Power Walk Ministries

Guest (Male): This is Power Walk Ministries with Pastor Paul Cannings. Thanks for joining us today as Pastor Cannings continues teaching from John Chapter 3 on our current series, "What Does It Mean to Be Born Again?"

This is the most profound and important explanation which Jesus provides not only to Nicodemus but to everyone of us as well. Today, Pastor Cannings addresses the fact that many may be following traditions but not be truly saved or are not experiencing the power of the Holy Spirit in their lives. Let's listen as he brings the message today titled, "Transition from Darkness to Light."

Dr. Paul Cannings: Let’s turn our Bibles to John Chapter 3, beginning in verse 4. In verse 4, it says, “Nicodemus said to Him, 'How can a man be born when he's old? He cannot enter the second time into his mother's womb and be born, can he?' Jesus answered, 'Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and of the spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God.'"

It's kind of like going to Africa and fufu. Everybody in Africa wanted to introduce me to fufu. No problem. I grab it and I eat it. I’m trying to be polite about it, but I couldn't get the taste. They said, "No, no, no, you got to take it and put the sauce." But even though I kept trying that all week, it'll take a while to adjust to the taste. Not because it's not a good meal, not because it's not nutritious. The issue is I wasn't born eating it and I don't have the appetite.

The same thing is going on in this text. Nicodemus has been brought up a Jewish way. Nicodemus has gone to the temple, he has provided animals, he has done everything the way he was supposed to do it because Nicodemus had one ambition, and that is to experience eternal life. What attracted Nicodemus to Jesus is these signs. In other words, I see Pharisees, I see Sadducees, I see all these people and they teach well, but you teach at a whole other level and you seem to have an experience of God.

God does not work through anybody these signs unless there is a relationship with that person that is so personal, so powerful, that these signs will come from them. Therefore, how can I get what you have? You have to have this eternal life because of these signs and these interactions you have with God. So how do I get what you have? Jesus Christ is saying, "Nicodemus, you got to be born again."

That creates a whole discussion that I believe Jesus Christ purposely started to get him in the direction he needs to go. Jesus Christ has a way of picking how the conversation goes and sometimes picking a fight. What I mean by that is how are you going to stand in the middle of Jerusalem and say we're going to tear this temple down and build it back in three days? You just started a fight.

The story here that we dealt with, looking at if you're going to be born again, you got to do water and the Spirit. We dealt with water last week. In the water, in the sense that it had to do with three different things. We read to you that it could also mean the Holy Spirit, so we started reading passages that show that the water could mean the Holy Spirit. It also means repentance. David was a man after my own heart. He did the things I wanted him to do. Therefore, he was a man after my own heart.

The Bible says to get to that heart, a person must repent, meaning they must decide to go 180 degrees in the opposite direction. Now the problem is, how do I do this same Bible with the same situation? How do I get down this road I want to get down? The Bible says you can't do that without the Holy Spirit. It's like trying to run a mile with no muscles. You ain't going to make it.

When He comes to this verse, in verse 5 is where we are, when we make this transition, the problem becomes the flesh. That's the problem. The Bible is going to address this whole issue about the flesh. I want to spend time explaining to you these four principles that will prevent us from experiencing the Spirit if we are in the flesh. We talked about the flesh in a sermon and how the flesh never got saved.

The Bible says He doesn't even want it in heaven. When the rapture comes, it's a glorified body that we're going to have. He doesn't want it anywhere around. It's messed up. Paul would say in Romans Chapter 7, verse 24, "Who will cut me from this body of death?" Not just a body of sin, but a body of death. If I lived in this flesh, it will destroy relationships. If I live in this flesh, I will become a carnal Christian and the wages of sin is death.

If I live in this flesh, I'll become hostile towards God. Look at Chapter 8, verse 5 of Romans. I will become hostile towards God in the sense that anytime somebody tells me anything about the Bible, all I'm going to do is get upset and tell them I don't want to hear this Bible. I don't want to hear what you got to say. I'm good where I'm at.

He literally says that in verse 5: "For those who are according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh." The things of the flesh. People have to have this in order to be happy. They have to live in this area to be happy. I have to be married to a person that I eHarmonize with to be happy. All these things have to surround how I feel, how I think, what I want, because it's about me. So it's going to be my things and it's going to be my feelings.

The Bible is saying my heart could be corrupted in how I function. When this flesh is operating with a body that is not saved, the body parts become a problem. Look at Chapter 6 of Romans and look at verse 12. He's saying in order to create this appetite in you, I have to place myself in you. When I place myself in you, I create an appetite, but if you're still focused on the flesh, you never make the transition.

In verse 12, he says, "Therefore do not let sin reign in your mortal bodies and do not go on presenting the members of your body to sin as instruments of unrighteousness." The eye, the hands, the feet, the heart, the mind; instruments. But present yourselves to God as those alive from the dead and your members as instruments of righteousness to God.

