You Must Be Born Again!

For our scripture reading this morning, we'll be reading John 3, verses 1-18. Now there was a man of the Pharisees named Nicodemus, a member of the Jewish ruling council.

! He came to Jesus at night and said, Rabbi, we know you're a teacher who has come from God, for no one could perform the miraculous signs you are doing if God were not with him.

In reply, Jesus declared, I tell you the truth, no one can see the kingdom of God unless he is born again.

How can a man be born when he is old? Nicodemus asked. Surely he cannot enter a second time into his mother's womb to be born? Jesus answered, I tell you the truth, no one can enter the kingdom of God unless he is born of water.

And the spirit. Flesh gives birth to flesh, but the spirit gives birth to spirit. You should not be surprised at my saying, you must be born again.

The wind blows wherever it pleases. You hear its sound, but you cannot tell where it comes from or where it's going. So it is with everyone born of the spirit.

How can this be? Nicodemus asked. You are Israel's teacher, Jesus said, and you do not understand these things.

I tell you the truth. We speak of what we know and we testify what we have seen. But still, you people do not accept our testimony. I have spoken to you of earthly things and you do not believe.

How then will you believe if I speak of heavenly things? No one has ever gone into heaven except the one who came from heaven, the son of man. Just as Moses lifted up the snake in the desert, so the son of man must be lifted up that everyone who believes in him may have eternal life.

For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only son that whoever believes in him shall not perish, but have eternal life.

For God did not send his son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him. Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because he has not believed in the name of God's one and only son.

I've had surgery a few times in my life. They were all relatively minor issues. I don't even know if you know what the adenoids are, but I've had my adenoids taken out.

They're somewhere in the back of your throat, I think. I haven't seen mine. I needed tubes put into my ears a couple times. I've had my wisdom teeth taken out.

And for all of those, I was put to sleep, so it wasn't too bad. The worst ever I had, a surgery, I had a tumor, a small tumor taken out of my back.

And it was the worst because I was awake when it was going on. They numbed me, of course. But, you know, I don't know if you've been in that situation, but, you know, you could still feel things.

And it gives me the heebie-jeebies just to think about it now. The surgeon had to cut into me if he was going to help me get the job done.

And being awake while that happens is not pleasant at all. But the surgeon had to do what the surgeon had to do if he was going to do his job, if he was going to really help me as the patient.

And it couldn't matter to him how much discomfort that put me into, because it was necessary. Today I have some spiritual surgery in front of me.

And I'm not the patient. Some of you are. And a surgeon has to get into the patient if he's going to do any good.

As long as he's talking about generalities and he's talking about things in a very general way, the patient won't get any better, will he? Will she? So the surgeon has to get down and dirty to see results.

Doing anything hard means you have to get particular. You have to get personal. And this morning I'm after something hard. I'm after the souls of men.

And I will tell you that some of you are not saved. And you face an eternity of danger, of punishment, of poverty, of pain, of loneliness, of darkness.

And you're blind to that reality. You might know it up here, but you're blind to it in your heart. But you're sitting there and you don't feel the danger.

The way that you are on seems right to you. Because there is a way that seems right to a man. But the end, it leads to destruction. It looks right. It feels right. I understand that.

I understand because I've been there. It makes sense to you. But the end is destruction nevertheless, despite how you feel about it presently.

And so I'm going to get down in the trenches with you. I'm putting your heart on the table. And I want to have personal dealings with you.

Not to be mean. Not to be confrontational. Not because I enjoy confrontation anyways. But because I come as an ambassador of God.

With a real sense that I'm here because God has put me here. And so he sent me to wrestle with you. Because he's full of love for you.

We saw in Sunday school the people that God gives over to their sin. That he quits wrestling with. Are the people without hope. And yet you're here and I'm here. And I'm going to wrestle with you.

And so I come as a very imperfect personification of that love. I come as a very imperfect voice to God's love for you as a sinner.

