Nicodemus is a very interesting guy. He shows up 3 times only in the book of John. This is his first appearance. Halfway through the book, his colleagues are questioning who Jesus is and Nicodemus advocates for Jesus, that he should be allowed to testify for himself. Then he shows up finally at the cross, the one with Joseph of Arimithea to take Jesus down from the cross, anoint his body and wrap it for burial in the tomb, a very personal, physical and spiritual act that shows just how far Nicodemus has come spiritually since these first questions in the dark as he seeks a teacher.
What can we learn from this story?
No matter how important or wise we are, we can still learn more. Nicodemus is a Pharisee, and member of the
Sanhedrin which means he’s a judge, maybe even on the supreme court. He is an important and learned person,
respected, with influence, but he is seeking a teacher. Nicodemus knows he has more to learn and he’s
curious, so he goes to Jesus. This is
good for all of us to remember because we all have more to learn. We’re on a path of learning for our Land
Acknowledgement statement. Some have
learned more than others, some are just at the beginning of learning, but it is
stretching us to look beyond what we already know and continue learning. This is a core value for Lutherans, lifelong
learning. You don’t graduate when you
finish confirmation. It is a beginning
of a relationship with God in which you can use critical thinking and the mind
God gave you.
It is important to have an open mind when talking to Jesus. Nicodemus has ideas about how the world
works, because it has worked pretty well for him over the years to get him to a
point of importance and status in the community. He knows a lot. But there are areas he doesn’t know that much
about, so he comes with an open mind, we hope to learn from Jesus. He comes with curiosity, intrigued to see
where this might take him. We can take
the same attitude. Do we approach the
Lord’s prayer with curiosity? Do we
approach each other with curiosity? Do
we approach our work on committees with curiosity? It can be a helpful point of view that can
open up new ideas and make things more
fun.
It is good to ask questions and we won’t always have the
answers. Nicodemus asks a lot of
questions today. He seems very
confused. Maybe that’s part of the
metaphor of coming to Jesus in the evening, in the darkness. He can’t really see very well. But still he is groping in the dark. He’s reaching out. He’s looking.
He’s allowing the questions to form, even if they make him look confused
or small or less. It is more important
to ask questions than have answers. We
too can ask the questions. Some of us
might have come from a time when questions weren’t encouraged at church. I’ve heard more than one of you say that you
were the kid in Sunday school or confirmation that was always asking questions
that you felt frustrated your teachers.
Many of these questions don’t have answers which might lead to
frustration, but they can also lead to more questions that open new doors and
you never know what you might find on your quest. Ask the questions. We won’t always have answers, but not all
questions need answers, and most don’t need answers this very second. Tolerate ambiguity.
Our faith life takes time to develop. Nicodemus is here confused and in the
dark. But soon he will be standing up
for Jesus amongst his colleagues. Later
he will be so close with Jesus that he prepares him for burial, the role of the
person closest to him. Since no one else
was at this meeting with Jesus, Nicodemus could very well have self-reported
this encounter to the writer of John’s Gospel, so he may have been a keeper of
the sayings of Jesus. Who knows what
role he took after Jesus’ resurrection and ascension. Our faith life, too, takes time to
develop. We see it in children as they
grow up, but adults, too. The faith
development might feel like it is moving slowly, but some of you are developing
new prayer practices or learning to listen and care for people around you, some
have become hospice volunteers, and others are thrown into hospice support
situations by family emergencies and circumstances. Everywhere life takes us, we can look at the
physical reality of what is happening and understand things to a point, but then
to look at the spiritual side, is a whole new level and there is much to
explore about the spirit.
Sometimes we need to start over or start fresh. Nicodemus had a lot of schooling and
training, but here he is being told by Jesus to start over and become a
spiritual baby. Start learning the
basics of movement in the spirit, the ABCs of the Spirit, to learn what to look
for and how to reach deep within for meaning.
Nicodemus did all the work the world gave him to become important in the
world. But here he is starting over,
being born again, brand new into a Spirit that wants him to relate to people in
a different way, to value different things, to love the world. He’s skeptical now, but we know by the way he
behaves in the future that he’s getting ready to be born anew of the
spirit. Every day is a chance to be born
anew for us. We make mistakes every day
and ask forgiveness every day to start over and try again. We’re invited to remember our baptism every
day, to let go of being important, smart, and rich and to be a baby again, let
go of control, let the wind/spirit take us somewhere unexpected, and learn from
Jesus and the spirit about loving the world.
Each day is a chance to start again or try again.
Love is the whole point—why Jesus is here, why God is trying to
teach us something about the life of the spirit, of how to live. Jesus gives his mission statement here, many
people’s favorite verse. The most famous
verse of the Bible. The point is
love. Jesus loves Nicodemus, so he
doesn’t condemn him, he invites him into more learning, into letting go of
control, into loving the world with God, into new life. So if we don’t have love, it doesn’t matter
how much power and influence and learning we have, it is a noisy gong,
temporary and loud and annoying. But if
we have love that is what lasts and matters.
Nicodemus knew a lot and had a lot of money and power, but he knew it
wasn’t getting him anywhere he wanted to be.
There had to be more to life, something beautiful and lasting and worth
pursuing and Jesus came right out and told him what Jesus found it to be, what
God’s purpose was. If Nicodemus wanted
to explore love, he was invited to start over and become a scholar of the
spirit to pursue the study and action of love.
That’s our invitation and our life’s work if we care to pursue it, to
trust it.
Finally we learn, it’s ok to let go of control. The spirit cannot be harnessed to build power
for human beings. It can’t be told when
and how to act. That’s partly why we
have a little chaos in our church services.
We’re letting the spirit in when we let kids in, when we let people in,
when we sing, when we dance, when we invite prayers. We are not in control and although it can be
distracting, the spirit is trying to show us something, teach us something,
open our minds, and get through our tough exterior to the heart of things.
Nicodemus means Conquers the people or victory of the
people. His name means, “winner.” But what is he winning at? What has he conquered? He is wandering around in the dark. But he is open to a different direction, to
new life, and he’s looking to Jesus which will transform him into someone ready
to risk everything to love the world and be moved by the spirit. Jesus meets him in the dark, as he does all
of us, and gently guides him to start over again in the love and light of God.
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