John 3: Jesus, the Great Teacher (part 3)

Have you ever considered this story from Nicodemus’ point of view? Well, I have. And I’ve got to be very forthright here – I completely identify with the poor fellow.

Think about it this way: He witnesses a few of Jesus’ miracles, so he begins to think to himself that there is no way that Jesus could be pulling off these signs and wonders if God were not with him. Am I on the right track here? So he goes to Jesus one night just to talk to him. Surely he knew that some of the other Pharisees would have raked him over the proverbial coals if they had seen him making this renowned visit. It’s not like he would be unwilling to take a public stand for Jesus if he were absolutely sure. Later on, after the execution of Jesus, Nicodemus was one of the fellows who carried his body to the tomb, so we know that he was a man of principle. But at this point, he just wasn’t sure – at least he wasn’t sure enough to stand next to Jesus as he preached in the synagogue. So he pays him a visit before he makes a total and public commitment.

And what does he get in return? If you want to know what I think, I think he gets what looks like at first glance, a runaround.

“Unless you are born again…”

Two thousand years later, this statement makes perfect sense – at least we think it does. But Nicodemus did not have our perspective. Jesus’ words were fresh off the press. Live TV, if you will. What do you think must have been going through his head at this point?

Born again? What in the world could he mean by born again? What am I supposed to do now? Go back up into my mother’s womb and come out again? I weigh 150 pounds now and I’m five feet seven inches tall. What in the world is all this born again talk? I just want to know if he’s from God or not.

What would you have done at this point? I would like to think that I would have pursued it further. But I would have probably been saying to myself, “Something's a little off with this guy. How am I going to get out of this one?"

Me? I probably would have been thinking of a thousand excuses for why it was necessary for me to leave.

I’m assuming here that Jesus was well aware of the fact that Nicodemus was confused by his reply. Personally, I would have responded to Nicodemus differently. I would have been more direct. But then again, I’m not the son of God. My problem is that I’m not as sure of where I came from, where I’m going, or why I’m here as Jesus was. He knew who he was. He knew his purpose. And he definitely knew the message he wanted to deliver to the world into which he had been thrust. So Nicodemus’ temporary discomfort was subjugated to Jesus’ greater purpose. Jesus knew that what he would teach Nicodemus that night would offer him the opportunity to live a vastly different life than the one he would have lived had he never encountered the son of God. As a matter of fact, his offer of a new and different life still stands over two thousand years later.

That’s why God is so good at what he does, by the way – he always sees the bigger picture. You and I are more prone to value the here and now, but God sees all the way to the end. And so, in the interest of the greater picture, Jesus adds to the confusion.

"No one can enter the kingdom of God if he is not born of the water and the spirit. "

And now for the big question – what does it mean to be born again? What does it mean to be born of the water and the spirit?