[Sunday, November 23, 2025] The Blessing of Being Born Again | John 3:1–8
Sermon by Rev. Jinkook (Danny) Sohn (Hope of Heaven Baptist Chuch)
2025. 11. 23. 주일예배 설교- 요한복음 강해 9
본문: 요한복음 3:1–8
제목: 거듭남의 축복
설교자: 손진국 목사 (하늘소망교회)
Greet the person next to you—“Welcome. It’s really great weather for worship today.”
I want to begin today’s message with a question. “Have you been born again?” Ask the person next to you, “Have you been born again?” This is the theme of today’s sermon. In other words—“Have you been regenerated?” In simple terms—“Have you been born again?” In English, “Have you been born again?”
What did you answer? Some of you may have said “Yes,” “No,” “I’m not sure,” “I don’t know what that means.” Today, I want to talk about the blessing of being born again.
1. Nicodemus Who Came at Night
In today’s passage, there is a man who comes to Jesus at night to talk with Him. His name is Nicodemus. His status appears in verse 1. [John 3:1] Now there was a Pharisee, a man named Nicodemus who was a member of the Jewish ruling council.
It says he was a Pharisee and a leader of the Jews.
The Pharisees were one group of religious leaders in Jesus’ time, but they were the ones who were most often rebuked by Jesus.
When it says “a leader of the Jews,” the original word for “leader” is archon, which refers to a member of the Sanhedrin. The Sanhedrin was Israel’s highest council made up of 71 representatives of the Jewish people. In today’s terms, he would be comparable to a member of Parliament—someone of high social status. He was likely in his forties or fifties, older than Jesus, who was in His early thirties.
But when did he come to Jesus? [John 3:2] He came to Jesus at night and said, “Rabbi, we know that you are a teacher who has come from God. For no one could perform the signs you are doing if God were not with him.”
Verse 2 says he came at night. Why did he come at night? One reason could be that he was simply busy and had no other time, but more likely, he chose a time when others would not see him. The Sanhedrin opposed Jesus at that time, so if it became known that he was meeting with Jesus, he would have to give up his seat on the council. Visiting Jesus during the day would have been risky.
Why did he take such a risk to come to Jesus? We can guess the reason from verse 2. [John 3:2] He came to Jesus at night and said, “Rabbi, we know that you are a teacher who has come from God. For no one could perform the signs you are doing if God were not with him.”
Nicodemus calls Jesus “Rabbi,” and also “Teacher.” What does this mean? It means he had listened to Jesus’ teachings. He also says, “the signs you are doing.” Meaning he had been present when Jesus performed miracles and had seen them. After hearing Jesus’ words and seeing His signs, what conclusion did Nicodemus reach? That Jesus came from God and that God was with Him. In fact, verse 2 can be understood as Nicodemus making a confession of faith.
To this Nicodemus, Jesus speaks: [John 3:3] Jesus replied, “Very truly I tell you, no one can see the kingdom of God unless they are born again.”
“Very truly, very truly”—Amen, amen—“this is extremely important.” What is important? “No one can see the kingdom of God unless they are born again.” We must be born again to see the kingdom of God. Being born again means to be born a second time. In English: born again.
However, Nicodemus does not understand the meaning of this very important statement from Jesus. So in verse 4 he asks, [John 3:4] “How can someone be born when they are old?” Nicodemus asked. “Surely they cannot enter a second time into their mother’s womb to be born!”
I really respect Nicodemus. Many people pretend they know something even when they don’t. Because admitting ignorance can feel embarrassing, people often avoid saying “I don’t know.” They pretend to understand or simply move on.
(Example—This happens to me too. I have a retired Kiwi pastor who is my mentor. We meet every six weeks for a meal, coffee, conversation, and prayer. There are times when he says something I don’t fully understand. The right thing to say should be, “Sorry, what did you say?” But often I respond with “Ah, mm-hmm, yes…” Somehow he always notices when I haven’t understood (maybe it's obvious^^), and then he explains it again more simply.
Friends, admitting that you don’t know something is not shameful—it is courage. For those in higher positions, those with more education, or those who are older, pride makes this especially difficult. But Nicodemus honestly admits what he doesn’t understand and asks again. Why? From his willingness to visit someone he shouldn’t be seeing, at night, and honestly ask questions, we can see something—Nicodemus had a spiritual thirst for truth. Perhaps this is what we lack in our time.)
