What Did Jesus Mean When He Said, 'You Must Be Born Again'?

Part 8
(Just Jesus Evangelistic Campaign, Day 29)
John 3:19-21
19 And this is the condemnation, that light is come into the world, and men
loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil.
20 For every one that doeth evil hateth the light, neither cometh to the light,
lest his deeds should be reproved.
21 But he that doeth truth cometh to the light, that his deeds may be made
manifest, that they are wrought in God.
----Today, I am continuing the daily Just Jesus Evangelistic Campaign sermon
series, which is aimed at sharing the Gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ with
unbelievers and reminding Christians, in this important election year, to
keep the main thing the main thing -- and that is reaching unbelievers with
the Gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ and praying for their salvation, for the
problem in America is not only disobedient presidents and politicians but
disobedient pastors, preachers, and parishioners who have refused to
obey God's Great Commission and who have refused to obey God's
repeated commands to "pray without ceasing" for unbelievers, believers,
and political leaders. Yes, you should pray for the right candidate to win;
yes, you should vote for the candidate that the Lord gives you peace about
voting for. But, don't get caught up in it like the world does. Nothing much
is going to change until people get saved and get their hearts right with the
Lord.
This campaign is inspired by the following three verses: 1 Corinthians 2:2
which says, "For I determined not to know anything among you, save
Jesus Christ, and him crucified." Acts 5:42 which says, "And daily in the
temple, and in every house, they ceased not to teach and preach Jesus
Christ." And 2 Timothy 2:4 which says, "No man that warreth entangleth
himself with the affairs of this life; that he may please him who hath chosen
him to be a soldier."

This series is not for Christians necessarily. However, I do hope you are
one of those saints who still loves to hear the "Old, old story of Jesus and
His love" -- As the hymn says, "For those who know it best Seem
hungering and thirsting to hear it like the rest." This series is primarily for
unbelievers, so they can hear and understand the Gospel and be saved
from sin and the punishment of sin which is hell. This is message number
29.
C.J. Mahaney said, "Never be content with your current grasp of the
gospel. The gospel is the life-permeating, world-altering, universechanging truth. It has more facets than a diamond. It's depths man will
never exhaust."
Today, as we conclude Jesus' discourse with Nicodemus, we are going to
continue looking at the reasons why people reject the light of the Gospel
and the gift of salvation. On yesterday, we saw that people reject salvation
through Jesus Christ because they "love darkness rather than light,
because their deeds were evil."
Jesus goes on to say, "For every one that doeth evil hateth the light,
neither cometh to the light, lest his deeds should be reproved." No one
likes to receive rebuke or criticism; we do not like to be told that we are
wrong. Yet, when we are faced with the light of the Gospel, we are being
told by God that we are wrong -- that our way is not the best way. We think
that we are good, but God's word tells us that we are sinners.
God steps into our lives and turns the light on that we might see the
darkness that we have been living in. Like cockroaches, we don't like the
light. We scurry away from it, desiring to remain in our sin and ignorance.
Jesus says that everyone who does evil "hates the light." Some have even
gone so far as to attack the light by disparaging Jesus Christ and His work
on the cross.
Jesus goes on to say, "But he that doeth truth cometh to the light." The
word "cometh" indicates that a person has moved from one place to
another. This is a willing choice on the part of the individual. Jesus will not
make you come to Him. However, when you are confronted with the
Gospel, He is shining a light on your life in order that you may see where

you have gone wrong. Then, it is up to you. You may either run from the
light, or you may come to the source of the light -- Jesus Christ.
Jesus continues, "But he that doeth truth cometh to the light, that his
deeds may be made manifest, that they are wrought in God." One
commentator pointed out that Jesus likely spoke these words for the
special benefit of Nicodemus. You see, Nicodemus was a man who prided
himself on being righteous and keeping the law. Jesus is saying to him,
'You are living a lifestyle that is morally correct. (That is what "truth" means
here -- moral correctness or moral rightness.) And that is good. However,
something will always be lacking in your life if you do not have a
relationship with the source of Light.
What Jesus is pointing out here is that even "good" people who strive to
do the right thing need the Gospel. It is good to do good, but being mostly
good is not perfection, and that is the standard God requires. Matthew
Henry provides the following definition of one who does the truth: "He is
one who acts truly and sincerely in all he does. Though sometimes he
comes short of the good he would do, yet he doeth truth, he aims honestly;
he has his infirmities, but holds fast his integrity." He goes on to say that
such a person like Nicodemus should welcome the Gospel. "He is one that
cometh to the light. He is ready to receive and entertain divine revelation
no matter what uneasiness it may create him. He that doeth truth is willing
to know the truth, and to have his deeds made manifest. He wants to know
what the will of God is, and resolves to do it, though it may be contrary to
his own will and interest."
What is God's will for all men -- those who do good and those who do evil?
First Timothy 2:4 says that God "will have all men to be saved, and to come
unto the knowledge of the truth." What Jesus has been presenting to
Nicodemus and to us is the truth. The question is: Will you receive it? Will
you willingly come to Jesus, the light of the world? If you are ready to
forsake the darkness and come to the light, allow me to show you how:
First, please understand that you are a sinner and that you have broken
God's laws. The Bible says in Romans 3:23: "For all have sinned and come
short of the glory of God." Please understand that because of your sins,

you deserve punishment in hell. Romans 6:23 says "the wages of sin is
death" This is both physical death and spiritual death in hell.
But here is the good news. John 3:16 reads, "For God so loved the world,
that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him
should not perish, but have everlasting life."
The phrase "For God so loved the world" means that if you are in this
world, God loves you no matter what you have done.
The next phrase, "that He gave His only begotten Son" refers to Jesus
Christ. He is God's son who suffered, bled, and died on the cross for your
sins and for mine, and He was buried and rose again.
Our next phrase is "that whosoever believeth in Him". The word
"whosoever" means anybody at anytime. The phrase "believeth in Him"
means to trust in Him, to depend upon Him, to rely on Him, or to have faith
in Him for your salvation.
Our next phrase, "should not perish", refers to eternal punishment in a
place called hell.
And, lastly, the phrase "but have everlasting life" means to live eternally in
Heaven with God.
The Bible also says in Romans 10:9 and 13: "That if thou shalt confess with
thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath
raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved.... For whosoever shall call
upon the name of the Lord shall be saved."
Dear friend, if you are willing to believe on the Lord Jesus Christ for
salvation, please pray with me this simple prayer: Heavenly Father, I realize
that I am a sinner and that I have done some bad things in my life. For
Jesus Christ sake, please forgive me of my sins. I now believe with all of
my heart that Jesus Christ died for me, was buried, and rose again. Lord
Jesus, please come into my heart and save my soul and change my life
today. Amen.

If you just trusted Jesus Christ as your Saviour, and you prayed that prayer
and meant it from your heart, I declare to you that based upon the Word of
God, you are now saved from Hell and you are on your way to Heaven.
Welcome to the family of God! I want to congratulate you on doing the most
important thing in life and that is receiving Jesus Christ as your Lord and
Saviour. For more information to help you grow in your newfound faith in
Christ, go to Gospel Light Society.com and read "What To Do After You
Enter Through the Door". Jesus Christ said in John 10:9, "I am the door: by
me if any man enter in, he shall be saved, and shall go in and out, and find
pasture."
If you accepted Jesus Christ as your Savior today, please e-mail me at
dw3@gospellightsociety.com and let us know. There is some free material
that we want to send you. If you have a prayer request, please e-mail that to
us as well, and we will pray for you until you tell us to stop.
God loves you. We love you. And may God bless you.