We'd like to thank Catherine very much for bringing those very timely and wonderful pieces to us tonight. And I want to thank David for leading. I don't know whether that's a compliment or not to say that she's seen more fat in a microchip. Well, I'm just glad you can't see the rest of me tonight. This suit does wonderful things. If you ask my wife, she'll certainly tell you that I'm not just as skinny as maybe my face lets on me to be. But it's wonderful to see you tonight. We thank you sincerely for coming. I want to encourage God's people to pray for these meetings every day. Pray for sinners. Pray that the Lord will move in this community. Our land needs God. And we believe tonight with all our hearts that outside of the gospel, there's no hope. But we're glad tonight that God is full of love and mercy. God is compassionate, and God is willing and able to save. And we believe that God is going to do that at this mission. But we need you to seek God's face and to pray. I'm going to invite you to turn with me tonight to some of the most familiar words found in the New Testament. I'd like you to turn, please, to John's Gospel, Chapter 3, the third chapter of John's Gospel. These words introduce us to the very first things that the Lord himself taught in this particular book of scripture. What we're going to read tonight highlights for us one of the most important subjects that any person in life could consider. I want to tell you tonight without apology that if you miss the significance of what John's Gospel chapter 3 verses 1 to 8 speak about, You have missed the most fundamental thing in life, and you're headed for a lost eternity. And I say that without apology, because these are not my words. These are the words of the eternal Son of God, who is full of grace and full of truth. And I want you to read with me from John's Gospel, chapter 3, verse number 1. And I want you to follow along and allow God to speak to you tonight, and allow the Word of God to penetrate your mind and soul. And then God's people will be praying throughout the course of this meeting that these words will penetrate your very soul and that God will save you tonight. Let's read God's Word together, John's Gospel, chapter 3, verse number 1. There was a man of the Pharisees named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews. The same came to Jesus by night and said unto him, Rabbi, we know that thou art a teacher come from God, for no man can do the miracles that thou doest except God be with him. Jesus answered and said unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God. Nicodemus saith unto him, How can a man be born when he is old? Can he enter the second time into his mother's womb and be born? Jesus answered, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God. That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. Marvel not that I said unto thee, Ye must be born again. The wind bloweth where it listeth, and thou hearest the sound thereof, but canst not tell whence it cometh and whether it goeth. And so is every one that is born of the Spirit. And we know that God will bless this reading of his truth to every single heart. Now let's still our hearts. Let's bow our heads in God's presence and pray that the Lord tonight will come. It's already been said that unless the Lord comes, our time will be wasted. But we know that God is merciful. We know that God is willing to speak tonight. And let's pray that the Lord will do just that. Let's pray, please. Father in Heaven, we come before Thee, O God, with humility in our hearts. We rejoice, Lord, in Thy presence already with us here tonight. Father, we thank Thee, O God, tonight for the one that, Lord, we meet in his name, the one who loved sinners and gave himself for them. We thank Thee that the Lamb is worthy. Father, we pray tonight that Thou wilt speak. We ask for the ministry of God the Holy Ghost. We pray, Lord, for those in this meeting that have not been born again. Father, we pray that Thy Spirit will strive with them. Ere it be too late. Father, I give this earthen vessel to Thee, and I pray that Thou wilt fill me with Thy Spirit. Hide me behind the cross. Glorify Thy Son, and may He see the travail of His soul and be satisfied. For it is in His precious and worthy name we pray, giving Thee the glory, in Jesus' name. Amen. It's often said that you should never judge a book by its cover. And that's right, because appearances can be deceptive. Appearances, in fact, can be very, very deceptive. You know, we live in a world where people don't like to face reality. People are trying to battle the aging process and we're, if we're honest, fighting a losing battle. We see in Hollywood, and perhaps even closer to home if we're honest. Men and mainly ladies, maybe in their 70s with a little nip here and a little tuck somewhere else and a little tug somewhere else and the result is you've got ladies in their 60s and 70s looking like teenagers and you need to be careful. I don't know about you but down where we live in Lisburn I've met people over the summer months and you haven't maybe seen them for a while and you meet them in the street and they've got a wonderful tan. And you speak to them and you ask them, you know, have you been away somewhere? You've got a wonderful tan and they'll say, no I haven't. And that just confuses me because I've been living in the same climate that they have and I haven't got the same tan that they have. And then maybe you see the palms of their hands and that's the parts that have got