Nick At Night

"There was a man of the Pharisees named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews. 2 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.' 3 Jesus answered and said to him, 'Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.' 4 Nicodemus said to Him, 'How can a man be born when he is old? Can he enter a second time into his mother's womb and be born?' 5 Jesus answer, 'Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God. 6 That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. 7 Do not marvel that I say to you, "You must be born again." 8 The wind blows where it wishes, and you hear the sound of it, but cannot tell where it comes from and where it goes. So is everyone who is born of the Spirit.'"
John 3:1-8


A leader, a ruler, a religious leader of the Jews, a Pharisee, comes to see Jesus at night, to inquire of Jesus, about what His purpose is, and to find out for himself what he must do personally to inherit the kingdom of God. I believe that Nicodemus should be commended for his willing to come to Jesus himself to find out the truth. What seems to bother most, is that Nicodemus came to Jesus at night, because he didn't want to be found out. Although it is not the major issue here, in my humble opinion, but nevertheless it remains an issue. It seems to me, that people for all time, as far back as Nicodemus until where we are today, have wanted a gospel, a way to heaven, that doesn't cost them anything; a gospel that doesn't require people to leave the comfort of the world they know, to follow Jesus Christ. Please don't get me wrong. I am not advocating that we all grab a bullhorn and head for the nearest busy intersection and start condemning all the drivers and passengers in the cars that pass. I heard a quote from Alistair Begg, which says, "Where did we get a Christianity where Jesus does all the dying? Where did we get a Christianity where Jesus is the only one who bears a cross? Where did we get a Christianity where Jesus is the only one who wears a crown? Certainly not from the New Testament." And that is so true. We here in North American Christianity try to live a sacrificial life for Jesus, but we have forgotten one thing: the sacrifice. The apostle Paul tells us that we are the sacrifice (Romans 12:1). As I read books about the latest "wind" that is blowing through the church, the Emergent Church, or the emerging church (which for this discussion we will consider synonymous, although we acknowledge that there are some differences), I am further convinced that we live in the age of 2 Timothy 4:3-4, where people cannot endure sound doctrine, but gather to teachers who preach what their itching ears want to hear. I have encountered this many times in the short time I have been a pastor. People not wanting to be open to the Holy Spirit and the Word of God, but rather wanting not to do the difficult thing. I believe there is a term for it. It is called "avoidance." Choose to do the easy thing, even if it isn't right, rather than do the right thing, which might be difficult and require something from me. As I hear reports about and from believers around the globe, in other nations and lands, I am not sure if it is a characteristic of human beings, or just North American Christians. There is only one way to heaven. And it is by and through the blood of Jesus Christ.


What I believe to be commendable in this episode we are studying, is that Nicodemus came to investigate the claims for himself. He didn't rely on someone else to tell him about it. He investigated it himself. And he went right to the source (is it sacrilege to say "horse's mouth?" Forgive me, Lord, for even thinking that). And that is what we must do. We must pick up that Bible from the bookshelf or wherever the last place we can remember seeing it, dust it off - and here comes the hard part - open it and begin reading it. We need to get to know who Jesus really is and learn more about Him, and His Word. I believe that there is a severe shortage in the church today, of knowledge of the Word. I don't know if this is still the way that bank tellers are trained to spot counterfeit dollar bills anymore, but they used to study and study and study the real thing. They were so familiar with the real thing, that when something other than the real thing came by, it stood out to them. That is the way we need to be with the Word. We need to be so familiar with the Word, that when the false teaching comes along, or someone tries to make a theology by taking a verse out of context, we will know it. Beloved, Nicodemus searched out the truth for himself. Let us do the same thing. Amen? Amen.