Scripture Reading: John 3:1-8, 9-16, 22-36
In this book on the fulfillment of the tabernacle and the offerings in the writings of John, it is not our intention to review the Life-study of John. Our intention is to concentrate on the extract of every chapter. The way to get the extract of each chapter is to pay attention to the signs in this mysterious book. The Gospel of John is a book of mysteries and also a book of signs. A mystery points to something that is beyond our natural understanding, and a sign points to something deep. Therefore, I would emphasize the importance of these two matters — mysteries and signs.
All the mysteries in the Gospel of John are divine. For instance, many Bible students know that the Gospel of John is a book on life. To be sure, this life is neither physical life nor psychological life, not even merely spiritual life; it is divine life, the very life of God. Actually, this divine life is God Himself. This is the eternal life revealed in this Gospel.
The divine life in the Gospel of John is a mystery. Not only is the life of God a mystery; every kind of life is a mystery. This is true of our physical life, and it is also true even of plant life. The life of a fruit tree, for example, is a mystery.
In the Gospel of John there are many divine matters, and each of these matters is a mystery. Everything divine is mysterious and difficult to define. Although the mysterious, divine things cannot be fully understood, they are facts nonetheless. We may not be able to define the mysterious matter of the divine life, the life of God, but this life exists, and it is a mystery.
The divine life is not only a mystery; it is also a sign. We may use our physical life as an illustration. Suppose a certain brother stands up to speak in a meeting. Within him there is the mysterious matter of his physical life. That life is invisible. However, that mysterious and invisible life can be expressed through the gestures he uses when he speaks. The brother’s gestures will signify certain things. In like manner, the mysterious, divine life may express itself in signs. In every chapter of the Gospel of John there are signs that point to the divine mysteries.
We have seen that in chapter 1 of John there are six signs: the Word, the tabernacle, the Lamb, the dove, the stone, and the house of God. These six signs give us a complete picture.
In chapter 2 there are two signs. The first sign, the changing of water into wine, sets forth the principle of life, which is to change death into life. The second sign, that of rebuilding the destroyed temple, shows us the goal of life, which is to build up God’s dwelling place on earth.
The overall subject of all the extracts in the Gospel of John is the fulfillment of the tabernacle and the offerings. This means that in the extracts we have the fulfillment of the tabernacle and the offerings. Chapter 2 of John, in particular, reveals the tabernacle. The building up of the destroyed temple is certainly related to the reality of the tabernacle. This rebuilt temple is the very tabernacle into which we must enter.
The first mention of the tabernacle in the Gospel of John is in 1:14: “The Word became flesh and tabernacled among us.” Then in chapter 2 we again see the tabernacle. In chapter 2 this tabernacle was first the physical body of the Lord Jesus, God incarnate. The Lord said, “Destroy this temple” (v. 19). This temple corresponds to the tabernacle in 1:14. We have seen that this tabernacle is the incarnated Christ. At a certain time, the temple of the Lord’s physical body was destroyed by the Jews. Following that, the divine life within the Lord Jesus rebuilt that destroyed temple. Now this rebuilt temple has become the real temple, the real tabernacle.
The tabernacle in 1:14 was real; however, it was not as real as the rebuilt temple in chapter 2. The tabernacle in 1:14 was only in the flesh. But when it had been destroyed and rebuilt, it was in resurrection. To be in resurrection is to be in the Spirit. Therefore, the rebuilt tabernacle is the real tabernacle in the Spirit.
Furthermore, the tabernacle in 1:14 did not include us. But the rebuilt temple in chapter 2 not only includes us; it is also composed of us. The genuine entering into the tabernacle means that we are included in the composition of this tabernacle. Today the rebuilt tabernacle is the church. By what way do we enter the church as God’s tabernacle? We enter the tabernacle by being built into it, not by merely coming into it. If you only come into the tabernacle, you may go out after a period of time. The only thing that can keep you in the tabernacle is the fact that you are built into it and you thus become a part of its composition.
Let us use a church meeting hall as an illustration. We come into the hall for a meeting, but after the meeting is over, we leave the hall. However, the materials that have been built into the meeting hall, especially the beams and the columns, never leave it. The only way to remove the beams and the columns from the meeting hall would be to demolish the building.
In the same principle, we all should be built into the church as today’s tabernacle of God (Rev. 3:12). I do not believe that anyone can take me out of the church life, because I have been built into the church and have become part of it. The only way to remove me from the church life would be to utterly destroy the whole church. If that were to happen, I would be destroyed along with the church. The point we are making is that the rebuilt temple in chapter 2 of John includes us all and is built with us all. This means that we are the temple, the tabernacle.
We need the types in Exodus and also the signs in the Gospel of John. If we did not have the Old Testament types, we would not have an adequate knowledge of the signs in John. Likewise, if we did not have the signs in the Gospel of John, we would not be able to have a deep understanding of the types in Exodus.
Perhaps you are wondering how we can be built into the rebuilt temple. According to the signs in John 2, the way we are built into the temple is through the changing of death into life. The second sign in John 2, that of the rebuilt temple, depends on the first sign, that of changing water into wine. If water is not changed into wine, that is, if death is not changed into life, it will be impossible for the destroyed temple to be rebuilt.
