Podcast Introduction

Today we will complete the book of  John 3-4. I’ll have comments on both chapters after the reading, and I’m calling today’s episode “The Late Night Meeting.”

Design: Steve Webb | Photo: Omar Ram on Unsplash

Comments on John 3

Of John's gospel, chapter three Charles Spurgeon said, “If we were asked to read to a dying man who did not know the gospel, we should probably select this chapter as the most suitable one for such an occasion; and what is good for dying men is good for us all, for that is what we are; and how soon we may be actually at the gates of death, none of us can tell.” 

One of the Jewish elites came to Jesus in the night. Nicodemus, a member of the Sanhedrin, the ruling council of the Jews, may have come for personal reasons or official. We aren't told. 

That he came at night might have been because the crowds that typically gathered around Jesus would be gone for the day, and they would be able to have a quiet discussion. Or he may have come at night so that he would not be seen with Jesus. By now, Jesus had a reputation as a miracle worker, having turned the water to wine at the wedding, and as a trouble maker, having overturned the tables in the Temple. 

As a member of the Sanhedrin, perhaps he went to speak to Jesus in the official capacity of ascertaining who Jesus was, what He was teaching, and what He meant to accomplish. 

Or maybe Nicodemus just wanted to see this charismatic man with his own eyes. Nicodemus obviously knew who John the Baptist was, and perhaps he was aware of what John said about Jesus: "“I also did not know who the Messiah was. But the one who sent me to baptize with water told me, ‘You will see the Spirit come down and rest on a man. He is the one who will baptize with the Holy Spirit.’ I have seen this happen. I saw the Spirit come down from heaven like a dove and rest on this man. So this is what I tell people: ‘He is the Son of God.’" Perhaps Nicodemus wanted to see if Jesus was the Messiah.

The first thing he said was, "Teacher (Rabbi-a term of respect), we know that you are a teacher sent from God. No one can do these miraculous signs that you do unless they have God’s help.” In saying "we know that you are", Nicodemus might have been saying "We the Sanhedrin know...". But it is just as likely that he meant "People in these parts consider you to be...". 

Notice that Jesus did not even address Nicodemus' statement. He didn't acknowledge it at all. He went directly to the heart of His purpose. "“I assure you: Unless someone is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.” This statement must have hit Nicodemus like a ton of bricks, because the Jews believed that as God's chosen people, they were already guaranteed a place in the kingdom of God. They thought that their birth into the Jewish race assured that. Jesus said, "You need a *new* birth!"

This idea of a new birth, or of being a new creation, or of having new life is a recurring theme in the New Testament. Paul, in Romans 6:1-11 writes of dying with Jesus and rising anew. In 1 Corinthians 3:1-2, Paul refers to new believers as newborn babes. In 2 Corinthians 5:17 he says that we are a new creation when we are in Jesus. The apostle Peter wrote in 1 Peter 1:3 that we are born anew by God's great mercy. And these are just a few instances.

Nicodemus' answer, in essence was, "What are you talking about? How it that possible?" He knew that you can't actually be born a second time like you were the first. So he might have meant, "How can a man change who he is? How can you teach an old dog new tricks?"

And in answering Nicodemus, Jesus said for the second time, "I assure you..." Jesus is saying, "What I am telling you is true. This is a fact." Jesus wants Nicodemus to understand the gravity of what He is saying.

And then Jesus elaborates. He isn't saying a man has to change who is his, how he acts. He isn't saying that the old dog has to learn new tricks.