the biggest tan of all and appearances can be deceptive. Sometimes flying in an airplane to Aldergrove or Belfast City I've looked out the window and you look down in this world from a distance and everything's quiet and you see the world in all its motions and it just looks so peaceful and it looks as if it's just rolling on and on and on and everybody's at one and everybody's happy but appearances can be deceptive. And so often, whenever you see the world from a distance, from a plane, or from some great height, you cannot see into hearts, and into families, and into homes, and into lives. And you do not see the tears. And you do not see the broken homes, and you do not see the broken lives. And you do not see that this world has been stricken with a terrible problem. A problem that's brought heartache to many. problem that's leading many young men today and young women as well to suicide and to drink and to drugs because people just want to get away from reality and appearances can be deceptive. I'll tell you tonight something that a smile, a smile covers a lot doesn't it and a fancy suit covers a lot too. And you can come to this meeting with your Bible under your arm, and maybe a smile on your face, and somebody asks you, how are you? And you'll say, I'm fine, thanks, how are you? And maybe tonight as you go home, if you're not saved, you'll be lying in your bed just wondering what this world and what this life is all about. A smile covers a lot. Maybe tonight you're aching inside, Maybe tonight your heart is breaking and you've got questions in life that you've never found the answers to. And there's a problem in your life, and it's the problem of sin. And maybe it's manifesting itself in a different way than it manifests itself in the life of a down and out. But nevertheless, it's there, and your smile can cover a lot. I remember once reading a story about a man that went to his local doctor and he was at his wit's end, this individual, and he sat down with the doctor and just explained how for months he'd been battling with depression and he just couldn't find a way out of the blackness and out of the tunnel. And the doctor says, well, perhaps you could try this drug or I could prescribe you this. And he says, I've tried it. It doesn't work. Well, maybe you could go to this counsellor. I hear he's very good. I've tried him. It doesn't work. Well, maybe you could go in this course or try this herbal remedy or something else. And he went through a list, and this man just sat broken, weeping in the doctor's office and says, I've tried it all, and I just can't find the answers. And the doctor, at an end of himself, well, says, well, you know, the only thing I can suggest, and it's perhaps a silly suggestion, but might I say to you that the circus has come to time, just as it has in Macrefelt. And he says, some of my patients have been telling me that there's a clown in that circus. And many people tell me that he's extremely funny. And some people have just gone and they've watched him and they've just forgot about their troubles and they've laughed and you know laughter's a good medicine and maybe you should go and just go to that circus and maybe you'll find a bit of solace and maybe you'll forget for a while at any rate about your problems and you'll see that clown and And you'll see just how jovial he really is. And he just says, Doctor, let me tell you, I am that clown. Smile covers a lot, doesn't it? I'll tell you something else. Religion and morality cover a lot as well. Whenever we look at John's Gospel, Chapter 3, we're introduced to a very religious man, a very upright man, and a very moral man whose name was Nicodemus. In fact, the Bible says that Nicodemus was more than religious. He was the ruler of the Jews. Member of the Sanhedrin in all probability. And it tells us here that he came to Jesus by night. You might say that he was like the professor or the principal of the theological college in Jerusalem. You'll notice that this man had got a tremendous position because he was, as we have said, a ruler of the Jews. John's Gospel chapter 19 verse 39 indicates that Nicodemus, as well as being religious, as well as being upright and moral, as well as having a good position in society, was a man that was very wealthy. He was a man that was well known in the city. He got himself a great name. He was rather respectable because the Lord even says that he was a master of Israel. And of course, he had got a great education. And anybody looking at Nicodemus would say, there's a man that's got the answers. There's a man that if anyone's at peace with himself, Nicodemus has to be. And if ever there's a man that's got a sure hope of being in heaven, well, it's bound to be Nicodemus. But you know something? Nicodemus had a problem. And Nicodemus's religion and morality had covered a lot. Because inside Nicodemus, there was an emptiness. And inside the heart of this man, there was a tremendous hunger. And he was dissatisfied with his own religious experience. And despite what the world thought, Nicodemus did not have the answer. Jesus of Nazareth, at this time, is becoming a very popular teacher and preacher. Nicodemus, no doubt, either heard him in person or heard something about him. And so he went to Jesus by night. He was ashamed, you see. And I'll dare say that there's people in this meeting tonight and you would be ashamed to come any other night to the gospel campaign. You would be ashamed if your workmates tomorrow morning knew where you were tonight and so you