Monday meditation: Listening in on a conversation between teachers
Let’s give Nicodemus a break here. Yes, he was, as Jesus said in the passage we’re reading today, “the teacher of Israel.” So it’s reasonable to ask why he didn’t see that Jesus was the promised Messiah.
But imagine the confusion and self-doubt Nicodemus felt when encountering this man who did not defer to his great learning, was not intimidated by his esteemed position, and did not hang on his every word. The Jewish population had learned to view their teachers of the Law with respect and honor, and Nicodemus had probably come to expect that for himself. But Jesus did not hesitate to challenge him.
Jesus regularly challenged Pharisees like Nicodemus, and again and again they reacted with outrage. But Nicodemus kept probing in a search to understand who Jesus was and what Jesus offered. Let’s appreciate the search for truth that drove him.
We can give ourselves a break here, too. Even with repeated readings of this interchange, our mind is reeling with the effort to grasp the mystery in Jesus’ words.
At the root of it all is a simplicity that some, like Nicodemus, have been unwilling to face. To acknowledge that Jesus is the Son of God is to know transformation so profound it feels like a second birth, a breakthrough into understanding too glorious and vibrant to be experienced while trapped in the womb of disbelief.
Lifetime Christians may forget what those initial deep breaths of new life felt like. It’s especially true for those burdened by coping with the disabilities of the diseased person in their care. It’s good for us to read this story again, to ponder the words of Jesus and struggle with Nicodemus to understand them. It’s good for us to remember that what we’re losing now is not much compared with what Jesus promises us later.
“For God so loved the world,” he said, “that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.”
We may look at the victim resting in the next room while we read this and take note of how their life is disintegrating before our very eyes. It’s true their body will eventually fail completely. But today it’s good to remember that their life, and ours, can go on forever.
Read: John 3:1-21 ESV
Pray: Dear God, we know you’re interested in our flourishing today, now, here. But we’re so, so grateful you have promised another life, an unimaginable life someday, somehow, somewhere. Give us courage today as we seek to see you at work in this life and trust you for our well-being in the next one.
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