Nicodemus and Action

Let us pray…as we come before you this morning, we come with hearts full of your love but also full of anxiety, angst, and wonder about what is happening in this world. We ask that in the coming moments that your spirit would enter our hearts, minds, and spirits that we would be able to feel, sense, and hear your words for us this day, in your Son’s precious name we pray, Amen.

The Passage…and a little background

When we think about this passage from John’s Gospel, what is the first thing we hear and can recite? I would venture a guess that all of us have seen the signs, heard the chants, and know the words…

John 3:16 NIV

For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.

Right, we know these words, we have heard them over and over again and maybe quoted them ourselves from time to time…it is a passage that brings up memories and thoughts of baseball, football, or whatever sport you may be watching or it is a passage that holds the meaning and basis of your faith.

Here’s the thing…how many of us know why this is a common passage? Seriously, does anyone have an idea? Ok, good, because neither do I…however, the reason I bring this up is I think every time we hear the story of Jesus talking to Nicodemus in a dark, back alley of Jerusalem, we always focus on this piece of the passage and in my mind at least at this point in my life, this is not the most important piece for us to study. Not that it is not worth studying but rather that it has become so common and so often quoted that it might be losing some of its meaning in our lives. Add to that when we think of John 3, we completely gloss over the actual activity of the moment and what it might mean to us in the 21st Century. You see, I think without studying Nicodemus and what is actually happening in this time in Jesus’ life, we can completely miss the depth of John 3:16.

So, for the next few moments, I want us to focus on the depth of this story rather than what has become its surface of one verse and just a few words...

Who is Nicodemus?

Who here this morning can tell me a little bit about Nicodemus?

Wait for a few answers...

Who is Nicodemus Answers from John 3...

Pharisee

Member of Jewish Ruling Council (Sanhedrin)

Came to Jesus at night

Called Jesus “Rabbi” or teacher

Says that Jesus is from God

Asks poignant questions about faith

So, here is what we know about Nicodemus. He is a man who has some authority and power in the Jewish hierarchy. He has influence in the Jewish ruling body and this suggests that he also has a substantial amount of wisdom and knowledge about the Jewish Torah and Law. He has faith and exercises his faith to the letter of that law but he is also curious about Jesus. He came to Jesus, out of the limelight, so to speak to ask questions because he saw something in Jesus’ words and actions. He acknowledged that Jesus was a teacher and gives him the title of Rabbi as a sign of respect for those words and actions. Because of what he had already seen Jesus do, he tells Jesus that he knows that Jesus came from God. And then he asks questions that many people throughout history have continued to ask.

In a roundabout way, this description acknowledges that Nicodemus has some important part to play in Jesus’ life. So what is it that we can glean from this conversation in a dark, back alley of Jerusalem…I am so glad you asked!

God’s Actions

Before we get into that though, I want to spend a few moments talking a bit about what God has done to get us to this point...

God Created...

If we think back to Genesis, we hear of six days of creating the whole order of the world. God walked beside those humans through everything they did. Those two humans sought out God’s advice and God’s favor with everything they did, until one day, they decided to follow their hearts rather than God. So, when humans decided that it was a good idea to break one rule, God still created and acted in their lives by providing a means and a way for humans to continue in existence.

After the fall of humankind into sin, we humans sought out God for all sorts of things, from providing food and water, to guidance in dealing with others who were in the world. At some point, humans began relying solely on their own and once again, God intervened to bring us back to our faith. God acted and people resisted, for the most part. Enter Noah and his family who God instructed to create an ark and save the world from the destruction that humankind had created.

Then we jump ahead several more generations and we have the story of Moses, who by God’s instructions and prompting, led the people out of despair and slavery into a life of “luxury”. Again, humans returned to their faith because they had seen God do so many great and wonderful things. Yet, as time passed, humans became less reliant on God once again and started following their hearts, rather than God’s will for their lives.

This is where Jesus enters the world to bring people back to right relationship with God once again…seeing a pattern here yet? God acted and moved toward humans despite the fact that we should be constantly moving toward God and God’s will for our lives. But, we like to have things our way and to do things our way, despite what God has intended for us. That creates a separation, a divide and sin. When Jesus came into the world, this was his only mission, to bring people back to God like those who came before him.

The Setting of Our Story

With that behind us, let’s move into this conversation between Nicodemus and Jesus. Like I said at the beginning, there is so much more to this story than just the acknowledgement of Jesus as the Son of God. For example, if you think about where, when, and how Nicodemus met Jesus, there is much to learn about our own lives of faith just by these three things. So, for the rest of our time this morning, this is upon what we will focus our hearts, minds, and spirits.

