Belief and Unbelief in John 3
Intro
A. John 20:30-31 – Written that you might believe – and have life in Jesus’ Name.
B. The issue of unbelief in the Gospel of John is not the unbelief of the Gentiles Idolaters…
1. It is the unbelief of the rebellious Jews.
2. They saw Jesus’ miracles. They heard His teachings, and even those of John the Baptist.
3. None of this was done in secret, “in a corner” (Acts 26:26)
I. The “belief” that Jesus taught was directed toward believing what He stood for:
A. His moral and ethical standards. The words by which we shall be judged.
1. John 12: 44-50
2. “His commandment IS Eternal Life.” (v50)
B. What commandment?
1. John the Baptist: Matthew 3:1-2, v28 “fruit”
2. Luke 3:3-14 Repentance, “make the crooked straight”
-- 3:10 share with the poor
-- 3:12 righteous in business
-- 3:13 no abuse, no lies, be content
3. Jesus: Matthew 5-7: No less than 23 sins to correct, attitudes than must be changed (commanded and required, commandments, testimonies, ordinances, rules…)
-- 5:3-11: poor in spirit, mourn, meek, hunger and thirst for righteousness, merciful, pure in heart, peacemakers, patient in trials
-- 5:21-26: angry insults, verbal assault, speech
-- 5:27-30: adultery in the heart, covetous of neighbor’s wife or daughter, sensuality
-- 5:31-32: divorce and remarriage, responsible for the care of the family, esp. the children
-- 5:33-37: lie under oath, casual and habitual lies, deceit, corrupt in business or government
-- 5:38-42: personal vengeance over injustices – must be generous in forgiving sinners
-- 5:43-48: love of enemies
-- 6:1-8: hypocrisy in benevolence
-- 6:9-15: hypocrisy in prayer
-- 6:16-18: fasting
-- 6:19-24: greed, economic priorities
-- 6:25-34: anxiety, principles of trust in God and the resulting priorities
-- 7:1-4: hypocritical judging which magnifies the faults of others and ignores personal faults
-- 7:7-11: godly persistent prayer
-- 7:12: the golden rule: love your neighbor as yourself
-- 7:13-23: beware of false teachers
C. Jesus was specific, exacting, and demanding. No compromise on any of Jesus’ teachings. We must not forget that when reading John’s Gospel.
II. John just records Jesus as the faithful Son with a faithful message that gives life.
A. John does not repeat the Sermon on the Mount.
B. The Gospel of Belief (John 20:30-31) addresses all the reasons to obey the words of Jesus.
III. John 3:3-5 Born again, born of the water, and of the Spirit
A. John 6:62-64 born of the Spirit refers to the words that are spirit and are life.
B. Born of water = John 1:26 both Jesus and John were famous for baptizing disciples in water
1. Matthew 3:5 baptized confessing their sins – demanded the repentance of their old ways
2. Matthew 3:13-17 Jesus was baptized even though He had no sins to repent of (Matt 3:11)
3. Mark 1:4 baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins, v5 confessing their sins (specific sins). John and Jesus were specific about the behavior that had to be changed. He condemned them.
4. Luke 3:3 baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins, v7 to be baptized + fruits of rep.
C. Enter the Kingdom of God, John 3:5
1. Implied King, Messiah, Christ MUST RULE.
2. Implied citizens must be clean to enter, and remain, that is, repent of all sinful behaviors.
3. 1 John 2:29 “practices righteousness”
4. 1 John 3:4-7 practice = righteous: not a state of being, but a way of living
IV. Testimony of Jesus who has seen and knows and bears witness to heaven’s order, John 3:11-15
A. God’s Laws are called “testimonies.”
B. Hebrew word for “law” (torah) means “instruction.”
C. Deuteronomy 5:44-45 (6:17, 20)
1. “This is the law that Moses set before the people of Israel. 45 These are the testimonies, the statutes, and the rules, which Moses spoke to the people of Israel when they came out of Egypt”
2. Psalm 25:10; 78:56; 93:5; 99:7
3. Psalm 119:2, 14 … 22 times in the Psalm
D. John 3:15-16: Direct reference to verse 11, to those who did not receive the testimony of heaven that Jesus brought from there.
1. God gave His son, that those who believe in Him (that is, they believe the heavenly message sent by the Father and put it into practice) – should not perish (because to live contrary to God’s will is death and condemnation, ruin in this life and ruin in the final day.) – but have eternal life. (the way of life that gives life to oneself and to others without end.)
2. Definition of “perish” John 3:16-21
-- v17 condemn the world
-- v18 condemned already because “has not believed in the name of the only Son of God.”
-- Therefore, lives in the practice of sin whether by rebellion or by ignorance.
-- the “Name” defines WHO one is and WHAT he wants: Who? He is Lord, What? Defined in the Sermon on the Mount. Anything less than that standard is death and NOT life.
-- v19 Judgment – light versus darkness: people loved darkness, because their DEEDS were evil according to the standards of Matthew 5-7.
-- v20 Do evil = Hate the light, the TRUTH: John 8:31-32 know the truth, truth makes free.
-- v21 Do what is TRUE (that is the Hebrew word for faith, Emunah, Habakkuk 2:4)
-- Comes to the light – Matthew 5:16…. V6 hungers and thirsts after righteousness
-- So that his own true state may be revealed, tested: 2 Corinthians 13:5 test yourself (measured by the plumb line of God, thus holy and protected by God)
Conclusion:
-- John 3:36 “Whoever does not obey the Son shall not see life, but the WRATH OF GOD remains on him.”