Jesus Teaches Nicodemus
1 Now there was a man of the Pharisees named Nicodemus, a member of the Jewish ruling council. 2 He came to Jesus at night and said, "Rabbi, we know you are a teacher who has come from God. For no one could perform the miraculous signs you are doing if God were not with him." 3 In reply Jesus declared, "I tell you the truth, no one can see the kingdom of God unless he is born again." 4 "How can a man be born when he is old?" Nicodemus asked. "Surely he cannot enter a second time into his mother's womb to be born!" 5 Jesus answered, "I tell you the truth, no one can enter the kingdom of God unless he is born of water and the Spirit. 6 Flesh gives birth to flesh, but the Spirit gives birth to spirit. 7 You should not be
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23 Now John also was baptizing at Aenon near Salim, because there was plenty of water, and people were constantly coming to be baptized. 24 (This was before John was put in prison.) 25 An argument developed between some of John's disciples and a certain Jew over the matter of ceremonial washing. 26 They came to John and said to him, "Rabbi, that man who was with you on the other side of the Jordan--the one you testified about--well, he is baptizing, and everyone is going to him." 27 To this John replied, "A man can receive only what is given him from heaven. 28 You yourselves can testify that I said, 'I am not the Christ but am sent ahead of him.' 29 The bride belongs to the bridegroom. The friend who attends the bridegroom waits and listens for him, and is full of joy when he hears the bridegroom's voice. That joy is mine, and it is now complete. 30 He must become greater; I must become less. 31 "The one who comes from above is above all; the one who is from the earth belongs to the earth, and speaks as one from the earth. The one who comes from heaven is above all. 32 He testifies to what he has seen and heard, but no one accepts his testimony. 33 The man who has accepted it has certified that God is truthful. 34 For the one whom God has sent speaks the words of God, for God gives the Spirit without limit. 35 The Father loves the Son and has placed everything in his hands. 36 Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life, but whoever rejects the Son will not see life, for God's wrath remains on
Meanwhile, in the book of Matthew the chosen messenger sent to prepare the way for Lord is revealed, “…John the Baptist came, preaching in the wilderness”. [7 Matthew 3:1] In chapter 3, John the Baptist unapologetically fulfills the prophecy over his life through his consecrated lifestyle and ministry. He’s found confronting sin through his message of repentance, and performing baptisms. [ 8 Mat 3: 4-7] John also prophesies about Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit.
Mathew, Mark, Luke and John the four Gospels in the Bible all sharing a common view or significant stories except one. The Gospel of John is the most unique and distinct out the four. In difference, none of the parables are documented in John, and only seven of the miracles are highlighted. Alternately, John’s Gospel conveys the meaning of Jesus by giving the readers an extended insight and an extend understanding of him. In John it tells us that Jesus himself is the Jewish Messiah that was prophesized in the Old Testament, who was appointed to earth by God in human flesh, then allows his life to the cross and goes back to God. All with the perspective that we may believe in him and
The elements of this practice equip the individual to perform this ritual in a successful manner and allow adherents to be disciples of the Lord in the Christian community. The use of water signifies the spiritual cleansing of the individual and reflects the discussion of rebirth through water in the Gospel of John - “Very truly I tell you, no one can enter the kingdom of God unless they are born of water” (3:5). The use of water also unifies the individual with the ministry of Christ as we take part in the same ceremony as him. The bible highlights the eternal connection established with the Christian community as the word stresses the importance of this practice. Furthermore, the white garment symbolises the pure and virtuous nature of this ritual and signifies the releasing from the chains of sin and being reborn into a new life with Christ. Pope Francis’ statement that the “people of God have become missionary disciples” highlights the communal aspect of baptism and its contribution to Christianity as a living tradition as it is the individuals moral duty to baptise non-believers and unite them with the Christian community. The Gospel of John reinforces this obligation and the importance of baptism for the individual and the community as a whole in “Go and make disciples of all nations, baptising them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit” (Mttw
In his book The Archetypal God and The Baptism of Jesus (LifeRich Publishing, 2016), Pastor John C’ de Baca wants to clear up any misunderstanding that have arisen from the act. And the job also comes with exposing the teachings of modern Christian churches that preach Jesus sought baptism from John to show
Nicodemus is confused about being “born again,” what does it mean to you? How would you explain it to a friend who didn’t grow up in church? 4. What is the issue in this conversation? 5.
The idea of baptismal regeneration is crucial to the Gospel of Jesus Christ and it addressed by Jesus in John 3:3 while Jesus was talking to Pharisee Nicodemus and said “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God.” The Bible documents what the characteristics of regeneration is but how this is accomplished is not seen.
The New Testament highlights resurrection and living a life of faith and purity. Those who commit themselves to God and are in union with the Lord work towards God’s grace and a divine fate. However, for those who live a life of sin and mock God, he turns his back to leave them to lead their lives in sin and ultimately
Baptism, the Christian rite of initiation which means the action of admitting someone into a secret or obscure society or froup, typically with a ritual, is a ritual cleansing with water. the early Christians integrated the ancient Jewish practice of ritual bathing into Christian practice (e.g., Leviticus 14:8). Baptism was also used to initiate converts to Judaism, and the Essenes, contemporaries of Jesus, practiced a daily ritual of bathing. According to accounts in the Gospels, John the Baptizer, who baptized his followers as a sign of repentance, baptized Jesus as well. Jesus later instructed his followers to baptize others. For early Christians, baptism was a sign of moral purification, the beginning of new and eternal life, and an indication
This scripture passage displays God’s views on the morals of Baptism and emphasizes how it gives us salvation. In this excerpt from the gospel of Luke, it
Infant baptism has an exceedingly long history of arguments within the Christian circle. These arguments reflect different interpretations and understandings on this Christian divine ritual that was left and recorded from the first century Christians. Through the biblical, historical, and theological stand points, I can establish solid reasons to support my objections against this tradition.
John chose the second reading for this occasion. In it, we hear part of an early baptismal homily attributed to St. Peter. It speaks of Christ constructing the Church, with all of his disciples having a role to play in becoming a royal priesthood, a holy nation. As God’s own people, they are to proclaim to everyone God’s marvellous deeds. We witness this evening a marvellous deed in God’s call to John later in his life to embrace a new family, and a new, spiritual
6733). As John truly reveals who Jesus is, he provides a “distinct Johannine teaching about salvation” (Strauss, 2011, p. 6733). One could say that John has such a greater inclusion of information because he personally accounted for all that he presented. Thus, answering for the differences found in the Synoptics. It is these inclusions that heavily reveal the severity of walking in the light with God, which is crucial to our faith and effectiveness as
“The Revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave him to show his servants what must soon take place; he made it known by sending his angel to his servant John, who testified to the word of God and to the testimony of Jesus Christ, even to all that he saw.” John 1:1-2 (RSV)
“The gospel gives away more to as who Jesus was as person and telling of his teachings in the ministry. John takes us behind Jesus’s ministry, where we get a glimpse of what it means to believe in Jesus as flesh of the eternal and living God, as the source of light and life, and for a believer to be a ‘Son of God.” (Sparknotes
As we have seen that God was orchestrated the life and birth of John and we all know that God is not a respecter of persons, he does not prefer one to another, this should encourage us therefore to understand the plan and purpose of God for our individual life and as we begin to understand this mission, frantic effort and spiritual preparation is required to be able to undertake and work in our area of calling as we shall see in the early life and preparation of John the Baptist ( Acts 10:34)