And I know. And no one knows the evil of my own heart like I do. But in love I come to you. And so don't bother defending yourself with saying.

But he's not perfect. Or I know what he is. I know what I am too. And it's not in my own standing that I come. It's because I come in God's name. So God speaks to you in his word.

We're going to look at John 3.7. Look at what God says in John 3.7. These are Jesus words to Nicodemus. These are Jesus words to you.

John 3.7. The middle of the verse. It's a simple sentence. You must be born again. The you there is plural.

That means Jesus is not just talking to Nicodemus. He's talking to you. Plural. All of you. He's talking to every single one of you. You must be born again.

You personally must be born again. And some of you might say. I understand that. I understand that.

I understand that. I've heard that. Someday I will get around to it. And my response to that is no. Today. You must be born again.

And don't think I'm strange. Or being odd. Because I'm being so earnest. Our culture is very flippant and superficial. But when your life is on the line.

You don't want someone superficial or flippant. Dealing with you. And so I come to you in all seriousness. And I say. Look at what Jesus. The living word of God says.

He says. You must. You must. Everything depends upon this. It's a necessity. You need it more than food. You need it more than water.

You need it more than air. You need it more than love. You need it more than anything. You could have all of those things. And be lost forever. You could be enjoying those things.

And. Gone. Lost. Darkness. Despair. Forever. And you could do without all those things. No water. No food. No air. And you could still have an eternity.

A paradise. In front of you. The man on the cross. Next to Jesus. Was without food. He was without water. The rest of his life.

Was going to be pain. And agony. And yet. Jesus could say. Today. You'll be with me. In paradise. More than anything. You must be born.

Again. George Whitefield. Was a great evangelist. Of the 1700s. So we're talking about. 300 years ago now.

He had. A great. High view of God. He. He was a strong. Firm. Excited. Passionate. Believer. In the doctrines of grace.

He loved to preach. And he preached to thousands. And thousands of people. Something like. Tens of thousands. Hundreds of thousands. Millions of people. He preached to. During his entire life.

People would come. From miles. And miles away. Something we don't see. Anything like today. But miles. And miles away. By foot. And by horse. To see him. To see him preach.

Old. Dirty. Coal miners. In England. Would get up. Out of the dark. Caves. And out of the coal mines. And come with suit. And their faces. And dirty clothes.

To hear him preach. And you know what. Text. He preached. More than any other. He preached. Again. And again.

And again. Uncountable times. He preached these words. You must. Be born again. And someone one time asked. Why do you always preach that?

Why every time we hear you preach. You preach. You must be born again. And you know what his answer was? Because. You must. Be born. Again.

That's my knife this morning. I'm going to say. And I pray that God would make it sharp. To cut your heart. So here's two questions. That we're going to look at. The first is.

What does it mean to be born again? If that's something that must happen. Then what is it? What must happen? Well. It's a fairly easy picture.

Once you. Get it. Take it out of the. The common. And we've. We've heard it so many times. Or you've heard it so many times. You. You can kind of just. Let it roll off. And you don't think about it. But. Birth is the beginning of life.

Isn't it? Birth is the beginning. Of life. It's a simple enough picture. Jesus says. You must be born again. You have to go back. To the very beginning. And start. Life.

Over. Your life has to have a fundamental. Restart. So you press the reset button. On your computer. And everything goes down. And then the computer comes up again.

And. That's the word. You. You must be born again. Sometimes we use the word. Conversion. You must be converted. That means. Something. Deep inside of you.

Has to fundamentally. Change. It's a renewal. A renewal. At the deepest level. Of who you are. It's starting.

Life. Over again. And that restart. Results. In. In. In. In. Doing. Good things. Is not what it means. To be born again. That's not what it means.

To be. Converted. Not too long ago. I heard of an. English pastor. He. And not a. Pastor. He's a doctor. He was a pastor. As well.

