Good Tuesday morning! And what a difference a day makes, we are about 25° cooler this morning from yesterday at this time. The autumn cold fronts are starting to invade the heat of summer; autumn is not far away now. Praise the Lord for the new day! Now why is that so much easier to say on a nice, cool morning with little wind? Many things affect us in this world, and even though Christ lives in our hearts through his Holy Spirit, we are still in this physical world and we don't like the weather when it is too cold or too hot. Of course, too hot and too cold are relative to the person and the season. Time to begin the next chapter in the Gospel of John!
There was a man named Nicodemus, a Jewish religious leader who was a Pharisee. (John 3:1)
So after I gave you that introduction yesterday to the great third chapter of John, is this all you get for this morning? Yes, but there is more here than meets the eye. As a Jewish religious leader AND a Pharisee, Nicodemus was one of the national leaders. Today, the same person here in the U.S. would be both a senator with a doctorate of law, and a member of the High Council of Churches (if we had such a thing). While the nation of Israel was under Roman occupation at the time, the man was still a powerful political and religious leader. So if this man knows so much about Jewish religious law, why is he coming to Jesus? We'll find that out soon enough, but for now we have this player introduced: Nicodemus, a man near the top of the social, political, and religious structure. Probably he was well-to-do financially at the very least if not wealthy. Nicodemus probably came from a good family and knew all the other important people, both Roman and Jewish, in the nation of Israel. On the other side, Jesus is at this time a poor, wandering teacher. Why would these two ever meet?
For one thing, we know that Jesus has performed several miracles as of this time. John mentions the miraculous signs Jesus had done during the Passover celebration and tells the story of the wedding in Cana. Jesus is gaining a following, though they cannot all be trusted, and his fame is spreading. We also know that John the Baptist has already had a confrontation with the Jewish religious leader's assistants, and that the religious leaders themselves had demanded a sign from Jesus after he cleared the Temple. Nicodemus may simply be investigating the news of this new teacher, or he may have a deeper need. How much did Nicodemus know about Jesus already? That answer tomorrow, but for today: Here he is: Nicodemus, we know from this account that he existed at the time of Jesus and held a high position in Jewish life. Was Nicodemus much like the other Jewish leaders who had demanded what right or authority Jesus had to clear the Temple, or will we find something different in this man of the Pharisees? We have much to look forward to the John chapter 3. Enjoy the journey!
Bucky
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