With all of our rightly dividing growth, etc. I have been wondering about our use of John 3:7.  Dr. Gipp preached once that if you get a question, ask God about it, then keep reading on - He will show you the answer when you are ready for it.

Well, we must be ready for it.  Here it is!

We will get a better understanding as we read our Bible if we see the 'y' being plural in it's useages and the 't' making things singular.   You don't need a 'new' perverted modern Bible!

And we will see tonight how this understanding of the singular and plural will give us better scriptural enlightenment concerning Jesus and Israel in the Gospels versus Paul and the Gentiles outside of the Gospels.

thee = the person - singular
ye = Israel as a nation or a group of Jews being addressed - plural

Matthew 5:39  But I say unto you, That ye resist not evil: but whosoever shall smite thee on thy right cheek, turn to him the other also.

Matthew 6:9  After this manner therefore pray ye: Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name.

Matthew 21:5  Tell ye the daughter of Sion, Behold, thy King cometh unto thee, meek, and sitting upon an ass, and a colt the foal of an ass.

Acts 5:9 (defines the plural use)  Then Peter said unto her, How is it that ye have agreed together to tempt the Spirit of the Lord? behold, the feet of them which have buried thy husband are at the door, and shall carry thee out.

John 8:19  Then said they unto him, Where is thy Father? Jesus answered, Ye neither know me, nor my Father: if ye had known me, ye should have known my Father also.

You can see that Israel is who needed to be born again, not Nicodemus only - and doctrinally, we are not being mentioned here - the subject was Israel!

Look at verse 6
6a - That which is born of the flesh is flesh: Israel had already failed 'in the flesh' as a nation!
6b - and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. The Spirit of God needs to give birth to a new life - a divine life - in this cases, a divine nation.
 II Peter 1:4  Whereby are given unto us exceeding great and precious promises: that by these ye might be partakers of the divine nature, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust.

The word regeneration is found only twice in the Bible, once in relation to Israel and once in reference to the Body of Christ.

I.  Israel - Matthew 19:28 -And Jesus said unto them, Verily I say unto you, That ye which have followed me, in the regeneration when the Son of man shall sit in the throne of his glory, ye also shall sit upon twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel.

In the regeneration WHEN the Son of Man shall sit in the throne of His glory - a future regenearion associated with the time when Christ sits on the throne of His glory!  This was the plan for Israel!

II.   The second time is from Paul in Titus 3:4,5.  But after that the kindness and love of God our Saviour toward man appeared,  Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to his mercy he saved us, by the washing of regeneration, and renewing of the Holy Ghost;

Look at verse 6a - That which is born of the flesh is flesh:

We all died after we were born - See Romans 7:9 For I was alive without the law once: but when the commandment came, sin revived, and I died. - we need to be born again now - we need that divine nature - but not because of John 3:7.  Romans 3:10-12  As it is written, There is none righteous, no, not one: There is none that understandeth, there is none that seeketh after God. They are all gone out of the way, they are together become unprofitable; there is none that doeth good, no, not one.  Romans 6:23 ...the wages of sin is death! Ephesians 2:8,9 For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God:  Not of works, lest any man should boast.

We don't need to reform our outward walk!
We don't need to educate the natural man!
We don't need to purify the old man!

So YES, we still look to the OT and the Gospels, etc.  We are not PAUL ONLY, we are Paul Rightly Divided - rightly dividing the word of truth.

To divide something means we still use the other parts as well.  We don't call this Rightly CUT OUT" or Rightly IGNORED, etc.!

Before the exodus, they were a people - now, a nation
Hear one of Moses's comments and complaints - Numbers 11:11,12  And Moses said unto the LORD, Wherefore hast thou afflicted thy servant?  and wherefore have I not found favour in thy sight, that thou layest the burden of all this people upon me?  Have I conceived all this people?  have I begotten them, that thou shouldest say unto me, Carry them in thy bosom, as a nursing father beareth the sucking child, unto the land which thou swarest unto their fathers?

God had a purpose for them!
Exodus 19:3-6  And Moses went up unto God, and the LORD called unto him out of the mountain, saying, Thus shalt thou say to the house of Jacob, and tell the children of Israel; Ye have seen what I did unto the Egyptians, and how I bare you on eagles' wings, and brought you unto myself.  Now therefore, if ye will obey my voice indeed, and keep my covenant, then ye shall be a peculiar treasure unto me above all people: for all the earth is mine:   And ye shall be unto me a kingdom of priests, and an holy nation.  These are the words which thou shalt speak unto the children of Israel.

They were to be the group and channel through whom God's salvation and blessing was to be carried to 'all the nations of the earth."  This was His promise in Genesis 12:2,3 - Now the LORD had said unto Abram, Get thee out of thy country, and from thy kindred, and from thy father's house, unto a land that I will shew thee: And I will make of thee a great nation, and I will bless thee, and make thy name great; and thou shalt be a blessing:   And I will bless them that bless thee, and curse him that curseth thee: and in thee shall all families of the earth be blessed.

