Monday, February 1, 2021

Say, What?

Say, What?

The "Red Letter" Words of Jesus

Day Twenty-Three

 

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 are a teacher come from God; for no one can do these signs that You do unless God is with him.” Jesus answered and said to him, “Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.” 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?”   John 3:1-4 (NKJV)

Nicodemus saw something unique in Jesus. Being drawn to Him, he felt compelled to meet with Him in the middle of the night. He needed answers. He, along with the nation of Israel, believed a coming Messiah would be their savior and deliver them from the tyrannies of Rome. His statement to Jesus was a question without being a question. “We know by Your miracles that you are sent from God.” His unasked question: “Are You the One?”

Jesus was the One but not in the way Nicodemus perceived.

Nicodemus intended to confirm Jesus was who he hoped Him to be: The One who would overthrow the Roman government. Since Jesus and His kingdom are not of this world, Jesus knew Nicodemus had to see Him through spiritual eyes.

After Jesus explained to him that to be a part of His kingdom he had to be born again, Nicodemus’ response came down to, “Say, what?” He didn’t understand Jesus’ words. He needed to discern them spiritually; however, he couldn’t since he was spiritually dead.

To be honest, sometimes I don’t get Jesus. He doesn’t do things according to my expectations of who I want Him to be or what I want Him to do. In those moments, I find myself frustrated because things aren’t going the way I planned. When I take a step back and look at the situation through His eyes, then comprehension comes with an “Ah, now I get it.”

The good news is Nicodemus went from a “Say what?” to an “Ah, now I get it” moment. It may not have happened that night but it did happen. Through a spiritual new birth, he became intimately acquainted with Jesus and a devoted follower. Besides this passage, John 7:45-53 and John 19:38-42 give evidence of Nicodemus’ relationship with Jesus.

(In the next devotion, we’ll take a closer look at what it means to be “born again.”)

 

https://www.biblehub.com/commentaries/pulpit/john/2.htm

https://www.biblehub.com/commentaries/expositors/john/2.htm


https://www.biblehub.com/commentaries/gill/john/3

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