But. His primary job was. He was a doctor. And he grew up in a Christian home. Had Christian parents. He spent his life in church. He. He was the elder. At this. English. Baptist church there.

He. He loved going down to Africa. For months at a time. To help. Poor people. And so he would spend. Weeks and months in Africa. Helping. Impoverous people.

People respected him. People. Admired him. He gave great. Biblical advice. And so people would come with difficult questions to him. And they would ask him for.

Their. His advice. But then he had an affair. This is a true story. And he completely dropped out of the church. He. Dropped out of his family.

Left his family. He. He. Left it all for the arms of this woman. And it's one of those things that. When. It happens. People.

Ask. How. How could that happen? You know. It leaves them scratching their heads. Trying to put the pieces together. Because the pieces. Don't. Seem to fit. He was an elder.

He knew the Bible so well. He had such a great background. He. He was so selfless. With his time. He was so selfless. With his energy.

He cared for the poor. It didn't seem like he ever really had a thought for himself. So what happened? Well.

The answer simply. Was that. He never. Had to do something. That he didn't want to do. He never had to do something. That he didn't want to do.

All that going to church. All that going to Africa. All that being a pastor. And doing this. And doing that. That wasn't. Something that was hard for him.

That was something that he could embrace. And something that he could do. And nothing really had come ever into his life. That said. No. You can't do that. Even though you want to do that. Until.

That woman showed up. And then. He showed his true colors. You see. Conversion. Being born again. Is not.

Acting. Or being. A good person. People can do. And act. All sorts of good ways. And not. Be. Converted. Conversion. It's a change of heart.

At that deepest level. And nothing ever really came into that man's life. That made him say no. And at conversion. Something happens.

You turn away from yourself. You turn away from that direction of what I want. To now saying. What God do you want? Lord.

Have your way. Not my way. Have your way. And so. It's turning away from what I want. And saying God. What you want. It's not a minor course correction. It's not.

Something that just happens. And it just bumps you off of your. Your course. Of living. It's. Starting. All over again. It's going all the way back to the beginning of everything.

It's putting on Christ as your hope. Instead of yourself. It's taking off. Your old self. Your old identity. The way that you've lived. The way. The what you've thought. Your attitude towards everything. Your attitude towards God.

Towards Christ. Towards your righteousness. Towards who God is. It's. It's taking off that. All that old man. That old way of thinking. That old way of doing. And putting on. The new man.

It's not looking to yourself. Any more. To justify you. See. We all do that naturally. We come before God. And we say. God. You should accept me. Because of this. And this. And this. And something that all those things have in common.

Is that it has to do with me. My performance. Who I am. And when you're born again. You say no to that. And you say. Jesus. Just Jesus.

It's only looking to Jesus. And him crucified. Now when you look to Christ. By faith. You're converted. A new spirit enters you.

Life. Begins again. And that's what I'm talking about. That's what this conversion is. It's going all the way back. And restarting. Being born again. And that Jesus.

Is what Jesus is saying. Must happen. To you. That must happen. You must be born again. And so the question is. Has it happened to you?

Look at your heart. Has that happened to you? I'm not talking about a little more church. A little more prayer. A little more being nice to other people.

Has something happened in your life. That you can only. The only description for it would be. I was born again. I am a new creation.

That old person that I was. I am not that person anymore. Did that happen to you? Jesus says it must.

You must be born again. That's what it is. That's the first question. Now here's the second question. Why? Why must you be born again?

I'm earnest this morning. I'm serious this morning. Because the reasons are so great. What I mean is. These are big.

Jesus isn't saying. You must be born again. Like you must go see. This. The latest movie. It's not something flippant. It's not something that.

You know what? You really can go without. It's. You must. And the reasons. Are extreme. So why must you be born again?

These reasons go all the way. To the depth of who you are. Why you exist. What your place in the world is. What you have to do with what God is doing in this world. These aren't little things.

