Holy spirit mysteries

HOLY SPIRIT MYSTERIES
EDITED BY GLENN PEASE
CONTENTS
1. MYSTERY OF THE NEW BIRTH.
2. MYSTERY OF THE VIRGIN BIRTH.
3. THE MYSTERY OF GODLINESS.
4. THE MYSTERY OF OMNIPOTENCE.
5, THE MYSTERY OF HOLY SPIRIT LANGUAGE.
1. MYSTERY OF THE NEW BIRTH.
Shelton Sanford
Scripture Reading: John 3:1-8
“Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born againhe cannot see the kingdom
of God…The wind blows where it wishes, and you hear its sound, but you do
not know where it comes from or where it goes. So is everyone who is born of
the Spirit.” (John 3:3,8)
The phrase “born again” has been tossedaround so lightly and is often so
misunderstood. Jesus was telling Nicodemus one or the greatmysteries of the
Christian faith — the mystery of the new birth. The phrase “born again” is
referring to the biblical doctrine of regeneration. Regenerationis the

implantation of a new principle of spiritual life in the heart of a personfrom
which all the other spiritual gracesflow.
The secondchapterof Paul’s letter to the Ephesians helps us understand what
regenerationis: “And you were dead in the trespassesand sins in which you
once walked…andwere by nature children of wrath, like the rest of mankind”
(Ephesians 2:1,3c). We were born into the world with a sin nature that we
inherited from our first father Adam (Romans 5:12ff). This sin nature
renders us spiritually death. Because we are born spiritually dead, we cannot
acceptnor understand the things of God: “The natural person does not
acceptthe things of the Spirit of God, for they are folly to him, and he is not
able to understand them because they are spiritually discerned” (II
Corinthians 2:14). The Scripture cannotbe any clearer — an unregenerate
person is not able to understand the things of God. Thus Paul wrote in
Romans: “No one understands, no one seeks forGod” (Romans 3:11). This is
the state of mankind at birth — dead in sin, unable to understand the things
of God, lostand hopeless.
But God acts in a powerful and mysterious way: “But God, being rich in
mercy, because ofthe greatlove with which He loved us, even when we were
dead in our trespasses, made us alive togetherwith Christ — by grace you
have been saved” (Ephesians 2:4-5). Godbrings spiritual life to spiritually
dead sinners. This is the mystery and miracle of the new birth! God steps in
and saves us by causing us to be born again.
Peterfurther describes this new birth: “Blessedbe the God and Fatherof our
Lord Jesus Christ! According to His greatmercy, He has causedus to be
born againto a living hope through the resurrectionof Jesus Christ from the
dead” (I Peter1:3). The very powerthat raisedJesus from the dead is the
same power that causes us to be born againto a living hope! When this
happens, we are given a new ability to understand the things of God; we
graspthe greattruths of the gospel;and we repent of our sins and embrace
Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior. Until we are “born again” we are
unable to do these things. Do you see that our salvation is a miracle? Are you
not in awe of what God has done for us?

John Newtonsummed up his experience with the new birth in one of his
hymns: “Amazing grace! how sweetthe sound — that saved a wretchlike
me! I once was lost but now am found, was blind but now I see.”
O Holy Spirit, I thank you for the new birth You gave me many years ago.
You opened my eyes to the gospeland gave me the gifts of repentance and
faith in Jesus Christ. I know that it is a miracle that I have been saved. Let
me never take my salvation for granted."
Dr. David Harrell
Will you join me this morning by taking your Bibles and turning to the gospel
of John. We find ourselves this morning in John 3. I’ve entitled my discourse
to you “The Mystery of the New Birth” and this is what we will examine this
morning.
Let me read the text to you beginning in verse 1 of John 3 through verse 10,
“1 Now 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 have come from God as a teacher;for no one cando these signs that
You do unless God is with him.’ 3 Jesus answeredand said to him, ‘Truly,
truly, I sayto you, unless one is born again he cannotsee the kingdom of
God.’ 4 Nicodemus said to Him, ‘How cana man be born when he is old? He
cannot enter a secondtime into his mother's womb and be born, can he?’ 5
Jesus answered, ‘Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born of waterand the
Spirit he cannotenter into 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 be amazed
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 do not know where it comes from and
where it is going;so is everyone who is born of the Spirit.’ 9 Nicodemus said to
Him, ‘How can these things be?’ 10 Jesus answeredand said to him, ‘Are you
the teacherof Israeland do not understand these things?’”

The Son of God is now revealing himself in ever widening circles in his public
ministry. He began, as you recall, with the wedding feastin Cana of Galilee.
He has now moved from there to Jerusalemwhere he cleansedthe temple
during the Passoverfeast. Ofcourse, that was a time of massive disruption.
Can you imagine literally thousands of animals stampeding everywhere, going
across the mount, probably down into the Kidron Valley, fleeing from their
Creator? Canyou imagine terrified merchants and moneychangers? Temple
police? All of the worshippers fleeing from this unknown prophet? Can you
imagine all of them then watching him over the next severaldays because that
Passoverfestivalwould have taken about sevendays? Canyou imagine them
seeing all of his miracles?
One of the spectators thatobservedall of these things was this man
Nicodemus. His name means “victor over the people.” He is introduced here
in verse 1, “Now there was a man of the Pharisees,named Nicodemus, a ruler
of the Jews.”The party of the Pharisees – Pharisees meaning “separated
ones” – originated during the intertestamentalperiod when many of the Jews
were trying to reactagainstthe Greek Hellenists and their secularism.
Probably, the Phariseeswere anoffshootof the Hasidim which means “the
pious ones.” Which, by the way, are today the greatestantagonists of
Christians probably in the world, certainly in Israel. Having just come back
from Israel, I encounteredmany of the Hasidim. They are the ones that
typically wearthe big fur hats; they are the Pharisees ofthis day and they
hate Christians. In fact, they say that Christians are worse than Nazis. “The
Nazis killed our bodies but the Christians kill our souls.”
Although the Pharisees were correctin many of their doctrinal position, like
most people, even people of today who reactagainstsecularismin ways that
are not consistentwith biblical truth, they became self-righteous legalists.
Their religion was merely external for they insisted that everybody agree with
them. Unfortunately, their externalism focusedprimarily on the outward
conformity of the law, especiallythe Oral Law, the oral traditions of men
which, frankly, they esteemedeven more highly than the written law and we
even see this as a problem in Christian churches today. The Pharisees insisted
that outward conformity to what they determined to be the law of God was
really the goalof life.

They were notorious for their holier than thou attitude and their ridiculous
man-made rules that they adhered to, especiallywith respectto the
observance ofthe Sabbath, the Sabbath laws. Forexample: a woman was not
allowedto look in a mirror on the Sabbath because they said she might see a
gray hair and be tempted to pluck it and, therefore, violate the order of no
work on the Sabbath. One was allowedto swallow vinegaron the Sabbath as a
remedy for a sore throat but you could not gargle because thatwould be
work. One was only allowedto eatan egg laid on the Sabbath day as long as
one intended to kill the hen. And it went on and on and on from there.
Imagine living under that kind of oppression. In fact, today if you go to Israel,
they have Shabbat elevators and this is for the Orthodox and if you go into
them on Shabbat, you will find that the door automatically closesand it stops
at every floor as it goes up and as it comes down, it stops at every floor,
therefore, the Orthodox will avoid “lighting a fire” on the Sabbath because
the buttons are already pushed for you. You say, “This is just insane.” Well,
it’s not if you believe that salvation is by works.
Nicodemus held a very prominent position with the Jews. In fact, as we will
see, he was the teacherof the Jews, a member of the Sanhedrin, a scholar, a
teacherof the law and he belonged to this party. Both the New Testament
record as well as other documents, expose just the rank hypocrisy among the
Pharisees.There was a huge chasm betweenwhat they taught and their
external adherence to the law and what was going on in their heart. They were
zealous for the law and regulated by ritual and yet Jesus calledthem “blind
guides of the blind.” In Matthew 23:14, Jesus said, “Woe to you, scribes and
Pharisees,hypocrites, because youdevour widows'houses, and for a pretense
you make long prayers.” Verse 23 of that chapter, he says, “Woe to you,
scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites!For you tithe mint and dill and cummin,
and have neglectedthe weightierprovisions of the law:justice and mercy and
faithfulness.” He went on to say, “You blind guides, who strain out a gnat and
swallow a camel!”
So, in this context, we can now approach this profound historicalnarrative
where I would like to focus on three things: 1. an arrogantquestion; 2. a
mysterious answer;finally, an inevitable response.

Now, having witnessedJesus overthese severaldays, Nicodemus was
experiencing, frankly, a Holy Spirit induced curiosity that causedthis blind
guide of the blind to seek our always accessible Saviorand in verse 2 we read
about it, “This man came to Jesus by night and said to Him, ‘Rabbi, we know
that You have come from God as a teacher;for no one cando these signs that
You do unless God is with him.’” Some might ask, “Why did he come at
night?” Well, the text really doesn’t say. Some will argue that, “Well, maybe
he was afraid of his fellow leaders,” but I don’t believe that that is the case
because it’s too early in Jesus’ministry for there to be sufficient opposition to
justify that kind of fearand that type of criticism from other Sanhedrin
members. Perhaps this was just a convenient time. Don’t you know, with all of
the miracles that Jesus was producing, the crowds were already beginning to
gather around him.
So, we don’t know for sure, however, it’s interesting, in other passages in
John’s gospel, night is used metaphorically to depict moral and spiritual
darkness and to be sure, the spiritual symbolism applies here. Like so many
people today, Nicodemus was groping in the darkness ofhis own sin, of his
false religious system and yet he was too blind to even see it. But, folks, it’s not
really important why he came but that he came and also that the Savior was
willing to receive him.
So, the Fatheris now beginning to draw this man unto himself by the powerof
his Spirit, pointing him to the Savior, his only hope of salvation. So, here
Nicodemus asks:1. an arrogantquestion and I believe this is implied in what
we find here in the text. He’s basically asking:who are you? Notice he calls
him “Rabbi,” so he addresses him with respectof a colleague andhe says “we
know.” In other words, I and others that I’ve talkedwith, “we know that you
have come from God as a teacherfor no one cando these things that you do
unless God is with you.” This seems respectfulbut bear in mind that this blind
guide of the blind was in no position to assess who Jesus wasand I believe this
can be proven by his own words. Notice that he just acknowledgesJesusas a
teacher, not even as a prophet, and certainly not as the Son of God, the
promised Messiah. Is this not indicative of people down through redemptive
history since Jesus came who, in their arrogance, refuse to acknowledge him
as the Son of God? Oh, they will say that he is a teacher, he was a great

