First Reading Genesis 12:1-9
1Now the Lord said to Abram, “Go from your country and your kindred and your father’s house to the land that I will show you. 2And I will make of you a great nation, and I will bless you and make your name great, so that you will be a blessing. 3I will bless those who bless you, and him who dishonors you I will curse, and in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed.” 4So Abram went, as the Lord had told him, and Lot went with him. Abram was seventy-five years old when he departed from Haran. 5And Abram took Sarai his wife, and Lot his brother’s son, and all their possessions that they had gathered, and the people that they had acquired in Haran, and they set out to go to the land of Canaan. When they came to the land of Canaan, 6Abram passed through the land to the place at Shechem, to the oak of Moreh. At that time the Canaanites were in the land. 7Then the Lord appeared to Abram and said, “To your offspring I will give this land.” So he built there an altar to the Lord, who had appeared to him. 8From there he moved to the hill country on the east of Bethel and pitched his tent, with Bethel on the west and Ai on the east. And there he built an altar to the Lord and called upon the name of the Lord. 9And Abram journeyed on, still going toward the Negeb.
Psalm Psalm 121
1I lift up my eyes to the hills; from where is my help to come? 2My help comes from the Lord, the maker of heaven and earth. 3He will not let your foot be moved and he who watches over you will not fall asleep. 4Behold, he who keeps watch over Israel shall neither slumber nor sleep; 5The Lord himself watches over you; the Lord is your shade at your right hand, 6So that the sun shall not strike you by day, nor the moon by night. 7The Lord shall preserve you from all evil; it is he who shall keep you safe. 8The Lord shall watch over your going out and your coming in, from this time forth forevermore.
Second Reading Romans 4:1-8, 13-17
1What then shall we say was gained by Abraham, our forefather according to the flesh? 2For if Abraham was justified by works, he has something to boast about, but not before God. 3For what does the Scripture say? “Abraham believed God, and it was counted to him as righteousness.” 4Now to the one who works, his wages are not counted as a gift but as his due. 5And to the one who does not work but believes in him who justifies the ungodly, his faith is counted as righteousness, 6just as David also speaks of the blessing of the one to whom God counts righteousness apart from works: 7“Blessed are those whose lawless deeds are forgiven, and whose sins are covered; 8blessed is the man against whom the Lord will not count his sin.” 13For the promise to Abraham and his offspring that he would be heir of the world did not come through the law but through the righteousness of faith. 14For if it is the adherents of the law who are to be the heirs, faith is null and the promise is void. 15For the law brings wrath, but where there is no law there is no transgression. 16That is why it depends on faith, in order that the promise may rest on grace and be guaranteed to all his offspring — not only to the adherent of the law but also to the one who shares the faith of Abraham, who is the father of us all, 17as it is written, “I have made you the father of many nations” — in the presence of the God in whom he believed, who gives life to the dead and calls into existence the things that do not exist.
Gospel John 3:1-17
1Now there was a man of the Pharisees named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews. 2This man came to Jesus by night and said to him, “Rabbi, we know that you are a teacher come from God, for no one can do these signs that you do unless God is with him.” 3Jesus answered him, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God.” 4Nicodemus said to him, “How can a man be born when he is old? Can he enter a second time into his mother’s womb and be born?” 5Jesus answered, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God. 6That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. 7Do not marvel that I said to you, ‘You must be born again.’ 8The wind blows where it wishes, and you hear its sound, but you do not know where it comes from or where it goes. So it is with everyone who is born of the Spirit.” 9Nicodemus said to him, “How can these things be?” 10Jesus answered him, “Are you the teacher of Israel and yet you do not understand these things? 11Truly, truly, I say to you, we speak of what we know, and bear witness to what we have seen, but you do not receive our testimony. 12If I have told you earthly things and you do not believe, how can you believe if I tell you heavenly things? 13No one has ascended into heaven except he who descended from heaven, the Son of Man. 14And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, so must the Son of Man be lifted up, 15that whoever believes in him may have eternal life. 16For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. 17For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him.”
