Starting With Amen

Starting with Amen

John 3:1 NIV

1 Now there was a Pharisee, a man named Nicodemus who was a member of the Jewish ruling council.

Nicodemus is introduced

Member of the Jewish ruling council

John 3:2 NIV

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.”

Came to Jesus at night to talk with Jesus

Whether he came at night or during the day doesn’t matter. What matters is that he wanted to talk with Jesus.

You and I don’t have to wait until its bedtime to pray and talk to God. We can talk to Jesus any time of the day.

Now, you can talk to Jesus as someone to get information from or someone to get a relationship with.

You are a teacher so we’re going to have a conversation from one teacher to another. Let’s have an academic conversation about religion and the Bible.

Now I don’t think Nicodemus went to Jesus expecting to have a life-transforming conversation, but to gather some more intel.

But Jesus knew that Nicodemus had more than enough information. He knew his Bible, he knew history and he knew how to run things and all the rules to make sure things were done properly in the community.

What Nicodemus needed was not more information but transformation

We know - Nicodemus’ “knowing” only lead him to know a few things.

Where you came from - God

Where your miracles come from - God

Christmas just happened about 1.5 wks ago. What is celebrated during this time is where Jesus came from and why he came. Yet, how many know this and are still lost?

Nicodemus had heard, seen, been in conversations with people who gave their testimony about Jesus. So he was gathering info about Jesus. Good thing that even when we’re just gathering information about Jesus is that what we learn will awaken a desire to not just have information but get to know Jesus personally.

Today you have come to Jesus because you know who Jesus is, you’ve heard of him, you know where he came from and you’ve seen his signs.

But Jesus wants more for us - he does want us to know about him but he came to give us more than just factual knowledge, he came to have a relationship with us.

So look what Jesus says to Nic...

John 3:3 NIV

3 Jesus replied, “Very truly I tell you, no one can see the kingdom of God unless they are born again.”

Jesus responds to Nicodemus

“AMEN, AMEN” I tell you...

Amen usually comes at the end of a prayer. It means, “may it be so”.

It’s an affirmation of what we have just heard.

We repeat it in church when you hear something you agree with. Do you ever say, AMEN before you hear what’s about to be said? (some may).

When the amen comes first as Jesus does, it means that what Jesus is about to say is worth listening up for. Jesus is about to make a promise, a powerful statement.

So when Jesus starts with two “amens” we should get ready to say “amen” at the end of whatever he’s about to say.

We are to listen to the two amens because it’s important. When we start with amen, we start with a promise of what is coming right afterward. The promise here is that you will see the kingdom if you are born again. He’s making sure that you understand that the person saying it is worthy of being trusted and that his word is true.

see the kingdom of God - when Nicodemus says to Jesus “we know” - the greek means “we perceive”. It’s not “we know” in the personal relational sense, but more in the informational sense. The superficial, external sense.

Jesus says, “you know” but if you really want to “see” you MUST BE BORN AGAIN.

And Jesus’ prefaces this statement with an “amen”! It’s a “you better believe it,” “you can take it to the bank, cash it and spend it.” You know but you would be able to see it, but you must be born again.

We are here to start the new year with an AMEN.

With a promise, a declaration that we can trust and believe.

2019 is the year of seeing the kingdom of God.

2018 was the year of “we know”

2019 is the ?year of AMEN

2018 we saw, we heard, we experienced what’s going on, what God is doing

2019 is the year of being born again, even for the Nicodemus that we have here.

We can’t just stay in the “we know” stage, we have to go into the “seeing the kingdom stage”