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John 3: Did Nicodemus Become a Christian? (3 of 3)
As we have seen, Nicodemus was a Pharisee, a ruler of the Jews who came to Jesus by night because he thought he was “a teacher come from God,” i.e. “a prophet.” But did Nicodemus become a follower of Jesus, i.e., in our words, “a Christian?”
John 3: A Failure to Communicate (2 of 3)
2 This 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.” 3 Jesus answered him, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born anew, he cannot see the kingdom of God.” 4 Nicodemus 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?” 5 Jesus answered, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God. 6 That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. “
This passage is about “a failure to communicate.” This failure takes place because of one Greek word with a double meaning. The word is a preposition, “anothen.” It can be translated “from above.” It can also be translated “anew,” or “again”
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John 3: A Comparative Darkness (1 of 3)
Text: John 3:1-17
Today: “John 3: A Comparative Darkness”
Everybody is familiar with the story of Nicodemus, the Pharisee, the ruler of the Jews who comes to Jesus by night, saying he is a teacher come from God. Everybody is familiar with the response of Jesus. He tells Nicodemus that it requires “a birth from above” to enter the Kingdom of God. All this is prelude to our favorite Bible verse, John 3:16:
For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son,
that whoever believes in him should not perish but
have eternal life.
For the next several days, I am going to add a few notes on this passage, dealing first with what John actually says, and then adding a few comments about how you and I respond to what he says.
(To view the Bible links without loosing your place in the text, right click on them, and then open them in a new window.)
First, note that Nicodemus “came to Jesus by night.”
Righteousness
The story of Judah and Tamar is a racy story, about sex and incest. According to Genesis 38:1-30, Judah bargained for Tamar and gave her in marriage to Er, his eldest son. Er was wicked, and God punished him. He died. Judah ordered his next son Onan to perform the duty of a brother-in-law for her, i.e. to marry her and raise up children. He slept with her, but practiced cotius interruptus. He, too, was wicked, and God punished him. He died. Judah had another son, Shelah, but Judah persuaded Tamar to remain a window until Shelah grew-up a little. The drift of the story is that Judah regarded Tamar as bad luck. She had cost him two sons, and he did not want to loose a third.
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Now Concerning…
In his first letter to the Corinthians Paul uses the phrase now concerning five times. He addresses marriage (1 Cor 7-24), the possibility of marriage for those who are single (1 Cor 7:25-40), food offered to idols (1 Cor 8), spiritual gifts (1 Cor 12), and the contribution for the church in Jerusalem (1 Cor 16:1-2). According to 1 Cor 7:1, the phrase refers to a written communication that Paul had received from the church in Corinth. Much of the letter is in response to questions the members of the church had about issues of some great importance to them. Some of the questions concern us more, some less. Yet we know that if they had not asked those questions, we would be the poorer for it. There are those who say that the Christian life should be free of questions. They will find no support in scripture. The pursuit of truth often takes us through a stage of asking questions. That is o.k. Faith seeks understanding, and ask more questions of life than unbelief. Faith asks more questions because faith seeks to please God, not just self. John Calvin says that the mature Christian lives in a stage of perpetual adolescence. The adolescents I know are always ready for something new, always ready for surprises, always asking questions. Say, that is not a bad way to live. God bless you! Finis.