Welcome to this week’s episode, a special rerun from our Speaking of Life archive. We hope you find its timeless message as meaningful today as it was when it was first shared.
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Program Transcript
Speaking of Life 5015 | Blessed to Be a Blessing
Cara Garrity
There is a popular old hymn called “Count Your Blessings”.
The chorus simply says:
“Count your blessings, name them one by one.
Count your blessings, see what God hath done.
A friend of mine shared a story of how he was reminded about counting his blessings while stocking greeting cards at grocery stores. In one store, the greeting card section was right near one of the checkout lines and he could hear the checker give a compliment to every person that went through his line. My friend also noticed there were several people in this checkout lane, and not many in others.
He decided to buy something and the checker quickly complimented him on his new haircut. My friend then asked the checker how his day was going. The checker responded by saying, “Oh man, I am blessed!” To which my friend responded, “Yeah, I’m doing good as well.” The checker then said, “I didn’t say I was doing good. I said I am blessed.” My friend appreciated the reminder, smiled, and admitted that he was also, indeed, blessed.
In Genesis 12, we see a story of blessing-happy God. This story is the pivotal moment in the history of the nation of Israel and would become equally important to the whole world.
The Lord had said to Abram, “Go from your country, your people and your father’s household to the land I will show you.” “I will make you into a great nation, and I will bless you; I will make your name great, and you will be a blessing. I will bless those who bless you, and whoever curses you I will curse; and all peoples on earth will be blessed through you.”
Genesis 12:1-3
In this passage of scripture, we see the word “blessing” five times, making God’s intention to bless both Abraham and the whole world abundantly clear to Abraham. Although God had the power to accomplish his will, because of who he is, he invited Abraham to participate to follow where the Spirit led. And where he went, he went with the blessing of God and the promise that through him all people would be blessed.
This promise has been fulfilled in the person, and work of Jesus Christ. He took upon himself the consequences for the sin of mankind. He has taken our darkness and has restored us to fellowship with our Heavenly Father.
Paul says this in his letter to believers in Galatia:
He redeemed us in order that the blessing given to Abraham might come to the Gentiles through Christ Jesus, so that by faith we might receive the promise of the Spirit.”
Galatians 3:14
We have been abundantly blessed in Christ Jesus, whom we follow by the guidance of the Holy Spirit. Every day is a walk with God to leave behind our old ways and walk into a life that is blessed beyond measure.
Like Abraham before us, we have been sent out into this world to make a blessing-happy God known to others. It’s so much easier to be a blessing to others when you know how much you have been blessed.
Like the hymn reminds us, let us count our many blessings and see what God has done.
I’m Michelle Fleming, Speaking of Life.
Program Transcript
Speaking of Life 5015 | Blessed to Be a Blessing
Cara Garrity
There is a popular old hymn called “Count Your Blessings”.
The chorus simply says:
“Count your blessings, name them one by one.
Count your blessings, see what God hath done.
A friend of mine shared a story of how he was reminded about counting his blessings while stocking greeting cards at grocery stores. In one store, the greeting card section was right near one of the checkout lines and he could hear the checker give a compliment to every person that went through his line. My friend also noticed there were several people in this checkout lane, and not many in others.
He decided to buy something and the checker quickly complimented him on his new haircut. My friend then asked the checker how his day was going. The checker responded by saying, “Oh man, I am blessed!” To which my friend responded, “Yeah, I’m doing good as well.” The checker then said, “I didn’t say I was doing good. I said I am blessed.” My friend appreciated the reminder, smiled, and admitted that he was also, indeed, blessed.
In Genesis 12, we see a story of blessing-happy God. This story is the pivotal moment in the history of the nation of Israel and would become equally important to the whole world.
The Lord had said to Abram, “Go from your country, your people and your father’s household to the land I will show you.” “I will make you into a great nation, and I will bless you; I will make your name great, and you will be a blessing. I will bless those who bless you, and whoever curses you I will curse; and all peoples on earth will be blessed through you.”
Genesis 12:1-3
In this passage of scripture, we see the word “blessing” five times, making God’s intention to bless both Abraham and the whole world abundantly clear to Abraham. Although God had the power to accomplish his will, because of who he is, he invited Abraham to participate to follow where the Spirit led. And where he went, he went with the blessing of God and the promise that through him all people would be blessed.