teacher, some will say he was a greatprophet, but due to the utter darkness of
their spiritual condition, they do not see him as the Son of God, the Messiah,
the only hope of salvation.
So, something supernatural has to happen in order for Nicodemus to see who
Jesus really was. Yes, he had seenthe miraculous signs that Jesus did but he
would not see the Messiah. So, now we have the penetrating eye of divine
omniscience in the Lord Jesus Christ peering into his heart, knowing what he
is thinking, discerning his spurious faith and although Nicodemus did not ask
Jesus who he was, Jesus knew that in his arrogance andin his ignorance, this
was exactlywhat this prominent and blind religious leader was asking.
This leads us secondly to the mysterious answer, one that completely ignored
Nicodemus’reference to the miraculous signs. Instead, we see Jesus going
right to the heart of the matter, right to the heart of his arrogance and
unbelief. Verse 3, “Jesus answeredandsaid to him, ‘Truly, truly, I sayto you,
unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God.’” Talk about a
shock. Canyou imagine what Nicodemus was thinking? What he heard Jesus
say and accuratelyso, is that all of my fastidious law-keeping is worthless. My
self-righteous systemis to no avail. Hoping in myself is in vain and there is
nothing I can do to save myself because he says here, “unless you are born
again, you cannotsee the kingdom of God, the kingdom of salvation, eternal
life.”
Moreover, implied by this statement, Jesus is saying that the kingdom is far
more than the temporal earthly blessings that were evidencedby my
miraculous signs, these signs that you were so intrigued with and that the
people are so intrigued with. Folks, think about it: man will deify any leader
who will give them what they want. We see that today in the idolatrous
worship of our Presidentby so many people. But let that leader place high
moral and spiritual demands upon the people and they will instantly reject
him. This would be the response ofthe nation of Israelas Jesus offered
himself as their Messiah, their MessiahKing, and the kingdom for which they
so desperatelylonged. Because ofthe unyielding powerof sin and human
nature, man will always rejectthe one true God that asks them to receive

what they insist they do not need and they do not want. That’s preciselythe
dynamics that we have here at this time in Israel.
So Jesus knew Nicodemus was wondering who he was and what he needed to
do in order to have everlasting life and before he even had a chance to really
ask it, he says, “You must be born again.” Now, my friends, this is not an
invitation because this is not something anyone can do themselves but this is a
statementof fact: you must be born again.
Now, knowing Jesus was notspeaking to him in a purely literal sense that a
man must literally physically be reborn, he sticks with Jesus’analogy,
perhaps even in an effort to express some measure of scorn. After all, what
Jesus saidwas very insulting to this religious leader and his system. In verse 4,
“Nicodemus saidto Him, ‘How can a man be born when he is old? He cannot
enter a secondtime into his mother's womb and be born, canhe?’ Jesus
answered, ‘Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born of waterand the Spirit
he cannot enter into the kingdom of God.’”
An important clarification:some believe the term “water” is a reference to
baptism like John’s water baptism or like Christian baptism as we understand
it today. Some would use this text and some others, to support the heretical
position of baptismal regeneration, that there is something mystical in the
baptismal waters wherebythe Spirit effects new birth. That is so easily
refuted by so many passagesand I certainly don’t want to get off on all of
that, but suffice it to say that Nicodemus would have never understood
anything close to this. It would have been totally foreign for him to
understand that waterreferred to baptism as the essentialrequirement for
entering into the kingdom. Furthermore, that would have been the last thing
you would want to require of a salvationby works ritualist because if that was
the answer, allthey would do is line everybody up, getthem dunked and now
they’re kingdom bound. They would just obey that works, add it to their list.
So what does the waterrefer to? As we will see, it refers to the cleansing work
of the Holy Spirit. For this reason, the word “water” is never againused in
this entire discussionof the new birth. The emphasis is solely placedupon the
sovereignwork of the Holy Spirit which is analogous to the wind in verse 8,

the work of the Sonof Man in verses 14 and 15, and believing in him in verses
15 and 16.
Also, my friends, remember that Jesus is speaking to an Old Testament
scholar, one who knew how these terms were used in the sacredtext. So, he
knew preciselywhat Jesus meantby connecting waterand Spirit together.
Namely, he was speaking ofspiritual renewaland cleansing. Also, it’s
important for us to bear in mind that Jesus, once again, is using New
Covenantkingdom language and symbolism in keeping with what John has
recordedin sequence thus far. Remember, earlier John records for us how the
true bridegroom comes and he turns the water of the Old Covenant into wine
symbolizing his redeeming and cleansing blood of the New Covenant.
And then you have the Passovercleansing ofthe leavenof sin in the temple in
Jerusalem, a temple that would be made obsolete by the resurrectionof Christ
which would lay the foundation for the new spiritual temple that would one
day replace it, namely the church. Once again, in keeping with the mission as
the MessiahKing to offer the kingdom to Israel, he uses New Covenant
kingdom language and symbolism that this Old Testamentscholarwould
understand. And immediately, this brilliant scholarknew that Jesus was
referring to Ezekiel36:24-27. There we read, “For I will take you from the
nations, gather you from all the lands and bring you into your ownland. Then
I will sprinkle cleanwateron you, and you will be clean;I will cleanse you
from all your filthiness and from all your idols. Moreover, I will give you a
new heart and put a new spirit within you; and I will remove the heart of
stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. I will put My Spirit within
you and cause youto walk in My statutes, and you will be carefulto observe
My ordinances.”
Once again, dear friends, please remember: Jesus is presenting himself as the
Son of God. He is the MessiahofIsraelwho is offering himself as their King.
He is willing to establish his kingdom upon the earth but there are spiritual
elements of salvation that come only through the blessing of regeneration, the
new birth and this must come first and it must come from him. As we just
read in Ezekiel36, we find in that whole chapter there is a beautiful tapestry
of the spiritual as well as physical blessings of the prophetic kingdom. We’re

still awaiting for the physical blessings in the Messianic reignbut as we just
read in verse 24, he speaks ofthe regathering of Israel back into their land. He
speaks ofthe divine cleansing from sin that is neededin verse 25;the
supernatural bestowalof a new heart in verse 26; the gift of the Holy Spirit to
come and dwell within that new heart in verse 27. And if we were to take time
to continue looking at what is spokenof there in that greatpassage, we will see
in verses 29 and 30 the promise of a greatincrease in the agricultural yield of
the land and an utter cessationoffamines during the Messianic reign. We will
see in verse 31 how there will be a loathing of former sins proving genuine
repentance. We will see in verses 34 and 35 that the wastelandwill be
reclaimedand the ruined cities will be rebuilt. We see in verse 36 that the
nations will be made aware that the Lord, the one true God, the God of Israel,
is responsible for all of these things. And in verses 37 and 38 we will read of a
greatincrease in Israel’s population to once againfill their once desolated
cities.
So, beloved, think of these things wheneveryou come to the word of God
because the central theme of all prophecy from beginning to end is that the
restorationof man’s lost dominion and his reconciliationto a holy God must
come through the Sonof David, the Lord Jesus Christ. This is the one being
presentedhere. But none of this can everhappen apart from a supernatural
cleansing, a supernatural renewal, thus Jesus says “youmust be born again.”
This would have been the context Nicodemus would have understood and
because ofthis, Jesus laterrebuked him. You see, the new heart in Ezekiel’s
prophecy is the result of the cleansing work of the Holy Spirit and as we will
see in verse 10, Nicodemus, you should have knownthis.
Notice Jesus goesonto say in verse 6, “"Thatwhich is born of the flesh is
flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit.” You see, only flesh can
begetflesh and only the Spirit canaffect a spiritual transformation in a
person’s nature. This is what is necessaryin order for a man to enter the
kingdom of God so God must do something that man cannotdo. God must do
something to make us acceptable to a holy God and prepare us for heaven.
This literally turned Nicodemus’ world upside down. This was contrary to
everything that he believed and everything that he lived.

In verse 7, Jesus knowing all of this says, “Do not be amazed that I said to
you, 'You must be born again.’” Do not marvel, Nicodemus, this should be
obvious to you. Notonly because it’s in Scripture and you are a teacherof the
word, but surely you canlook around at this self-evident truth. Just look
around at the unrestrained wickednessin the people, even in your own life,
that adhere to this salvation by works system. You see, as we look at
Scripture, we learn that the natural man, the unsaved man, is devoid of
spiritual life. He is under the curse of God; he is dead in his trespasses and
sins. He is a spiritual corpse that must be raisedfrom death to life and unless
God does something, he will remain under that curse for eternity.
Beloved, let me pause for a moment. This is true of our children that do not
know Christ; this is true of our husband, our wife that does not know Christ;
any of our family members; all of our friends. They must be born again. That
is the greatestneedof our children. That is the greatestneedof every person
that has not placed their faith in Christ. My friend, I would submit to you, I
don’t care how religious you are, you are wholly dependent upon the
sovereigngrace ofGod for salvation. Your most esteemedrighteousness is
nothing more than filthy rags compared to the righteousness that you need
that can only come from the imputed righteousness ofthe Lord Jesus Christ.
Nicodemus just didn’t get it.
Jesus illustrates the process ofhow this happens in a most remarkable way.
Notice in verse 8, he says, “The wind blows where it wishes.”The analogyis
this: like the Spirit of God, the wind is sovereignin all of its actions. It cannot
be predicted, it cannot be summoned, it cannot be stopped. It is irresistible. It
is inscrutable. Jesus wenton to say, “and you hear the sound of it, but do not
know where it comes from and where it is going.” In other words, its origin,
its direction, its destiny, are all secretto men, so too the Spirit. Then Jesus
closes by saying, “so is everyone who is born of the Spirit.” Think about it: we
can only see the effects ofthe wind, right? So, too, we can only see the effects
of the Spirit of God in his sovereignwork of regeneration.
When a person is truly born again, he becomes a new creationin Christ, a
new creature. The old things pass away, the new things come. We begin to
love the things that we once hated. Our desires, our habits, our private and

public conduct all change. If this were not so, a man would be miserable in
heaven assuming he would even be able to get in. Think about that for a
moment: a person that is not born againwould be as miserable in heavenas
an atheist would be here in this worship service. There would be nothing in
heaven that he would enjoy. Perhaps this is you. Let me put it to you very
clearly, as practicallyas I know how: if you come to a church service and you
just endure the teaching of the word of God rather than feed upon it, you’re
not born of the Spirit. If singing the greathymns of praise to Godis not an
overflow, an expressionof the doxologies ofyour heart, you’re not born of the
Spirit. If you have no desire to be alone with God in private worship, you have
not been born of the Spirit. If you don’t deliberately and joyfully seek ways to
serve Christ and live for the glory of God, how can you say you’ve been born
of the Spirit? If you don’t love the brethren, if you don’t love other believers
and long to fellowship with them, you’re not born of the Spirit. Your religion
is a sham.
My friend, if all of these things are irksome to you, why on earth do you think
you would enjoy these things that will occurroutinely in heaven? You will be
out of place, assuming you could get in. Dear friend, if you don’t celebrate the
grace ofGod, if you don’t rejoice in the gospeland love to tell others about
Christ, if you don’t love Christ and long to see him face-to-face, ifyou do not
have the inner witness of the Holy Spirit of God that causes youto experience
the exhilaration of knowing that God loves you, if you don’t loathe your sin
and find yourself wearyof this world, longing to some day be removed from it
and be in the presence ofthe lover of your soul, you have not been born of the
Spirit. You see, you’ve gotto have a new nature. You’ve got to have a divine
nature or you will never even enter in the kingdom.
So, you ask, how can I be born again? Well, Jesus will go on to answerthis.
For example, in verse 15, he says, “whoeverbelieves will in Him,” referring to
the Sonof Man, the Lord Jesus Christ, “have eternallife.” And as we will see,
what he’s saying here is that when the convicting wind of the Holy Spirit
blows upon a man and causes him to behold the crucified Christ and causes
him to see that only in Christ can he have any hope of salvation, when the
Spirit of Godcauses that to happen within a man, that man is instantly born
of the Spirit.