come and there's a kind of fear about you just like Nicodemus. He came in secret. He came with an air of curiosity about him and I don't know where you stand with God tonight, but might I suggest to you that the fact that you're sitting in a gospel meeting Listening to God's Word, sitting amongst God's people indicates to me that at the very least there's maybe just a little spark of curiosity as to what this Gospel and what this Jesus and what this Bible and what this Kingdom of God that we keep talking about is all about. Jesus didn't turn them away. And he came to the Lord and he was curious. He wanted to know the way to heaven and he wanted to know the way to life itself. And he came to the Lord having this feeling that perhaps this man, Jesus, can tell me what I need. And maybe he can help me find life and find the answers. And at that point in his life, he didn't realize, dear friend, that Jesus was the answer. Christ is the answer. Not only does he have the answers, but let me tell you, Christ is the answer. Nicodemus knew something about Jesus, because he said unto him, Rabbi, which just means teacher, we know that thou art a teacher, come from God, because no man can do the miracles that thou doest, except God be with him. And despite that he knew something about Jesus, that didn't satisfy him. Maybe tonight you could get up and preach the gospel as well as anybody else. You could quote scripture, you could tell us the memory verses, you could maybe quote catechisms, you could talk about it, and you know something about Jesus, but there's no reality. Just like old Nicodemus. While Nicodemus knew something about Christ, Christ knew everything about Nicodemus. I don't know much about very many of you tonight, but I'll tell you this, God knows everything. There's nothing hid tonight from the gaze of eternity. And from that throne that sits encircled round about the angels, God looks down and God sees you just where you are. And maybe tonight you've tried religion, Maybe tonight you've even prayed the sinner's prayer. Maybe you've been pointed back to a decision. Maybe you've got a date in the inside of your Bible, but you still do not have reality, and you're just like Nicodemus, and you're curious. And so he came to the Lord, and as he spoke to Christ, Christ just stopped him and said in John 3 verse 3, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God. And he went on to unfold the greatest truth that mankind has ever heard. A truth that separates and divides men from men. And a truth that at the same time unites certain to God. He did not tell Nicodemus how he should live. But he told Nicodemus how he might be made alive. How he might be made a new creature. How his life might be transformed. How he might be turned around. You see, he explained to Nicodemus the reality of the new birth. That's just what we want to look at tonight, the reality, and more than that, the necessity of the new birth. You need to be born again tonight. You need to have reality, spiritual life. There's a few things that I'd like you to consider about the necessity of the new birth. The first thing being this, is that the new birth is an absolute necessity. Look at the words of the Lord Jesus. He says in John 3, verse 3, Verily, verily. That just means truly, truly or most assuredly, most assuredly. You see, the Lord Jesus, He'll never tell you a lie. He'll never lead you up the garden path like some missionary or evangelist or religious preacher might. The Lord is full of grace and truth. Then He says, Verily, verily, I say unto thee. Nicodemus, get this. I'm speaking to you now. And I, Jesus Christ, the Son of God, am speaking right into your heart and I'm saying to you truly, truly, most assuredly, most assuredly, except or unless. And He's indicating that there's no other way to enter into the Kingdom of Heaven. I say unto thee, except a man be born again, he cannot even see the Kingdom of God. Cannot even see the Kingdom of God. Then in verse 5 He says, verily, verily again, Then in verse 7 he says, marvel not, don't be surprised about this, that I said unto ye, ye must be born again. You see the Lord's using the clearest possible language. I'm glad tonight that the Lord is not the author of confusion. I remember a number of years ago working for a man and God speaking to his wife one day about Christianity and about salvation and we were speaking and she was a lovely lady, upright, religious, attended her church faithfully Sunday by Sunday. And I was just sharing to her what the Lord Jesus said about the new birth. And as I said, just even quoted the verse, he says, you know, my minister might think that you're very, very extreme. You see, he just likes to respect everybody's point of view, and he's never really dogmatic, and he's never really black or white, and he just really respects what we think, and you know, he might think that you're a bit extreme, and I says, well you know, I'm sure a lot of people might say that, but these are the words of Christ. I can't toy with them, or change them, or turn them around whenever the Lord has been so clear and so dogmatic about it. Made it clear that a person cannot even see God's heaven, cannot even see God's salvation, Cannot even see the beauty of Christ. Cannot even see the wretchedness of sin. Cannot even see the church of Christ for what it is. Cannot even see the kingdom of God unless they experience this thing called the new birth. You see, I'm glad tonight that God makes it plain. And God makes it simple. And God isn't