Daily in the church life there may be some amount of destruction. Without the changing of water into wine, the changing of death into life, once the church has been destroyed, there would not be a way for it to be rebuilt. But the changing of death into life makes the rebuilding possible.
Because of the changing of death into life, we are not afraid of destruction. The church may be destroyed, but life will rebuild it. In the past we have experienced destruction. But we can praise the Lord that this destruction has brought in rebuilding by life. Through the changing of death into life we have experienced the rebuilding of the destroyed temple. Many of us can testify that years ago there was much death among us. Hallelujah, this death has been changed into life, and this life rebuilds the church!
Throughout the centuries the mysteries and the signs in John have not been adequately seen by God’s people. How we thank the Lord that, in His mercy, He has removed the veils to show these things to us! Now we can see things that are even deeper, richer, and more significant than what we covered in the Life-study of this Gospel.
Let us now proceed to John 3. In this chapter we have the signs of regeneration (vv. 1-8), the bronze serpent (vv. 9-16), and the bride (vv. 22-36). Some may be surprised to hear that regeneration is a sign. In chapter 3 of John there is a definite ground for us to say that regeneration is a sign. In verse 2 Nicodemus said to the Lord Jesus, “Rabbi, we know that You have come from God as a teacher, for no one can do these signs that You do unless God is with him.” This indicates that the subject of Nicodemus’s conversation with the Lord was the signs He was doing. After Nicodemus referred to these signs, the Lord answered and said to him, “Truly, truly, I say to you, Unless one is born anew, he cannot see the kingdom of God” (v. 3). Does this not indicate that being born anew is a sign? The Lord Jesus seemed to be saying to Nicodemus, “You are talking about signs. I would like to speak about a sign that is certainly worthy of consideration. This is the sign of signs, the sign of being born anew.” Regeneration, therefore, is indeed a sign.
We have pointed out that the Gospel of John is a book of mysteries and that these mysteries are divine. Do you not believe that our being regenerated is a mystery? No doubt, our regeneration is a mystery. Do you understand fully what regeneration is? Can you analyze it? Can you explain adequately what happened to you when you were regenerated? Can regeneration be studied scientifically in a laboratory? Scientists may say that there is no such thing as regeneration, for it is beyond their ability to analyze it. When we say that regeneration is a mystery, unbelieving scientists would say that this is altogether something unreal. But we would declare, “Regeneration is a reality. Your pride in your scientific knowledge is vanity. Regeneration is much more real than you are. Nothing you have and nothing you are is real. Everything is vanity. But our regeneration is the reality in human life. We can testify that in human experience nothing is as real as regeneration.”
What in our human life is more real than regeneration? Suppose you have a gold coin in your hand. That coin, of course, is real. You can look at it and touch it. But a gold coin is not as real as regeneration is. Regeneration is the greatest reality in human life.
But although regeneration is a reality, we cannot analyze it or understand it thoroughly. Furthermore, because regeneration is a mystery, it is also a sign. I can testify that after I was regenerated, many things happened to me that I could not understand or explain. Has this not been your experience as well? Young people, since you have been regenerated, have your parents not had difficulty explaining certain things that have happened to you? The parents of a young brother may say, “What has happened to our son? He is quite different now from what he was before. As time goes by, he seems more and more different. We cannot explain what has happened, but we know definitely that he is not the same.” This is an illustration of regeneration being a sign.
A person who has been regenerated bears a sign upon him. Every genuine Christian, everyone who has been born of God, bears such a sign. Anyone who claims to be a Christian but who does not have the sign of regeneration is a pseudo-Christian, a false believer. Regeneration is a sign, and everyone who has been regenerated bears this sign.
Regeneration denotes a new birth. This new birth has two elements; it includes being born of water and of the Spirit. In 3:5 the Lord Jesus said to Nicodemus, “Truly, truly, I say to you, Unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God.” For generations this verse has troubled Bible teachers and expositors. From the time I was saved and first began to love the Word of God, I was bothered by the expression born of water and the Spirit. I inquired of others and I read books on this matter in order to get the right understanding. However, no explanation fully satisfied me. Eventually, through the Lord’s mercy, I believe that we have received the proper understanding of what it means to be born of water and the Spirit.
Some unusual interpretations have been given of the water in 3:5. In 1964 I was talking with some believers who strongly opposed the practice of water baptism. During the course of the conversation, I asked the leading one among them about the Lord’s word concerning the water and the Spirit in John 3:5. He answered by giving a very strange, peculiar, and extraordinary explanation of the words born of water. He said that the water in 3:5 signifies the water in the womb of our mother. He went on to say that every genuine Christian has experienced two births. In the first birth we pass through the water in our mother’s womb, and in the second birth we are born of the Holy Spirit. According to him, this is the meaning of being born of water and the Spirit. I was astounded at that interpretation. I had been preaching and teaching the Bible for more than thirty years, and I had read a number of books on John 3. But never had I heard anyone say that the water in 3:5 refers to the water of our mother’s womb. Such an interpretation is altogether incredible and unreasonable. Can you imagine that when the Lord Jesus was speaking to Nicodemus, an elderly man, He was referring to the water of our mother’s womb? What a terrible thought! If that were the situation, then what is spoken of in 3:5 would not be a sign.