IT’S ALL GOD’S WORK
How many have read books or have seen movies that had so much going on, that it was difficult to keep up with the events and activities within the story? Sometimes there are events that are subtle and seemingly unimportant, and then there are other points that appear to be critical to our understanding of the narrative. Sometimes a chronicle’s meaning can change slightly when we comprehend the subliminal messages, yet at other times, the story will be understood in a whole new way, once we put all the pieces together. This is the case with today’s gospel reading from St. John, it’s one of those events that has a good deal of overt and subliminal messages, all interwoven within the story.
Nicodemus, Jesus, rebirth, Old Testament references, Son of Man, lifted up, serpents in the wilderness, wind, Spirit, belief, condemnation and eternal life. In a way, when we peal back all the layers in this passage, it can become a bit over whelming. Each portion, however, is essential, and without each of these pieces, the story would somehow become flat, dreary, single faceted. Yet surprisingly, each piece, on its own, is important as well, because they lead those reading and hearing the narritive to the central point of the story, Jesus, the Son of Man. With so much going on, with so many complex factors, one might question, where do we begin? The sensible answer would be to start at the beginning.
To begin with, I find it helpful to do a background check of the central figures within the story. We, of course, know who Jesus is, but who is this Nicodemus character? The story itself gives us a few clues; Nicodemus is a Pharisee who comes to Jesus under the security of night. But Nicodemus isn’t just any religious leader; he was also a member of the Sanhedrin, a highly respected group of 71 men who served as judges in all religious and legal matters. The Sanhedrin was the Supreme Court of Israel as it were.
These were highly educated men who spent their lives in study and debate about what it meant to be a member of God’s chosen people and to serve God as a faithful Jew. An important thing we need to understand about their view of religious matters was the emphasis on actions. For the Pharisee, service to God was focused on how well one kept the law. One’s eternal security depended 100% on a person keeping all the rules and regulations of the Talmud in order to earn God’s favor.
Endless conversations occurred on how to reach God, please God or appease God. Hours were spent debating subjects like, how far one could walk on the Sabbath, whether an act of compassion constituted work, or the exact number of times a person had to wash their hands in order to be considered clean enough to eat. There are literally thousands of laws in the Talmud and for these men, these matters were of extreme importance. It’s from his deep understanding of Jewish history and this mindset, that Nicodemus approached Jesus that night.
At this point in Jesus’ ministry, Jesus had captured the attention of the religious leaders and questions and opinions were being formed about His actions, His miracles, His teachings and His comments. Some of the scribes, lawyers and Pharisees had already decided that Jesus was a threat, not only to the religious establishment but to the Hebrew nation. As far as they were concerned, He was a blasphemer and deserved to be stoned. Remember, Luke 4 records that everyone in Jesus’ hometown synagogue tried to throw Him off a cliff (v. 29) for announcing that the prophecy from Isaiah “is fulfilled in your hearing” (21b). And this was just the beginning.
Attempts, unsuccessful I might add, were made “in order to trap Him in His words” (Mark 12:13). Still others were less convinced and had questions. But those with doubts feared the others within the Jewish leadership community. They were afraid of being alienated from the community, they feared losing their coveted positions, they were scared of possibility losing the prestige they enjoyed when they walked the streets and that fear kept them in the shadows. Nicodemus must have been one of the ones with doubts, because he chooses to use the cover that darkness afforded him to approach this explosively popular teacher.
One could surmise many things from this action. First, that Nicodemus was afraid of his compatriots. Second, he didn’t want to appear to the community as validating Jesus’ teachings, or, third, he had unsettling questions and was simply unable to rest until these questions were answered. What is clear, however, is that despite the risks associate with approaching Jesus, Nicodemus’ concerns drove his actions that evening. But this meeting between Jesus and this religious leader was different than the others. Here we see a difference in attitude that was uncommon among the rulers Jesus normally dealt with. Nicodemus came to Jesus not with contempt, but with respect.