This promise has been fulfilled in the person, and work of Jesus Christ. He took upon himself the consequences for the sin of mankind. He has taken our darkness and has restored us to fellowship with our Heavenly Father.
Paul says this in his letter to believers in Galatia:
He redeemed us in order that the blessing given to Abraham might come to the Gentiles through Christ Jesus, so that by faith we might receive the promise of the Spirit.”
Galatians 3:14
We have been abundantly blessed in Christ Jesus, whom we follow by the guidance of the Holy Spirit. Every day is a walk with God to leave behind our old ways and walk into a life that is blessed beyond measure.
Like Abraham before us, we have been sent out into this world to make a blessing-happy God known to others. It’s so much easier to be a blessing to others when you know how much you have been blessed.
Like the hymn reminds us, let us count our many blessings and see what God has done.
I’m Michelle Fleming, Speaking of Life.
Psalm 121:1–8 • Genesis 12:1–4a • Romans 4:1–5, 13–17 • John 3:1–17
The way that God loves first is at the heart of the story Scripture tells as we move through the season of Lent. Each of these passages reveals a God who not only loves but moves in love, drawing people into deeper trust and new beginnings. Our call to worship, Psalm 121, reminds us that this journey of faith is sustained by divine care. The psalmist looks to the hills and finds assurance that the Lord, the Maker of heaven and earth, never slumbers or abandons. Love does not merely call us; it keeps and protects us along the way. In Genesis, God calls Abram to leave behind all that is familiar and step into the unknown. It is love that calls him, a love that promises to bless not only him but “all the families of the earth.” God’s love transforms Abram’s life into a channel of blessing for others. In Romans 4, Paul reflects on that same faith, showing that the righteousness Abraham received came not through law or works but through trusting in God’s gracious promise. Love awakens faith, and faith opens the door for God’s transforming grace to flow through us. Finally, in John 3:1–17, Jesus reveals to Nicodemus that transformation begins with being “born of the Spirit.” This new birth is the ultimate act of love where God’s love transforms not just hearts but destinies, inviting all people into new life. God’s love is not static sentiment but living power that calls, sustains, renews, and ultimately transforms all who receive it.
God Loves First
John 3:1–17 NRSVUE
One spring afternoon, a boy was flying a kite with his father in an open field. The wind pressed against the fabric, and the string pulled tight as the kite rose higher and higher into the blue sky. Before long, it was only a speck. Then clouds rolled in, thick and heavy, until the kite disappeared from sight completely.
A man walking by laughed and said, “Why are you still holding that string? The kite is gone. You can’t even see it anymore.”
The boy smiled and said, “It’s still there. I can’t see it, but I can feel it tugging.”
Have you ever felt a tug? Faith can feel like a tug. You can’t explain it, but you know what you feel, that tug inside your soul. That tug is not something you create, just like the little boy didn’t cause the tug on the kite string. You do not decide to feel it. You simply notice it is already there, pulling gently, steadily, insisting on a reality you don’t see but cannot deny.
God, who is Father, Son, and Spirit, is the one tugging you toward hope, toward love, toward life. Because God loves first.
That is where our story begins.
Not with human effort.
Not with striving.
But with a quiet tug already at work.
And that tug — the one Nicodemus feels, the one many of us have felt — is not the reach of human faith toward God. It is the movement of God toward us.
Let’s read about Nicodemus in John 3:1–17. (Read or ask someone to read the passage now or during the “scripture reading” portion of the service.)
Now there was a Pharisee named Nicodemus, a leader of the Jews. 2 He came to Jesus by night and said to him, “Rabbi, we know that you are a teacher who has come from God, for no one can do these signs that you do unless God is with that person.” 3 Jesus answered him, “Very truly, I tell you, no one can see the kingdom of God without being born from above.”4 Nicodemus said to him, “How can anyone be born after having grown old? Can one enter a second time into the mother’s womb and be born?” 5 Jesus answered, “Very truly, I tell you, no one can enter the kingdom of God without being born of water and Spirit. 6 What is born of the flesh is flesh, and what is born of the Spirit is Spirit. 7 Do not be astonished that I said to you, ‘You must be born from above.’8 The wind blows where it chooses, and you hear the sound of it, but you do not know where it comes from or where it goes. So it is with everyone who is born of the Spirit.” 9 Nicodemus said to him, “How can these things be?” 10 Jesus answered him, “Are you the teacher of Israel, and yet you do not understand these things?