This was even the prophecy set before them through the prophets He sent to them.
Isaiah 61:6  But ye shall be named the Priests of the LORD: men shall call you the Ministers of our God: ye shall eat the riches of the Gentiles, and in their glory shall ye boast yourselves.

But Israel failed!

It became necessary to bring the nation to birth again - through a new covenant and a new deliverer, greater than Moses!
Jeremiah 31:31-34  Behold, the days come, saith the LORD, that I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel, and with the house of Judah:  Not according to the covenant that I made with their fathers in the day that I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt; which my covenant they brake, although I was an husband unto them, saith the LORD:   But this shall be the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel; After those days, saith the LORD, I will put my law in their inward parts, and write it in their hearts; and will be their God, and they shall be my people.   And they shall teach no more every man his neighbour, and every man his brother, saying, Know the LORD: for they shall all know me, from the least of them unto the greatest of them, saith the LORD; for I will forgive their iniquity, and I will remember their sin no more.

This was the prophesy that Jesus was preaching to Nicodemus about, but something that Nicodemus did not comprehend, nor did the other leaders.  (note the singular and plurals...)
John 3:10,11  Jesus answered and said unto him, Art thou a master of Israel, and knowest not these things?  Verily, verily, I say unto thee, We speak that we do know, and testify that we have seen; and ye receive not our witness.

Psalms even mentions it - Psalm 22:28,30-31  For the kingdom is the LORD's: and he is the governor among the nations.   ...  A seed shall serve him; it shall be accounted to the Lord for a generation. : They shall come, and shall declare his righteousness unto a people that shall be born, that he hath done this.

God had His apostles all ready for the rebirthing! Luke 12:32  But rather seek ye the kingdom of God; and all these things shall be added unto you.  Fear not, little flock; for it is your Father's good pleasure to give you the kingdom.

Peter even spoke to this little flock:
I Peter 1:3,23  Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, which according to his abundant mercy hath begotten us again unto a lively hope by the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, ... Being born again, not of corruptible seed, but of incorruptible, by the word of God, which liveth and abideth for ever.
Peter even identifies them:
I Peter 2:9  But ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people; that ye should shew forth the praises of him who hath called you out of darkness into his marvellous light:

The new birth mentioned in John 3:7 is a reference to the future birth of the nation of Israel when she is to be spiritually cleansed and then possess her land forever.  Jesus was NOT telling Nicodemus that HE needed to 'get saved' nor was he telling us today.

Jesus had come bringing both the Kingdom of Heaven (earthly) and the Kingdom of God (spiritually) - it would have been fulfilled had the nation of Israel been 'born again!'

It wasn't!

Ephesians 2:7  That in the ages to come he might shew the exceeding riches of his grace in his kindness toward us through Christ Jesus.

God's purpose, Jesus purpose, Paul's purpose - all do the will of the Father!
Purpose 1 - raise HIM up - personal salvation - sins being paid for
Purpose 2 - raise IT up - an internal inheritance - bad works being burnt up
See John 6:39,40

So, Paul also preaches being born again, only this time, not as a nation, but as individuals and he doesn't use the term born again - he uses the word regeneration.  Titus 3:4,5 But after that the kindness and love of God our Saviour toward man appeared,  Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to his mercy he saved us, by the washing of regeneration, and renewing of the Holy Ghost;

Israel will have their regeneartion AND restoration, but not until the fulness of the Gentiles comes in and the Tribulation passes. Romans 11:25  For I would not, brethren, that ye should be ignorant of this mystery, lest ye should be wise in your own conceits; that blindness in part is happened to Israel, until the fulness of the Gentiles be come in.

Paul preaches to us because we died -
See Romans 7:9  For I was alive without the law once: but when the commandment came, sin revived, and I died.
Ephesians 2:1,5  And you hath he quickened, who were dead in trespasses and sins; ... Even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ, (by grace ye are saved;)
Ephesians 2:15,16 Having abolished in his flesh the enmity, even the law of commandments contained in ordinances; for to make in himself of twain one new man, so making peace;  And that he might reconcile both unto God in one body by the cross, having slain the enmity thereby:

So we have Regeneration being associated with God's program for both Israel and the Body of Christ.
Rengeration for a Jew in the kingdom program made him part of a born-again nation.
Regeneration for a Gentile makes him a part of the Body of Christ - a new creature!  (II Corinthians 5:17)

They will see (maybe) that we are not!  Of course we turn to the Gospels, as we turn to the OT, as we turn to Hebrews, James, etc. but only in a manner FOR us, not TO us.

Same thing?  Sure, but you must see the detailed truth to see exactly how Rightly Dividing works - truth is truth, and we must speak it truthfully and apply it properly - we are not to CONFUSE the sheep, we are to feed them so that they grow!