The Miracle of (Re)Birth

Key Verse to Read and Treasure

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 have come from God as a teacher, for no one can do these signs that you do unless God is with him—John 3:1-2

For Insight

Something happened. Nicodemus was not only a Pharisee but a ruler of the Pharisees. Meaning, he held a high position as a teacher. He came to Jesus at night. It seemed he didn’t want it to get back to his colleagues that he was seeking Jesus out, but even if he were on a spying mission for the Jews, something happened during his conversation with Jesus.

Nicodemus was interested in knowing how a person could be born again when he was old. Was it possible to reenter his mother’s womb a second time? His question was not in jest or a mockery but earnest and sincere.

Jesus wondered how a man in his position did not understand the fundamentals of spiritual rebirth but patiently explained physical birth was the first birth but a person could be reborn through water and the Spirit.

Nicodemus was onto something. He saw something in Jesus. He recognized the miracles Jesus performed could only have come from God. Could Jesus be the long-awaited Messiah? If we wonder what happened to Nicodemus after that conversation with Jesus, John writes that after Jesus died and Joseph of Arimathea carefully removed his body from the cross, taking him to the tomb where he was to be laid, Nicodemus was right there with him (John 3:39-40). Nicodemus did not the darkness of night to hide him; he was there in the light of day. He was not ashamed of the Gospel of Jesus Christ for it is the power of God to bring salvation. (Romans 1:16)  

Could it be anything less than a miracle that through patient and humble conversations with those who are teetering between faith in Jesus and worldly philosophies, that salvation will come as the y come to know and receive Christ fully in their heart and soul? The light we shine into their darkness is just the enlightenment needed to lead to the miraculous. Through a loving conversation the old has gone and the new has come.

Nothing less than a miracle that the Holy Spirit would cause our paths to intersect with the Nicodemus’s , the Ethiopians, the Samaritan’s sitting by the well of this world at just the right moment in order that full-throated confessions and open hearts may receive the Savior as their own?

Jesus, thank you for the story of Nicodemus and the tenderness you displayed to those who needed a deeper understanding of how to have a relationship with the Father through the Son. Amen  

Application:

Is your faith in Jesus out in the open? Do others know the Savior your profess without you declaring yourself to be a Christian?