11 “Very truly, I tell you, we speak of what we know and testify to what we have seen, yet you do not receive our testimony. 12 If I have told you about earthly things and you do not believe, how can you believe if I tell you about heavenly things? 13 No one has ascended into heaven except the one who descended from heaven, the Son of Man. 14 And just as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, so must the Son of Man be lifted up, 15 that whoever believes in him may have eternal life.
16 “For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him may not perish but may have eternal life.
17 “Indeed, God did not send the Son into the world to condemn the world but in order that the world might be saved through him.
A Man in the Dark
John tells us there was a Pharisee named Nicodemus, a leader and teacher of the Jewish people. He was educated, respected, and religiously knowledgeable. He knew the Scriptures. He knew the traditions. He knew how faith was supposed to work.
And yet, he comes to Jesus at night.
The writer, John, does not tell us exactly why. John is silent on the reason. And that silence is important. Because it allows us space.
Maybe Nicodemus comes at night because he is afraid of what others would think — especially the religious establishment. Maybe because questions are easier to admit in the dark. Maybe because nighttime is when certainty loosens its grip and honest questions finally surface.
Have you been there? Awake at 2:00 a.m., staring at the ceiling, wondering, “Does anyone see me? Am I all alone? Is there anyone who can love me?” Or maybe you have wondered, “Is God real?” Perhaps you believe in God, but you’re struggling: “God, are you still with me? God, am I still yours? God, can you give me a new beginning?”
We don’t need to be afraid of our darkness. In those dark times and those feelings, God is not absent. In fact, because of the Incarnation, when God took on flesh in Jesus, God has stepped into all our darkness and brokenness and stands there with us. Nothing can separate us from the love of God.
The Gospel story does not shame Nicodemus for going to Jesus in the night. It simply tells us that Jesus meets him there.
This is already good news.
Because it means that darkness is not a barrier to God. Doubt is not a disqualification. Questions are not a failure of faith. The night is not the absence of God; it can be the place where we hear God speak.
So, Nicodemus finds Jesus in the dark of night. He acknowledges that he sees something is happening in Jesus that cannot be explained away.
Jesus answers, “No one can see the kingdom of God without being born from above.”
Some might read this as conditional. A condition of being able to see God, is that I must first do something to get myself born from above.
Jesus does not tell Nicodemus what steps he needs to take to be born from above. Jesus announces what God does.
It’s not a command but a promise. Jesus isn’t telling us what we need to do; he’s telling us what God does.
“No one can see the kingdom of God without being born from above.”
Nicodemus is understandably confused. “How can anyone be born after having grown old?” he asks. “Can one enter a second time into the mother’s womb and be born?”
Nicodemus is thinking logically. Literally. Practically. Jesus is speaking about something else.
Nicodemus has already told Jesus he “sees the kingdom.” He sees the rule, the actions of God. He knows that Jesus’ miracles, signs, and the beautiful, restorative, healing things happening can only be from God. The fact that Nicodemus can see or recognize God is a gift! God is giving him new life — it’s a heavenly birth, from above, that allows him to recognize God.
To be born from above is the new life from God. It is not an achievement. It is not a decision. It is a gift. Jesus names a reality. He describes what God does.
It is about God acting where humans cannot — doing what we cannot do for ourselves. Because God loves first.
By Water and Spirit
Jesus says this new birth comes by “water and Spirit.” Not water alone. Not Spirit alone. Both.
Water washes. Spirit breathes.
Water cleanses what cannot clean itself.
Spirit animates what cannot give itself life.
This is new creation language. God speaks life where there was none. In the beginning, God created us. Now through his Son, God is recreating, renewing, and restoring all things. Jesus has ushered in the new creation.
This matters because it means new birth is not conditional. It does not depend on human openness, willingness, readiness, action, or courage. It does not happen because we “let love in.”
