From Dream to Deliverance
Friday, October 8, 2004
My Prayer Today
Heavenly Father, thank You for sending Jesus—Your LIGHT into the world! Thank You for not allowing me or anyone to live in the darkness of sin and death without hope. I pray for those in my community who have never responded to the LIGHT of life, Jesus Christ, and ask that You will touch them TODAY with Your salvation. Use me in whatever way You desire to share the new life of Jesus with them. Fill me with Your Holy Spirit right now that I may be a faithful and obedient servant, who glorifies You in all that I am and do. This I pray in Jesus’ name. Amen.
God's Word For Me Today
John 3:1-21
1After dark one evening, a Jewish religious leader named Nicodemus, a Pharisee, 2came to speak with Jesus. “Teacher,” he said, “we all know that God has sent you to teach us. Your miraculous signs are proof enough that God is with you.”
3Jesus replied, “I assure you, unless you are born again, you can never see the Kingdom of God.”
4“What do you mean?” exclaimed Nicodemus. “How can an old man go back into his mother’s womb and be born again?”
5Jesus replied, “The truth is, no one can enter the Kingdom of God without being born of water and the Spirit. 6Humans can reproduce only human life, but the Holy Spirit gives new life from heaven. 7So don’t be surprised at my statement that you must be born again. 8Just as you can hear the wind but can’t tell where it comes from or where it is going, so you can’t explain how people are born of the Spirit.”
9“What do you mean?” Nicodemus asked.
10Jesus replied, “You are a respected Jewish teacher, and yet you don’t understand these things? 11I assure you, I am telling you what we know and have seen, and yet you won’t believe us. 12But if you don’t even believe me when I tell you about things that happen here on earth, how can you possibly believe if I tell you what is going on in heaven? 13For only I, the Son of Man, have come to earth and will return to heaven again. 14And as Moses lifted up the bronze snake on a pole in the wilderness, so I, the Son of Man, must be lifted up on a pole, 15so that everyone who believes in me will have eternal life.
16“For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life. 17God did not send his Son into the world to condemn it, but to save it.
18“There is no judgment awaiting those who trust him. But those who do not trust him have already been judged for not believing in the only Son of God. 19Their judgment is based on this fact: The light from heaven came into the world, but they loved the darkness more than the light, for their actions were evil. 20They hate the light because they want to sin in the darkness. They stay away from the light for fear their sins will be exposed and they will be punished. 21But those who do what is right come to the light gladly, so everyone can see that they are doing what God wants.”
Reflecting on God’s Word
What makes Jesus alone worthy of our ultimate trust?
A Deeper Exploration of God’s Word
What role does Jesus’ say judgment has in the lives of those who trust in Him and those who don’t? (3:18-19)
What use does Jesus make of the image of light in making His point? (3:18-19)
Understanding God’s Word
What is the most important truth you take from today’s focus Scripture?
Applying God’s Word to Our Lives
What do you need to do as a result of reading today’s Scripture?
Thoughts...No Judgment...
Some of us remember a time when much of the preaching done in American churches focused on our sins and shortcomings, and God’s impending judgment if we didn’t change. Some called this “turn or burn” preaching. The idea behind it is valid—if we do not trust in Jesus as our Savior and Lord, we will be separated from Him forever in hell. The problem is that Jesus preached repentance for salvation, repentance to receive NO judgment. Jesus came to SAVE the world not to condemn it. Jesus and His heavenly Father don’t want even ONE of His little ones to perish. Therefore, we must be mindful of the judgment awaiting those who don’t trust Him, but must always focus on the life awaiting those who do!