Born Again

The New Revised Standard Version Nicodemus Visits Jesus

3 Now there was a Pharisee named Nicodemus, a leader of the Jews. 2 He came to Jesus by night and said to him, “Rabbi, we know that you are a teacher who has come from God; for no one can do these signs that you do apart from the presence of God.” 3 Jesus answered him, “Very truly, I tell you, no one can see the kingdom of God without being born from above.” 4 Nicodemus said to him, “How can anyone be born after having grown old? Can one enter a second time into the mother’s womb and be born?” 5 Jesus answered, “Very truly, I tell you, no one can enter the kingdom of God without being born of water and Spirit. 6 What is born of the flesh is flesh, and what is born of the Spirit is spirit. 7 Do not be astonished that I said to you, ‘You must be born from above.’ 8 The wind blows where it chooses, and you hear the sound of it, but you do not know where it comes from or where it goes. So it is with everyone who is born of the Spirit.” 9 Nicodemus said to him, “How can these things be?” 10 Jesus answered him, “Are you a teacher of Israel, and yet you do not understand these things?

11 “Very truly, I tell you, we speak of what we know and testify to what we have seen; yet you do not receive our testimony. 12 If I have told you about earthly things and you do not believe, how can you believe if I tell you about heavenly things? 13 No one has ascended into heaven except the one who descended from heaven, the Son of Man. 14 And just as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, so must the Son of Man be lifted up, 15 that whoever believes in him may have eternal life.

16 “For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him may not perish but may have eternal life.

17 “Indeed, God did not send the Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him.

Introduction: A bigger world.

I am such a big fan of movies where a seemingly normal character, living a seemingly normal life, comes to discover that there is a much larger world afoot, and that they’re a big player in it.

Star Wars

A simple farmer kid learns that he is the son of the most powerful warrior in the galaxy, and trains to become a warrior as well to bring his father back to the good side.

Harry Potter

An orphan boy who lives with a less than loving family discovers that owls have a vested interest in inviting him to a private school for boys and girls with magical abilities.

(It’s so hard in this one to not just blurt out “You’re a wizard ‘arry!”)

Dr. Strange

A doctor who was in a horrific car crash travels across the globe to discover that not only is there a multiverse, but that he can channel the multiverse’s energy to do magic and defend a green gem.

What if I told you...

What of the things that unites these kinds of stories together is the line “what if I told you?”

What if I told you that you are a Jedi?

What if I told you that magic is real, and you’re a wizard?

What if I told you that you are an avenger and you’re going to make SO much money at the box office?

So my friends, what if I told you that you and I are living in a smaller world than is available to us?

What if I told you a much bigger world was waiting for us?

What if I told you that being able to see this bigger world would impact every single avenue and area of our lives?

What if I told you that it has been right beneath our feet all this time?

Bible Breakdown:

A disciple at a distance

In this story in John, we meet Nicodemus.

He’s a Pharisee, and in fact not just a member of that particular sect, he’s one of the leaders.

He really only shows up in John’s gospel, but here John is always painting him as a disciple at a distance.

He comes at night

It might seem like such a small or simple detail, in fact we could brush right past it.

But Nicodemus chooses to come to Jesus at night.

He’s afraid to do this out in the open.

What are the other Pharisees going to think about this?

Who might see me?

What if I get caught?

Better to just do this under the cover of darkness.

He thinks Jesus is who he needs, but he’s not sure.

We know that you are a teacher who has come from God.

It’s like there’s a question mark at the end of this sentence though, right?

We know that you are a teacher who has come from God. That’s correct, right?

Are you really the guy we think you are?

Because it seems that this is what Nicodemus needs.

He needs a teacher.

Not just any teacher, but one who comes from and in fact knows God.

He’s investigating

I think you’re that guy, because I’ve been watching.

Now what’s interesting is that John is very careful to count out the signs that Jesus does (count them sometime, it’ll mess with your head).

So up until this point, the only sign that Jesus has done in public ministry is to have turned water in to wine.

I guess that’s all it took!

Or maybe...

Maybe there’s just something so very compelling about Jesus

about the way he talks.

About the way he teachers.

About the way he carries himself.

Maybe Nicodemus has been watching from a distance too, and has noticed some things about the character of Jesus.

