The Devotional - A Look at the Book #762

by Jesse Abel

A Word from Papa “J”

Do you have favorite things in your personal life that few others know about? If you are honest with yourself the answer is emphatically yes and the effect of this burden is not good since no doubt it is sin. The wisdom of Proverbs 3:13-18 is the antidote.

Good Morning

John 3:1-36 – For some of us these passages are very familiar and yet I have never found the Living Word of God boring, I pray that this is true for all of us, even for those who like Nicodemus say things like; “How can a man be born when he is old? Can he enter a second time into his mother’s womb and be born? His questions to Jesus are not as dumb as one might conclude.

We do a lot of things in life from an unprepared platform as in when someone makes a statement our reply needs to be correct and not a response from emotion or a lack of subject matter. Nicodemus is prepared to stump the words of Jesus or at least catch him in a lie. Notice with me that the LORD Jesus is fully prepared with His answer to Nicodemus, answers that stump Nicodemus. Notice his reply in John 3:9.

Physical birth begins in the womb filled with water where the baby grows full term. Now I do not know all of the physical attributes of giving birth, but I do know that a seed is planted and life begins at conception. I believe that when Jesus explains to Nicodemus that one must be born of water that He is referring to this physical process of giving life, procreation. By the way all of us go through this process; if hatched we would not be reading or writing, but we might be flying or crawling in the dirt.

Interestingly Jesus does not stop with the explanation of physical birth; He goes on to talk about another birth; Spiritual or Spirit birth. This is the second birth which is called by Bible teachers; Regeneration. Jesus then is explaining to Nicodemus that he must be born physically and that he must be regenerated (born) Spiritually. Please note; Nicodemus is at a loss now for words; in all of his religious upbringing he has never heard such a thing and folks so it is with every religion in the world today. No one hears from the so-called religious leaders of churches all across the world… YOU MUST BE BORN AGAIN; or SPIRITUALLY REGENERATED.

Now this basic statement of Jesus to Nicodemus in Verse 10 agrees with my statement above; “you are a teacher of Israel, and do not know these things”? Jesus continues; “we speak what we know, and know these things to be true, thus we testify what we have seen and experienced, but many do not receive our witness of this Spiritual Truth. Jesus moves from religion to a personal knowledge of this witness in the regenerated soul of every one who receives this truth. See you Monday!