John 3 Part 1 Nick-at-nite

"Now there was a man of the Pharisees named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews. 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.”

Why did Nicodemus come to see Jesus at night?

He doesn't want anyone to know he's talking to Jesus. His buddies the Pharisees are going to be a big force in getting Jesus killed. Nick is curious to hear what Jesus has to say and what he is all about, but he doesn't want to do so at the cost of his personal reputation within the community. The nighttime visit is also a giveaway that Nicodemus does not realize that Jesus is the messiah. . .if he did, Nick would not be sneaking around in the darkness, he would be worshipping openly.

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.

What does Nicodemus think he is saying?

How is what Nicodemus says different from what Nathaniel says is John 1?

Nathanael answered him, “Rabbi, you are the Son of God! You are the King of Israel!” (John 1:49 ESV)

Nicodemus thinks he is saying something nice. You're meeting the popular new guy, pay him a compliment. Then he pays you a compliment in return, you chit-chat for a little while and then get down to business. Nicodemus expects Jesus to compliment him and like Nathanael, to say, "here is a true Israelite, in him there is nothing false." Only Nicodemus makes perfectly clear that he has no idea who he is talking to. Jesus is the lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world. He is God incarnate, he is not just some teacher or good man, Jesus is God come to earth.

Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God.

Jesus is God. And he says truly, truly to begin what he is saying. God never lies anyway, but this is super-serious. It's like the triple dog dare from a Christmas story. The double dog dare, that's serious. The triple dare, that's even more serious. But the triple-dog-dare, if someone dares you like that, there is no going back. You're going to wind up with your tongue glued to a froze pole. Jesus is just as serious as the triple-dog-dare.

Nick-at-nite is confused, and perhaps rightly so - what is Jesus talking about when he says a person must be born again?

Of course you have an advantage since you are Lutheran to answer this question because we make a really big deal out of this: yep, baptism.

How is baptism being born again?

Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved, but whoever does not believe will be condemned. (Mark 16:16 ESV)

Do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? We were buried therefore with him by baptism into death, in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life. (Romans 6:3, 4 ESV)

Baptism, which corresponds to this, now saves you, not as a removal of dirt from the body but as an appeal to God for a good conscience, through the resurrection of Jesus Christ, (1 Peter 3:21 ESV)

For in him the whole fullness of deity dwells bodily, and you have been filled in him, who is the head of all rule and authority. In him also you were circumcised with a circumcision made without hands, by putting off the body of the flesh, by the circumcision of Christ, having been buried with him in baptism, in which you were also raised with him through faith in the powerful working of God, who raised him from the dead. And you, who were dead in your trespasses and the uncircumcision of your flesh, God made alive together with him, having forgiven us all our trespasses, by canceling the record of debt that stood against us with its legal demands. This he set aside, nailing it to the cross. (Colossians 2:9-14 ESV)

Of course Nick has no clue what Jesus is talking about, and instead of asking him to explain or clarify, Nicodemus tells Jesus he doesn't know what he's talking about. Whaaaaat? You think that I, a grown man, should climb back into my mother's belly? Jesus, you crazy!

What would you have said if you were in Nicodemus's shoes?

Jesus answered, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God. That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. Do not marvel that I said to you, ‘You must be born again.’ (John 3:5-7 ESV)

Lets look at the theology of what Jesus is saying.

What do humans give birth to? Baby alligators? Baby chickens? No, they give birth to humans, right?

What do sinful humans give birth to?

"It is also taught among us that since the fall of Adam all men who are born according to the course of nature are conceived and born in sin. That is, all men are full of evil lust and inclinations from their mothers’ wombs and are unable by nature to have true fear of God and true faith in God. Moreover, this inborn sickness and hereditary sin is truly sin and condemns to the eternal wrath of God all those who are not born again through Baptism and the Holy Spirit." - Luther in the Augsburg confession

If the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, he who raised Christ Jesus from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through his Spirit who dwells in you. (Romans 8:11 ESV)

I'm not an expert, but in the books I've read about the Middle East and Muslim born believers, when someone is baptized as a Christian, this is the point where their Muslim family and friends consider them to have left the faith and will disown or even threaten violence toward them. It is fascinating that baptism is considered an irrevocable act, and recognize that the person is new or born again (though a conservative Muslim obviously would not consider this a good thing).

The 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.” (John 3:8 ESV)

What does this verse mean?