John 3:2 (NLT)

After dark one evening, he came to speak with Jesus.

The first setting I want us to consider today is the time of day that Nicodemus approaches Jesus. John tells us in verse 2 that Nicodemus came at night.

There is quite a bit of speculation and disagreement as to why John felt that it was important that we know that Nicodemus came at night. Despite all the arguments, there is something I want us to consider for ourselves…when do we most turn to God? Is it during the day when we are sitting at our desks at work? Do we sit down at meals in restaurants and hold hands to say grace? If you are anything like most people, the answer to both of these questions is no. So, what does Nicodemus coming to Jesus have to do with us? Well, quite a bit actually. I think John was writing to a people who did not know how to do those things and maybe lived in a world where they could not do those things during the day.

Like Nicodemus, we often go to God in the dark of night, where no one else could possibly see what we are doing. For Nicodemus and the early Christians who read this Gospel, that was likely because their lives were threatened or could have been threatened because of doing them. But what is our excuse today? Why can’t we do those things in public? Are we more afraid of what someone will think rather than actually approaching God as we are told to do? Think about that for a while...

Jerusalem During Passover

The next setting to consider is this...

John 2:13 NLT

It was nearly time for the Jewish Passover celebration, so Jesus went to Jerusalem.

John tells us in the previous chapter that Jesus had gone to Jerusalem for the annual Passover festival. This tells us that Jesus and Nicodemus are located in a bustling city. There are people wandering around and doing whatever they do during Passover.

Some may have been drinking excessively and become rowdy. Some may be eating and carousing with ladies of the night. Some may just be trying to sleep. You get the picture…this is ancient New York City, a town that never sleeps but instead of loud thumping music, you hear the clip, clop of horse hooves as the Roman Guard patrols the streets. Then again, maybe it is quiet and all you hear is the clip, clop of horse hooves. Regardless as to which one is true, this is a time of celebrating when God acted on behalf of the Israelites in Egypt and spared them from the death of the firstborn plague. Let me say that again…this is a time to remember when God acted on behalf of the Israelites to save them from the Egyptians.

Nicodemus Comes to Jesus

The last piece of this, probably the most important in my mind, is the idea that Nicodemus came seeking...

What this says to me is that Nicodemus had to at least believe something about Jesus as the Messiah. As a Pharisaic Jew, Nicodemus would have known and been able to quote scripture from the Prophets that pointed to the Messiah. Nicodemus also would have had to acknowledge and recognize that Jesus fulfilled those prophecies. His faith was small and in its infancy stage but it was there. Here’s the thing to hear…he came seeking Christ.

Seeking God...

Nicodemus did not come just to ask questions or to trip up Christ. No, he came seeking to grow in faith, to get to know Jesus in his life. Here’s why I say that...

When we consider the whole of John’s Gospel, one of the basic themes that John speaks about most often is this idea of the difference between light and dark. John’s contrasting description speaks to how most people who live in darkness do not have faith or very little faith at all. And those who have moved into the light, have bigger and fulfilled faith and trust in God. They go to God in prayer and ask for things that only God can provide. This difference is why I highlighted the setting of nighttime for us this morning.

I think at this point that I identify very closely with Nicodemus because, like him, I too, most often, seek out God in the quiet and private places of my life, in the dark of night if you will. Maybe like Nicodemus, I am afraid to show my faith in the light of day for fear of retribution and disdain. And maybe this is why I continue to study Nicodemus and his life.

The other important concept for us today is this idea of seeking out God. I think there is a good portion of God’s faithful people who seek God out only when things are bad or getting bad. But that is not what God desires from us. All throughout history, God has approached us, reached out a hand to help us up and out of circumstances that we could clearly not get out of ourselves, and even gave us a savior upon whom to rely. And yet, many people still rely upon themselves for everything rather than turning their hearts, minds, and spirits to the one who can conquer all things if we just put our full trust in God.

Look, I get it. We are so accustomed to having everything appeal to our senses. And God is not necessarily something that we can physically sense. But I would argue, if you tuned your heart right now, in this place, in this space, and in this time, God is acting upon your heart. God is always present with us…I cannot deny that with what we have accomplished in the last year and some odd months despite not being able to physically be together for over half of that time. In this day, in this time, there are more churches closing their doors because they have not been able to adapt and change and listen for God’s voice. But, we have and I think we have a lot to look forward to in the coming months. We have hope, we have love, and we have God on our side. The thing is though…we need to step out of the darkness of that back alley we have been living in for a long time and seek out the light of God’s wisdom and love, it is just around the corner…can’t you see it too? Amen.