In Nicodemus, who came to Jesus at night, we see two hearts. One is fear of people—the desire not to lose what he has. But the other heart is a deep hunger for truth. Which heart was stronger? The hunger for truth. Otherwise, he would not have come to Jesus even at night.
[Application] Do I have a spiritual hunger to know the truth? If I must risk something to seek the truth, what place would that be for me?
2. Rebirth and the Holy Spirit
Jesus tells Nicodemus, who came to Him with a heart thirsty to know the truth, that unless he is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God and cannot be saved. Then Nicodemus asks how a person who has already been born can be born again — how he can enter his mother’s womb again and come out.
At this point Jesus once again says, “Truly, truly,” “Amen, amen,” and speaks. [John 3:5] Jesus answered, “Very truly I tell you, no one can enter the kingdom of God unless they are born of water and the Spirit.”
He is explaining the words of verse 3 once more in a different way. Being born again means being born of water and the Spirit. What does it mean to be born of water and the Spirit? Water = symbol of cleansing. In the Old Testament, priests washed with water before entering the sanctuary. It means repenting of dirty sin. One must realize that he is a sinner and believe that Jesus came to this earth to solve the problem of his sin and died on the cross. Without repentance there is no forgiveness of sins, and without repentance there is no salvation. What happens when one repents and believes in the Lord? A spirit descends. Not an evil spirit, but the Spirit of God, the Spirit of Christ, the Holy Spirit comes. This is what Jesus means by being born of the Spirit. In other words, being born again is being born of the Spirit and receiving the Holy Spirit whom God has sent.
Jesus states this again in verse 6, briefly but very clearly. [John 3:6] Flesh gives birth to flesh, but the Spirit gives birth to spirit.
(When a dog gives birth — puppies, cow — calf, horse — foal, monkey — baby monkey. A nonsense quiz: Who gives birth to a camel? A wolf. What does the lying shepherd boy shout? “The wolf ‘gave birth to’ a camel.” A wolf does not give birth to a camel but to wolf cubs. A person — a baby. All these are things born of the flesh. God, who is Spirit — God’s children.)
What makes humans different from other animals? It is that humans have a spirit. The channel through which we can connect with God is the spirit, but because humans sinned against God, this spiritual channel was blocked. The spirit died. But Jesus came, bore the punishment for our sins, and by His death He opened the way for us to connect with God again. And when we believe in Jesus, the Spirit of God comes into us — and this is God, who is in heaven, giving birth to us.
The word “born again” in the Greek original is γεννηθῇ ἄνωθεν (gennēthē anōthen). Gennēthē means “to be born,” and anōthen means “from above.” The life God desires for humans is that they are born twice on this earth. Once of the flesh, and once of the Spirit. Once born from the earth, and once born from heaven. This is what we call being born again, and those who are born from above, those whom God has given birth to, are called God’s children and God’s saved people.
Romans 8 expresses this as people of the flesh and people of the Spirit, those who follow the flesh and those who follow the Spirit.
[Romans 8:5–6] Those who live according to the flesh have their minds set on what the flesh desires; but those who live in accordance with the Spirit have their minds set on what the Spirit desires. The mind governed by the flesh is death, but the mind governed by the Spirit is life and peace.
[Romans 8:9] You, however, are not in the realm of the flesh but are in the realm of the Spirit, if indeed the Spirit of God lives in you. And if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, they do not belong to Christ.
[Romans 8:14–15] For those who are led by the Spirit of God are the children of God. The Spirit you received does not make you slaves, so that you live in fear again; rather, the Spirit you received brought about your adoption to sonship. And by him we cry, “Abba, Father.”
[Romans 8:16–17] The Spirit himself testifies with our spirit that we are God’s children. Now if we are children, then we are heirs—heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ, if indeed we share in his sufferings in order that we may also share in his glory.
I hope you will believe that those who are born again, those who are born from above, are God’s children who have received the Holy Spirit, and also God’s heirs.
[Application] Have I been born once on this earth, or twice? Am I receiving the Holy Spirit and living each day under His guidance?