ambiguous. And God doesn't confuse people. He makes it plain and simple for people like me to be able to understand. It's the church so often that has confused it. I'm glad tonight that I can just tell you, read your Bible, search the Scriptures, whether these things are so or not. And so the Lord says, verily, verily, verily, verily, I say unto you, marvel not that ye must be born again, except a man is born again. He cannot enter into the kingdom of God. Ye must be born again. You see, he couldn't be clearer. You know, the old Pharisees used to confuse how a man should enter into the kingdom. You need to be circumcised. You need to keep the law. You need to keep certain fasts. You need to keep certain feasts. You need to do this, that, and the other. And the Lord just comes and says, if you're born again, you'll enter into the kingdom of God. That's why the Bible says in Mark 12, 37, that the common people heard him gladly. See the man in the street. Whenever the Lord Jesus opened his mouth, they could understand what he was speaking about. But the old religious people, they just couldn't seem to get it. And the Lord's saying here, this is a necessity, Nicodemus. You must have this. You need this. This is what you need. You know, I remember meeting a lady one time in the doors, and I've met many since, and you speak to them about salvation, about God's heaven, and about forgiveness of sins, and so often the answer is this, well, you know, I have my own little way. What does that mean? Think if I turned up tomorrow to Belfast City Airport to board a flight to New York and went up to the flight attendant's desk and she says, where's your destination? He says, I'm hoping to travel to New York. Well, that's great, sir. Have you got your passport with you? No, no, I don't because, you know, I've got my own little way. Have you got your visa with you? No, I didn't think I should bring that either because I've got my own little way. Well, at least you're bound to have some tickets. No, I didn't think that was important because I've got my own little way. It's ridiculous. And if you even went to join the bank, you would need a signature and you'd need something. And yet people think that the God of heaven, that set the earth in motion, that spoke the universe into existence, that does all things decently and in order, would be less organized about whom he lets into heaven. It's so clear and it's so plain and it's so simple, it's an imperative. You must be born again. Would you call Jesus Christ a liar and say that you can get into heaven some other way than by the way of the new birth? Are you going to experience sins forgiven any other way than accept being born again? And the fact of the matter is, if the Lord Jesus said to a man as good, honest, upright, decent, religious, good living, and respectable as Nicodemus, that he must be born again, what must it be for you and me? This man that had sought to keep the law from the day he'd first heard it. You see, the new birth, it's an absolute necessity. Something else, it's a universal necessity. Verse number three, Jesus Christ says, accept a man. What he's saying is that there's nobody that falls into all mankind that is exempt from this. Unless any man, woman, child, father, mother, boy or girl is born again, they will not even see the Kingdom of God. You might look at someone like the demoniac of Gadara. Man possessed with the devil and say, well, there's a man that needs a new birth. or a prostitute like Mary Magdalene and say, there's a lady that needs the new birth. But the need that Nicodemus had was just as great as those people that we could call society's greatest sinners. You see, the Bible says there's no difference. All have sinned and have come short of the glory of God. All of us tonight are in the same boat. We need Christ. We need to be saved, we need to be born again. You see, I could travel to Australia, and I've done that, and I could go to any city I wanted in Australia, and any community within that city, and up any street, and go into any home, and sit with any family, and I'll experience the same problems that we have at home. Pride, bitterness, selfishness, anger, malice, hatred, disunity, All these sins of the heart. You can even look at the royal family itself. And dear friend, there's no difference. The problems that they experience are the problems that people in Macra felt experienced. Because there's a problem, you see. And we can gloss over it and we can cover it up as much as we like. But everywhere in the world you can go and experience that same pollution and problem of sin. The same pollution that was in the heart of the demoniac was in the heart of Nicodemus and was in my heart once as well. and is in the heart of Judas Iscariot. You see, scripture says, you hath he quickened, made alive, regenerated, who were dead in trespasses and in sins. You know, I believe tonight that mankind and man is made up of body, soul and spirit. And if you're not saved tonight, the Bible says your spirit is dead. There's not even a pulse of spiritual life in a person that's never been born again. And that's why the Savior says ye must be born again. The Holy Ghost needs to come and open your heart and impart to you spiritual life. And if that never happens, and that experience never happens in your life, you won't even see God's heaven. And you'll not even see the Kingdom of the Living God. Every rank, creed, file, class, character, nation, religion, it's all the same. Man needs to be born again. It's a universal