And now, at least under the cover of darkness, Nicodemus is sneaking in for a closer look.

Two Conversations at Once

Have you ever been talking to someone who isn’t particularly paying attention to you and thought, “Man, we’re having two totally different conversations right now!”

I think that’s what’s happening between Jesus and Nicodemus.

Nicodemus is only focused on the reality he can understand

He’s intently focused on things that make sense to him, and completely lost on what doesn’t.

Are you a teacher?

How can anyone be born after having grown old?

Can we really hop back in to our mother’s womb?

Like, how does this work?

Nicodemus, hardly surprising for a Pharisee, has a list of rules in his head.

In this world, we have teachers who are close to God and those who are far away.

In this world, you are born when you’re young, not when you’re old.

In this world, you can’t climb back in to the womb.

In this world, Jesus, the things you are suggesting to me right now are impossible.

We will talk in just a little bit about this in greater detail, but I wonder if any of us have come to that exact same place in our own journey.

In this world, Jesus, the things you are suggesting to me right now are impossible.

And in response, Jesus is...

Jesus is trying to open him up to a deeper reality

In fact, Jesus suggests that to really get this, you’re going to have to be born...

Now some people debate this.

The Greek word can either be “born again” or “born from above.”

There are sects of Christianity that make a big huge deal about this kind of language,

And some of them will even use it as a weapon against other people, like “well if you aren’t born again are you even really Christian.”

And that kind of debate really misses the point.

What Jesus is saying is that you’re going to have to be born again, from above.

In other words, if in this world nothing that Jesus is suggesting makes sense, we’re going to have to hit the reset button.

Reset all the rules you hold.

Reset all your presuppositions.

Reset everything you think you know.

Don’t be born in to this earthly world.

Be born in to the Spiritual reality that is all around us.

How Do We Need to See the Bigger World?

Trinity Sunday: Confusing Confirmation Kids

One of my favorite things to do, and we’re going to get back to this next year, is teaching confirmation class.

It’s such a tender time in the life of these students, and they work their way towards not just understanding their faith, but living it.

But the one Sunday that will see almost literal smoke coming out of the ears of these teenagers is when I try to explain to them the doctrine of the Trinity.

Today being Trinity Sunday, let’s take a quick second on this:

Be careful, but a quick lesson on the Trinity

The sentence that will keep you out of trouble most is to say that we believe in One God in Three Persons.

From there, it all just gets really confusing.

There are three distinct persons of the Trinity, yet in their distinctness they’re all the same substance.

There’s only one God, but that one God has been revealed to us in these three persons.

They are all endlessly communicating, relating to each other, interacting with each other, and yet it’s all just…God.

It gets really confusing because while I’m really bad at math I don’t think I’ve ever come across 3=1.

The math doesn’t make sense here!

Our math doesn’t make sense here, because we need a bigger world.

I think too often the way we approach the Trinity is the way Nicodemus was approaching Jesus.

This doesn’t make sense in the rules that we have understood our whole lives, so I just don’t get it.

To that I think Jesus (and the Father and the Spirit for that matter) are calling us to see a bigger world.

See a bigger world where the point isn’t to understand the Trinity, it’s to relate to God.

See a bigger world where the point isn’t to wrap your head around One God in Three Persons, but rather to let that God wrap God’s arms around you in love.

See a bigger world where the point isn’t to get it, it’s to enjoy it.

We like to believe in formulas

There is a comfort in repetition

I’ve done the research, and from my house to this church there are roughly 90,019, 217 ways to get here.

Roughly.

I can take back roads.

I can take 79.

I can take different back roads that lead to 79.

I can take 19.

I have endless options.

And you know what?

I’d say 9/10 I take the exact same route.

It was the one that Google Maps told me to take when I came for my first interview.

And while I’ve learned so many different ways since, I still come the way I learned first.

We are creatures who are hard wired to love repetition.

More than that, because of Newtonian physics, we love formulas.

For as much as not many of us have ever studied science or anything, our brains are wired for it.

We love a situation where if you give me A and C, I’ll be able to give you B.

Not just this time, but every time, because that’s how the formula works.

Truth be told, this is not only wrong when it comes to faith, but it can be dangerous.

