John 3:16 is undoubtedly the most famous and popular Scripture verse in both the Christian and the secular world. We see it on billboards, on electronic message boards, at sports games ( someone always seems to have a sign raised in the air:"John 3:16", and even some athletes themselves wear the verse of Scripture on the anti-glare patches they put under their eyes.
I would have thought this verse of Sacred Scripture would have originated at some great gathering of a nation (like a Gettysburg Address type event), or for direction a mass of people were crying out for (like John F. Kennedy when he spoke: "Ask not what your country can do for you..ask, what you can do for your country."), or perhaps this portion of Scripture would have come from Jesus own teaching series at the Sermon on the Mount.
Yet, this did not come from any of those scenarios. Jesus spoke these words in the quiet of one secluded evening... one man to another. Now, as time has evolved and history has "taken its course", these words have been echoed to millions of people throughout the entire earth.
What "went down" that night...when Nicodemus came to Jesus?
Nicodemus was a Pharisee, a prominent leader among the Jewish people and a member of the 70 leaders for the governing counsel in Jerusalem...known as the Sanhedrin.
Some historians claim he might have been Nicodemus ben Gurium, a very wealthy Jewish person living in the same area and the same time as "this Nicodemus" is written about in St. John 3. Nicodemus was educated and about the same age as Jesus when John records of his conversation with Jesus.
The name "Nicodemus" is of Greek origin and was a fairly common name used in the 1st century. Actually "Nico" is "Nike" in Greek...and we are all familiar with the word Nike.
Nicodemus means: "Victory of the People". This is the only person in the entire Scriptures called by this name.
The Gleaning will be taken from John 3:1-21. I will probably have some "Notes:" to go along with it.......
" There was a man, a particular man named Nicodemus. Nicodemus was a Pharisee and a prominent Jewish leader within the community as well.
After the sun had gone down and darkness was beginning to fall one evening, Nicodemus came to speak with Jesus.
He greeted Jesus in a respectful manner saying: "Rabbi, it is for certain You are a teacher who has been sent by God. The miraculous acts alone are clear evidence God is with you."
(Note: Some biblical scholars explain Jesus was with his disciples, probably around a campfire at Gethsemane (a large vineyard just outside Jerusalem), and Nicodemus was in the "shadows" with a cloak on when Jesus stepped away from the campfire and had approached him.)
Jesus then answered him: You are right! He is with Me and I tell you for certain that unless you receive a new birth, it will not be possible to see, to understand, or experience the Kingdom of God."
(Note: Nicodemus position among the Pharisees was likened to what we might term a "Director of Naturalization". Nicodemus was in charge of seeing those who are Gentile origin that have "filled out applications" to become Jewish...Jewish citizens if you will. This office held more "political awareness" than an essential need for it, because of this very fact: the Romans, the Samaritans, and the Jewish people hated one another.
Now, here is where Jesus gets a "little interesting" in his choice of words replying to Nicodemus. 1) Jesus skipped the preliminaries....He didn't acknowledge, call him by name, or give any mention to his position in the community. Nor did Jesus ask why he was there at that moment or how he was doing...Jesus just avoided all that...and went to "the heart" of what was on Nicodemus's mind. 2) The other thing as this conversation unfolds is to understand a little of Nicodemus office he held within the community. In order for a Gentile to be approved of Jewish citizenship, each applicant must go through a ritual called "New Birth". It involves tedious study given by Rabbis, a public meeting renouncing their entire past and pledging to Israel...and the God of Israel. If approved by counsel, there is a baptism by immersion and the applicant is now becomes a Jewish citizen of Israel. All their past is left there...never to be mentioned again. 8 days later, the males would go through the sacred Abrahamic rite of circumcision. So, what do you think Nicodemus was thinking when Jesus was speaking of a "new birth"?...ok, back to Scripture).
In verse 4 it states: "Nicodemus responds: "Wait, what do you mean? How can someone who is grown...return to his mother's womb and be born all over again?"
(Note: Ok, knowing that Nicodemus is not totally ignorant to the "new birth" concept because of the office he was in....Nicodemus was "grasping at straws", he was "just buying time"...and here is why. Jesus had just "rocked his world" by saying "Unless a man is given a new birth..."
You see, Nicodemus was under the premise all Jewish people were already children of God...and would see and understand the Kingdom God was sending. But Jesus indicated unless a man, and you could probably safely say "every man"....whether he be Gentile or Jewish...all must experience the new birth...or it will not be possible to see...the Kingdom of God. Nicodemus and his whole belief system just got "flushed" by Jesus opening remarks. And yet, at the same time I personally think there might have been a "hunger" in Nicodemus heart as well...because he knew the old Jewish legal form to becoming a Jew....lacked power...excitement...and it didn't really change anybody...kind of like some customs we have even today in Christian circles...they lack something...they lack...Him! So, another way Nicodemus might have said it was: " Wait, what are you trying to do...teach an old dog new tricks?")
Ok, in verse 5 it reads: "Jesus fires back at Nicodemus once more. " You need to hear what I am telling you...listen...real close! The way we are all born naturally, through our mother's womb is one thing....being born of the Holy Spirit, God's Spirit...that's another. You need both. In fact, the only way you can become a child of God is by being born through His spirit....Trust Me...that is the only way to His Kingdom! So, don't act so dumb-founded when I say to you...you must be born again."