A famous preacher, George Whitefield, used to always preach in this text. One occasion, a lady came and says, Mr. Whitefield, I've listened to you preach on many occasions and it seems that you're always preaching you must be born again. Why is that? He says, well, it's very simple, because ye must be born again. Universal need. You see, if we bring this into the natural realm, we can understand that mankind has a universal necessity. Every single one of us tonight needs oxygen to stay alive. We all need food and we all need water and we need some vitamins and minerals to keep these bodies of ours ticking over. All man has a universal necessity in the physical realm and so it is with the spiritual. For a person to experience life, they need to experience the power of God the Holy Ghost. And I'm asking you tonight, have you experienced it? You see, facts are stubborn things, aren't they? Hard to gloss over a fact like this. But not only is the new birth a universal necessity, but it's an individual necessity. Because the Lord said, Nicodemus, marvel not that I said unto ye, you must be born again. Isn't that the case that we take comfort in being with the majority? It's lovely to look at a verse like Romans 3, 23 and say, well, you know, everybody's a sinner, we're all in the same boat, so therefore my sin isn't as, maybe as serious as it might have been if I was the only sinner in the world or just among a select few. And we take comfort, you see, in being with the majority. Often people say, well, my sin is not as bad as their sin. And people say, well, I'm not as sinful as that church-going person. I'm not as sinful as that person that's got the suit on, that's sitting in that gospel mission. I'm not as sinful as that person that says they're a Christian, but maybe in reality aren't. And it's very easy to point the finger at somebody else and say, I am not as bad as they are. Anybody could do that. Nicodemus, of all people, could have done that. And if you're able to say, I am not as bad as some other person, in reality, you are admitting that there is bad in your life, but it might not just be as bad as you view it as somebody else. I used to fish whenever I was an Australian. Sometimes we would have fished for squid. I never liked eating them, but some people did, and they didn't really like catching them either, because whenever you hook a squid, what it does, it emits black ink. And the ink just pulses out, and soon the water's clouded with this ink that comes out of the squid, and it's just a defence mechanism. It just clouds the water to try and hide itself from would-be predators. And you could see men that were catching squid that would be lying there in the jetty and the ink would just be pulsing out of it. There was black ink everywhere. Men had it in their hands and trousers and it didn't come out. And it's very easy for us just to try and blacken somebody else's testimony. and say, well I'm not as bad as the rapist, I'm not as bad as the pedophile, I'm not as bad as the drug dealer, I'm not as bad as the hypocrite that molests children, I'm not as bad as those people, I'm not as bad as the down and out. But dear friend, you still need to be born again. I don't care how religious you are tonight. I don't care how big that Bible is that you have tonight. I don't care how much of it you can quote tonight. I'm asking you, have you ever been born again? Have you ever been born again? The Lord is saying to Nicodemus, Nicodemus, you must be born again. He says, Nicodemus, your sin is taking you to hell. Your life, Nicodemus, although it's upright in the eyes of men, is an offence to me continually. Have you ever considered that, dear friend, that you've never been saved? That your life is cut off from God. That your soul is an entity against God. That your sin grieves and angers the heart of God every day. That you will be in God's hell if you never experience God's regenerating power. It's as real as that. It's an individual need. So many people say, well, you know, if you ask them if you're saved, they'll say, well, it's a very personal thing. And that's exactly right. But I'm asking you to search your heart. Have you ever experienced the new birth? I think the tragedy today with so many Christian circles, including even the church that I belong to, is that so many young people have sat in meetings and have never heard God's voice. And so many young people read their Bibles, but they've never experienced regeneration. And so many people are going about their duties, and they've listened to sermons, and they're upright, and they're moral, and they'll be willing to talk about God to anyone that'll listen. But if the truth hits their heart, and the rubber hits the road, they know nothing of what it is to be born again of the Holy Ghost. Think about it. Never just be content to go to hell deluded, thinking that you're saved whenever you're not. These are bread and butter issues. Have you ever experienced the new birth? Martin Lloyd-Jones once says, Christianity is a thinking man's religion and it is. And you need to consider your ways and prepare to meet thy God. You see, in fact of all that Nicodemus was and did and stood for and looked like to the world, his appearance covered up the fact that his heart and his spirit was still dead in sin. Now we know a man that We grew up near our home and hated the things of God, if we're honest. Very irreligious. Wouldn't have listened to the gospel. Never would have gone to a gospel meeting. And then he fell in with a