Oh, what a bizarre teaching this was to Nicodemus. This spiritual cadaver. He
was incredulous because whathe was thinking is this: if Jesus is right, then
everything that I believe is wrong. Salvation cannotbe earned, it can only be
receivedas some kind of a gift. A gift from God alone, by grace alone, through
faith alone, in Christ alone. And probably the hardest thing of all was for him
to believe that this Jesus was the Christ.
So, we’ve seenthe arrogantquestion and the mysterious answer, finally the
inevitable response in verse 9, “Nicodemus saidto Him, ‘How can these things
be?’” I have heard that response a thousand times and so have you. In other
words, you have gotto be kidding me. Do you expect me to buy all of that?
Verse 10, “Jesus answered and said to him, ‘Are you the teacher,” there is the
definite article, by the way, which the original language would mean that “you
would be the preeminent teacherof Israel and do not understand these
things?’”
Apparently Nicodemus walkedawayfrom Jesus that night still groping in the
darkness of his unbelief, still in need of new birth, still under the
condemnation of a holy God. Here John uses Nicodemus, frankly, as a symbol
of the whole Jewishnation, a people curious about Jesus but blind to the truth
that he was their Messiah, blind to the truth that what must happen for a man
to enter the kingdom of God is for God to do this miraculous work of
regeneration.
May I offer you some goodnews? Evidently the irresistible wind of the Spirit
accomplishedits sovereignpurposes in Nicodemus’heart. Later we learn that
he came to faith in Yeshua as Messiah. In chapter 7 we witness his bold
defense of Jesus before the Sanhedrin and in chapter 19 we learn that he even
assistedJosephof Arimathea in preparing Jesus’body for burial. You see, the
same work of regenerationwill occursome day even with the remnant of
Israelwhen the Messiahreturns. This is consistentwith all of the New
Covenantpromises. Ezekielspeaks ofthis in chapter 39:29, he says, “I will not
hide My face from them any longer, for I will have poured out My Spirit on
the house of Israel, declares the Lord GOD.” Likewise,speaking ofour Lord’s
return in Zechariah12:10, he speaks throughhis prophet and says, “Iwill
pour out on the house of David and on the inhabitants of Jerusalem, the Spirit

of grace and of supplication,” and here’s why, “so that they will look on Me
whom they have pierced; and they will mourn for Him, as one mourns for an
only son, and they will weepbitterly overHim like the bitter weeping over a
firstborn.”
Here in this amazing story, dear friends, we see so clearlythe rich theology of
salvation. A theologythat is so distorted in our modern era. I wish to give you
right now a brief, yet a very concentratedsummary of the more important
elements of the biblical theologyconcerning salvationthat emergedfrom this
text. To save time, I’m not going to give you all of the references.If you want
them, see me privately and I will give them to you. My friend, begin with this:
Scripture is extremely clearthat unregenerate man, in other words people
that do not believe in Jesus as their only hope of salvation, is spiritually dead.
Scripture teaches that he is utterly incapable of discerning spiritual truth. It
teaches that man is so bereft of understanding that he will never seek afterthe
one true Godon his own. Man is totally unable to save himself. The word of
God teaches us that by reasonof depravity, all that man is and all that he does
is fundamentally offensive to a holy God. By reasonof condemnation, man
enters this life already under the sentence ofdivine wrath because ofsin
committed in Adam. The word of God teaches that by reasonof alienation,
man is set in rebellion againstGod and finally by reasonof a corrupted will,
the will of man is fully setin him to do evil. There is nothing about man’s
sinful nature that conforms to the moral characteror desire of Godand
because ofhis innate corruption, he is not only alienatedfrom God and
subject to his wrath but he is utterly unable to save himself.
If man’s depravity and inability isn’t bad enough, he also has to deal with
Satanwho blinds them. The word of God says that Satan is the god of this
world that blinds the minds of the unbelieving that they may not see the light
of the gospelofthe glory of Christ who is the image of God. Consequently,
man is in desperate need for God’s help and unless God does something, he
will never make a decisionfor Christ. We can’t getthat to happen. Yes, man
has a free will, he has a free will to chooseChrist but because ofhis sinful
nature, he does not have the desire to do so. He will always not choose Christ.
Belovedplease hearthis: the issue is man’s desire not his will. His will is in
bondage to his depravity.

In light of this dilemma, God must do something to regenerate those that he
has chosenbefore the foundation of the world in order that they might make
that decisionfor Christ. He must cause this person to be born again. We read
of this in the biblical term “regeneration.” Regenerationis the instantaneous
supernatural impartation of spiritual life to the spiritually dead. Palingenesia
in the original language. “Palen” means “again”;“genesia”means “to be
born.” We read of this for example in Titus 3:5 where Paul says, “He savedus
by the washing of regenerationand renewing by the Holy Spirit.”
What an amazing thing, amen? What an amazing thing. Don’t you feel proud
that you made the right decision? In reality, we know that were it not for his
grace we would have never made that decision. So, what we see in the word of
God is that the author of regenerationis God himself. The agentof
regenerationis the Holy Spirit. The instrument of regenerationis the word of
God and the proof of regenerationis joyful obedience to the Lordship of
Christ. Nicodemus didn’t understand these things, at leastnot at first.
In the imagery of being born again, new birth, secondbirth, however you
want to put it, perfectly illustrates man’s utter inability to save himself. You
think about it. I would ask you: what contribution do you make to your
physical birth? Absolutely nothing. The same is true with your spiritual birth.
So, bottom line: salvationis accomplishedfrom beginning to end and in all of
the parts in betweenby God alone lestanyone should boast. Salvation
originates from the plan of God, it is made possible by the grace of God and it
is brought to completion by the power of God. That’s what the word of God
teaches. Indeed, every aspectof our salvation, from regeneration to
glorification, is ultimately the work of Godalone.
Having said this, we also see in Scripture that no one is saved apart from his
will. We are calledupon to believe, right? To repent? And we rejoice that by
his grace and according to his elective purposes, all who have been chosento
be saved will make that decision. The greatmystery here, that inscrutable
mystery betweenGod’s sovereigngrace and man’s responsibility. We know
that, according to Scripture, by the power of the Holy Spirit, Godconvicts
sinners of sin, he reveals to them the horrible consequencesofit and thus

drives them freely and voluntarily to fall upon Christ for salvation. I have no
idea how God does that but I have no idea how he does anything else.
So, every man is in desperate needof a spiritual heart transplant, a
supernatural work of God to give them eyes to see. Every man is in need of a
transformation that only God canaccomplish. All of us are in need of a work
of grace that transforms our heart, that changes our governing disposition.
My friend, what folly to claim that somehow a few drops of wateron an
infant’s head is going to somehow perform such a miraculous transformation.
What manner of lunacy is it to explain that somehow this inexplicable work of
grace couldbe achievedby immersing someone in the waters of baptism. A
ritual experience, it’s by that false professor, Simon Magus, you might recall
yet Peterfound him to be one who remained “in the gallof bitterness and in
the bondage of iniquity.”
While I’m on this, if waterbaptism were essentialto salvation, why would
Paul say in 1 Corinthians 1:14, “I thank God that I baptized none of you
exceptCrispus and Gaius?” What sense wouldthat make if baptism were
essentialfor salvation? When the Philippian jailer asked, “Whatmust I do to
be saved?” Pauldid not say, “You need to get baptized.” No, he said, “You
need to believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and you shall be saved.” You see, my
friends, water baptism by immersion is merely an outward expressionof an
inward reality, a demonstration of our union with Christ in his death and
burial and resurrection.
Dearfriends, do not be deceivedas Nicodemus was. It is God who is the
author of regeneration, notyou. Not any man. And in ways beyond our ability
to fathom, God works upon the desires of the human will so that a sinner will
freely and voluntarily choose to come to Christ and be saved. In Romans 9:16,
Paul puts it this way, “So then it,” referring to salvation, “does not depend on
the man who wills,” in other words, man’s free will, “orthe man who runs,”
referring to human effort. But what does it depend on? “But on God who has
mercy.”
I don’t know how much clearerit can be in terms of practicalapplication this
morning. My friend, if you’re here today and you know nothing of what I’ve

discussedwith respectto loving Christ, serving him and having your faith in
him, then today you need to repent and experience the miracle of the new
birth and place your faith in Christ. I would plead with you to do this before
it’s too late.
But for those of us who know Christ, may I suggestthat there will be four
things, very briefly, four things that will be characteristicofyour life. First of
all, your life will be filled with praise. Praise will be the theme of every song in
times of joy or in times of sorrow. Why? Becausethe wind of the Spirit has
blown and causedyou to be born again, to be fit for the kingdom and to long
for it. Think about it. Peterknowing he was about to be crucified because of
his faith in Christ, wrote this to the persecutedsaints in 1 Peter1, beginning in
verse 3, and here we see the praise, “Blessedbe the God and Father of our
Lord Jesus Christ, who according to His greatmercy has causedus to be born
againto a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead,
to obtain an inheritance which is imperishable and undefiled and will not fade
away, reservedin heaven for you.” He went on to say, “In this you greatly
rejoice, eventhough now for a little while, if necessary, you have been
distressedby various trials.”
Beloved, our life will not only be filled with praise but also we will preach, if I
could stick with the p’s here. You will be a preacher. Jesus said, “Go into all
the world and preachthe gospelto all creation.” I find it fascinating. We
never know when the sovereignwinds of grace will move upon some poor
sinner, do we? We never know. We never know where the word will go forth
and the Spirit with it.
I remember severalmonths back, it was about 6 o’clock in the morning,
Nancy and I were just waking up on the Lord’s day and the phone rang.
Naturally, when the phone rings you immediately, especiallyin a pastor’s
home, you realize there is something bad that we are about to hear but it was
quite the contrary. A man with a very Englishaccentwanted to talk with me.
He told me that about two years ago he happened to come onto our website
and he had heard one of the sermons that I preachedin Revelationand he
beganto listen and by God’s grace, through the powerof the Spirit, he was
miraculously saved. He said, “I was savedout of the homosexualescortservice