They're fundamental questions. And the first is. Why must you be born again? Because you are vain without it. What I mean by vain. Is not proud in this sense.

I mean. You're useless. You're pointless. You're meaningless. To no good. You are useless.

Without conversion. That could be hard to hear. Because maybe you're saying. But I'm not useless. I do lots of things that are good. And I totally agree. With you.

But the great thing. That God made you for. The great thing. The main thing. The main reason. That God created you. You're useless for that.

You know. There's a lot of things that you can do with a pair of scissors. Have you ever taken a pair of scissors. And turned a screw with it. You can do lots of things with a pair of scissors. But you're like a pair of scissors. That won't cut.

You're like a car. That will start. But it won't go forward. You're a farmer. Who doesn't raise anything. You're a chair. That you can't sit on.

You're a pen. That won't write. You're a doctor. That doesn't treat the sick. You're a zoo. Without any animals.

Do you see what I'm saying? The thing that you were made for. You're useless for. It's vain. So why do you even exist? Why are you even here?

Why are you here and not here? I'm not saying in this building. I'm saying why do you exist? Why don't you not exist? That's a big question. And God gives us the answer in his book.

And he says, I made you for myself. How many times do we hear someone saying this? God is so big. He's so big that he can't care about me.

If he's so big and so great, then surely he has something better to care about than what I'm doing. And who I am. Or this world. But I'll tell you what. That's not a big God.

That's a small God. And God in the Bible is so big that he cares about each one of you individually. He's so big that he can care about seven billion people at the same time.

Extremely personally. And he made each and every one of them. Every one of you in this building. In this room. For himself. He's very personal with every one of you.

He's not way out there. He's in your life. And he's asking you, what are you doing with what I've done? I've made you. You aren't a cog in the machine.

Oblivious to the maker. To the maker. Invisible. Unimportant. So no purpose. Every one of you is fearfully and wonderfully made.

In your mother's womb. God knit you together. And sewed you up. He chose your features. He picked out that nose. He picked out those ears.

He picked out that disposition. And that you're melancholy. Or you're generally cheerful. He saw your unformed body. He knew you.

He knows you. He knows you're sitting down. And you're rising up. Every one of you is this careful creation of God. He's put order into you. He's put purpose into you.

God made you for him. He made you to have this relationship with him. To receive his love. To know his love. And in return to give him love back.

He made you to experience his glory. He made you to experience his grandeur. And out of that sense to say. Oh God you are so great. I love you.

That is what God made you for. But without conversion. You're useless. So are you a bird? You know what a bird does?

A bird collects sticks. Collects mud. Builds a nest. Lays eggs. Does it again. And then dies. Is that your life? Just here for a little while.

Collecting sticks and muds and reproducing. And then I'll die. Are you a cow in a stall? Cow goes out. Does the work. Comes back.

Eats. And then dies. Oblivious to God. Oblivious to him. Oblivious to what he's doing. What God's doing.

But. But. You're a man. You're a woman. With a mind. And with a heart. And you were made for something bigger than sticks and mud and work. And eating. He made you in his own image.

And without conversion. You are useless. You don't reflect his glory. You don't respond to him. You don't love him. And so your very existence. Is vain.

You don't serve the great purpose for which God made you. And I'm not saying that to be mean. But just to say. This is why you must be born again. Again. It's not hopeless.

It's not the everlasting case. That you must forever be useless. It's why you must be born again. So that you can do the thing for which you were made. Without conversion.

You have no skill. To love God. To worship God. You have no innate ability. And when you're born again. God gives you those graces. Without him. You just. You can't do it.

You don't have the abilities to do it. So. Last year. I got. A bunch of guys together. And we put shingles on our roof. And.

I like to think that I'm a pretty handy man. I'm not. But I like to think that. And so. You know. I got these guys together. And we're putting shingles on. Tearing off. Putting new shingles on.

