John 3

I think that the whole of Scripture Is summed up in this verse. If we believe that the Bible is His love letters to man then lift Him up and give this message of hope and salvation to a dying world.
16 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. 17 For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved.

3 There was a man of the Pharisees named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews. 2 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."

3 Jesus answered and said to him, "Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born 1again, he cannot see the kingdom of God."

4 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?"

5 Jesus answered, "Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God. 6 That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. 7 Do not marvel that I said to you, 'You must be born again.' 8 The wind blows where it wishes, and you hear the sound of it, but cannot tell where it comes from and where it goes. So is everyone who is born of the Spirit."

9 Nicodemus answered and said to Him, "How can these things be?"

10 Jesus answered and said to him, "Are you the teacher of Israel, and do not know these things? 11 Most assuredly, I say to you, We speak what We know and testify what We have seen, and you do not receive Our witness. 12 If I have told you earthly things and you do not believe, how will you believe if I tell you heavenly things? 13 No one has ascended to heaven but He who came down from heaven, that is, the Son of Man who is in heaven. 14 And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up, 15 that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life. 16 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. 17 For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved.

18 "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. 19 And this is the condemnation, that the light has come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil. 20 For everyone practicing evil hates the light and does not come to the light, lest his deeds should be exposed. 21 But he who does the truth comes to the light, that his deeds may be clearly seen, that they have been done in God."

22 After these things Jesus and His disciples came into the land of Judea, and there He remained with them and baptized. 23 Now John also was baptizing in Aenon near Salim, because there was much water there. And they came and were baptized. 24 For John had not yet been thrown into prison.

25 Then there arose a dispute between some of John's disciples and the Jews about purification. 26 And they came to John and said to him, "Rabbi, He who was with you beyond the Jordan, to whom you have testified—behold, He is baptizing, and all are coming to Him!"

27 John answered and said, "A man can receive nothing unless it has been given to him from heaven. 28 You yourselves bear me witness, that I said, 'I am not the Christ,' but, 'I have been sent before Him.' 29 He who has the bride is the bridegroom; but the friend of the bridegroom, who stands and hears him, rejoices greatly because of the bridegroom's voice. Therefore this joy of mine is fulfilled. 30 He must increase, but I must decrease. 31 He who comes from above is above all; he who is of the earth is earthly and speaks of the earth. He who comes from heaven is above all. 32 And what He has seen and heard, that He testifies; and no one receives His testimony. 33 He who has received His testimony has certified that God is true. 34 For He whom God has sent speaks the words of God, for God does not give the Spirit by measure. 35 The Father loves the Son, and has given all things into His hand. 36 He who believes in the Son has everlasting life; and he who does not believe the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God abides on him."

The NKJV Study Bible says this: The phrase ruler of the Jews indicates that Nicodemus was a member of the Jewish council, the group that had sent a committee to investigate John the Baptist. Nicodemus no doubt knew that John the Baptist had denied being the Messiah, but had said that the Messiah was present. The fact that Nicodemus came to Jesus by night may reveal the timidity of his faith; however, his faith was developing. The Greek word translated again can mean either "from above" or "anew." The new birth, or regeneration, is the act by which God imparts spiritual life to one who trusts Christ. Without this spiritual birth, a person cannot perceive spiritual things, nor can he or she enter the kingdom of God. A person must experience a spiritual rebirth. Jesus spoke not only to Nicodemus, but to all whom he represented. Jesus used the wind as an illustration of the work of the Holy Spirit. As the wind seemingly blows where it wills, so the Holy Spirit sovereignly works. Likewise, no one knows the origin or destination of the wind, but everyone knows it is there. The same is true of the Holy Spirit. Nicodemus, referring to the new birth, asks, "How can these things be?" Here Jesus answers the question. New birth is by the Son, by the Cross, and by faith. Every time the words lifted up occur in the Gospel of John there is a reference to Jesus' death. When Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, those who looked at it lived. So it is with the Son of Man. When a person trusts Christ, he or she is born again and receives eternal and spiritual life, God's kind of life. God's love is not restricted to any one nation or to any spiritual elite. At His first coming, Jesus came so that the world through Him might be saved. When Jesus comes again, He will come in judgment upon those who refused His offer of salvation. To believe is to receive life and avoid judgment. A person who does not believe not only misses life, but is condemned already. People offer many excuses for not accepting Christ. Some cite the presence of hypocrites in the church. Others claim inability to believe some of the truths about Christ or the gospel. These are merely attempts to conceal a heart in rebellion against God. The ultimate reason people do not come to Christ is that they do not want to. A person who comes to the light not only believes, but also openly identifies with the light so that his or her works can be seen as things done in union with God. The impression here is that Jesus baptized. John corrects this idea in 4:2. Jesus provided the authority, but the disciples performed the baptisms. The synoptic Gospels, particularly Matthew and Mark, give the impression that the imprisonment of John the Baptist came right after the baptism of Jesus. This verse indicates that there was an interval between Jesus' baptism and John's imprisonment during which both ministered. The disciples of Jesus and the disciples of John were both baptizing people; as a result, a question arose. The question came from John's disciples when they entered into a discussion with the Jews. Purification here refers to baptism. John the Baptist's disciples were loyal to him. They were deeply concerned that one of his "disciples," Jesus, was competing with and surpassing him. In their astonishment, they exaggerated the predicament, saying, all are coming to Him. They were concerned that John was losing his audience to another preacher. John explained that he could not accept the position of supremacy that his disciples wanted to thrust upon him because he had not received it from heaven. John compared himself to the friend of the bridegroom, who was appointed to arrange the preliminaries of the wedding, to manage the wedding, and to preside at the wedding feast. When the friend of the bridegroom finished his job, he had to get out of the way. His joy came from the success of the bridegroom. John was satisfied with his position in life. He was content to be a "voice" and a friend. John the Baptist insisted that Jesus Christ had to increase in popularity and that he, John, had to decrease. John explained that Jesus had to increase because of (1) His divine origin (v. 31), (2) His divine teaching, and (3) His divine authority. Even though John encouraged his disciples to also follow Jesus, there were still some found many years later in Ephesus. He who comes from above refers to Jesus Christ. He who is of the earth refers to John the Baptist. John emphasized his earthly origin and its limitations. John proclaimed divine truth on earth; Jesus, on the other hand, is from heaven and above all. The Holy Spirit was given to Jesus completely. All three Persons of the Trinity are referred God the Father sent Christ the Son, and gave Him the Holy Spirit without measure. God the Father not only gave Jesus, in His humanity, the Holy Spirit, He also gave Him all things, including the authority to give life and judge. The one who believes has eternal life as a present possession. Likewise, the one who refuses to believe on Christ has the wrath of God abiding on him or her as a present reality.