What did Jesus tell Nicodemus?

"You must be born again. I'm telling you, you must be born again. Unless you are born again, you cannot see the kingdom of God." One nineteenth century believer wrote the following hymn to express his experience of being born again.

Let's turn now to Luke's Gospel.

In answer to the Pharisees' question, Jesus said, "Neither shall they say, Lo here! or, lo there!" Where did He say the kingdom of God is? He said it "is within you," in other words, "It arises in your hearts." Jesus was already there, moving around in the midst of the Pharisees. The kingdom of God had actually come upon them. The Pharisees knew the Old Testament scriptures, but their eyes were veiled, preventing them from seeing the truth. Jesus once said to His disciples, "all things must be fulfilled, which were written in the law of Moses, and in the prophets, and in the psalms, concerning me" (Luke 24:44), and He then proceeded to explain the scriptures to them. Those who already know the Bible only have one more step to take in order to come to the moment of realization and for the truth to arise in their hearts. This is what Jesus was saying.

This was also the case for Nicodemus as Jesus spoke to him.

In Romans chapter 5 it says that through the sin of one man, Adam, sin spread to all of mankind, but through the righteousness of one Man, Jesus Christ, all have been made righteous. It explains how those who are dead in Adam are made alive in Jesus. What does all this mean? Let's consider here the fundamental nature of God, the Creator of the heavens and the earth.

Darkness needs light. The light of the sun, the moon, the stars, and all the other lights in this world exist merely as a shadow of a much greater, more brilliant, and perfect light that will appear in the future. Men's hearts are gathered in the darkness that surrounds them. It was from the midst of this darkness that Nicodemus sought the true light.

The Jews built their temple, and in it they placed the table for the showbread and they lit the lampstand. They installed the Ark of the Covenant in the Holy of Holies and there they sprinkled the blood of the sacrificial animals, but all of this was only a shadow of something else. All these ceremonies were given as an example of what was to come and served a purpose only until they found the true light. Just as animals and insects are drawn to the light, man also seeks the light that will shine in his heart. This was the light that Nicodemus sought when he came to Jesus.

When these words are accomplished in the heart of an individual, he will find the light by following the words of the Lord.

Every year the Jews came from Persia in the north, from Ethiopia and Egypt in the south, from Greece, from Rome, and from wherever else in the world they had been scattered. They came to the temple in Jerusalem to bask in God's light. This temple, however, was no more than a shadow of the body of Jesus Christ.