And it came time for lunch. I think. And so. Everyone comes off the roof. And we're eating lunch. And I get done early. And I want to get my roof done. So I'm an eager beaver. So I go up on top of the roof. And I start putting shingles on myself.

And about ten minutes later. Everyone else is up on the roof. And they're looking at my line of shingles. And. You know. They're not straight at all. And. They're saying all sorts of nice things. Like. Oh.

I think we can work it out. And. You know. I'm not. My point is. I'm not skilled at that. As much as I like to think I am.

As much as I wish I was. I'm not. And. And you don't have the skill. To love God either. It's not in you. You don't have what it takes to do the main thing.

You don't have the strength. So even today. You say. Oh. I have to be here. The Lord's day. What a drag.

How weary it makes me. You're weak. For the main thing. You're unable to do the very thing God made you to do.

And that's why you must be born again. You have to start over. So that you can get started again. And doing what you were made to do. Why must you be born again?

Secondly. The whole creation is useless to you without it. Let me. The whole creation is useless. To you. It's vain to you without it.

So. God made you to know him. And God put you. In a unique place. In this whole created world. He made this wonderful. Beautiful world. And he put man.

At the head. He put man at the head. Because. Man has the ability to speak. And to think. He can. He can take all the things that God has made. And all this fabulous creation.

And speak. God's glory. Back to him. God put you in charge. Not to dominate. And to abuse the creation. But as. Creation's loving head.

You're the tongue. That speaks for all the creation. So the other creatures. They can't praise God. They sing glory. Glory to God.

And we hear it. And they say. No. You sing. You sing. They don't know. But they're singing to us. And they're saying. You praise God. Look at us. The hand that made us is divine.

And so. They're saying. You praise God for us. So think with me. Just think. Where are you?

Well you're in this beautiful created world. You're not on Mars. This arid desert without any life. You're not on Venus with its scorching acid air and rain that just destroys anything instantly when it lands there.

Look at the world that you are in. Water. And trees. And life. It's brimming with life. You can see its activity everywhere.

So we put our cement down. Right? Over our driveway. Nice cement. And what grows in the cracks? Oh grass and flowers and everything.

It just is. You can't keep life down. The world is brimming with it. And that's our world. And the ocean. And the forest. And the air. And the ground. Life is everywhere. It's teeming.

And all of this. And God is saying. I put you at the head. I put you in charge of all this. So that you would see it all. And that you would experience it all. And that you would see my wisdom. And my glory.

And my goodness. And how alive I am. And that you would see all that. And worship me. But unconverted man. Is useless for this. God put you at the head.

He put you at the tongue. As the tongue. And you don't speak. You're drunk. You're blind. You're dumb. You can't see. You can't speak. All that glory hits you. And you say.

I don't see. I can't speak. All of it strikes you. And it's all a waste. It's all vain. It's all lost on you. So you aren't a slug.

You're a man. And God gave you this exalted position. So that you could see this world. And praise him. And that's why you must be born again. Third. Third.

Your religion. Is useless. Without conversion. Your religion. Is useless. Without conversion. Without being born again.

All of your religious performance. Is nothing. You say. Isn't it better to do it. Than not to do it. In some ways.

Maybe. But. In the most fundamental. Way. No. It makes no difference. Without faith. It is impossible. To please God. You're bringing deeds.

Out of a dirty heart. And they're not clean. They're not acceptable. It's like asking. Is it better to drink. Water out of. A poisoned well. Or not to drink water at all.

It doesn't matter. Death is in. Either direction. So you're coming here. Your faithful attendance. Does nothing.

As far as your standing with God goes. It makes no difference. I'm glad you're here. I'm glad that you're hearing the gospel. But without the new birth.

God has no pleasure in it. It does no good. Many people. When they feel bad. The instant reaction is. I'm going to start doing some good things.