very elite crowd of people. that went to a certain place that was noted for being a place where all the hierarchy went, the doctors, the lawyers, the philosophers, and he just fitted in with them so well, and he's still never been born again. But you know something? He'll sit at the Lord's table, and he'll partake of those things, and he's got an air of religiosity about him, and he's glad about that now, and the tragedy is that he's still never been born again. You see, going to church does not save you. You'll be honest if you know that. You'll be honest. Old Sammy Spence was an evangelist with the Coal Men's Mission and one time he was taken into the house of a lady and he began to witness to her and say, you know, you would really need to be converted. You need to be saved. You need to be born again. And she says, Mr. Spence, you don't understand. She says, whenever as a little child I was baptized into Covenant Greece, And I had my name at that time written on the Sunday school roll. And then whenever I got a little bit older, I became a communicant member in my church, and then my name was written upon the church roll. And then I joined the PWA, or some of these women's organisations, and then my name was written on that roll. And he says, listen, maybe you've heard it before, he says, you can have your name on whatever roll you like. But if it's not in God's role, it could be in a sausage role or whatever kind of role you like. But you still must experience the new birth. You know, going to church never saved me. I went to church twice in a Sunday. I went to the Boys Brigade during the week. Loved it. Went to the Christian Endeavour on a Friday night. I went to the Youth Fellowship on a Sunday evening. And I even went to a Sunday school in the afternoon. But I still needed to be born again. You see, something in church doesn't make you a Christian. Many people think that. I've sat in McDonald's many a time and it hasn't turned me into a hamburger yet. You still must be born again. You can be religious, church-going, you still need to be born again. You can be a drunkard, a curser, a blasphemer, a thief and a vagabond, but you still must be born again, good or bad, rich or poor, drunk or sober, atheist or agnostic. religious or irreligious, Jew or Gentile, Protestant or Catholic, Loyalist or Nationalist, Presbyterian, Free Presbyterian, Episcopalian, Methodist, Independent Methodist, Congregational, Baptist, whatever you like to label yourself, you still must be born again. Because the Lord indicated that this is an absolute need, it's a universal need, and it's a personal need, but it's also a spiritual need. I spent a lot of time talking about your need to be born again, but I haven't actually told you yet what it actually means to be born again. But the new birth is a spiritual necessity. You see, it's obvious from verse number four, if you look at it there, that Nicodemus said unto the Lord, how can a man be born when he is old? How could a man possibly enter into his mother's womb the second time and be born again? You know, that's entirely unattainable and he was absolutely right. This religious man was ignorant of the new birth, couldn't explain it, never experienced it, didn't understand it, just like a lot of religious people today. Let me tell you that whenever Jesus said to Nicodemus, you must be born again, he wasn't giving him a commandment. You see, there's a commandment in, say for example, Mark 1 15 where Jesus stood up and said, repent and believe the gospel. And that's a commandment that God gives you tonight. You need to repent of sin and you need to turn from sin and turn unto God and you need to believe the gospel that Christ died for our sins and was buried and rose again the third day according to the scriptures. That's your responsibility to repent and believe the gospel. But whenever Jesus says to Nicodemus, you must be born again, he's not giving him a commandment. He's not saying, Nicodemus, this is something that you have to go and do. He's just making a statement. Nicodemus, this is something that has to happen to you. This is something that has to happen in you. This is the work of God, the Holy Ghost. And if you've never experienced it, your soul will be in hell and you'll never see God's heaven and you'll never be a partaker of the kingdom of God. That which is born of the flesh is flesh. It's a fact of science that animals always produce after their kind. Frog will always give birth to a frog. Frog spawn. Dog will always give birth to a dog. Cat will always give birth to a cat. A chicken will never give birth to an elephant. It's an impossibility, despite what the evolutionists are telling. And Jesus says to Nicodemus, that which is born of the flesh is flesh. See Nicodemus, anything you do that's fleshly, it'll never be spiritual. If you're praying in the flesh, and you're being religious in the flesh, and you're living in the flesh, and you die in the flesh, you'll receive the reaping of the flesh. But that which is born of the Spirit, capital S, the Holy Ghost, is spiritual. It might say on your margin, born from above. Now so many people will say, you know, I used to be a Christian, but I'm not anymore. That which was born of the flesh was flesh. Fleshly decision, fleshly profession, Just an old fleshly prayer to hopefully get you out of hell and then you can go and live whatever way you like. That which is born of the flesh is flesh. You know, I know there's people tonight, perhaps in this meeting, that are backslidden. Cold at