It happens because God loves first.
The Wind that Does Not Ask Permission
Jesus then uses an image that Nicodemus — and we — cannot control.
“The wind blows where it chooses,” Jesus says. “You hear the sound of it, but you do not know where it comes from or where it goes.”
Wind does not ask for approval.
Wind does not follow schedules.
Wind does not respond to human effort.
You do not make the wind blow. You only discover it already moving.
So it is, Jesus says, with everyone born of the Spirit.
This is not a description of human faithfulness. This is a proclamation of divine freedom.
The Spirit does not wait for us to raise our sails correctly.
The Spirit does not hold back until we are brave enough.
The Spirit is not summoned by sincerity.
The Spirit moves because God is alive. Because God loves first.
That may unsettle us. It certainly unsettled Nicodemus. But it is also deeply comforting. Because it means new life does not rest on us.
At this point in the conversation, Jesus shifts from imagery to history. From metaphor to promise.
“No one has ascended into heaven,” he says, “except the one who descended from heaven, the Son of Man.”
New life, new birth does not happen because humans ascend to or reach God. It happens because God comes to us.
And then Jesus reaches back into Israel’s story.
“Just as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, so must the Son of Man be lifted up.”
Moses is an important person in the Old Testament. He led the Israelites when God brought them out of slavery in Egypt. This is not a random reference. In that story, the people are dying. Snakes bite them. They are helpless. They do not cure themselves. They are saved, “cured” because a bronze snake was “lifted up” by Moses (Numbers 21).
This is a bizarre story. But all this imagery points to Jesus saving us through his life, death, resurrection, and ascension. Jesus brings new birth by being lifted up on the cross.
Here is the heart of the proclamation: God saves the world by giving his only Son.
“For God so Loved the World”
We arrive now at the verse that appears on bumper stickers, T-shirts, and football signs. This may be the first time you have heard it. For others, you may know it so well that you need to slow down and hear it as if for the first time.
“For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son.”
Notice what comes first. Love.
And notice who is loved. The world.
God’s action flows from God’s love. Always.
God does not send the Son because God really hoped the world would be faithful. God sends the Son because God is faithful.
And the giving of the Son is not symbolic. It is costly. It is vicarious.
Jesus is lifted up for us.
Jesus enters death for us.
Jesus bears what we cannot bear.
This is what “eternal life” means in John’s Gospel. Not merely life after death or life that lasts forever, but life that begins now because death has been confronted and overcome.
And Jesus is explicit:
“God did not send the Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him.”
If condemnation is what people hear from the Church, then we have missed the heart of the gospel.
God’s movement toward the world is not accusation. It is rescue.
The Work of the Triune God
This story is shaped by the life of the triune God.
The Father loves the world and sends the Son.
The Son descends, is lifted up, and gives himself for the life of the world.
The Spirit gives new birth, breathes life, and sustains what God has begun.
New birth is not something we achieve through our effort.
It is the shared work of Father, Son, and Spirit.
From beginning to end, this is God’s faithfulness.
Nicodemus
We only hear Nicodemus’ name three times in the Gospel of John, yet each moment adds depth to his story. The first time is here in John 3, where he comes timidly to Jesus at night with questions.
Later in John’s Gospel, Nicodemus speaks up quietly for justice when the religious leaders are scheming against Jesus. Later still, he will come to help bury Jesus’ body after he dies on the cross. Nicodemus shows up openly.
New birth is not always instant. Sometimes it unfolds slowly. Sometimes it takes root in the dark. Sometimes it appears hidden to others. But God is faithful over time.
Mission
When God gives new life from above, our vision changes. Mission is simply what happens when God’s love has already reached us. We begin to see the world differently. We recognize God’s kingdom; we see that God is already at work in the world, restoring, healing, and drawing people toward life. We do not bring God with us; we discover where God is already present and we join in.
Sometimes that looks like simple acts of care. Sometimes it looks like standing with those who are ignored or pushed aside. Sometimes it looks like telling the truth about hope in the middle of uncertainty. Whatever it looks like, mission flows from love already given. God gives new life from above, and that life quietly, steadily spills outward for the sake of the world God loves.