Every day we're presenting our body as a living sacrifice. It's a decision I must make. But because I repented, I'm okay with making that decision to go in that direction if my repentance was sincere. He says this flesh could also make me hostile towards God. Look at Chapter 8. In verse 6, he says, "And the mind set on the flesh is death, and the mind set on the spirit is life and peace."

Who's the Spirit? He came to guide us into the truth. He came to illuminate the word of God. The Spirit convicts us of sin. If I set my mind to what the Spirit of God is seeking to do, he says I'm going in the right direction. But if I set my mind on the flesh, after a while I don't want to hear what the Bible has to say. What is Nicodemus trying to do? He's trying to do the flesh and get to God.

Nicodemus is following all these laws in the flesh. When he's following those laws in the flesh, he can't arrive at eternal life. That's why Christ is saying, "Hey, Nicodemus, if you're going to come to Me, you can't follow this religious system, this structure, and think that's the only way you're going to get to Me because all that is going to do is reveal the sin you're struggling with."

Look at Chapter 3 of Romans, verse 20. The flesh can't make this happen. Hear me carefully, because some people are so churched they never find Christ because they do the flesh. It's time to go to church. Anytime a person gets to adulthood, there are several structures that, if they responded to them, would make them very disciplined. They got a home that would say, "Take out the trash. Make up your bed." What their parents are doing is driving discipline.

When they come to Christ, it's easy to just do the discipline that the church is demanding, so I'm just doing the discipline of the flesh. When I'm just doing the discipline of the flesh because I got church down, the Bible is saying I'll be like Nicodemus. I got church down, but I miss Christ. When I went to my family, I got a good family life. When I went to school, I graduated. When I went to work, I got paid. When I go to church, they ask for my money.

Do you see why people get frustrated with church? Because we can literally get used to just doing church and we can do it because our flesh by the time we're adults and maintaining jobs shows we're disciplined to do what we need to do. We don't have to have the work of the Holy Spirit to go to work. We go to work because we have to, because we got some bills sitting on the counter and we're responsible to get them paid.

We like our lifestyle, so we maintain that lifestyle by going to a job and we're disciplined to get it done. It's easy for us to do this God thing in the flesh and he's saying, "No, it's not going to work." In Romans Chapter 3, look at verse 21: "Because by the works of the law no flesh will be justified in his sight." No flesh will appear right in God's sight.

So no matter how hard I work, all God sees me doing is church, but I'm not experiencing Him. As far as He's concerned, He says, "I still did not get into a right standing because you did church, you didn't do Me." That's why He's saying, "For through the law comes the knowledge of sin." Now I know what's wrong, what is right. I know what God should do, what I should do, what I shouldn't do. I got it down just like Nicodemus had it down, still longing for the blessings of eternal life.

I go to the house to eat. I will get what I think I may like. But what I think I may like, if not right away I get the taste, I'm going to rush back to eat it. God is saying, "Hey, I got food for you. Pastor teaches, teachers with the gift of knowledge to teach you. I got the gift of encouragement in the church, the gift of help, the gift of wisdom to make you do well.

But when you come in, you may not like the food. You may not like what the sermon is about. You may not like what the passage was about. It may not have fed you that particular Sunday because you had different needs. But because you came looking for Me, you could have made it and grown spiritually, even when you don't necessarily like the food that was provided that particular Sunday based on the needs you had."

Guest (Male): And we'll have to leave it there for today, folks. Pastor Cannings will pick up on this point tomorrow, so be sure to join us. Pastor Cannings provides a clear distinction between legalism and walking in the victory and freedom that Christ offers. Now to review this message series or to pass it on to others, log on to our website at powerwalkministries.org. That's powerwalkministries.org. And while you're there, would you consider becoming a Power Walk partner?

Dr. Paul Cannings: One of the hardest things in ministry is not actually doing ministry, but it's to get the resources to get it done. Oh folks, that's the hardest because it costs to do what we are doing. We've stepped out in faith because we believe that. In other words, it must be a step of faith from us first, not from you first. That's what we've done in developing this ministry. But we pray that God will touch your heart to partnership with us. You could do that simply by going to our website. It's a secure website and pressing the donate button and on that button you will be able to become a partner with us and we will seek to bless you for being a blessing to us. I pray that God will move on your heart to be our partner.

Guest (Male): If you're blessed by this broadcast, would you consider committing to pray for us and, if God has blessed you, to support us financially to help us with airtime costs? Once again, that's powerwalkministries.org. If you'd prefer to write us, our mailing address is Power Walk Ministries, P.O. Box 920517, Houston, Texas 77092. We greatly appreciate your support and your prayers for us. And now as we close, would you take some time to consider whether you're functioning and operating as a Christian in the flesh or if you're allowing the Holy Spirit of God in you to work through you?