And so. They start being a little more faithful in church. And they start saying a little more prayers. And you know. They start being a little bit nicer. Some giving. Some prayers. They'll fix things up.

But it does you no good. Because the well. Is poisoned. So think about how righteous Paul was. He could say.

As for legal righteousness. I was faultless. Can you say that? As for legal righteousness. As far as righteousness. As far as the law goes. I was faultless.

People could actually say about Paul. And they would say. Look at Paul. That man is righteous. Does anyone say that about you? That you're so righteous. That people will talk about how righteous you are?

And Paul was unconverted. If anyone was going to heaven. It was him. But what was it worth? He says later in Philippians.

It wasn't worth anything. It was a loss. I didn't put it in the negative. Or in the positive column. I didn't put it in the neutral column. It was actually against me. And it was all blasphemy.

It was all blasphemy against God. All that righteousness. All that religion. It was nothing but blasphemy. Do you know what blasphemy is? It's taking God's good name. And dragging it in the mud.

It's a violent assault. On God's good character. And when we put our righteousness. And our religion up. And say that's good enough. That is a violent assault.

On God's name. And God's character. Because you know what? He wasn't believing in God's goodness. He wasn't believing in God's holiness. He was rejecting Christ.

The only Savior. The only name by which man can be saved. Every good deed was a slap in the face of God. Every good deed was a rejection of Jesus Christ.

And it was calling God a liar. God said, this is my son. Listen to him. This is the way of salvation. And we say, no, it's not. It's a lie.

Calling God a promise breaker. And will you fare any better? You know what Paul gained for all of his righteousness. And all of his religion.

Nothing. Nothing. And will it do you any good? So. Now the thing to do is not to say. Well, what's the point? I might as well stop.

The point is. God still commands obedience. But you need new life. To carry it out. You need a new heart put in you.

You need a new life. You need to be born again. And so you cry out for forgiveness. And you cry out and say. I am weak. I can't bring this about. I am blind.

I am deaf. I am dumb. I cannot speak. I cannot hear. None of these things do me any good. Jesus save me. Jesus save me.

Without you. I can do nothing. That's the thing to do. Not to give up and say there's no point. But to say. I need Jesus. I would drive you to despair. Of all your religious deeds.

I wouldn't drive you to despair. Without any hope. There is hope. It's just not there. There's hope in Jesus. There's not hope in what we can do. So Jesus came. As a great savior.

For great sinners. And if you're willing to put yourself in the great sinner column. He will be that great savior for you. So listen.

Listen. What did Jesus do. To save sinners. Well the son of God became man. An incredibly. Great condescension.

Of coming down. Down. Down. And he became a servant. The king stooped. To wash feet.

And then he stooped. To die. For rebels. And Jesus said. Sacrifice. And offerings. You did not desire. But a body. You prepared for me. Here I am.

I've come to do your will. Oh God. And what was God's will. That Jesus would lay down his life. For sinners.

That he would lay down his life. In the place of sinners. In the place of the undeserving. So on the cross. Jesus offered himself.

Up to God. In the place. As a substitute. For sinners. So he went. Instead of his disciples. Remember he said.

Here I am. Leave them. Let them go. He went. Instead of Barabbas. Do you remember? Well which one should I let you go? Barabbas the thief. Or Jesus the innocent man.

And they say. Well give us Jesus. We want to execute him. He went. Instead of Barabbas. The ram. The ram. Was sacrificed. Remember in Isaac's place. And the lamb of God.

Was sacrificed. In the place. Of sinners. It was him. For them. And God's wrath. Flooded down on him.

And the bitterness. Of God's anger. Filled his muscles. Filled his bones. Entered his heart. Until his soul. Cried out in anguish. My God.

My God. Why have you forsaken me? And there was loneliness there. And there was pain. And abandonment. But it was all.

For sinners. Gain. And it was his love. It was his love. Gushing out to sinners. And so now the father. Offers peace.