Rabbi, Nicodemus begins, we know that God is with You, because of the evidence we see; healings, miracles and demons being cast out. As a religious leader and one who trusted God, Nicodemus was certain that these acts of authority and compassion could only come from one source, God Himself. He knew from the ancient writings that other men sent by God had done miracles, but none of these historical giants had done so many, nor did they have such power over demons. So, bewildered, Nicodemus comes to Jesus with questions, ones that needed answers.
What’s so interesting in this story is, Nicodemus never gets to the actual questions he’s come to ask; Jesus interrupts him and apparently changes the subject. “Very truly, I tell you, no one can see the kingdom of God without being born of water and the Spirit.” Now before we go any further, we need to stop and reread the statement Jesus is making. This is a very important statement here. According to Jesus, for anyone to enter into God’s kingdom, two things must happen. First, they must be baptized.
What Jesus is making very clear here is that baptism isn’t optional. Baptism is God’s work in and for us to forgive us our sin, to give us the Holy Spirit and to make us a child of His kingdom. Jesus reiterates the importance of Baptism in His final earthly command when He tells us to “Go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.” This brings us to the second thing that must happen, rebirth. Again, this is God’s work.
When we were naturally born, we were born in sin. Paul make this very clear when he tells us that “all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God” (Rom. 3:23). He further went on to say in Romans chapter 5, a passage we read last week, “therefore, just as sin came into the world through one man, and death through sin, and so death spread to all men because all sinned”…(vs.12). But when God washed us in the waters of baptism, “he saved us, not because of works done by us in righteousness, but according to his own mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewal of the Holy Spirit, whom he poured out on us richly through Jesus Christ our Savior, so that being justified by his grace we might become heirs according to the hope of eternal life (Titus 3:5-7).
Being born from above, regenerated by God’s work, means we serve a different Master. We are no longer slaves to sin, death and the devil. It means we’re to think, speak and act differently than those still under the power of sin. And because of the work of God in our lives, we desire to do good works, not to earn our way into God’s kingdom as the religious leader taught, but to please God and thank Him for all He’s done for us. This is why Nicodemus was confused. He’s focused on what works he needed to do to ensure his eternal future. Jesus is telling him, it isn’t about him, but God, and Jesus’ abrupt shift in the conversation catches Nicodemus completely off guard.
Maybe, this was the actual concern Nicodemus had and Jesus simply cuts to the chase and gets right to the point. Maybe Nicodemus was unaware of his real purpose and Jesus brings it to light. Either way, Jesus never lets the conversation become a question of what we can do to earn God’s favor; instead He guides the discussion to what God does for us. You see, both birth, and rebirth, require nothing from the person. A child being born isn’t asked for advice by the mother nor is there any effort on the child’s part.
The mother is tasked with not only giving life to the new baby, but is also required to exert all the effort in delivering the child, thus the term labor. The same is true with rebirth. God is the one in charge of giving us new life and with the action of our renewal. Nicodemus, whether consciously or unconsciously, wanted to know how to earn his way into heaven and the answer Jesus gave was, you can’t. It’s God, by His own work, through the water and Spirit who gives us the gift of rebirth and eternal life. All we’re required to do is to believe. But for the works righteous crowd, the question then becomes, believe in who, what and how?
In the last four verses, Jesus provides the information we need for who and what we’re to believe. We must accept that God the Father sent His Son in whom we believe. In what could be considered one of the most famous verses in the Bible, Jesus tells us that everyone who believes will not perish but will have eternal life. The ability to understand who Jesus is and to believe this statement comes to us through the work of the Spirit. As I’ve quoted before, Luther tells us, that it is the Holy Spirit that reveals all truths to us and provides us with the faith necessary for us to believe. But these are tenants of our faith that we’ve been taught from an early age. Nicodemus on the other hand needed a radical new understanding.