Note: Ok, this story is a little more in depth than I thought....Breaktime!...then Part 2
I would have thought this verse of Sacred Scripture would have originated at some great gathering of a nation (like a Gettysburg Address type event), or for direction a mass of people were crying out for (like John F. Kennedy when he spoke: "Ask not what your country can do for you..ask, what you can do for your country."), or perhaps this portion of Scripture would have come from Jesus own teaching series at the Sermon on the Mount.
Yet, this did not come from any of those scenarios. Jesus spoke these words in the quiet of one secluded evening... one man to another. Now, as time has evolved and history has "taken its course", these words have been echoed to millions of people throughout the entire earth.
What "went down" that night...when Nicodemus came to Jesus?
Nicodemus was a Pharisee, a prominent leader among the Jewish people and a member of the 70 leaders for the governing counsel in Jerusalem...known as the Sanhedrin.
Some historians claim he might have been Nicodemus ben Gurium, a very wealthy Jewish person living in the same area and the same time as "this Nicodemus" is written about in St. John 3. Nicodemus was educated and about the same age as Jesus when John records of his conversation with Jesus.
The name "Nicodemus" is of Greek origin and was a fairly common name used in the 1st century. Actually "Nico" is "Nike" in Greek...and we are all familiar with the word Nike.
Nicodemus means: "Victory of the People". This is the only person in the entire Scriptures called by this name.
The Gleaning will be taken from John 3:1-21. I will probably have some "Notes:" to go along with it.......
" There was a man, a particular man named Nicodemus. Nicodemus was a Pharisee and a prominent Jewish leader within the community as well.After the sun had gone down and darkness was beginning to fall one evening, Nicodemus came to speak with Jesus.
He greeted Jesus in a respectful manner saying: "Rabbi, it is for certain You are a teacher who has been sent by God. The miraculous acts alone are clear evidence God is with you."
(Note: Some biblical scholars explain Jesus was with his disciples, probably around a campfire at Gethsemane (a large vineyard just outside Jerusalem), and Nicodemus was in the "shadows" with a cloak on when Jesus stepped away from the campfire and had approached him.)
Jesus then answered him: You are right! He is with Me and I tell you for certain that unless you receive a new birth, it will not be possible to see, to understand, or experience the Kingdom of God."
(Note: Nicodemus position among the Pharisees was likened to what we might term a "Director of Naturalization". Nicodemus was in charge of seeing those who are Gentile origin that have "filled out applications" to become Jewish...Jewish citizens if you will. This office held more "political awareness" than an essential need for it, because of this very fact: the Romans, the Samaritans, and the Jewish people hated one another.
Now, here is where Jesus gets a "little interesting" in his choice of words replying to Nicodemus. 1) Jesus skipped the preliminaries....He didn't acknowledge, call him by name, or give any mention to his position in the community. Nor did Jesus ask why he was there at that moment or how he was doing...Jesus just avoided all that...and went to "the heart" of what was on Nicodemus's mind. 2) The other thing as this conversation unfolds is to understand a little of Nicodemus office he held within the community. In order for a Gentile to be approved of Jewish citizenship, each applicant must go through a ritual called "New Birth". It involves tedious study given by Rabbis, a public meeting renouncing their entire past and pledging to Israel...and the God of Israel. If approved by counsel, there is a baptism by immersion and the applicant is now becomes a Jewish citizen of Israel. All their past is left there...never to be mentioned again. 8 days later, the males would go through the sacred Abrahamic rite of circumcision. So, what do you think Nicodemus was thinking when Jesus was speaking of a "new birth"?...ok, back to Scripture).
In verse 4 it states: "Nicodemus responds: "Wait, what do you mean? How can someone who is grown...return to his mother's womb and be born all over again?"
(Note: Ok, knowing that Nicodemus is not totally ignorant to the "new birth" concept because of the office he was in....Nicodemus was "grasping at straws", he was "just buying time"...and here is why. Jesus had just "rocked his world" by saying "Unless a man is given a new birth..."
You see, Nicodemus was under the premise all Jewish people were already children of God...and would see and understand the Kingdom God was sending. But Jesus indicated unless a man, and you could probably safely say "every man"....whether he be Gentile or Jewish...all must experience the new birth...or it will not be possible to see...the Kingdom of God. Nicodemus and his whole belief system just got "flushed" by Jesus opening remarks. And yet, at the same time I personally think there might have been a "hunger" in Nicodemus heart as well...because he knew the old Jewish legal form to becoming a Jew....lacked power...excitement...and it didn't really change anybody...kind of like some customs we have even today in Christian circles...they lack something...they lack...Him! So, another way Nicodemus might have said it was: " Wait, what are you trying to do...teach an old dog new tricks?")
Ok, in verse 5 it reads: "Jesus fires back at Nicodemus once more. " You need to hear what I am telling you...listen...real close! The way we are all born naturally, through our mother's womb is one thing....being born of the Holy Spirit, God's Spirit...that's another. You need both. In fact, the only way you can become a child of God is by being born through His spirit....Trust Me...that is the only way to His Kingdom! So, don't act so dumb-founded when I say to you...you must be born again."
Note: Ok, this story is a little more in depth than I thought....Breaktime!...then Part 2
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