This all a mystery! This baptism and being born again stuff, it's hard to understand, and Jesus says that it is supposed to be that way! I don't have to fully understand it. I don't have to know where the wind comes from or goes, I just look at the tree swaying and know the breeze is real. I don't have to understand exactly how that little baby is being killed and reborn, right there, in front of the church. I just believe Jesus words, that the water and spirit bring life. . .and that is enough. The point is faith, it is faith that brings you life, faith that brings salvation, know it; believe it; feel it; trust it; but don't worry if we don't fully understand it. . .to do so would be like understanding the wind.

Nicodemus said to him, “How can these things be?” Jesus answered him, “Are you the teacher of Israel and yet you do not understand these things? (John 3:9, 10 ESV)

Why should Nicodemus be wiser than this? Are there stories in the Old Testament that relate to the things Jesus is saying?

Noah - water drowning and killing sinful humanity, but the world will be born again through Noah and his kids. And only through faith is this salvation possible - Noah believed God and that's why he built the boat. In baptism a person is drowning and being reborn, kinda similar. Genesis 6-9

Abraham and Sarah experience miraculous birth - the promise of an unusual birth is common in scripture. And God said to Abraham, “As for Sarai your wife, you shall not call her name Sarai, but Sarah shall be her name. I will bless her, and moreover, I will give you a son by her. I will bless her, and she shall become nations; kings of peoples shall come from her.” Then Abraham fell on his face and laughed and said to himself, “Shall a child be born to a man who is a hundred years old? Shall Sarah, who is ninety years old, bear a child?” (Genesis 17:15-17 ESV).

Hebrews says this about Abraham: Therefore from one man, and him as good as dead, were born descendants as many as the stars of heaven and as many as the innumerable grains of sand by the seashore. (Hebrews 11:12 ESV)

This wrinkly, old, good-as-dead guy; through him are born descendants and nations. No, Abraham wasn't literally born again, but his children were not born except from a miracle of God. Only through an act of God is new life possible, this Nicodemus should know.

My favorite picture (and one of the very coolest images of the entire Bible) is from Ezekiel:

The hand of the Lord was upon me, and he brought me out in the Spirit of the Lord and set me down in the middle of the valley; it was full of bones. And he led me around among them, and behold, there were very many on the surface of the valley, and behold, they were very dry. And he said to me, “Son of man, can these bones live?” And I answered, “O Lord God, you know.” Then he said to me, “Prophesy over these bones, and say to them, O dry bones, hear the word of the Lord. Thus says the Lord God to these bones: Behold, I will cause breath to enter you, and you shall live. And I will lay sinews upon you, and will cause flesh to come upon you, and cover you with skin, and put breath in you, and you shall live, and you shall know that I am the Lord.” So I prophesied as I was commanded. And as I prophesied, there was a sound, and behold, a rattling, and the bones came together, bone to its bone. And I looked, and behold, there were sinews on them, and flesh had come upon them, and skin had covered them. But there was no breath in them. Then he said to me, “Prophesy to the breath; prophesy, son of man, and say to the breath, Thus says the Lord God : Come from the four winds, O breath, and breathe on these slain, that they may live.” So I prophesied as he commanded me, and the breath came into them, and they lived and stood on their feet, an exceedingly great army. Then he said to me, “Son of man, these bones are the whole house of Israel. Behold, they say, ‘Our bones are dried up, and our hope is lost; we are indeed cut off.’ Therefore prophesy, and say to them, Thus says the Lord God : Behold, I will open your graves and raise you from your graves, O my people. And I will bring you into the land of Israel. And you shall know that I am the Lord, when I open your graves, and raise you from your graves, O my people. And I will put my Spirit within you, and you shall live, and I will place you in your own land. Then you shall know that I am the Lord; I have spoken, and I will do it, declares the Lord.” (Ezekiel 37:1-14 ESV).

This is exactly what Jesus is talking about. We are sinful and dead, and then the Holy Spirit, like a wind, blows on us and brings us to life. A pile of bones becomes a great army. God makes something out of nothing. He brings life from death. This is the very essence of the scriptures!

So if you were to meet up with Jesus in the middle of the night, what would you ask him?

(Hannah answers, Jesus, would you like to go on a picnic and a bicycle ride.  Ooooh, and the bicycle could fly like on E.T. because it's Jesus.)