I’m not a fan of Social Media. Seriously. I use it, yes, and I see it as a tool, no doubt, but what I hate about it is this: it’s an excuse for people to justify themselves and their choices. This last week, I saw people say things like “Let’s celebrate my divorce and new relationship with this person” or “I am a good person, and I’m tired of trying to convince you of that” or “help me celebrate my bad choices, and if you can’t be happy for me, then you must hate me.” And, over and again, people made in the remarkable image of God keep getting behind an opinion, a camera, and their egos, and tell the world “look at what I can do” while everyone else is doing the same unremarkable thing. This is humanity: not one of us is good, there are no innocents among us, we are all self-centered war-mongers, waging war against the God who created us, and those who would get in the way of our being the center of attention.
Some might say “Woah, hold on there, preacher. Isn’t that a bit harsh?” Yes, it is, but it’s also Biblical Truth that we stopped saying to spare people’s feelings (and let’s see how that’s working out for us). The Bible says “there is not one righteous, no not one,” (Romans 3:10) and “for all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23), and let’s not forget Jesus: “Why do you call me Good? No one is good except God alone” (Mark 10:18). All of us are rebels and liars and thieves. We have no hope, but in Christ. Our sin has condemned us, and we cannot suddenly declare ourselves to be good as we trample on His design of us. It is only in Christ that we have any hope at all, not merely saying “I love you” or swearing you’ll follow Him while never changing anything, but by crucifying the flesh, putting off the earthly and seeking the Spiritual in Christ Jesus by the Holy Spirit. Our only hope is in Jesus, and as He says “If you love me, you’ll keep my commands” (John 14:15). Ley us all stop trying to flaunt our own merits. There’s not a single one that impresses God. Let us seek out Christ and His Holiness. He alone is our hope for salvation!
John 3:1-21
Now 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 him, “Truly, truly, 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, “Truly, truly, 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 its sound, but you do not know where it comes from or where it goes. So it is with everyone who is born of the Spirit.”
Nicodemus said to him, “How can these things be?” Jesus answered him, “Are you the teacher of Israel and yet you do not understand these things? Truly, truly, I say to you, we speak of what we know, and bear witness to what we have seen, but you do not receive our testimony. If I have told you earthly things and you do not believe, how can you believe if I tell you heavenly things? No one has ascended into heaven except he who descended from heaven, the Son of Man. And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, so must the Son of Man be lifted up, that whoever believes in him may have eternal life.
“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him. Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God. And this is the judgment: the light has come into the world, and people loved the darkness rather than the light because their works were evil. For everyone who does wicked things hates the light and does not come to the light, lest his works should be exposed. But whoever does what is true comes to the light, so that it may be clearly seen that his works have been carried out in God.”
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