He offers salvation. And forgiveness. To all those. Who turn to Christ. And see. This is our fourth point. That.

If you're not born again. Then all of that. Is useless to you. All of that. Happened. For nothing. As far as you're concerned.

Christ. Never. Died. To save a person. Who would not repent. Christ. Never. Died. For an unconverted. Sinner. And if you die.

Unrepenting. Unbelieving. Pressing on your way. Going through God's warnings. Pressing through. The gospel. And saying. I don't want it. I don't need it. I'm not here. I'm not hearing.

It. Then. You will die. And all that Jesus did. For sinners. Will be useless. To you. It will be like. It was never done.

And it will actually. Be worse than that. Because if you turn. All of that. Away. Then not only. Will it be useless. To you.

It will be called up. As a witness. Against you. It will be called up. As a witness. Against your soul. Forever. And ever. The worm.

Of guilt. Will devour you. And the worm. Of regret. Will devour you. And forever. And ever.

You'll remember. That Jesus. Died. To save sinners. But I didn't want. Any part of it. Jesus. Jesus. Died. So that I didn't. Have to be here. In this hell. This darkness.

This poverty. This pain. This punishment. This loneliness. But I wouldn't have it. God struck his son. To save sinners. But I wouldn't repent.

So here I am. And so don't let it be like that. You must be born again. And Jesus is standing. Calling you. To repentance.

To new faith. And so he's saying. Wake up. And so I say. Wake up. Wake up sinner. Stop lying there. Stop sitting there. And get up. There's mercy to be had.

If you'll get up. And go to Jesus. If you'll come and say. This is who I am. This is what I've done. Nothing in my hands I bring. Simply to the cross I cling. You're my only hope.

You have to come to Jesus. For new life. If you're going to be born again. Then you need a new start. And the new start. Begins at the cross. It begins there. When you lay down your life.

And you say. He laid down his life for me. I lay everything down for him. And I come just as I am. Here I am. Save me. And so Jesus comes to you.

And says. Don't waste your life. Don't waste your life. You are made for greater things. Than sticks and mud. And building nests. And dying. And leaving it to someone else.

And he's saying. Don't waste my life. Jesus is saying. Don't waste my life. Don't waste my death. Don't waste everything that I've done.

Come and confess. And I'll freely forgive. There's nothing great to do. There's only sin to confess. And Jesus to trust. And so come without money.

And buy. Come just as you are. And be saved. And so Jesus gently says to you. Come. Let us reason together. That's what I've been doing with you.

I've been giving you reasons. Jesus is saying. Come. Let us reason together. Though your sins be as scarlet. Though they be scarlet.

They shall be as white as snow. And though they be red as crimson. They shall be like wool. He's offering that to you. Forgiveness. Total forgiveness. But the verse goes on.

If you are willing and obedient. You will eat the best of the land. But if you resist. And rebel. You will be devoured by the sword.

For the mouth of the Lord has spoken. Let's pray. Heavenly Father. I come depending upon your power.

And your grace for sinners. There's nothing I can do. There's nothing any of us can do. To save a single sinner here.

Nothing. It's all up to you. It's all on your shoulders. And you will have all the glory. Forever and ever men will be praising you.

And they will not be thinking about us. They will be thinking about how kind you are. If at this moment you save sinners. And so I come asking that you would go forth.

Stand strong. Save sinners even now. You have said that your word is like a sword. And it lays open men's hearts.

Holy Spirit. I can't wield that sword. But you can. And so Holy Spirit. I pray that you would come and wield that sword. And lay men and women.

And boys and girls hearts open. So that they can see. That indeed they must be born again. And to see how it happens. That it comes by coming to Christ.

For new life. To dying to the old. And living again. With him and for him. Lord Jesus come powerfully. And show yourself gracious.

Search us. And try us. And lead us in the way. Of everlasting life. We pray. For your name's sake. Amen. Amen. Amen.