Characteristics of the New Life
A Sermon on John 3:1-8
Scripture
The New Birth
1Now there was a man of the Pharisees, named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews; 2this man came to Jesus at night and said to Him, “Rabbi, we know that You have come from God as a teacher; for no one can do these signs …
1There was a man of the Pharisees, named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews: 2The 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 these miracles that thou doest, except God …
Sermon Description
In this sermon on John 3:8 identifying “Characteristics of the New Life,” Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones speaks of the signs of those who have been born again: Christians who have been saved exhibit more than a conscience that condemns their wickedness but also exhibit new desires to please God and wage war against fleshly desires and evil. He describes the differences between a normal conscience that all humans possess and the new life that is given to every believer. Moreover, he shows that anyone who has new life is consumed not with earthly things but spiritual ones. The new Christian is noticeably different to their old friends, and there is a tension put on these relationships. The new Christian’s friends might notice that the Christian acts differently, speaks differently, and spends time in different ways, all of which often drive a wedge between the two individuals who used to have worldly desires and actions in common. If the listener finds these things to be true of themselves, they are encouraged to ask: “have I been born again?”
The Book of John
Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones
Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones (1899-1981) was a Welsh evangelical minister who preached and taught in the Reformed tradition. His principal ministry was at Westminster Chapel, in central London, from 1939-1968, where he delivered multi-year expositions on books of the bible such as Romans, Ephesians and the Gospel of John. In addition to the MLJ Trust’s collection of 1,600 of these sermons in audio format, most of these great sermon series are available in book form (including a 14 volume collection of the Romans sermons), as are other series such as "Spiritual Depression", "Studies in the Sermon on the Mount" and "Great Biblical Doctrines". He is considered by many evangelical leaders today to be an authority on biblical truth and the sufficiency of Scripture.