in London.” And he said, “I’ve been a faithful listener and I’m now enrolled
in Bible schooland I just wanted to thank you and your church for preaching
the word.”
Who knows what the Lord will do? So, we preach but also we pray. We pray
for the winds of conviction, the new birth, to blow upon our family and our
friends, the countless thousands who are lifeless corpses, deadin their sins.
Finally, we need to be prepared. By that I mean, we need to be prepared to
hoist our sails of obedience when suddenly we hear the sounds of a favorable
breeze in our life. When we see that the Spirit of God is beginning to work,
perhaps, in the life of another person so that we can take full advantage ofthe
Spirit’s gracious power. We need to be alert. We need to be prepared. How
tragic to watchnegligentChristians miss some unsuspectedmovement of the
Spirit. Sometimes we are like the sailorwho was in desperate need of a
favorable wind but he missedit because he was asleepin the night when the
wind blew.
My friends, stay alert. Stay alert. Listen for the winds. Often it will be a mere
whisper. Sometimes it will be a whisper like the rustling of the leaves as the
Spirit of Godspeaks to your conscience. Listenfor it and then take full
advantage of his gracious operations in our life. God only knows where that
breeze that might turn into a wind will carry you, right? God only knows.
May we all celebrate the miracle of miracles, the greatmystery of the new
birth.
Let’s pray together.
Father, we are overwhelmed when we understand the reality that were it not
for you we would never be saved. Were it not for you we would never choose
you so, Lord, we celebrate that work of grace that you have wrot within our
hearts by the power of your Spirit. May these truths animate us to praise, to
preach, to prayer and to be prepared to hoist our sails when you blow in our
life that we might be servants ready to do, ready to go, whereveryou take us.
I pray finally, Lord, for those that know nothing of these greattruths. O God,
I would beg you on their behalf and for your glory that you would so

overwhelm them with guilt, with misery, that they will make it their priority
to confess whatthey know to be true, to no longersuppress the truth in
unrighteousness but by the powerof your regenerating Spirit, run to the cross
and experience the miracle of the new birth. Lord, we ask you that. We all
have the list of names so, Lord, we plead for them this day. Thank you for the
joy that we have in Christ for it is in his name that we pray. Amen.
The Mystery of the New Birth
"Marvelnot, that I said unto thee, ye must be born again. The wind bloweth
where it listeth, and thou hearestthe sound thereof, but canstnot tell, whence
it cometh and whither it goeth. So is every one, that is born of the Spirit."
John iii. 7, 8.
I hear the mountain wind, but see it not;
Its mournful sigh startles my mind's repose;
I listen; but it passes quick as thought;
I know not whence it comes, norwhere it goes.
'Tis thus with those, who of the Spirit are born,
A change comes o'erthem; how they cannot say.
They wake, as from the darkness wakesthe morn,
And mental night is changedto mental day.
'Tis God's mysterious work. 'Tis He can find,

Deepsearching, and 'tis He can touch
The deep and hidden spring that rules the mind,
And change its tendencies, and make it such,
Redeemed, restored, as it was not before.
We know that 'tis God's work;but we can know no more.
— American Cottage Life (1850)XXXVII.
Postedby Craig L. Adams at 7:30 AM
Terry Hendrix
The New Birth, A Mystery
John 3:10 Jesus answeredandsaid unto him, “Are you a masterof Israel, and
don’t know these things?
Jesus indicates that it is inexcusable that Nicodemus does not understand
regenerationand the new birth.
Nick, A Religious Authority, MissedIt
Doubtless, he himself had for years taught others the conditions of entrance to
the kingdom of God. These conditions were castin terms of obedience to
God’s commands, devotion to God, happy submission to His will. However,
here he is facing a condition he has never heard expressed, the absolute
requirement of birth from above.
The New Birth In The Old TestamentThe Water Symbolism
For the Jews in the Old Testament, waterwas usedfor purification. If a
person was defiled and unclean, that

person had to go through ceremonialwashing of water.
As a master of the Law, he would have remembered Ezekiel36:24-27,”I’llput
My Spirit within you. I’ll sprinkle water upon you and you shall be clean.” In
Ezekiel, waterand spirit come togetherforcefully, first to signify cleansing
from impurity, and secondto depict the transformation of heart that will
enable people to follow God wholly.
When water is used figuratively in the Old Testament, it habitually refers to
renewalor cleansing, especiallywhen it is found in conjunction with ‘spirit’.
In Ezekiel37:3 The language is reminiscent of the ‘new heart’ an expression
that revolves around the promise of
the new Covenant Jeremiah31:29.
WaterDoes NotEqual Baptism
John 3:5 unless a man be born of waterand of the Spirit..
When John wrote this, Christian baptism had been practiced for several
decades.
The need for a radical transformation is what is emphasized, the fulfillment of
Old Testamentpromises anticipating the outpouring of the Spirit, and not a
particular rite. If baptism is associatedin John’s readers’minds with
entrance into the Christian faith, and therefore with new birth, then they are
being told in the strongestterms that it is the new birth itself that is essential,
not the rite.
The WaterOf The Word
The Holy Spirit takes the Word of Godand purifies the soul of a man, we are
cleansedby the Word as the Spirit of God administers it to us.
Ephesians 5:26 That he might sanctify her by cleansing her with the washing
of water by the word.
The Work Of The Spirit

John 3:8 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.
Jesus says the wind cannotbe controlledor understood by human beings, but
we can detectthe wind’s effects.
As with the Spirit, we can neither controlnor understand Him, but what He
does in the life of the individual
is undeniable and unmistakable.
Both the mysterious and the undeniable powerof the Spirit of God are
displayed in the Scriptures to which Nicodemus had devoted so many years of
study. Ezekiel11:19
The Waterof the Word & Spirit Work Together
Ephesians 4:5 one Lord, one faith, one baptism;
We are regenerated, baptized, indwelt and sealed, all at the same point. Paul
told the Ephesians that there is one Lord, one faith, and one baptism, not 25.
At the time of salvationis the only time you’re ever baptized with the Holy
Spirit. Nowhere in the Bible does it have anything to do with tongues or
anything else. It is only at the point
of salvationthat involves the baptism of the Spirit.
When a person is cleansedby the washing of the Wordand the Spirit of God
recreates him/her, then they canenter the Kingdom of God. That’s exactly
what Jesus is saying. The Holy Spirit must recreate them. He must regenerate
them, and this cleansing happens only by the powerof the Word of God, not
an external ritual.
At the point of faith when you receive Christ, the Spirit of God recreates you.
He regenerates youby the washing of the powerof the Word and brings life
where there was death.
Jesus is saying to Nicodemus and to us, without trying to split it all up, “it’s all
an inside job done by the Spirit.”

Now that Jesus the Messiahhas come, allmans’ laws, rituals, rules and all
that other baloney is worthless.
Salvationhappens by the Spirit of God inside, washing you cleanand
recreating you in union with Christ. That is the only way one enters into the
Kingdom of Heaven.
The New Birth
The Necessityofthe New Birth
Book ofJohn Chapter 3
There are severalways used in the Scriptures that speak of the New Birth.
1) Regenerationactuallymeans "new birth".
Tit 3:4 But after that the kindness and love of God our Saviour toward man
appeared,
Tit 3:5 Not by works of righteousness whichwe have done, but according to
his mercy he saved us, "by the washing of regeneration", andrenewing of the
Holy Ghost;
Tit 3:6 Which he shed on us abundantly through Jesus Christ our Saviour;

Tit 3:7 That being justified by his grace, we should be made heirs according to
the hope of eternal life.
2) Restitution of all things.
Act 3:20 And he shall send Jesus Christ, which before was preachedunto you:
Act 3:21 Whom the heavenmust receive "until the times of restitution of all
things", which God hath spokenby the mouth of all his holy prophets since
the world began.
3) Passing from life to death.
1Jn 3:14 We know that we have passedfrom death unto life, because we love
the brethren. He that loveth not his brother abideth in death.
4) Becoming a New Creature.
2Co 5:17 Therefore if any man be in Christ, "he is a new creature":old things
are passedaway;behold, all things are become new.
5) Jesus simply says, "We must be Born Again".
We cancall all these things the Doctrine of Salvation!

*****Joh3:1 There was a man of the Pharisees,named Nicodemus, a ruler of
the Jews:
Joh 3:2 The same came to Jesus by night, and said unto him, Rabbi, we know
that thou art a teachercome from God: for no man can do these miracles that
thou doest, exceptGod be with him.
We could say that Nicodemus is remembered as the secretdisciple but in fact
Nicodemus was also a Pharisee.
In fact Nicodemus was a member of the Sanhedrin Court, the Supreme Court
of Israel.
Nicodemus was a ruler, a high ranking official in the government of Israel.
It is obvious that he had seenJesus perform miracles that as Nicodemus said,
He could not have done "exceptthat God be with Him".
Nicodemus first came to Jesus to prove Him wrong, but the truth has a way
proving to yourself that it is you who are wrong.
We could also saythat the Holy Spirit was convicting Nicodemus of the truth!
Nicodemus came to Jesus as formal religionist who had forgottenthe work of
a Shepherd.

Nicodemus had to ask the Lord, "just who are you" because he did not know
Him, but the Lord would ask Him why did he not know, if he was who he said
he was.
Jesus was and is much more than a Teachercalledof God!
Act 10:38 How God anointed Jesus ofNazareth with the Holy Ghost and with
power: who went about doing good, and healing all that were oppressedof the
devil; for God was with him.
In truth, miracles and signs are not that important because the Word of God
is most important.
The importance comes whenwe know the Lord well enoughthat our lives are
changedforever!
Religionwill getin our way of knowing Christ.
Religionwill only allow us to reverence Christ.
Religionwill not allow for the Spiritual change that comes from knowing the
Lord in a personal relationship.
Religionwill leave you in the darkness, while accepting Christ for who He is,
will allow the Light of the Lord to erase that darkness forever!
The truth is once Christ begins a work in our soul, He will carry that work to
an ultimate completion!

What was Jesus'answerto the question of Nicodemus?
*****Joh3:3 Jesus answeredandsaid unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto
thee, Excepta man be born again, he cannotsee the kingdom of God.
Jesus says bluntly, that unless there is a "Spiritual Change", then no one can
see the kingdom of God!
We know what that word "Born" means so, what does that word "again"
mean?
1) Again means we must have a clearunderstanding of these things!
Luk 1:3 It seemedgoodto me also, having had perfect understanding of all
things from the very first, to write unto thee in order, most excellent
Theophilus,
2) Again means it must be repeated, it must be a personalrelationship, a
complete change!
Gal 4:9 But now, after that ye have knownGod, or rather are known of God,
how turn ye againto the weak and beggarlyelements, whereunto ye desire
againto be in bondage?
3) Again means it must be from above!We cannot be "BornAgain" by using
the things of this earth.

