Pick a Side

Re:Verse passage – John 3:1-9  (day three)

⁶ That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit.

In this after-dark conversation with Nicodemus, Jesus draws a figurative line in the sand. On one side of the line are true believers. On the other side are those that choose not to follow and love God. There is no area in between the two sides. You are either fully in or fully out. We are either born of the flesh (seeking to lift ourselves up) or born of the spirit (seeking to lift God up).

We know that, at this point in his life, Nicodemus knew everything there was to know about being a devout religious person. He could recite the scriptures, point out the ways to follow the Law, tell others what sacrifices were needed, and knew a myriad other things, but he did not know Jesus as his Lord. Jesus addressed this with Nicodemus. Head knowledge lands us on the side of the flesh. We can know all the right things to say at church. We can know all the ways to act to look like good followers. We can lie to ourselves and think we are doing okay. We can even believe the things we hear and read in the Bible but miss the main point of salvation and living for Jesus (even Satan believes Jesus died and rose from the grave, but he is not born again!).

So where does that leave you? For us to disciple others, we must first understand which side we are on. Which side of the line are you on? If you find yourself on the side of the flesh, do you have someone you can ask questions of like Nicodemus did? If you find yourself on the side of the spirit, do you have someone you are discipling to that side?