Hello my ‘Walking with Jesus’ friends,
Have you ever walked away from a conversation and concluded that your life may well have been changed, forever, by that conversation? Can you identify at least one such experience as you look back over your lifetime? Many people had those experiences with Jesus when He was walking around Israel in the first century. Today, on our 40 day journey with Jesus toward Easter, let’s look at one of these ‘life altering conversations’.
You’ll only find record of this event in one place, in the entire Bible, John’s Gospel chapter 3. Word was spreading about this man Jesus. A group of religious leaders called the “Pharisees” felt it was their God given responsibility to keep Judaism pure and clean from any heresy or even preacher or teacher who might confuse the Jewish people or draw them away from full reliance upon the Old Testament Jewish law, as recorded especially in the books of Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers and Deuteronomy. It wasn’t easy to become a “Pharisee”. We might compare it in our day to becoming a lawyer.
Many years of study and multiple exams were required to be sure these men had memorized huge sections of the Old Testament. They must fully understand every available piece of history telling the story of the Jewish people from the days of Abraham to their present day. They must be able to debate Jewish law and detect any distortion, even an iota of false teaching. Finally, these men were fanatics about keeping every one of the more than 600 Jewish laws to the full degree. As a result, they were a very proud group of men and adorned with regal religious robes the people stayed clear of them almost as much as they did Roman soldiers. Perhaps this gives us a little understanding of why the Pharisees were fully and enthusiastically opposed to Jesus and His teachings from the very first day Jesus began to draw attention.
We don’t know exactly when or even where a Pharisee named Nicodemus had his life changing conversation with Jesus, but that conversation, as recorded by John, has been life changing for people around the world ever since. We don’t know if any of the disciples, who were traveling with Jesus, were present when Nicodemus came to find Jesus one night, but John records for us what happened: “There was a Pharisee named Nicodemus who was a member of the Jewish ruling council.” Oh my, this tells me Nicodemus was not only a very learned and accomplished Jewish scholar, but he’d been elevated to the Sanhedrin, a select group of 72 of the most respected Pharisee and Sadducee leaders. These were considered the most powerful religious men in all Israel. His efforts to see Jesus privately at night tell me Nicodemus was conscientious, fearful of being ‘black balled’ by another Pharisee, yet spiritually astute and determined to find God’s truth, even if it cost him severely.
Nicodemus began with a powerful statement which tells me he had been investigating anything he could find out about Jesus for some time. “Rabbi, we know that you are a teacher who has come from God. For no one could perform the signs you are doing if God were not with him.” (John 3:2) For Mr. Nicodemus to make such a complimentary statement must have been almost gut wrenching. For in his research Nicodemus would NOT have been able to find any theological study history for Jesus! No Rabbinical school, no Pharisee or famous Rabbi under whom Jesus had studied. Tracing Jesus’ family pedigree, while it was true His family tree could be traced back to King David, there was no famous Rabbi or prophet or Pharisee in Jesus’ family line. Yet Nicodemus looked at the evidence… the miracles, the reports of miracles, and the messages Jesus spoke. By saying that he believed Jesus had come from God and that God was empowering Him to do the things He did… Nicodemus was putting Jesus in the category of the prophet Elijah or Elisha or Samuel or even Moses.
As you see my friends, Jesus did not discount nor deny Nicodemus’ statement. Jesus’ response was intended to validate Nicodemus’ assumptions about Jesus and then bring to Nicodemus a clear God truth that had never been spoken, never heard by any human ear prior to this evening, life changing conversation: “Very truly I tell you,’ Jesus said, ‘no one can see the kingdom of God unless they are born again.” (John 3:3) Nicodemus likely looked deeply into Jesus’ eyes, rubbed his chin, pulled his beard, then looked away, perhaps up into the night sky at the stars. I wonder if the writings of Isaiah the prophet ran through His mind. Nicodemus had memorized vast amounts of Isaiah: “A shoot will come up from the stump of Jesse, from his roots a Branch will bear fruit. The Spirit of the LORD will rest on Him – the Spirit of wisdom and of understanding, the Spirit of counsel and of might, the Spirit of knowledge and the fear of the LORD…” (Is. 11:1-3) Nicodemus wondered… this Jesus was, according to His family line, a shoot who had come from the stump of Jesse, the father of David. And clearly the Spirit of the LORD was upon Jesus enabling Him to do miracles and speak in Gods’ behalf. Could it be? Could this Jesus speak of the kingdom of God with insight God had given only to Him? Could He be the fulfillment of Isaiah chapter 11??
