If I have told you about earthly things and you do not believe, how will you believe if I tell you about heavenly things?If I told you earthly things and you don’t believe, how will you believe if I tell you heavenly things?If I have told you earthly things, and ye believe not, how shall ye believe, if I tell you of heavenly things?If I told you earthly things and ye believe not, how shall ye believe if I tell you heavenly things?
5 sermons cite this verse
… is the entire Christian life. He says, if I have told you earthly things and you do not believe, how will you believe if I tell you heavenly things? No one has ascended to heaven, but he who came down from heaven, that is the Son of Man who is in heaven. I love this verse so much. No one has ascended. Now, we know that after Jesus died, he was resurrected. He ascended to the right hand of the Father and was glorified. Okay? resurrected, ascended, glorified. That was years later. This is early in the storyline. And Jesus says, no one has ascended except for me, the son of man who is in heaven. I love this verse so much because it reveals to us how he literally lived from heaven towards earth. There is what some refer to as the ascended life. For most of us, our Christian life is living from earth towards heaven. In other words, we get into situations and our cry is that God will come and deliver us out of that situation. …
… teacher of Israel and you don't know these things? Most assuredly, I say to you, we speak what we know and testify what we have seen, and you do not receive our witness. If I have told you earthly things and you do not believe, how will you believe if I tell you heavenly things? No one has ascended into heaven, but he who came down from heaven, that is the Son of Man who is in heaven. And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so the Son of Man must be lifted up, that whoever believes in him would not perish, but have eternal life. For God so loved the world, he gave his only begotten son, that whoever believes in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. For God did not send his son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through him might be saved. He who believes in him is not condemned, but he who does not believe is condemned already because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten son. So let me ask you a question, when does a person become condemned? …
In other words, I'm in two dimensions. Father, we thank you so much for your word. It is a lamp unto our feet. It is a light unto our path. Hallelujah. In the beginning was the word, and the word was you, and the word was with you, and all things that will be made will be made, therefore, by your word. And even as your word became flesh and dwelt among us, I thank you, God, that this word will become flesh and move throughout the hearts and the minds of your sons and daughters present and watching. And God, in alignment and agreement with that, may the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable in your sight. I thank you that you've given me the spirit of wisdom and revelation and insight and knowledge and prophecy and full access to heaven's resources, is full access to the throne room, God, that I might not simply be standing in front of your people, but that I might be like Elijah who said, Jehovah before whom I stand. So may I stand in two dimensions and release your word that will edify, build up, enlighten, activate, heal, and do all the wonderful things that takes place when your word is released. We claim victory today. …
… Certainly I say to you, we speak what we know, testify what we have seen, but you don't receive our witness. And if I told you earthly things and you don't believe it, how will you believe it if I tell you heavenly things? No one has ascended to heaven, but He who came down, that is the Son of Man." Now, what he goes on to say here about lifting up the serpent in the wilderness about God so loving the world. And the rest of the discourse, if you don't mind, I'm going to serialize. And let that for next Sunday, God willing, because it's enough to contemplate for this morning this incredible shock that Jesus gives to Nicodemus, which is just as shocking to the 20th century church, I'm afraid, as it was to Nicodemus in the first century. there is an absolute requirement to enter into God's kingdom, and that is that you be changed by God, that God the Holy Spirit lets you out of prison, that God the Holy Spirit changes the disposition of your soul because by nature you do not want God in your thinking. …
… Most assuredly, I say to you, we speak what we know and testify what we have seen, and you do not receive our witness. If I told you earthly things and you do not believe, how will you believe if I tell you heavenly things? No one has ascended to heaven but he who came down from heaven, that is the Son of Man who is in heaven. And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up, that whoever believes in Him should not perish, but have eternal life. For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life. For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved. He who believes in Him is not condemned, but he who does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God. …