Jesus meets the “seeker” Nicodemus. What it really means in this context is Jesus meeting someone who is looking for truth, meaning, enlightenment in this life. Many of us might actually find Nicodemus relatable! Despite all that we have, there could be a quiet (or loud) voice of discontent. What did Jesus have to tell him?
(A) Revealed Truth: When knowledge alone cannot save us (John 3:1-13)
There are 2 things about Nicodemus that John wrote for us — “man of the Pharisees” and “ruler of the Jews. Who were these people? The Pharisees were the religious leaders of that day. In those day, religion guided and shaped all of life. Thus, Nicodemus had religious authority and also political power. He was therefore a learned man, well-versed in the OT, and also had prestige and went places. Yet, for a man who seemed to have all of his life in order, he approached Jesus, a carpenter’s son, and approached Him with so much respect, calling him “Rabbi” (John 3:2). Nicodemus might have felt that something wasn’t complete in his understanding of the world and he needed to find some answers.
John 3:2-12 records for us the dialogue between Nicodemus and Jesus. Nicodemus approaches Jesus with a statement, saying "we know you are a teacher come from God, for no one can do these signs that you do unless God is with him" (John 3:2). He speaks with a confident, reverent and respectful tone. But Jesus seems to respond with a non-sequitur. What does this talk about having to be "born again (in order to) see the kingdom of God" (John 3:3) actually mean? When Nicodemus comes to Jesus, he is telling Jesus that he is on the inside circle and he knows that there is some supernatural activity going on. But Jesus is trying to tell Nicodemus that for all of his knowledge and “understanding”, he does not actually know and cannot see the kingdom of God! In essence, Jesus was saying that all of his life’s work and religious devotion counts for nothing! This explains his reaction in verse 4.
Upon hearing this, Nicodemus responded with skepticism, sarcasm and cynicism. Jesus goes on to explain how this rebirth is supernatural and of the Spirit. What Jesus is promising here is something that everyone has dreamed of, but has despaired because it just seems like a dream. When Jesus speaks of being born again, He is speaking of a fresh start. We all come to a point in our lives when we wish we could redo and restart. This is what Jesus is promising here. Nicodemus knows the law and therefore knows that no one can restart and reset everything! This explains his response. Nicodemus knows that you can't just have fresh starts like this (John 3:9).
What Jesus is saying in John 3:8 is challenging for all of us. This supernatural rebirth is not something that we can understand its exact mechanics. We are not going to be able to understand every single step or how it happens. But just like how we don’t know how wind works, we feel and see its effects. When you are a Christian, something changes! This is more than just a public proclamation. Something changes at a deeper level, and you can see an know if. Are you a Christian? Do you see it? It is not even just wearing a cross or going for baptism. Something inside of you changes.
By this point, Nicodemus is genuinely curious (John 3:9) -- "how can these things be?". Jesus points out that Old Testament speaks about this rebirth and as a teacher, he should have known about this! In Ezekiel 34 in the Old Testament, the prophet wrote about not just a fresh start, but there is a sense of having a new power and the ability to live life a different way. Flesh brings forth only flesh, so this work is only possible from the Spirit. Jesus goes on to explain that these signs that happen here (on earth) point to the someone greater (John 3:11-12). There’s no point speaking of the glory of God and speak of heavenly things when NIcodemus could not understand the things happening here. He was basically telling Nicodemus that he saw the signs, but missed what the signs were pointing to! No one has gone into heaven and seen things. Jesus was the point of the signs, and Jesus went on to establish that He came from heaven as the Son of Man (John 3:13).
What is the point of this exchange? We see here that knowledge is revealed and more importantly, it is revealed in the person of Jesus! True knowledge that leads to salvation is available only by divine revelation (3:12-13). Jesus makes a startling claim here: He claims to be the Son of Man who descended from heaven - God in flesh! And it is on this authority that He makes these claims concerning rebirth that leads to salvation. This is a problem because if this is true, Jesus cannot just be another moral philosopher who led a good life. Jesus is basing all of His claims and actions on His divinity.
“Knowledge is revealed in the person of Jesus! True knowledge that leads to salvation is available only by divine revelation.”
If Jesus is a Savior, as He claims, this leads to the next question -- who needs saving? This could be a taboo in our society because we are told to be strong and independent. How far have we really come from the time of Jesus and Nicodemus though? When Jesus comes and says that truth concerning salvation is only a matter of divine revelation, Jesus is not coming to give better legislation, better education or more things. It’s about who He has to be and Jesus promises new life, and a new life-transforming power. This is what is needed to be truly saved.
(B) Shocking Truth: When God Himself is our salvation (John 3:14-18)
Jesus goes on to say some very shocking things about the nature of this revealed truth. First, He points all the way back to the Israelites' rebellion against God in the wilderness (Numbers 21), where they grumbled against God and deemed His provision "worthless" (Numbers 21:5). Because of that, God's judgment fell upon them in the form of "fiery serpents that bit the people, so that many of the people of Israel died" (Numbers 21:6). The people regretted their rebellion, and pleaded for a way to be saved. God responds graciously by telling Moses to make a bronze serpent and lift it up, so that whoever looks at it will be saved (Numbers 21:9).