In order for this new understanding to occur, Jesus had to take him back to the basics of his belief system. Jesus had to point Nicodemus back to the prophets of the Old Testament. In order for Nicodemus to connect the dots, Jesus refers to Himself as the Son of Man. As a scholar and teacher, this title pointed Nicodemus to two Old Testament prophets, Ezekiel and Daniel. Ezekiel is called the son of man when he’s sent by God to proclaim judgment against the people for their failure to live within the Sinai covenant. Second comes from the book of Daniel. The title son of man refers to the one who will sit and judge the people on the last day.
So, by Jesus calling Himself the Son of man, He’s telling Nicodemus that not only is He a teacher, He’s also the one that will be sitting in judgment of the people on the last day. And in order to connect Himself as the long awaited Messiah, Jesus also tells Nicodemus that He has come from God. In verse 13 Jesus said, “No one has ascended into heaven except the One who descended from heaven”. Then He further explains His reason for coming, He, like the bronze serpent in the wilderness, will be lifted up, not as a symbol of punishment, but for the salvation of all who look to Him. The road to eternal life isn’t paved with the work of human hands, but by the work of God. In this short passage, Nicodemus who came with questions under the cover of darkness, has now been brought into the light, and given answers into to the mysteries of the faith.
Without even asking, Jesus has explained that human work will not earn God’s mercy that God is the agent of our salvation. He has learned that God’s mercy comes to us in the waters of baptism, through God’s renewing work and the Holy Spirit who gives and strengthens our faith so that we can believe in the Son of man, God’s gift to the world. That this gift to the world will ascend to the right hand of God to be the judge of the people on the last day. That condemnation comes to those who refuse to believe in the One sent into the world. But for those who do believe in Jesus Christ, we have the hope of eternal life.
Here, in this short passage, we have the basic message of salvation made clear in a short visit between a Jewish religious leader and the Author of life. It makes you wonder what went through Nicodemus’ mind as he left the house that night. He was given an amazing amount of information and never even finished asking a single question. He came with an agenda, and left with the answers to eternal life. And while questions remain as to whether Nicodemus ever became a disciple of Jesus, we do know that the conversation had a profound impact on his life.
Twice more Nicodemus is mentioned in the gospel of John and both times it was at a critical time. The first was in chapter 7 when the Pharisee’s sent the police to arrest Jesus. When the temple police returned without Him, the leaders berated the officers. It was Nicodemus who spoke up and questioned his fellow leaders asking, “Our law does not judge people without first giving them a hearing to find out what they are doing, does it?” His plea was rejected, but his point for the time was made, Jesus had done nothing wrong and His arrest would’ve been against the law. The final time Nicodemus is mentioned in the Bible is in chapter 19.
It was Nicodemus along with Joseph of Arimathea who went secretly to Pilate to ask for Jesus’ body. Pilate granted them their request and they prepared Jesus’ body for burial, according to Jewish custom, and laid Him in a new tomb. The conversation that occurred that evening, more than 2000 years ago, must have had a profound impact on at least one of the Sanhedrin. And the question for us today is, what impact does this story have on us?
We can choose to look past the nuances of this story and decide instead to focus only on one or two of the details. If we do this, we can miss key elements of the gospel message. We can become over whelmed with the complexity of the story and miss the message of God’s love and work in our lives, or we can see the wisdom of Jesus, and look at the kaleidoscope of promises that come in this story and allow the Holy Spirit to encourage us and strengthen our faith.
The forgiveness of sin and the renewing work of the Holy Spirit isn’t something we achieve; it’s accomplished in baptism by God’s work alone. And with the help of the Holy Spirit, we can look to Jesus as the Son of our heavenly Father and believe in Him. It’s in this belief, that we have the forgiveness of sin, the promise of adoption as children of the most high God who makes us co-heirs with Christ and have the assurance of everlasting life.
Amen
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