Joh 19:11 Jesus answered, Thoucouldesthave no powerat all againstme,
exceptit were given thee from above:therefore he that delivered me unto thee
hath the greatersin.
Being "Born Again" means a complete change of mind and a complete change
of direction, awayfrom the bondage of Satan.
We enteredthis world by a physical birth, so we cannotenter the Spiritual
world without a Spiritual birth!
We are dead to the Spiritual world until the sin of this world has been
removed!
Eph 2:1 And you hath he quickened, who were dead in trespassesandsins;
Eph 2:2 Wherein in time past ye walkedaccording to the course of this world,
according to the prince of the powerof the air, the spirit that now worketh in
the children of disobedience:
So how can these things be possible?
*****Joh3:4 Nicodemus saith unto him, How can a man be born when he is
old? can he enter the secondtime into his mother's womb, and be born?
How were we first created?

Gen 1:26 And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness:
and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the
air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing
that creepethupon the earth.
Gen 1:27 So God createdman in his ownimage, in the image of God created
he him; male and female createdhe them.
Gen 2:7 And the LORD Godformed man of the dust of the ground, and
breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul.
God first gave us life made in His image.
When Adam chose to not obey God, He chose death instead. So all his
children even down to our own generationare now born in the image of Adam
and face eternaldeath.
Now mankind loves this world, that will end in death, more than they love
Heaven in which is eternallife.
So we must be "Born Again" in the image of God.
We are "Born Again" by accepting the life that is in Jesus Christand
therefore now we are to be in the image of Christ or Christlike or we say
Christian.

This is not a maybe thing, this is a certainty, or we will never enter into God's
Heaven really God's New Heaven!
*****Joh3:5 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.
We should understand that what the Lord was saying to Nicodemus was not
impossible for him to understand, just as we understand.
We all must have an inward cleansing and an inward experience ofHoly
Ghostinfluence.
What Jesus was saying to Nicodemus was, "in your present moral state you
are unable to acceptthe idea of the New Birth!
This is what is wrong with the world today!
The Kingdom of God begins with a complete submission to the Will of God!
To enter this Kingdom there must be our New Birth!
We must understand that we need a "new life" based upon a "New
Foundation" that is not of this world!
Act 26:18 To open their eyes, and to turn them from darkness to light, and
from the powerof Satan unto God, that they may receive forgiveness ofsins,
and inheritance among them which are sanctified by faith that is in me.

**The "born of water". Forthe Jews, the High Priests had to go through a
ritual cleansing before He could offer a sacrifice to the Lord.
To the Christian that ritual cleansing has been replacedby the waterof
regenerationby the Holy Spirit.
Tit 3:3 For we ourselves also were sometimes foolish, disobedient, deceived,
serving divers lusts and pleasures, living in malice and envy, hateful, and
hating one another.
Tit 3:4 But after that the kindness and love of God our Saviour toward man
appeared,
Tit 3:5 Not by works of righteousness whichwe have done, but according to
his mercy he saved us, by the washing of regeneration, and renewing of the
Holy Ghost;
Tit 3:6 Which he shed on us abundantly through Jesus Christ our Saviour;
Tit 3:7 That being justified by his grace, we should be made heirs according to
the hope of eternal life.
Why is this necessary?
*****Joh3:6 That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of
the Spirit is spirit.
Job 15:14 What is man, that he should be clean? and he which is born of a
woman, that he should be righteous?

Job 15:15 Behold, he putteth no trust in his saints;yea, the heavens are not
cleanin his sight.
Job 15:16 How much more abominable and filthy is man, which drinketh
iniquity like water?
Our flesh, that is void of the Holy Spirit, cannot be at peace with God! The
flesh that is washedand regeneratedby the Holy Spirit, will be at peace with
God and possessthe fruit of the Holy Spirit.
Jas 3:17 But the wisdom that is from above is first pure, then peaceable,
gentle, and easyto be intreated, full of mercy and goodfruits, without
partiality, and without hypocrisy.
Jas 3:18 And the fruit of righteousness is sownin peace of them that make
peace.
We should not wonder why these things are true!
*****Joh3:8 The wind bloweth where it listeth, and thou hearestthe sound
thereof, but canstnot tell whence it cometh, and whither it goeth: so is every
one that is born of the Spirit.
We cannotsee the wind, but we know that the wind exists because we canfeel
it and we can hear it as it moves from place to place.
Even today modern scientistcannot truly know where or when the wind is
going to blow or where the wind came from.

They certainly cannot understand those gentle breezes that move around us
eachday.
To understand what Jesus is saying, no one can understand the workings of
the Holy Spirit exceptGod.
We canlearn many a lessonfrom the Book ofJob and we can learn this lesson
to.
Job 33:4 The Spirit of God hath made me, and the breath of the Almighty
hath given me life.
This is something we all need to understand!
The Holy Ghostmust be allowedto do His work by convicting us of sin!
1Co 12:13 For by one Spirit are we all baptized into one body, whether we be
Jews orGentiles, whether we be bond or free; and have been all made to
drink into one Spirit.
Even with the greatestTeacherofall speaking, Nicodemus was so full of
religion and worldliness, he just could not grasp what the Lord was teaching
Him.
*****Joh3:9 Nicodemus answeredand said unto him, How can these things
be?

Joh 3:10 Jesus answeredand said unto him, Art thou a master of Israel, and
knowestnot these things?
We should understand that this was not some new doctrine for the Jews, even
the songs they sang in worship gave this doctrine.
Psa 51:10 Create in me a cleanheart, O God; and renew a right spirit within
me.
Psa 51:11 Castme not awayfrom thy presence;and take not thy holy spirit
from me.
Psa 51:12 Restore unto me the joy of thy salvation; and uphold me with thy
free spirit.
Psa 51:13 Then will I teachtransgressors thy ways;and sinners shall be
convertedunto thee.
This is the same doctrine of the Millennial Kingdom when the Lord next
returns to this earth.
Eze 36:25 Then will I sprinkle cleanwaterupon you, and ye shall be clean:
from all your filthiness, and from all your idols, will I cleanse you.
Eze 36:26 A new heart also will I give you, and a new spirit will I put within
you: and I will take awaythe stony heart out of your flesh, and I will give you
an heart of flesh.
Eze 36:27 And I will put my spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my
statutes, and ye shall keepmy judgments, and do them.
Eze 36:28 And ye shall dwell in the land that I gave to your fathers; and ye
shall be my people, and I will be your God.

The was very little excuse for a Pharisee or a member of the Sanhedrin to not
know these things!
They were too busy looking upon all others to take a look at themselves!
Jesus will have these same words for us when we refuse to study the Word of
God, as we are commanded.
What is sure is just what the Lord says. If we cannot receive the truth of our
existence upon this earth, we will never understand the Heavenly things that
are also real!
*****Joh3:11 Verily, verily, I say unto thee, We speak that we do know, and
testify that we have seen;and ye receive not our witness.
Joh 3:12 If I have told you earthly things, and ye believe not, how shall ye
believe, if I tell you of heavenly things?
The words of the Lord are certainand their fulfillment sure!
When we do not believe the words of the Lord, then we have rejectedthe
Giver of all life!
On this day Nicodemus could not believe what he was hearing from the Lord,
but we know that maybe he went back and studied what the Lord had said

and comparedit to the Scriptures for in the end Nicodemus became a
believer!
As for those who doubt the Lord today, they need only look at the nation of
Israeland the Jewishpeople as a guarantee of the truth of God!
God expects us to believe and accepteveryWord He has given to us and we
cause our own problems when we do not!
God divides our world into only two groups, those that believe and repent and
those who do not believe nor repent!
1Jn 5:9 If we receive the witness of men, the witness of God is greater:for this
is the witness of God which he hath testified of his Son.
1Jn 5:10 He that believeth on the Son of God hath the witness in himself: he
that believeth not God hath made him a liar; because he believeth not the
record that God gave of his Son.
1Jn 5:11 And this is the record, that God hath given to us eternallife, and this
life is in his Son.
1Jn 5:12 He that hath the Sonhath life; and he that hath not the Son of God
hath not life.
It is a fact that no man in the flesh has ascendedup to Heavenbecause they
would perish from the Glorious Majestythat is God.
The Lord Jesus Christ had to take on the form of a man after He came to this
earth to keepfrom destroying mankind. He came to save and not to destroy.

We should also know that the Lord Jesus returned to Heavenin His glorified
body and whateverthat body looks like is the way our body look when we see
Jesus.
1Jn_3:2 Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appearwhat
we shall be: but we know that, when he shall appear, we shall be like him; for
we shall see him as he is.
Before these things can take place, the Lord Jesus had to die!
*****Joh3:14 And as Moseslifted up the serpent in the wilderness, evenso
must the Sonof man be lifted up:
Joh 3:15 That whosoeverbelieveth in him should not perish, but have eternal
life.
The serpent in the wilderness is a greatBiblical truth.
The escapeesfrom Egypt had journeyed in the wilderness safe in the harms of
God and had become discouragedforgetting that had been redeemedand God
had met all their needs.
When God had heard enough of their complaining God sent fiery serpents
among the people and those who were bitten would die without God's help.
God gave some instructions to Moses onhow this people could be saved.

Num 21:8 And the LORD said unto Moses,Make thee a fiery serpent, and set
it upon a pole: and it shall come to pass, that every one that is bitten, when he
lookethupon it, shall live.
Num 21:9 And Moses made a serpentof brass, and put it upon a pole, and it
came to pass, that if a serpent had bitten any man, when he beheld the serpent
of brass, he lived.
These people could only live if they put forth the effort to gaze upon that
serpent that was raised, so more of them could see.
Jesus said:"if you are familiar with this story in the Bible you could better
understand what He had come to this earth to do"!
It may not have been until Jesus was raisedupon the cross atMount Calvary
that Nicodemus totally understood what the Lord was teaching him that day.
God came down from Heaven and took upon Himself the body of a man just,
so this body would die to pay the sin debt of all this world.
It took the pure Lamb of God to be such a sacrifice!
We may ask why God would do such a thing and we will get the same answer
every time!

*****Joh3:16 For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begottenSon,
that whosoeverbelievethin him should not perish, but have everlasting life.
We see that to God, salvationis a love thing!
1) The fact is: God "So" loved.
2) The evidence was:God gave.
3) The purpose was:to save.
4) The proof was:God sent His Sonto die.
5) The means of salvation:it is only through the Lord Jesus Christ that
salvationand eternal life in the Kingdom of God cantake place!
To the Jews this was a wakening. Theyhad thought that JehovahGod was
only the God of the Jews.
This world we live in, is not the perfectplace that so many depend upon.
This world we live in, is not to be the world of the angels that did not leave
with Lucifer.
This world we live in, is not a world of creations suchas Adam that was said
to be very good.
This world we live in, lies in wickedness!
God made us to be as common as the sunshine but those that close their eyes,
the sun is no goodto them.

