The New Birth

Jn.3

There was a man of the Pharisees
named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews.
This man came to Jesus by night and said
to Him, “Rabbi, we know that You are a
teacher come from God; for no one can do
these signs that You do unless God is with
him.”
Jesus answered and said to him, “Most
assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born
again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.”
Nicodemus said to Him, “How can a
man be born when he is old? Can he enter
a second time into his mother’s womb
and be born?”
Jesus answered, “Most assuredly, I say
to you, unless one is born of water and the
Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God.
That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and
that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. Do
not marvel that I said to you, ‘You must be
born again.’ The wind blows where it wishes,
and you hear the sound of it, but cannot
tell where it comes from and where it goes.
So is everyone who is born of the Spirit.”
Nicodemus answered and said to Him,
“How can these things be?”
Jesus answered and said to him, “Are
you the teacher of Israel, and do not know
these things? Most assuredly, I say to you,
We speak what We know and testify what We
have seen, and you do not receive Our witness.
If I have told you earthly things and
you do not believe, how will you believe if
I tell you heavenly things? No one has
ascended to heaven but He who came down
from heaven, that is, the Son of Man who
is in heaven. And as Moses lifted up the
serpent in the wilderness, even so must the
Son of Man be lifted up, that whoever believes
in Him should not perish but have eternal life.
For God so loved the world that He gave His
only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him
should not perish but have everlasting life. For
God did not send His Son into the world to condemn
the world, but that world through Him
might be saved.
“He who believes in Him is not condemned;
but he who does not believe is condemned
already, because he has not believed in the
name of the only begotten Son of God. And this
is the condemnation, that the light has come into
the world, and men loved darkness rather than
light, because their deeds were evil. For everyone
practicing evil hates the light and does not come
to the light, lest his deeds should be exposed.
But he who does the truth comes to the light,
that his deeds may be clearly seen, that they
have been done in God.”


Jesus Forgives And Heals a Paralytic

And again He entered Capernaum
after some days, and it was heard that
He was in the house. Immediately many
gathered together so that there was no
longer room to receive them not even near the
door. And He preached the word to them.
Then they came to Him, bringing a paralytic
who was carried by four men. And when
they could not come near Him because of
the crowd, they uncovered the roof where
He was. So when they had broken through,
they let down the bed on which the paralytic
was lying.
When Jesus saw their faith, He said to
the paralytic, “Son, your sins are forgiven
you.”
And some of the scribes were sitting
there and reasoning in their hearts, “Why
does this Man speak blasphemies like this?
Who can forgive sins but God alone?”
But immediately, when Jesus perceived
in His spirit that they reasoned thus within
themselves, He said to them, “Why do you
reason about these things in you hearts?
Which is easier, to say to the paralytic,
‘Your sins are forgiven you’, or to say, ‘Arise,
take up you bed and walk’? But that you
may know that the Son of Man has power
on earth to forgive sins” — He said to the
paralytic, “I say to you, arise, take up your
bed, and go to your house.” Immediately
he arose, took up the bed, and went out in
the presence of them all, so that all were
amazed and glorified God, saying, “We never
saw anything like this!”

The Sin-Bearing Servant

Isaiah 52:13-15

Behold, My Servant shall
deal prudently;
He shall be exalted and extolled
and be very high.
Just as many were astonished at you,
So His visage was marred
more than any man,
And His form more than
there sons of men;
So shall He sprinkle many nations.
Kings shall shut their mouths at Him;
For what had not been told
them they shall see,
And what they had not heard
they shall consider.

Isaiah 53

Who has believed our report?
And to whom has the arm
of the LORD been revealed?
For He shall grow up before
Him as a tender plant,
And as a root out of dry ground.
He has no form or comeliness;
And when we see Him,
There is no beauty that we
should desire Him.
He is despised and rejected by men,
A Man of sorrows and
acquainted with grief.
And we hid, as it were, our
faces from Him;
He was despised, and we
did not esteem Him.

Surely He has borne our griefs
And carried our sorrows;
Yet we esteemed Him stricken,
Smitten by God, and afflicted.
But He was wounded for
our transgressions,
He was bruised for our iniquities;
The chastisement for our
peace was upon Him,
And by His stripes we are healed.
All we like sheep have gone astray;
We have turned, every one,
to his own way;
And the LORD has laid on Him
the iniquity of us all.

He was oppressed and He was afflicted,
Yet He opened not His mouth;
He was led as a lamb to the slaughter,
And as a sheep before its shears is silent,
So He opened not His mouth.
He was taken from prison
and from judgement,
And who will declare His generation?
For He was cut off from the
land of the living;
For the transgressions of My
people He was stricken.
And they made His grave
with the wicked—
But with the rich at His death,
Because He had done no violence,
Nor was any deceit in His mouth.

Yet it pleased the LORD to bruise Him;
He has put Him to grief.
When You make His soul
and offering for sin,
He shall see His seed, He
shall prolong His days,
And the pleasure of the LORD
shall prosper in His hand.
He shall see the labor of His
soul, and be satisfied.
By His knowledge My righteous
Servant shall justify many,
For He shall bear their iniquities.
Therefore I will divide Him a
portion with the great,
And He shall divide the spoil
with the strong,
Because He poured out His
soul unto death,
And He bore the sin of many,
And made intercession for
the transgressors.

The Whole Armor of GOD

Ephesians 6:10-17

Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord and in the power of His might. Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places. Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand.

Stand therefore, having girded your waist with truth, having put on the breastplate of righteousness, and having shod you feet with the preparation of gospel of peace; above all, taking the shield of faith with which you will be able to quench the fiery darts of the wicked one. And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.

The Model Prayer

Matthew 6:9

Our Father in heaven,
Hallowed be Your name.
Your kingdom come.
Your will be done
On earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread.
And Forgive us for our debts,
As we forgive our debtors.
And do not lead us into temptation,
but deliver us from the evil one.
For Yours is the kingdom and the
power and the glory forever, Amen.

Luke 11:2

Our Father in heaven,
Hallowed be Your name.
Your kingdom come.
Your will be done
On earth as it is in heaven.
Give us day by day our daily bread.
And forgive us our sin,
For we also forgive everyone
who is indebted to us.
And do not lead us into temptation,
But deliver us from the evil one.