The words of water and the Spirit should have been plain to Nicodemus without any need of explanation. Similar words were spoken by John the Baptist to the Pharisees in Matthew 3:11. Hence, they should have been fully understood among the Pharisees. Here Nicodemus, one of the Pharisees, was speaking to the Lord, and the Lord spoke these familiar words. Water was the central concept of the ministry of John the Baptist, that is, to terminate people of the old creation. Spirit is the central concept of the ministry of Jesus, that is, to germinate people in the new creation. These two main concepts put together are the whole concept of the matter of regeneration. Regeneration, to be born anew, is the termination of people of the old creation with all their deeds and the germination of them in the new creation with the divine life.
According to Matthew 3:11 and 12 John the Baptist said, “I baptize you in water unto repentance, but He who is coming after me is stronger than I, whose sandals I am not worthy to carry. He Himself will baptize you in the Holy Spirit and fire, whose winnowing fan is in His hand. And He will thoroughly cleanse His threshing floor and will gather His wheat into the barn, but the chaff He will burn up with unquenchable fire.” Here John clearly spoke of baptismal water. He seemed to be saying to the Pharisees and Sadducees, “I baptize you only with water. Because I am merely a man, you may be a hypocrite and be able to cheat me. But you will not be able to deceive the One who is coming. He is not only man but also God. He will baptize you either in the Spirit or in fire. If you are genuine, He will put you into the Spirit. But if you are hypocritical, one day He will put you into the fire.”
Nicodemus, a leading Pharisee, must have been familiar with the word of John the Baptist concerning water and the Spirit. The Lord Jesus must have realized this. Therefore, when Nicodemus spoke to Him regarding signs, the Lord told him about being born of water and the Spirit. The Lord Jesus seemed to be saying to Nicodemus, “You need to be born of water according to what John the Baptist said, and you also need to be born of the Spirit. John was the forerunner of My ministry and introduced to you the matters of baptism in water and in the Spirit. Now, Nicodemus, you must take the water and the Spirit. You must be born of water and the Spirit. Do you know what the water will do for you? The water will terminate you by burying you. Nicodemus, you are a gentleman with a good education and a high position in society. You refer to Me as a rabbi. You don’t need a rabbi, Nicodemus. You need someone to bury you. You don’t need more teaching. You already have enough. You need a burial, a burial in water. John tried to bury you in water, but you Pharisees wouldn’t take it. Now you come to Me and refer to Me as a teacher come from God. Truly, truly, I say to you, unless you are born of the terminating water and the germinating Spirit, you cannot enter into the kingdom of God.”
Regeneration requires two elements — water and Spirit. On the negative side, the water terminates us; on the positive side, the Spirit germinates us. In this way we experience a new birth and become a new being. Birth always produces a being. When a child is born, this means that a new being is produced.
The Lord went on to say to Nicodemus, “That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit” (John 3:6). The Lord spoke this word in reply to what Nicodemus had said in verse 4: “How can a man be born when he is old? He cannot enter a second time into his mother’s womb and be born, can he?” In verse 6 the Lord made it clear that the new birth has nothing to do with the flesh. Nicodemus may have thought that he was wise and understanding. Actually, regarding the new birth, he was foolish and blind, thinking that regeneration involved returning to the mother’s womb to be born a second time. The Lord Jesus made it clear to him that to be born anew is to be terminated and to have a new being produced. What is terminated is of the flesh, and what is generated to become the new being is of the Spirit. Therefore, the Lord seemed to be telling Nicodemus, “Because that which is born of the flesh is flesh, you should let it be buried and forget about it. Even if a person could be born physically many times, he would still be flesh. Nicodemus, that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. The new being is spirit.” This new birth to have a new being is a mystery and also a sign. Hallelujah, we have a new being, and this new being is spirit, not flesh!
In 3:8 the Lord Jesus went on to say to Nicodemus, “The wind blows where it wills, and you hear the sound of it, but you do not know where it comes from and where it goes; so is everyone who is born of the Spirit.” The Lord’s word here indicates that a regenerated person is like the wind, which can be realized but which is beyond understanding.
I hope that all the saints, especially those who have been saved in recent years, will have a clear understanding concerning their salvation. When we believed in the name of the Lord Jesus, we were regenerated to become a new being. Regeneration does not simply mean that we put away the things from the past and have a new beginning. Regeneration is a matter of terminating our old being and being generated to have a new being produced in us. With our old being we have the natural life, and with the new being we have the divine life. What we were was of the old life, the human life. What we received through regeneration is a new life, the divine life. This divine life is the seed of our new being.
Regeneration is absolutely not a matter of imitating what Christians do or repeating what they say. To be regenerated is to receive another life, eternal life, the life of God. Before we believed in the Lord Jesus, we did not have this divine life. But from the time we believed in the Lord and called on His name, we have had the life of God. When we were regenerated, the divine life was imparted into us to make us a new being. This is regeneration, which is both a mystery and a sign.