Salvationextends to all the ignorant and the educated, all the very worstand
all the very best. Salvation is for all!
When we that know the Lord think about it, there is no greatergift that God
could have given to us!
Mostall the world of false religion do not believe that God can love, and they
are so very wrong!
God loves with so much affection, it cannot be matched even by the love of our
Mothers!
1Ti 1:14 And the grace ofour Lord was exceeding abundant with faith and
love which is in Christ Jesus.
1Ti 1:15 This is a faithful saying, and worthy of all acceptation, thatChrist
Jesus came into the world to save sinners; of whom I am chief.
1Ti 1:16 Howbeit for this cause I obtained mercy, that in me first Jesus Christ
might shew forth all longsuffering, for a pattern to them which should
hereafterbelieve on him to life everlasting.
1Ti 1:17 Now unto the King eternal, immortal, invisible, the only wise God, be
honour and glory for ever and ever. Amen.
God does not allow unworthiness to cloud His eyes!
God does not allow religion to cloud His eyes!
God does not allow cruelty to cloud His eyes!
God does not allow anything to stop His love for us all!!!!!!!!!!

God has a loving nature!
1Jn 4:8 He that loveth not knowethnot God; for God is love.
1Jn 4:16 And we have known and believed the love that God hath to us. God
is love; and he that dwelleth in love dwelleth in God, and God in him.
God wants everyone in this world to know His love!
1Jn 3:16 Hereby perceive we the love of God, because he laid down his life for
us: and we ought to lay down our lives for the brethren.
God also wants this world to know that His love is complete when we accept
His Son, the Lord Jesus Christ.
Joh 16:26 At that day ye shall ask in my name: and I say not unto you, that I
will pray the Father for you:
Joh 16:27 For the Father himself loveth you, because ye have loved me, and
have believed that I came out from God.
Joh 16:28 I came forth from the Father, and am come into the world: again, I
leave the world, and go to the Father.
There is not enough of paper in all the world to write down all the words that
describe the love of God!!!

It is God's love that draws us to Christ and it is Christ who brings us to
everlasting life!
But there are always those who chose to go their own way trusting this world
to show them life.
*****Joh3:17 For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world;
but that the world through him might be saved.
Joh 3:18 He that believeth on him is not condemned: but he that believeth not
is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only
begottenSon of God.
We know that love of God does not mean that all the world is saved.
We know that God is not disappointed in His designbecause we know God
had this plan of salvationin place before the first day of creation.
We must believe that God has provided the only means of salvation and we
must volunteer to reachout and take this precious gift of God!
God's love is based upon the "redeeming" work of the Lord Jesus Christ.
God's love is based upon the energy of the Holy Spirit.

Therefore salvationcancome only by the combine work of the Triune God,
the Holy Trinity.
We know the proof of God's love, shownHis greatness whenHe raisedthe
Lord Jesus Christ up from that garden tomb!
Jesus Christ is now the Mediator of God's love!
If we should ever wonder, it is not the believer who canever be condemned, it
is only the unbeliever!
Every sinner holds righteousness in his own hands!
The unbeliever is condemned alreadybecause they remain under the present
curse upon this world brought on by the sin of Adam!
Rom 3:10 As it is written, There is none righteous, no, not one:
Rom 3:11 There is none that understandeth, there is none that seekethafter
God.
Rom 3:12 They are all gone out of the way, they are together become
unprofitable; there is none that doeth good, no, not one.
Rom 3:23 For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God;
The sinner is condemned because they have not believed the truth of God!

1Jn 5:10 He that believeth on the Son of God hath the witness in himself: he
that believeth not God hath made him a liar; because he believeth not the
record that God gave of his Son.
1Jn 5:11 And this is the record, that God hath given to us eternallife, and this
life is in his Son.
Amen UNKNOWN
2. MYSTERY OF THE VIRGIN BIRTH.
The doctrine of The Virgin Birth is the secondof two doctrines which has
been increasinglyundermined by many who profess Christianity. There is
goodreason..This doctrine, like that of The Resurrection, points to the
divinity and humanity of Christ. By it we know that Christ is both God and
man, having two distinct natures in the one person. Both of them show God's
active initiation of, and participation in, man's redemption. Satanwould do
his bestto make us believe otherwise.
Now, it is not conjecture, but a matter of fact that these doctrines have come
under continuous attack over the centuries. So why the need to raise the
alarm now? It is because the attacks onthese doctrines are coming from

within the ranks of the church, from professing believers, atan alarming rate.
The church is facing a greatapostasy.
The ignorance that abounds in a majority of 'Christians' today is appalling. I
was at a birthday party when I overhearda conversationamongstsome young
adults. The topic had casuallydrifted to Christmas. One of them posed the
question as to what Jesus'family name must have been. “Wellif he's called
'Jesus Christ' then his family name must be Christ!”, said another rather
nonchalantly. The rest shruggedtheir shoulders, as if it really didn't matter
who Christ was, and the conversationdrifted to less 'boring' topics. Mind you,
these are 'regular Christians' from a mainline Christian denomination that
I'm talking about. Is it any wonder why such 'Christians' are easilyturned
awayby false teachers -'like a wave of the sea, blown and tossedby the wind'!
When we talk of the virgin birth,what we are really referring to is 'virgin
conception'. The two terms are used synonymously. Mary conceived
supernaturally, but gave birth naturally. Essentially, the doctrine affirms that
Jesus'conceptionin the womb of Mary was not the result of any sexual
relationship whatever. I emphasize the word 'any' to refute some false
theories that Mary was somehow impregnatedby God or else she could not
have become pregnant. Neither was she impregnated by any man in order to
conceive Jesus.Marywas a virgin at the time of her conception. She remained
a virgin until after Jesus was born. The scriptures clearlyindicate that Joseph
did not have sexual intercourse with her until after Jesus ' birth (Matt.1:25).
Many attempts have been made to come to terms with how this conception
was possible. As a result of this intellectual probing, many other questions
arose involving his humanity, his sinlessnessandhis divinity, which it is not
my purpose to discuss in this paper.
I believe there are two major reasons why the virgin birth cannot be dismissed
as essentialto Christian belief - and in fact to salvationitself !
Firstly, it is stated categoricallyin the New Testament. By this I mean (1)
unconditionally (2) absolutely(3) explicitly (4) directly and (5) in plain
speaking terms. There are two places where the virgin birth is explicitly stated
– Matthew 1:18-25 and Luke 1:26-38. These two accounts are sufficient to

convince us that the virgin birth is a fact. Importantly, neither of the accounts
is presented as an hypothesis but as simple factual statements. As with all of
God's supernatural acts, no explanation is given as to how he accomplishedit.
On our part, we must believe it because the Bible tells us that it happened. To
refuse to believe it is to repudiate the authority of the Bible.
The Christian accepts many concepts which are beyond his understanding,
things which only God knows and does in his omniscience, omnipotence and
omnipresence. These concepts continue to remain an enigma to the human
mind because they are outside the realm of scientific explanation. As we know,
Science seeksto explain the unknown by reference to the known. By definition
it (1) depends on deductions from selfevident truths (such as in mathematics)
and (2) seeks to explain material phenomena basedmainly on observation,
experiment, and induction (as in chemistry and physics for example).
In relation to the first, science refusesto acceptthe self-evident truth about
God as revealedin His word. Yet, this refusal amounts to a denial of its
legitimacy according to the definition of what constitutes pure science!And in
relation to the second, sciencecontinues in its futile attempts to reduce the
supernatural to the natural. Both God and his works must be 'proved' in a
test tube. This is why science cannotcome to terms with the mysteries and
miracles of the bible. In order to grasp these mysteries the human mind must
go beyond science and be on a par with God, possessing His omniscience. But
this cannotbe, because man is a limited creature and God is the all powerful
Creator. Forall his aspirations, man will never become God! It follows then
that the human must remain content with accepting the truth of Scripture, not
because he fully understands it, but simply because Godsaidit. We callthis
unconditional acceptancefaith. It operates in a supernatural dimension and is
both a gift from God, and an enabling by His Holy Spirit. Science cannotgive
us this faith because it only deals with natural things. Faith in the things of
God does not come from understanding; on the contrary, understanding
comes from faith. The greatChapter 11 in Hebrews tells us of people of God
who exercisedthis sort of faith. And so should we, if we are to count ourselves
amongstbelievers!

Secondly, the virgin birth is God 's unique way to put His redemptive plan
into action. According to the Oxford dictionary the word unique means
'unmatched, un-equalled, having no like or equal or parallel'. I can find no
better word to describe God's method of incarnation. It is upon the fact of the
virgin birth that the entire biblical doctrine of Christ's person and work
hangs. Put simply, if Jesus Christ is not virgin born, he is not sinless, and if he
is not sinless, then he himself needs a Saviour. If he himself needs salvation,
then he cannot possibly be our Saviour, and the entire redemptive plan falls
worthless to the ground. It follows then that we remain dead in our sins and
our faith in him is futile! It is easyto understand now why Satan works
incessantlyto belie the virgin birth.
Let me elaborate on this a little. Man was createdsinless, but he sinned and
came under the penalty of death (Gen. 2:16-17). He thus needed someone to
redeem him from death. But none of Adam's race could provide this because
all who came from him would be born in sin and would need redemption
themselves. Yet, if man was to be redeemed then man must die for man. Only
God could redeem man, but by His own law (sinless man must redeemsinful
man), he could not redeem man as God. He had to become man. However, if
he was to become man, it must be apart from sin otherwise it would violate
His own essentialnature of sinlessness.Further, he himself would be a sinner
in his humanity and therefore unable to save other humans. This is a 'catch
22' situation – a real dilemma. But not for God! His way of overcoming this
apparent dilemma is seenin the miracle of the Virgin Birth. Through the
virgin conception, God clothed himself with human flesh, and was born of the
virgin Mary into the human race. Adam was createdas a man but Christ
'took flesh' and became man. How he did this is a mystery. It belongs in the
supernatural realm along with all of God's mighty works. It is by faith we
acceptthat the God who was able to create Adam in the flesh was likewise
able 'to take flesh' on himself and become man, entering the human race as a
sinless man.
We callthis act of God 'the incarnation'. By this acthe took sinless human
nature and united it with His sinless divine nature. He is God 'in the flesh'. In
Christ “dwellethall the fulness of the Godhead bodily” (Col. 2:9). By this he
showedhimself fully God and fully man. Understandable? NO!Scientifically

provable? NO!Acceptable? YES, through faith. On what basis? BECAUSE
GOD IS TRUTH AND CANNOT LIE. There ends any further dispute!
Now, the only time that anyone could have problems with the doctrine of the
virgin birth is if they don't believe God to be whom he claims to be! After all
of the evidence He has made available, their real problem is not a lack of
understanding but of unbelief, which is a fatal state as scripture points out in
numerous places. It's as simple as that!
© PreachThe word-with PastorJosephRodrigues – www.kerysso.org
3. THE MYSTERY OF GODLINESS.
Question:"What is the mystery of godliness?"
Answer: The phrase the mystery of godliness, found in 1 Timothy 3:16, is part
of an introduction to an ancienthymn. In the English Standard Version, the
verse reads this way: “Greatindeed, we confess,is the mystery of godliness:
He was manifested in the flesh, vindicated by the Spirit, seenby angels,
proclaimed among the nations, believed on in the world, takenup in glory.”
Other translations speak of “the mystery from which true godliness springs”
(NIV) and “the greatmystery of our faith” (NLT). The words that follow in 1
Timothy 3:16 explain the mystery of godliness:God became flesh and lived
among us (cf. John 1:1, 14).

