths that My Father has revealed in the Old
Testament.” Sadly, Nicodemus and his fellow religious leaders were rejecting His testimony.

The Problem of Unbelief

John 3:11 “I assure you: We speak what We know and We testify to what We have seen, but you do not accept
Our testimony. If I have told you about things that happen on earth and you don’t believe, how will you
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believe if I tell you about things of heaven?

Paul wrote, "A natural man does not accept the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him; and
he cannot understand them, because they are spiritually appraised" (first Corinthians 2:14). Even those who
have never heard the gospel are still culpable for their ignorance, because they reject the truth that they do
have (Romans 1:18 – 21).

The plurals we and our encompassed Jesus’ disciples and even John the Baptist, who understood and testified to
the truth of salvation. They provided a contrast with the “we” in verse two (which referred to Nicodemus and his
colleagues). The Pharisees and their fellow Jews were ignorant of the new birth, but Jesus and his disciples were
certain about regeneration – the truth to which they testify. Moreover, Nicodemus spoke with human authority,
but Jesus with heavenly authority (Matthew 7:28 – 29). The Lord's use of the plural pronoun “you” indicates that
his rebuke went beyond Nicodemus to include the nation of Israel.
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