Observation and Principles

With much wisdom comes much folly.  The Pharisees had taken their religious training and used it to identify who was not really a part of the “club.”  The thought that they understood what God was about and why YHWH would send a Messiah (to reward the faithful and condemn the unfaithful).  Jesus was doing His best to completely change that way of thinking.

Jesus mentions the story of Moses and the serpent.  This reference comes from Numbers 21.  The Israelites grumbled against God, so God sent serpents among the people.  The ones who were bit died.  When the people came to Moses and said, “We have sinned, for we have spoken against the LORD and against you; pray to the LORD that He take away the serpents from us.”

God told Moses to make a bronze serpent and put it on a pole.  Anyone who had been bitten could look at the serpent and would live.  It was a visible act of repentance.

Sin is like the deadly venom of the serpents, and there is only one God-given cure.  The Son had to be lifted up (which we find out later meant being crucified) so that all who believe could live–eternally.

The beautiful part of the story is that God did not want the world to be condemned.  If He had wanted that, He wouldn’t have sent Jesus.  God loves us and that is why He wants us to have eternal life.

Most people are drowning in a sea of sin.  Death is eminent, but they refuse to grab hold of the lifeline that Jesus has offered them.  They are destined for death by their refusal to repent.  They are drowning because they love their sin more than t hey love righteousness and they are ashamed of what the righteousness might expose about them.

Those who come into the light are there by the grace of God, and their righteousness is not because of the things they have done, but because of the things Jesus did.  The only way Christians can stand in the Light is by putting on the righteousness of Christ.

Popularity: 18% [?]

“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.”

When Nicodemus said this, was he speaking for all the Pharisees?  What if they recognized that Jesus was from God and still plotted against him?  They weren’t just angry because of Jesus’ message, they hated Him because of His power.  They set on a course to run God out of Israel so they could set themselves up as gods among their people.

Oh the Pharisees would never say, “bow down and worship me.”  They were devout Jews, but the did insist on keeping the rules and making sure everyone else kept the rules–and the rules added to the rules.  They emphasized right actions.  To them, perhaps just knowing Jesus was from God should have been enough.  From this perspective, Jesus’ answer makes a lot more sense.

v. 3 “Unless one is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.”

Just knowing in your head isn’t all it takes.  It’s about yielding your life to the Spirit.

Maybe Nicodemus was sent to deliver a message from the Pharisees, “We know you are from God, now can you lay off with the miracles.  You’re making us look bad.”  I guess we will never know why Nicodemus came to Jesus that night, but we can be sure that Jesus rocked his world.

v. 9 “Nicodemus answered and said to Him, ‘How can these things be?’”

Jesus had caught Nicodemus’ attention by challenging the basic assumption that right actions/head knowledge is enough to please God.

Jesus had some hard reproof to offer.  “Are you the teacher of Israel, and do not know these things?”   Then they sat down and Jesus shared the heart of God with Nicodemus the Pharisee.

Popularity: 18% [?]

One quiet night, the Pharisee Nicodemus slipped quietly out his front door. The moonlight softl illuminated the streets.  He pulled his robe tight around his arms to ward off the cool spring breeze.  Silently, he made his way through the streets to the house where the teacher Jesus was staying.

When Nicodemus found Jesus, he said, “We know that you are a teacher come from god.  You couldn’t do what you do and say what you say unless God is with you.   Do you have some time tonight that we could talk?”

I have always suspected that Nicodemus came to Jesus by night because he was concerned about what the other Pharisees might think.  After a talk with Jesus, did Nicodemus get it when he left?  Was his life changed? Did he ever understand?

Even talking face to face with God, Nicodemus was confused about matters of the Spirit.  I am glad that the Holy Spirit has patience and is willing to show me the same lesson over and over.

Do I still come to Jesus by night?  Am I afraid of what other people will think?  Am I willing to listen to what He is trying to teach me and keep asking questions until I understand?

Maybe Nicodemus came by night because it was the only time he had that he could focus on talking to Jesus.  As I go through the day, I am bombarded by interruptions.  Being able to have more than one thing running in my mind doesn’t help me get quiet and focus on God.  At the same time, God created me so that I can do mental multi-tasking.  I suspect that when our baby is  born, I will not have the luxury of uninterrupted quiet time.  There will be some things that are necessary to multi-task on (i.e. praying and minding the kids).  On the other hand, there are a lot of distractions running in my mind (like checking e-mail and worrying about today’s to-do list).

Part of my preparation for devotions should be to create an environment with minimal distractions, and my prayer is that I could set down my worries for a few moments and focus on my Savior

Popularity: 21% [?]

Passover was supposed to be a holy celebration.  The streets of Jerusalem were crowded as all the people of Israel came to worship at the temple.   Jesus also went to Jerusalem to worship that year.

When He arrived at the temple, he found a livestock market being held in the temple courts.  Some opportunistic businessmen had decided to make a little extra money by selling animals for sacrifice.  The market was being held in the outer courts of the temple.

Weary travelers were delighted not to have to search all over Jerusalem for a suitable animal to purchase.  They eagerly turned over their money before entering the temple to worship the Lord Most High.

The noise in the outer courts was outrageous!  The Sheep baaed loudly, and the Oxen mooed and stomped.  Doves cooed.  Over all this was the shouts of salesmen and moneychangers hawking their wares.  A barnyard would have been a quieter place to worship.

Jesus saw all this and He burned with anger.  Grabbing some cords off a table nearby, He made a whip and drove out all the businessmen and their animals.  The ones who were selling doves quickly, nervously gathered up the bird cages and headed for the gates.

In the silence after the storm, the other worshipers stood in shock.  The only sound in the temple was that of Jesus dumping the money boxes out onto the ground and overturning the tables.

As the men who were selling doves reached the gates, Jesus said, “Do not make My father’s house a house of merchandise!”

The disciples stood off to the side shuffling their feet.  They were uncomfortable with the way that Jesus had handled things.  “Do you really think he is the Promised one?  Would the Messiah act in such a way in the temple?”  They whispered to one another.

One of the disciples spoke up, “Remember when David wrote ‘Zeal for Your house has eaten me up.’?  Is this not evidence that the Lord is with Him?  Maybe Jesus is the Messiah.”

If the body is God’s temple, a Christian’s goal should be that God is glorified through the things we do.  What do we do in, with, and to our body that distracts from our ability to worship God?  

Popularity: 22% [?]