The Greek wordmusterion (“mystery”), when used in the New Testament,
refers to the things of God that were once hidden but were later revealed
through Christ and the coming of the Holy Spirit (Acts 2:4). A mystery is that
which can only be known through the revelationof God (Romans 16:25–26;
Colossians 1:26–27).Itis something that in times past had been hidden but is
now revealedto God’s people. Jesus spoke of“the mystery of the kingdom of
God” (Mark 4:11, NAS) that He was at that time revealing to His disciples.
The apostle Paulused the word mystery 21 times in his epistles:the mystery
of God (Colossians2:2), the mystery of faith (1 Timothy 3:9), the mystery of
iniquity (2 Thessalonians2:7), etc. In eachcase, the “mystery” involved a
declarationof spiritual truth, revealedby Godthrough divine inspiration. The
New English Translationof 1 Timothy 3:16 speaks ofthe mystery of godliness
as an “amazing revelation” concerning our faith.
The Greek wordtranslated “godliness”in most English translations means “a
proper response to the things of God, which produces obedience and righteous
living.” As He walkedthis earth, Jesus was the embodiment of pure godliness,
which led Him to lay down His life for unworthy sinners (John 10:18). His life
was dedicatedto the glory of the Father, and He always did what pleasedHim
(John 8:29). Christians pursue godliness when we follow the example of Jesus
in dedicating every decisionto the glory of God (1 Corinthians 10:31).
Godliness is not a suggestion;it is a command (1 Peter1:15–16;Hebrews
12:14).
The mystery of godliness is the heart of the Christian faith. The hymn that
Paul records in 1 Timothy 3:16 contains a summation of Jesus’ministry. The
godliness of God’s Son is now to be reflectedin us. Christianity is not a system
of rules and actions that must be performed to appease a deity. At the heart of
Christianity is the mystery of godliness—the factthat Godtook on human
flesh to live among the people He created(Philippians 2:5–11). As a Son, Jesus
remained completely obedient to His Father in heaven and then offered
Himself as a perfect sacrifice in our place (John 10:18; Hebrews 4:15; 2

Corinthians 5:21). God then raisedHim from the dead, thereby conquering
death for all who trust in Him (Matthew 28:6; 1 Corinthians 15:3–7, 13–14,
55). Because Jesus took ourplace, sinful humans may be declared righteous
before God and be “born again” (John 3:3). The new birth is spiritual and
results in a change of heart that produces true godliness (2 Corinthians 5:17;1
John 3:8–10). How a life is transformed is the mystery of godliness and is
comprehended only through the revelation of God in Christ. “Beyondall
question, the mystery from which true godliness springs is great” (1 Timothy
3:16).
The Great Mystery of Godliness
By Wayne Jackson
"In his first letter to Timothy, Paul declaredthat one of his reasons for
writing the epistle was that men might know how to behave themselves in the
house (family) of God, which is the church of the living God (3:15).
Further, he affirms that it is the responsibility of those in the church to be the
pillar and support of the truth. The great truth, so worthy of Christian
support, has to do with the redemptive mission of Jesus Christ, which the
apostle summarizes in the following fashion:
And without controversygreatis the mystery of godliness;He who was
manifested in the flesh, Justified in the spirit, Seenof angels, Preachedamong
the nations, Believedon in the world, Receivedup in glory (v. 16, ASV).
In this study, some of the thrilling gems of this context will be considered.
The expression“without controversy” translates the Greek term
homologoumenos, whichliterally denotes that which one confesses, hence, it

might be rendered “confessedly,” “undeniably,” “most certainly.” It is a
declarationof absolute confidence.
Next, the apostle speaks ofthe great“mystery of godliness.” “Mystery” is a
rendition of the Greek word musterion. The term does not, as many suppose,
refer to that which is mysterious, hence, incapable of being understood.
Rather, in Bible parlance, the word denotes that which was formerly
obscured, but which has now been announcedthrough the gospelof Christ. It
has to do with the unfolding of the heavenly scheme of salvation. Compare the
expression“the mystery of the faith” in verse nine of this same chapter.
Perhaps the most comprehensive discussionofthis matter is to be found in
Paul’s epistle to the Ephesians, where the apostle declares that the “mystery,”
which in former generations was unknownto men, has now been revealed
through Spirit-inspired apostles and prophets, so that those who read the New
Testamentrecordcan perceive the heavenly plan which is fulfilled in the work
of Christ (cf. 3:1-12).
The word “godliness”in the Greek Testamentis the noun eusebia. This term,
along with its various cognate forms, suggests piety, devotion, religion, or a
disposition of God-towardness.
One version renders the phrase, “Greatindeed, we confess,is the mystery of
our religion” (RSV). A fair paraphrase might be, “Undeniably, greatis the
strategyof the divine plan of salvation.”
Subsequently, Paul lists six magnificent propositions which form a miniature
outline of the life of Christ. They are as follows:
“He [Christ] who was manifestedin the flesh”
Though the King James Versionhas it, “God was manifest in the flesh,” the
better manuscript evidence supports the rendition “He who” (cf. Metzger
1971, 641). Be that as it may, the text certainly argues for the incarnation of
Christ, hence, his deity. It postulates the mission of one who was existing in a
pre-fleshly condition, but who appeared in human form.

John wrote: “And the Word became flesh, and dwelt among us” (John 1:14).
This affirmation was in direct conflict with certain gnostic ideas of antiquity
which assertedthat Christ could not have possesseda body of flesh, since flesh
was intrinsically evil—a conceptwhich John labels as the spirit of the anti-
christ (1 John 4:2, 3).
The New Testamentreveals that Jesus was manifestin the flesh for the
following reasons:
(1) He became flesh so that men might see, in visible form, a commentary on
Deity. John affirmed that Christ came to “declare” (exegesato—togive an
exegesisof)the Father (1:18). Thus, to view the Lord was to comprehend
something of the nature of his heavenly Father (John 14:9).
(2) He became flesh to identify with us (Hebrews 5:1-10). Having lived in
human form, and thus been subjected to temptation (Hebrews 4:15), he is able
to effectively function as our high priest, hence, come to our aid when we are
tempted (Hebrews 2:17, 18).
(3) He was manifested as man to provide us with a model for living (1 Peter
2:21; 1 John 2:6).
(4) Since it is impossible for Deity, as a spirit being, to die (cf. 1 Timothy 6:16),
Christ became fleshso that he might be subjectedto death (Hebrews 2:9, 14),
hence qualified to put away sins (1 Corinthians 15:3; 1 John 3:5).
(5) Finally, the Lord was manifestedthat “he might destroy the works of the
devil” (1 John 3:8), which, of course, will be realized ultimately at the time of
his secondcoming.
“Justifiedin the spirit”
First, we must note that the word “justified” does not suggestthat Christ at
one time was sinful, hence, at some point, was pardoned or justified from sin.
That cannot be the meaning (cf. 2 Corinthians 5:21; Hebrews 4:15; 1 Peter
2:22).
The term denotes a vindication. Though Jesus was manifestedin the flesh, and
“put to death in the flesh” by his enemies (1 Peter3:18), God Almighty

vindicated the Lord, raising him from the dead. Thus was the Master
“declaredto be the Sonof God with power, according to the spirit of holiness,
by the resurrectionfrom the dead” (Romans 1:4).
But what does the phrase “in the spirit” signify? There are several
possibilities, both grammatically and contextually.
Mosttranslations capitalize the term “Spirit,” suggesting that there is an
allusion to the Holy Spirit. If that is the meaning, the phrase could be a
reference to the Spirit’s operationat the time of the Lord’s bodily
resurrection.
In Romans 8:11 Paul wrote: “But if the Spirit of him that raisedup Jesus
from the dead dwells in you, he that raisedup Christ Jesus from the dead
shall give life also to your mortal bodies through his Spirit that dwells in you.”
Roy Lanier Sr. observed that “the word ‘also’suggeststhe Holy Spirit not
only will raise our bodies, but ‘also’was the agentof the Fatherin raising
Christ” (n.d., 56).
Others think that “Spirit” in 1 Timothy 3:16 is a generalreference to the
Spirit’s operationin the life of Christ. The Lord’s miracles, message,etc.,
climaxing with his resurrection, demonstratedhis deity, hence, in spite of his
death at the hands of cruel men, the Savior was vindicated.
The ASV does not capitalize “spirit,” thus reflecting the opinion that the
allusion is to the Lord’s human spirit. This could also be a reference, however,
to the resurrectionof Christ, at which point the Savior’s spirit re-entered his
body.
In 1 Peter3:18 the apostle states that Jesus “wasput to death in the flesh, but
made alive in the spirit.” Roy Deaverhas effectively argued that Jesus was
raisedby the re-energizing of his body through his spirit (1974, 11-13), though
some also see “spirit” as a reference to the Holy Spirit in this passage
(Kistemaker1987, 140).
“Seenof angels”

Angels were intimately involved with the work of our Lord. Note the
following:
(1) Angels were associatesofthe preincarnate Word (cf. John 1:1, 14). When
Abraham was visited by “three men” at the oaks ofMamre, two of them are
identified as angels (Genesis 19:1)while the other is a divine person who
subsequently rains “upon Sodom and upon Gomorrahbrimstone and fire
from Jehovahout of heaven” (19:24; cf. 18:1, 21).
(2) Angels heralded the impending birth of Jesus (Matthew 1:20; Luke 1:26)
and praised God when Mary brought forth her child (Luke 2:13).
(3) After Christ concluded his temptation ordeal in the wilderness, “angels
came and ministered unto him” (Matthew 4:11).
(4) When the Lord experiencedgreatagonyof soul just prior to his death,
“there appeared unto him an angelfrom heaven, strengthening him” (Luke
22:43), and had he so chosen, he might have summoned thousands of angels to
deliver him from the curse of Calvary (cf. Matthew 26:53).
(5) Angels were present at the time of Christ’s resurrectionfrom the grave
(Matthew 28:2ff; Mark 16:5; Luke 24:4; John 20:12)and at his ascensioninto
heaven (Acts 1:10).
(6) Finally, the angels of heaven are subject to him (1 Peter 3:22), and praise
him saying, “Worthy is the Lamb that hath been slain to receive power, and
riches, and wisdom, and might, and honor, and glory, and blessing”
(Revelation5:11, 12).
“Preachedamong the nations [Gentiles – KJV]”
This, of course, suggeststhe universal scope ofthe Savior’s redemptive
system—a factthat was predicted in the Old Testament(Isaiah2:2; 11:10),
previewed in the earthly ministry of Christ (Matthew 4:15ff; 8:11), announced
in the “greatcommission” (Matthew 28:19;Mark 16:15;Luke 24:47), and
implemented by the apostles, prophets, and others, as revealedin the book of
Acts.