We began with the story of the boy flying his kite. Remember how the clouds came and the kite could no longer be seen? Yet the boy insisted it was still there because he could feel the tug.
Even when all we feel is darkness or clouds, the tug you feel is God’s love.
God is faithful.
God is active.
God gives new life.
“For God so loved the world …” It is a promise. And that love is wider than your doubt, deeper than your fear, and stronger than death itself.
God loves first.
Amen.
Chris Breslin—Year A Lent 2
Listen to audio: https://cloud.gci.org/dl/GReverb/GR073-Breslin-YearA-Lent2.mp3
Sunday, March 1, 2026 — Second Sunday in Lent/Easter Preparation
John 3:1-17 (NRSVUE)
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Program Transcript
Chris Breslin—Year A Lent 2
Anthony: Let’s dive into our lectionary text. That’s why we’re here. We have four passages that we’re going to look at this month. Our first passage of the month is John 3:1–17. I’ll be reading from the New Revised Standard Version, the updated edition. It is a Revised Common Lectionary passage for the second Sunday in Lent / Easter Preparation, March 1.
Now there was a Pharisee named Nicodemus, a leader of the Jews. 2 He came to Jesus by night and said to him, “Rabbi, we know that you are a teacher who has come from God, for no one can do these signs that you do unless God is with that person.” 3 Jesus answered him, “Very truly, I tell you, no one can see the kingdom of God without being born from above.” 4 Nicodemus said to him, “How can anyone be born after having grown old? Can one enter a second time into the mother’s womb and be born?” 5 Jesus answered, “Very truly, I tell you, no one can enter the kingdom of God without being born of water and Spirit. 6 What is born of the flesh is flesh, and what is born of the Spirit is spirit. 7 Do not be astonished that I said to you, ‘You must be born from above.’ 8 The wind blows where it chooses, and you hear the sound of it, but you do not know where it comes from or where it goes. So it is with everyone who is born of the Spirit.” 9 Nicodemus said to him, “How can these things be?” 10 Jesus answered him, “Are you the teacher of Israel, and yet you do not understand these things? 11 “Very truly, I tell you, we speak of what we know and testify to what we have seen, yet you do not receive our testimony. 12 If I have told you about earthly things and you do not believe, how can you believe if I tell you about heavenly things? 13 No one has ascended into heaven except the one who descended from heaven, the Son of Man. 14 And just as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, so must the Son of Man be lifted up, 15 that whoever believes in him may have eternal life. 16 “For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him may not perish but may have eternal life. 17 “Indeed, God did not send the Son into the world to condemn the world but in order that the world might be saved through him.
So, Chris, how would you herald the gospel if you were preaching this text to your congregation?
Chris: I’m really struck by this scene because it features someone in Nicodemus that is so serious and also in some ways so staked to the status quo but also is courageous and humble enough to ask Jesus to reveal something new to him.
Just think these days it can be really distressing. Maybe you feel this to live in a world, in a media environment where two people can. Receive the same data or receive the same video or hear the same words and interpret those things like drastically differently. And sometimes in host hostile opposition.
And this happens in our church community. Sometimes it’s happening around them and inside them. Putting aside for a second that we’re that we’re all sinful and our vision and our hearing are in some ways, like provisional, still seems like there’s always a subset of folks who can and want to see and hear with clarity.
There’s a subset who can’t maybe yet, and there’s a subset who won’t or don’t want to. And so, I think this is remarkable on a human level: the curiosity and the courage of Nicodemus here. Although he does meet at night with some level of concealment and caution.
Anthony: Sure, sure.
Chris: And also the patience and the creativity of Jesus in his response. So, that’s the lens I’m approaching this with. This is a fascinating scene of Jesus encountering someone who can’t see but wants to. Jesus, Flannery says, draws large and startling images, like the image, the main image, being born again.
But he doesn’t quite shout at Nicodemus here. Jesus is complicating. Nicodemus is closed, too small vision in the world, but also opening up a window so that he can begin to feel how the Spirit is blowing, where it comes or where it goes, you know. So, it seems like Jesus is like loosening Nicodemus’ grip, his control. We talked about a minute ago in likening the coming of God’s kingdom and Nicodemus’ participation in it as passing through a birth canal. This is so scandalous. I’m in a season of life where this seems like every two months is another kid coming up on the talk, and so, dropping birth canal language is — I’m sure that’s not what Nicodemus assumed was he was getting himself into, right?