heart. I'm going to tramp on toes, but let me tell you, I believe perhaps the vast majority of people that say they're backslidden never experienced the new birth. I just don't think it tallies the amount of people tonight in Northern Ireland and in the South of Ireland that say, well I got saved and I was saved 20 years ago and 19 years ago I backslid but I'll still be in God's heaven. Dear friend, do a word study. Go and get a concordance and see how many times the word backslide, backslider, backsliding, backslidden is mentioned in the New Testament. You'll get an eye opener. In fact, the word backslider is mentioned once in all the Bible. Proverbs says, the backslider in heart shall be filled with his own ways. And I've met people and they say their backs didn't, perhaps they are. But the Bible in the New Testament talks a lot about false professions and things that are born of the flesh that only result in the flesh glorying for a little while and then they burn out and they're left living a life in the flesh. But the new birth This thing that Jesus said to Nicodemus that he must experience, that comes from heaven, that comes via the Holy Ghost, is explained in Ezekiel chapter 36 verses 26 and 27, where God says to Israel concerning the gospel age, He says, I will put a new spirit within you. And I will take away the stony heart out of your flesh. And I will give you an heart of flesh. And you say, so far, so good. And then the Lord says, and I will put my laws into your hearts. And he says, I will put my commandments in you. And you shall keep my laws and you shall do them. That's what the new birth does. That's why Paul says, I delight in the law of God after the inward man. You see, if a doctor told you tomorrow morning, you need a heart transplant. Would you be able to say, well I'll go away and give myself a heart transplant? Can't do it. It's physically impossible. And for a person to give themselves a new heart and to turn over a new leaf and try and live morally, uprightly in a way that's pleasing to God is a fleshly impossibility. You need to be born of the Holy Ghost. The sinner, the Lord is not telling a sinner here you need to change your habits. The Lord is telling Nicodemus that the spirit needs to change your heart, and it's an experience. Have you experienced it tonight? One old preacher was confronted by a communist, and the communist said, you know, my philosophy can put a new suit on a man's back. Can your God, can your Christianity, can your gospel do that? Oh, it can do much more. My God can put a new man in that old suit. That's why the Bible says if any man is in Christ, he's a new creature. It doesn't say if any man's in Christ, he just goes off and lives that old sinful life that he led before. Whenever Jesus said to the adulterous woman that the world and the religious people were going to stone according to the law, he says, neither do I condemn thee, go thy way and sin no more. He didn't say to her, well I've forgiven you and you can go and commit adultery as much as you like because I've given you a little ticket and whenever you get to the gates of heaven just wave it and the gates will open and you'll be saved for all eternity. Salvation is not something that happens after you die. Salvation is something that happens as soon as you experience the new birth and you enter into a life of faith and walking with the Lord. You see, new birth always gives new life. I want you to look at a few verses with me. And we're almost finished. If you turn to the epistle of 1 John, this explains to us what happens to a person whenever they're born again and after they're born again. And I'm asking you tonight, would you like to go to heaven when you die? Would you like to be right with God? I'm sure most people tonight would say, I'd love to be. And I could say to some of you tonight, are you saved? Well, yes I am. Well, let's just look at a few simple truths that are black and white in scripture, inspired by the Holy Ghost, that speak about what happens when a person is born again. If you look at 1 John 2, verse 29, the second part of the verse, it says there, everyone that doeth righteousness is born again. Every person that's born again doeth righteousness. Do you live a righteous life tonight? I'm not asking you what you've professed, but is your life righteous? I'm not just asking you have you received the righteousness of Christ, but I'm asking you is there imparted righteousness in your life? Is there holiness there? Because the Bible says without holiness no man shall see the Lord. I don't like to think about verses like that, do I? It's nice to think, whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved. And that's right, but salvation results in holiness and righteousness. Look at 1 John 3, verse 9. Whosoever is born of God doth not commit sin. For his seed remaineth in him, and he cannot sin, because he is born of God. Now, what does that mean? Is that saying that if you ever commit another sin, you're lost and you're never born again in the first place? It doesn't mean that. What this is saying is that a person that is born of the Holy Ghost will not live in a lifestyle of habitual sin. Because they've received a new bias. Before I was converted, said a young girl joining a church, I ran to sin. But after I was born again, I ran from it. A person that's born again will not live in a life of habitual sin. Turn over your page. Look at 1 John chapter 4, verse number 7. Beloved, Let us love one another for love is of God and everyone