3. The Change in a Person who is Born Again
What happened to Nicodemus, who had come to Jesus at night so that others would not notice him? In Scripture, Nicodemus appears in today’s passage and then two more times. In John 7, the Pharisees and chief priests, who were religious leaders, send temple guards to arrest Jesus. But when the temple guards return without arresting Him, the authoritative Pharisees rebuke them. Then Nicodemus, who was among them, speaks up and says they must not condemn Jesus before hearing what He has to say.
[John 7:50–51] Nicodemus, who had gone to Jesus earlier and who was one of their own number, asked, “Does our law condemn a man without first hearing him to find out what he has been doing?”
Doesn’t it seem that something has changed? Nicodemus, who had once come to Jesus secretly to avoid people’s eyes, now speaks up to defend Jesus in front of those who oppose Him.
And Nicodemus appears again in John 19. After Jesus died on the cross, Joseph of Arimathea asked Pilate for Jesus’ body. At that time, Nicodemus helped Joseph prepare Jesus’ burial.
[John 19:38–39] Later, Joseph of Arimathea asked Pilate for the body of Jesus. Now Joseph was a disciple of Jesus, but secretly because he feared the Jewish leaders. With Pilate’s permission, he came and took the body away. He was accompanied by Nicodemus, the man who earlier had visited Jesus at night. Nicodemus brought a mixture of myrrh and aloes, about seventy-five pounds.
The myrrh and aloes Nicodemus brought were natural spices used as preservatives and for preventing odors, and they were said to be very expensive. He brought about seventy-five pounds (33 kilograms), which was the kind of amount used for the burial of royalty. What does this mean? He received Jesus as his King.
Can you see the change in Nicodemus’s life? From night to day, from darkness to light. Joseph of Arimathea as well — once afraid of people, now bold enough to ask Pilate for Jesus’ body and bury Him. Why is that? People who are born again undergo change. Those who receive the Holy Spirit experience amazing transformation in their lives as they follow His leading.
Why is this? Earlier we said that the word “born again” in the original language is γεννηθῇ ἄνωθεν (gennēthē anōthen). Anōthen means “from above,” and gennēthē means “to be born.” The English word “gene” comes from gennēthē. Gene refers to DNA. Being born means receiving genes. Because of the DNA within, one comes to resemble. When a baby is born, the baby resembles the parents. We have three daughters, and every time one of them was born, my wife loved hearing people say, “She looks like her mum and dad,” and she often said so herself. Our daughters resemble me, so they’re all beautiful. You may say amen. A baby resembling the father is a blessing for the home. But what if the baby resembles the man next door?
But we are those whom God has given birth to from above. Because we have inherited God’s gene, God’s DNA, those who are born again come to walk according to the Spirit who has come into us. The fruit of the Spirit forms in our character. As time goes by, we resemble the Lord more and more.
But what is our problem? Though we are born again and called God’s children, in the situations we face today, we often do not know what decision to make, which direction to go, or what kind of life we should live going forward. But do not worry too much.
[John 3:8] “The wind blows wherever it pleases. You hear its sound, but you cannot tell where it comes from or where it is going. So it is with everyone born of the Spirit.”
Who is the one born of the Spirit here? The person who has received the Spirit — that is, the person who is born again, the one born from above — the believer. He compares their life to the wind. Just as you do not know where the wind comes from or where it goes, so our lives seem like that. But what is important? That the wind is blowing right now. What is important in the life of a believer? To know and believe that the Holy Spirit is now within me and is working. We do not know everything the Holy Spirit does. But the Holy Spirit is the Spirit of God, the Spirit of Christ, and He is the good God. Believe that He knows all of your life, rules over you, and leads you. Believe that in the Lord all things work together for good.
We are being transformed today by the Holy Spirit, and tomorrow we will be transformed even more, becoming a blessed and beautiful life that resembles our Lord Jesus Christ. I pray this for all believers in the name of the Lord.
[Application] Have you experienced walking in darkness and then coming into the light? Do you believe that the Holy Spirit is within you? What part of your life is He changing right now?
하늘소망교회(담임 손진국 목사)는 뉴질랜드 오클랜드 북부 실버데일에 세워진 한인교회로 '하나님의 마음으로 사람을 살리는 교회'입니다.
Hope of Heaven Baptist Church (Senior Pastor: Rev. Jinkook Sohn) is a Korean church established in Silverdale, Auckland, New Zealand. It is a church that saves people with the heart of God.