Nicodemus breathed deeply, paused, reflected, ran dozens of Scriptures through his intelligent mind, and finally spoke: “How can someone be born again when they are old? Surely they cannot enter a second time into their mother’s womb to be born?” (John 3:4) Nicodemus knew Psalm 139 by heart, and other Scriptures which describe conception, pregnancy and birth as clearly a miracle work of God. Nicodemus knew very well the stories of Sarah, Rebekah, Rachel, Leah, Hannah and so many other women who had been barren until God miraculously opened their womb to birth a special child greatly used by God in His great story of the Hebrews. But nowhere in the thousands of verses of the Old Testament was there even a hint that God would want human beings to experience a second birth!
And certainly nowhere in Scripture did God give any indication of a way into the kingdom of God other than strict obedience to God’s laws, the very laws Nicodemus and all Pharisees tried so hard to observe. Nicodemus’ brow furrowed, his eyes squinted. Oh he loved a good debate, but this was so radical he didn’t really know what to expect Jesus might say, but he sure was listening closely! May I pause right to ask you my friends… what are the deep, deep questions of life and death, of eternity, of God, that you are pondering and where do you go for answers? Nicodemus was a wise man… he went to Jesus with his questions, since he was confident Jesus knew God better than he did and Jesus could do things only God could empower a man to do!
Jesus’ response stunned Nicodemus and has stunned hundreds of millions of people ever since! In fact this statement of Jesus is like a gauntlet which God lays down and calls every human being to face and decide… is it true and what will I do about it? Jesus said to Nicodemus: “I tell you the truth, no one can enter the kingdom of God unless they are born of water and the Spirit. Flesh gives birth to flesh, but Spirit gives birth to spirit. You should not be surprised at My saying, ‘you must be born again.” (John 3:5,6)
Ok my friends, all over the world… there it is, God has declared His truth, defining the ONLY way into heaven, the ONLY way into God’s kingdom. What do you understand it means and what have you done with this statement?
Oh we understand the statement ‘born of water’, for every child that passes through a mother’s birth canal is preceded by a gush of water clearing the way for birth. But ‘born of the Spirit’, especially with the word “Spirit“, capital ‘S’, meaning a work of the Spirit of God?! What could that mean? What does God want to do in a person in order to birth them a second time, by His Holy Spirit, with just as much miraculous power and unique creative life giving work as God did the first time as He birthed you and me, and every person, into life outside the womb?
That may be life’s biggest question… what is a second birth by the Holy Spirit of God? So let’s pause right here, eavesdropping in on this life changing conversation between Nicodemus and Jesus. Let Jesus look deeply into your eyes, making the very same statement He made to Nicodemus, and I ask you… what does it mean? Have you experienced it? How do you explain it? And let’s meet right back here with Nicodemus and Jesus tomorrow, and hear what Jesus says…
Today’s Scripture is John 3:1-7.
Choose below to read or listen.
 |  |
Bible images provided with attribution to www.LumoProject.com.
Have a comment or question about today’s chapter? I’m ready to hear from you, contact me here.
Pastor Doug Anderson 262.441.8785
“Let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, with our eyes fixed on Jesus…” (Heb. 12:1,2)
Archived back issues of “Walking with Jesus” and other resources are available by clicking here to open our ‘home page’ (or go to HOME at upper right of this page).
Share with friends. Subscribe below for daily “Walking with Jesus”.
Facebook
Twitter
LinkedIn
Pinterest
Email
WhatsApp