The Slot Machine God

There are some preachers (who shall remain nameless) who have a Slot Machine God kind of theology:

If you pray the right way, or believe the right thing, or (worse), send my ministry a check with the right amount in the window,

then God will give you whatever it is you really want.

I mean it sounds ridiculous, but I have seen preachers stand in a pulpit like this one and proclaim that if you are faithful enough, and you really want a BMW, keep right on praying and you’ll have a roadster in your driveway soon enough.

And again, I don’t think that this theology is just wrong (it is.)

I also think it’s dangerous.

Think about people like my friends in Malawi.

If they are told by American preachers that if they just believe in the slot machine God, put in the right prayers and level of faith, then they’ll get whatever they want, and they’re still hungry, then what does that say about their faith?

What does it say about ours that we’ve turned a relationship with God in to what God has to give to us?

Formulas work in this world that we have.

But the bigger world, the one Jesus is inviting Nicodemus and us to be born into today, formulas are just too…small.

There’s a bigger game afoot here, and it takes maybe an unexpected twist.

You are Loved

When it comes to the payoff, the big “what’s it all about” of this bigger world, Jesus has such a simple message that we put it on signs at our baseball games.

It has a level of familiarity to it, this passage, that we ought to read it again just to make sure we really heard it, but also we need to put it back in it’s proper context to see what it’s so unbelievably radical.

For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him may not perish but may have eternal life.

That’s not just a nice quote, that’s Jesus telling us what the point of this bigger world he’s inviting us into is.

The point of the bigger world isn’t so that we can have everything we’ve ever wanted.

The point of the bigger world is not a bigger to-do list so that we can feel like we’ve accomplished something.

The point of the bigger world is not, is not, is not to decide who gets to come in and who has to stay out.

The point of the bigger world is to be loved by God.

Love doesn’t fit an equation

For as much as we love equations, love doesn’t work here.

There is no fool-proof formula for love.

I have tried, but (and I’ll bet anyone in a good relationship would say the same thing), I just cannot list the reasons Sarah and I are in love.

We just…are!

Same thing with us and God.

Love doesn’t keep score

We as humans are imperfect lovers, so this one doesn’t make a great deal of sense to us.

Some of you in this room right now know which person in the relationship loaded the dishwasher last.

And you also, when I said that, started thinking of how they put the dishes in wrong...

But God’s love, the whole point of this bigger world, it doesn’t keep any score.

For God so loved the righteous? No…the whole world.

For God so loved the people who attended church? No…everyone who believes in Jesus.

For God so loved the people who were willing to take the first step? No…God sent his Son.

And just to make sure it sinks in, hear that verse behind it:

Indeed, God did not sent the Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him.

This is about love, not scorecards.

Love provides the healing we need

When we get invited in to this bigger world of God’s love, we get something...

Not super powers, or the ability to levitate owl feathers, or an infinity stone...

We get healing.

I can’t tell you how many people I know who have been healed just by knowing that they are loved by Christ.

I can’t tell you how many alcoholics I’ve seen put down the bottle just because they found love in Jesus’ higher power.

I can’t tell you how many cynics I’ve seen come down with a bad case of hope just because they found love in Jesus amazing grace.

I can’t tell you how many broken hearts I’ve seen mended because they found the love they were looking for in the Jesus that is always reaching out to them.

Application: You Can’t Unsee It

Once you realize that there’s a bigger world...

Where God can do incredible things

Where we are invited in to that endless relationship

Where we come to realize we are loved just as we are

You have to point it out to everyone else.

As COVID is starting to get more and more under control, and we’re starting to see something more akin to our normal way of life coming back to us,

We need to realize that there is a much bigger world out there for us than just gathering together in the sanctuary and singing hymns and showing our teeth.

We need to realize that there are those who have been devastatingly and perhaps irreparably wounded by this pandemic.

We need to realize that there are those, right here in our community, who are desperate, desperate, desperate for love.

We need to realize that there are those who might only come to Jesus in the very dead of night in their souls.

And we need to take this bigger world to them.

God so loved THE WORLD, not just those who are in here.

So if there is someone not in here who doesn’t know God’s love it, we have our work cut out for us.

Once you see the bigger world, once you are born again, once you have come to know the love and grace of Jesus Christ, then it’s pretty much all you can or want to see again.