Jesus was referencing this incident in their history where God provided a means for salvation to a rebellious people. The same thing must happen to the Son of Man. He must be lifted up (John 3:14). There is something counter-cultural here. What did the people do to be saved? They repented and looked. What saved the people isn't works of penance, but repentance and faith! So it is also in the time of Nicodemus (John 3:15). Think about how this must have sounded to Nicodemus, the knowledgable ruler of high reputation. He definitely knew the reward of good and hard labor. He certainly enjoyed its fruit. But Jesus doesn't only refute to notion that Nicodemus' works can save him - He tells Nicodemus that the solution is not in himself, but in the One he places his faith in!
This is probably also shocking for us in Singapore. We are used to a meritocratic system and have been raised with the idea that hard work produces results. We would certainly love to apply this to matters of salvation. But salvation is categorically different. Salvation is based on faith and repentance.
But this is not all. John 3:16 is such a familiar verse to many, maybe even to non-Christians. Jesus tells us that the way God shows His love for the world is in giving His only Son - not to condemn the world, but to save it (John 3:16-17). This is mind-blowing because "world" here is not used to represent a really big place, but a really bad place! The world is seen as a place that is already condemned (John 3:18), but God somehow chooses not only to love it, but to love it by sacrificing what is most precious to Him - His only Son - for it!
Friends, like me, you might have grown desensitized to the evils of our world. For day after day we hear of more and more atrocities that surface. For all of our education, innovation, and cultured development, the world really doesn't seem to be growing any less susceptible to the evils of the human heart. But if you would slow yourself down to consider just how twisted a place our world is, you will see just how shocking this doctrine of God's loving salvation is, for it reveals a God far more gracious and loving than we could ever imagine.
This is the reason why we cannot level any charge of arrogance and pompousness against Jesus in His interaction with Nicodemus. While Jesus might appear arrogantly confident in His assertion of divine revelation (John 3:13), these verses completely break that category down. Why? Because He is God's only Son given to a bad and broken world completely undeserving of such love. And we learn later that He's not just given as a neatly wrapped gift to rule the world into salvation. He is given as a sacrificial gift - where He lays His life down for many by dying a humiliating, agonising, and wretched death on the Cross - so that many would come to believe in Him by faith.
“Jesus is not here to to teach you how to save yourself, but to save you. ”
In these verses, Jesus is not saying “Salvation is in Me" like "look at me, I'm fantastic”, I have this secret special divine knowledge/ but his certainty is in His commitment. He's telling Nicodemus, “Salvation is in Me”, because “I am not turning back, not giving up, and steadfastly set on reaching the cross." This is a Jesus who boldly declares God's majestic plan of salvation, even if it comes at the greatest cost for Himself.
(C) Revealing Truth: When the lines are made clear and hope is found (John 3:19-21)
While this might be a comforting thought, Jesus leaves us with a clear challenge. This truth is not only revealed and shocking; this truth is revealing. Jesus tells us that the judgment on this world is that it has "loved the darkness rather than the light because their works were evil" (John 3:19). In spite of God's gracious and loving revelation of the truth concerning salvation, this bad world has rejected it! Jesus is making the lines really clear. There is light and there is darkness and the reality is that people have rejected the light for the darkness. We cannot remove the offense of these verses because we know that this is true for ourselves. Isn't it true that the very thing that scares us to death is the thought that our deepest desires, thoughts, and attitudes might be laid out clearly and plainly for all to see? That all of our secret and darkest misgivings might somehow be brought to the light? Like Nicodemus, we disbelieve that anyone can simply begin again, simply because we know just how bad we've really been!
Being brought under the light makes clear the darkness of our hearts. It exposes our works (John 3:20) for their futility and evil. It tells us that this bad and broken world isn't just made up of broken systems and structures. It's made up of broken people - us - that continually feed its brokenness. And it is this revealing nature of the truth that we are afraid and angry about.
But Jesus doesn't leave us in our honest despair. His last words here to Nicodemus state that "whoever does what is true comes to the light, so that it may be clearly seen that his works have been carried out in God" (John 3:21). While this might seem contingent on our "coming", it really isn't. Haven't we been reading consistently throughout John that the only reason why we can come to the light, is because Jesus the true light (John 1:9) has first descended from heaven (John 3:13) in human flesh (John 1:14), given sacrificially to this bad and broken world (John 3:16)?
Nicodemus goes to Jesus seeing Jesus as a teacher - someone who is like him, and maybe even 'less wise' or 'less esteemed' than Nicodemus, who is himself learned. But Jesus totally crushes that paradigm because Jesus' answers aren't things that you can take and use as moral guidelines, but answers that leave you in need and through that Jesus shows definitively that His primary task here is not to teach you, but to save you.
Jesus meets Nicodemus, the seeker of truth, with the truth unabashedly proclaimed. We learn later that this truth changes Nicodemus' heart, and gives Him the strength to stand for what is right (John 7:51), and honor Jesus in His death (John 19:39).
What is it that made this man stand out from his contemporaries who denigrated, hated, and raged against Jesus? It was not a mere presentation of the truth, but a living, personal, and reformative meeting with the truth. And it is this same encounter that Jesus offers us today. A soothing balm for those who hurt. A challenging change of perspective for those who are lofty. And a welcoming love for all who seek the truth of salvation.
What are you looking for today? Have you met Jesus?