that loveth is born of God and knoweth God. Do you love God tonight? Simon thy son of Jonas, lovest thou me? I'm not asking you how much you know tonight. or what you've professed. I'm asking you, do you love Him? It's the first and the greatest commandment that thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, with all thy mind, and with all thy soul, and with all thy strength. And if you don't love God tonight, you're a transgressor of God's law. But the Bible says everyone that is born of God loveth. And not only that, not only do they love God, but they know God. Do you know Him tonight? Is Jesus Christ as real to you now as the person sitting beside you? Let's go on a little bit further. Look at 1 John chapter 5, verse number 1. Whosoever believeth that Jesus is the Christ is born of God, and every one that loveth him that begat loveth him also that has begotten of him. Two things here the Bible says about a person that's been born again. First of all, they'll believe who Christ is and therefore what Christ has done. Do you believe that Jesus Christ was the Son of God and God the Son? Do you believe that whenever he died on the cross he was dying for your sins? Do you believe that that death upon the cross and his resurrection is fit to take you to God's heaven? And then he also says that a person that is born again will also love other people that are born again. A Christian will love another Christian. That's why Jesus says, Herein shall men know that ye are my disciples if ye have love one for another. And then the last one, it says, 1 John 5, verse 4, Whosoever whatsoever is born of God overcometh the world. The Bible says, if a man is a friend of the world, he is an enemy of God. And a person that is born of the Holy Ghost overcomes the world. Well, maybe tonight you'll say, I'm saved. And I'm not trying to cast what God has done in your life into doubt. But if a person says they're saved and there's no love for Christ, And there's no victory over sin. And there's a love for the world. And there's no victory and there's no holiness. Ask yourself the question, is that God's salvation? Now, I want us to be real tonight. Have you experienced the new birth? Do you have reality tonight? Have you got life tonight? You might say, Preacher, you know what? I don't know. And I can't stand up in front of these people. And I can't come out in this meeting and tell people and get right with God, because preacher I'm teaching Sunday school. What will it look like if my elders thought that I was never saved all along? And my mother and father think that I'm saved. People think that I'm converted because I'm involved in the church and I'm involved with this organization and that organization and the other organization. Dear friend, would it not be a foolish thing to say that I'm scared about what people think whenever the Bible says that Jesus Christ came to give life and life more abundant? And he offers you forgiveness and salvation and love and peace and joy and heaven tonight. And you're bound for hell and you're too proud to admit that you've maybe never experienced what Nicodemus had never experienced. You see, the new birth brings life and it brings reality. And maybe tonight you're concerned and you say, well, you're telling me that this is all of God and there's nothing that I can do and this is a work of the Spirit and it's not a work of the flesh. What are you asking the preacher to do? Well, Nicodemus asked exactly the same question. In John chapter 3 verse 9, Nicodemus answered and said unto him, How can these things be? I can't understand it, Lord. And then the Lord Jesus went on to explain the gospel. And he pointed back to a time in Israel's history where Moses lifted up a serpent in the wilderness. And whoever looked at that serpent laughed. And then he goes on to explain what that meant and he says, For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish but have everlastingly. Let me tell you tonight something, friend. God loves you. And he will love you to the gates of hell. And Jesus Christ on one occasion was lifted up between heaven and earth. And he made a once for all sacrifice and we're called to look unto him and live. Look and live. And whenever you experience that life, it's evidence of the new birth. I trust tonight that if you're not saved, you will come and cry unto God for mercy. We're going to just have a brief word of prayer. before we sing our closing hymn. And I'm asking you tonight, if God has spoken to your heart, that you'll be honest with God. You need to be saved tonight. You need to be born again. It's a universal necessity. There's nobody in this meeting tonight that doesn't need it. You need it. It's an absolute necessity and it's a spiritual necessity. May God speak to your heart. If you're concerned about salvation, I'll ask you just to come and speak to myself or David after the meeting. Whatever maybe is on your heart, maybe cold at heart, maybe never saved. And tonight you want to get saved. Stay behind and speak to either one of us. Our Father, which art in heaven, we thank thee, O God, for thy word. We thank you, Lord, for the truth, Lord, that it contains. And, Father, we pray in Jesus' name for those in this meeting that are not saved and have never been born again and are still dead in sin. And, Lord, if they were to die in that state, they'd be lost. Father, we pray that Thou wilt speak to their hearts. Open their hearts, Lord. Draw them to Christ. Save them for Thine eternal glory, we pray in Jesus' name. Amen.