We must note in passing that when the New Testamentspeaks ofpreaching
“Christ,” such expressionnot only denotes the historicalfacts regarding the
person of Jesus, but also the truths concerning his kingdom and how to gain
entrance into the same (cf. Acts 8:5, 12, 35ff).
“Believedon in the world”
Though a majority in the first-century world did not believe on Christ (cf.
Isaiah53:1; John 12:37;1:11), nevertheless, many did (Acts 2:44; 4:4; 5:14;
9:42).
It must be understood, however, that the expression“believedon” does not
denote a mere “faith-only” conceptas implied in some of the creeds of
protestantism (cf. Discipline of the Methodist Church 1939, Article IX; Hiscox
1890, 62). Rather, “faith,” or “believing” in Bible terminology, that avails in
God’s sight is that which is active in obeying the Lord, as the following
evidence indicates:
(1) John declares that“whosoeverbelieves” shouldnot perish, but have
eternal life (3:16), while the writer of Hebrews affirms that eternal salvationis
given to those who “obey” the Son (5:8, 9). Obviously, therefore, believing in
Christ must include obedience as a requisite to salvation.
(2) John 3:36 affirms: “He that believeth on the Son hath eternal life; but he
that obeyeth not the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God abideth on
him” (ASV).
Note how the terms “believeth” and “obeyeth not,” as correctlyreflectedin
the American Standard Version, stand in bold contrast. To believe is to obey!
(3) The Scriptures speak ofbeing “obedientto the faith” (Acts 6:7).
(4) When the jailor at Philippi heard Paul’s proclamationof the gospel,
acknowledgedits validity, evidencedpenitence, and submitted to immersion
(Acts 16:31-33), Luke sums up the entire process by saying that he, along with
his family, had “believed in God” (16:34).
(5) Romans 5:1 announces:“Being therefore justified by faith, we have peace
with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.” In the same inspired document,

however, the apostle argues that one is “made free from sin” after he has
“become obedientfrom the heart” to the pattern of divine instruction (6:17,
18).
Since “peace with God” and being “made free from sin” are equivalent, it
necessarilyfollows that the “faith” of 5:1 includes the “obedience” of6:17.
Indeed, one of the major emphases of the book of Romans is the “obedience of
faith” (cf. 1:5; 16:26).
(6) The author of the book of Hebrews stressesthat those Israelites who
perished in the wilderness were condemned because theywere “disobedient,”
which, in fact, was an expressionof their "unbelief ’(cf. Hebrews 3:18, 19; 4:3,
6 – ASV). The terms are employed interchangeably.
(7) The discussionof James, that faith apart from works is “dead,” “barren,”
etc., is too well-known to need elaborationat this point (cf. James 2:14ff).
“Receivedup in glory”
This refers, of course, to the Lord’s receptioninto heaven some forty days
following his resurrectionfrom the dead. Jesus had prophesied that he must
suffer and then enter into his glory (Luke 24:26); and so, following his bodily
resurrection, he was “receivedup into heaven” (Mark 16:19; cf. Acts 1:2).
In these latter passages, the same verb (analambano) is used as that employed
by Paul in his letter to Timothy. When Jesus enteredinto this glorious realm,
all authority was made subjectto him (Matthew 28:18;Ephesians 1:20ff).
Thus, Paul’s great“mystery of godliness,” whenunfolded, is rich indeed. It is
the gospelin seedform. It is intellectually satisfying, emotionally rewarding,
and practically motivating.
May the church of the living God recognize her mission to proclaim these
pearls of truth in a world that languishes in darkness and has no hope apart
from the missionand message ofChrist. To this end let us dedicate ourselves."

Question:"What is the mystery of godliness?"
Answer: The phrase the mystery of godliness, found in 1 Timothy 3:16, is part
of an introduction to an ancienthymn. In the English Standard Version, the
verse reads this way: “Greatindeed, we confess,is the mystery of godliness:
He was manifested in the flesh, vindicated by the Spirit, seenby angels,
proclaimed among the nations, believed on in the world, takenup in glory.”
Other translations speak of “the mystery from which true godliness springs”
(NIV) and “the greatmystery of our faith” (NLT). The words that follow in 1
Timothy 3:16 explain the mystery of godliness:God became flesh and lived
among us (cf. John 1:1, 14).
The Greek wordmusterion (“mystery”), when used in the New Testament,
refers to the things of God that were once hidden but were later revealed
through Christ and the coming of the Holy Spirit (Acts 2:4). A mystery is that
which can only be known through the revelationof God (Romans 16:25–26;
Colossians 1:26–27).Itis something that in times past had been hidden but is
now revealedto God’s people. Jesus spoke of“the mystery of the kingdom of
God” (Mark 4:11, NAS) that He was at that time revealing to His disciples.
The apostle Paulused the word mystery 21 times in his epistles:the mystery
of God (Colossians2:2), the mystery of faith (1 Timothy 3:9), the mystery of
iniquity (2 Thessalonians2:7), etc. In eachcase, the “mystery” involved a
declarationof spiritual truth, revealedby Godthrough divine inspiration. The
New English Translationof 1 Timothy 3:16 speaks ofthe mystery of godliness
as an “amazing revelation” concerning our faith.
The Greek wordtranslated “godliness”in most English translations means “a
proper response to the things of God, which produces obedience and righteous
living.” As He walkedthis earth, Jesus was the embodiment of pure godliness,
which led Him to lay down His life for unworthy sinners (John 10:18). His life

was dedicatedto the glory of the Father, and He always did what pleasedHim
(John 8:29). Christians pursue godliness when we follow the example of Jesus
in dedicating every decisionto the glory of God (1 Corinthians 10:31).
Godliness is not a suggestion;it is a command (1 Peter1:15–16;Hebrews
12:14).
The mystery of godliness is the heart of the Christian faith. The hymn that
Paul records in 1 Timothy 3:16 contains a summation of Jesus’ministry. The
godliness of God’s Son is now to be reflectedin us. Christianity is not a system
of rules and actions that must be performed to appease a deity. At the heart of
Christianity is the mystery of godliness—the factthat Godtook on human
flesh to live among the people He created(Philippians 2:5–11). As a Son, Jesus
remained completely obedient to His Father in heaven and then offered
Himself as a perfect sacrifice in our place (John 10:18; Hebrews 4:15; 2
Corinthians 5:21). God then raisedHim from the dead, thereby conquering
death for all who trust in Him (Matthew 28:6; 1 Corinthians 15:3–7, 13–14,
55). Because Jesus took ourplace, sinful humans may be declared righteous
before God and be “born again” (John 3:3). The new birth is spiritual and
results in a change of heart that produces true godliness (2 Corinthians 5:17;1
John 3:8–10). How a life is transformed is the mystery of godliness and is
comprehended only through the revelation of God in Christ. “Beyondall
question, the mystery from which true godliness springs is great” (1 Timothy
3:16).
The Mystery of Godliness
Biblical Illustrator
1 Timothy 3:16

And without controversygreatis the mystery of godliness:God was manifest
in the flesh, justified in the Spirit, seenof angels…
I. A MYSTERYis something kept secret, lockedup from the view of men.
This sense ofit agrees to the doctrines of Christianity upon a threefold
account.
1. As they were concealedfrom former ages.
2. As they are yet so from the greatestpart of the world.
3. As they continue so in some degree to God's own people.The temple of God
is not to be opened till we getto heaven, and there we shall see the ark of His
covenant. Upon these accounts it may be said our gospelis hid; it was so to the
Jews, it is so to those that are lost; and, in part, it is so to the believer him self;
and therefore it may be called a mystery.
1. It is calleda mystery from its importance.
2. It is calleda mystery because it never could have been knownbut by
revelation.
3. A mystery is something above the comprehension of our reason. The things
of God knows no man, but the Spirit of God. And this leads me to —

II. SHOW THAT THE MYSTERYOF ANY DOCTRINE DOESNOT
HINDER IT FROM BEING TRUE.
1. The difficulty or easinessofa doctrine does not make it the matter of our
faith, but we go entirely upon the sufficiencyof the evidence.
2. This obtains in every part of life, and it is strange we should exclude it from
religion.
3. It is no way unaccountable that the nature and the designs of God should
be" incomprehensible to us.
4. It is necessarythat our understanding should honour the revelationof God
by a subjection, as well as our wills by a compliance.
5. These are not mysteries of man's forging, but we have them in the Book of
God.
6. They are not concealedby any party or tribe among us, but lie open to be
seenand read of all men. Therefore —
7. The design of preaching them is not to setup the tyranny of priests, but to
lead people to a venerationfor their God, a dependence upon Him, and an
application to Him.

III. WHAT IS THE BENEFIT OF HAVING MYSTERIES IN THE
CHRISTIAN RELIGION? Why could not our lawgiverhave done as others
did, only laid before us a setof rules, and distributed them under the several
heads of practice, without ever engaging our faith in any speculations atall?
When the law is establishedby faith, it gets a firmness and an influence that it
could never have had any other way.
1. By the mysteries of the gospelwe are led to an esteemfor the salvationitself
that God has given us, because thus we see that it was the contrivance of
infinite wisdom.
2. We have the best arguments for our duty from the incarnation, satisfaction,
and resurrectionof Jesus Christ.
3. We have the noblest example of all practical holiness from God's being
manifest in the flesh.
4. We are in particular inclined and encouragedto the duty of prayer, by this
new and living way that is consecratedforus through the veil, that is to say,
His flesh. (Hebrews 10:20).
5. We have the best hope of succeeding in the whole work of our duty, from
the redemption that is now established.
6. By these mysteries the principles of all practical religionare enlargedand
encouraged. It is in a meditation upon these that we stir up the grace of God
that is in us.

7. We are by this means keptlow in our own eyes;as we find there are things
above the reachof nature, and beyond the comprehensionof faith.
8. This shows us the necessityofdepending upon the Spirit for illumination, as
well as upon Christ for acceptance.
9. This teaches a greatervalue for the revelation God has made of Himself.
10. This draws out our desires towards heaven, without which there can be
neither the purity nor the comfort of religion. We long to be where the veil is
takenoff from the object, and the fetters from the faculty.
IV. When the apostle calls this A GREAT MYSTERY, I SUPPOSE HE DOES
IT IN A WAY OF PRE-EMINENCEto what is contained in other religions,
more especiallythese two.
1. The mysteries of the heathen.
2. There were mysteries in the Jewishreligion. (Psalm 111:4; Psalm48:9), in
the midst of His temple, and He was terrible out of His holy places.
(1) The mystery of godliness is in this respectgreaterthan any among the
heathen in that we learn it at once. Here are no years thrown awayin a
tedious preparation. There is no keeping of people in a preparatory dulness.

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