Anthony: Yeah.
Chris: Like I also I wonder if there’s a little bit of a parallel, not directly, but this strikes me a little bit like the story of the rich young ruler and that story doesn’t show up in John’s gospel. All Nicodemus wanted was something to do, some takeaway, something to achieve, conquer, progress, know that he was right. And all Jesus gives him is an invitation to do less, to give it away, to take his hands off, to gain an innocence that is only able to receive from God like a newborn baby.
And the last thing I notice is that Jesus is fleshing out God’s word. And this is like the theme of John’s gospel, right? The Word made flesh.
Anthony: Yeah.
Chris: But the Word in our translations at the end in famous, like, stadium rainbow wig verse John 3:16, the Word is doing so much work. Most of my life, I considered that like a quantitative statement like, God loves the world so much, which of course is true that he would give his only Son. And maybe that, so muchness has some connections to certain ideas about atonement and, like, mismatch, and what God gives, and what we have.
But what if that so is also like qualitative, like God loves the world, just so. You know, just so. God loves the world by entering into it. The way God loves the world is by giving his Son. The gift of Jesus is a gift of God’s own presence and God’s unbreakable decision to have skin in our game.
Those are some of the things that jump out.
Anthony: Yeah, you just reminded me. We have a mutual friend who likes to say God didn’t just write us a letter, he paid us a visit. And I like the way you said it, that he has skin in the game. You’d mentioned how two people could read the same social media post or watch the same video and come to polar opposite positions.
And in that often what is people condemning one another, that there’s such disdain for the other position that we condemn. But God, as we read in verse 17, did not send this Son who he loved and so loved the world into the world to condemn it. And it gets me thinking if Jesus wasn’t sent to condemn, I’m pretty sure we’re not called to do that either.
And yet, we just have this enormous capacity to do that, to condemn one another. Can you talk about it? What’s the way forward in this roux that we’re finding ourselves swimming in at this constant condemnation of one another?
Chris: Yeah. I don’t know. I don’t know that I can speak generally, but when I feel most condemning of other people, that’s when I’m most insecure or when I feel most out of control or when it seems like, if I don’t lock this down, there’s not going to be enough.
I love that Nicodemus seeks out Jesus and gets this message of non-condemnation. I imagine him, Nicodemus, like, being glad that it’s at night so that Jesus can’t see him like writhing in his chair.
But what if this verse is true? I think it is. Like, what if God’s capital “YES” is so pronounced in our world that any “no” is lowercase and like only makes sense in light of God’s love and care and provision. Like, we don’t get that much about Nicodemus’ response or what happened after this encounter. Like the rich young rulers, he went away sad and we’re not really sure where that sadness is located or aimed. But we do get a story of Joseph, or of Nicodemus popping up later in the gospel alongside Joseph of Arimathea to help bury Jesus in John 19.
I think that’s like profoundly telling, that Jesus has this imaginative, non-condemning encounter with Nicodemus, and then somewhere along the line that turns him into a follower of Jesus, in the sort of person who used to only sidle up to Jesus in the shadows and in whisper tones, and is now out there with tenderness and sorrow tending to the body of a lynched dissident, who for all intents and purposes lost, was pulverized, was erased by the state and the church. People don’t know the bad news about themselves. There’s no need for the good news. Take a look at Nicodemus’ life of slow, steady unspectacular discipleship and the way he grew as a disciple. It’s really remarkable.
And it didn’t come from any condemnation of Jesus.
Anthony: Yeah. I love what you said. What if it’s true? Because it is, and I’m convinced of that, and the Lord has said yes. And so, any response back to the Lord as a yes is contained within his larger objective yes to us, that he so loved us, that he sent his Son.
Program Transcript
Chris Breslin—Year A Lent 2
Anthony: Let’s dive into our lectionary text. That’s why we’re here. We have four passages that we’re going to look at this month. Our first passage of the month is John 3:1–17. I’ll be reading from the New Revised Standard Version, the updated edition. It is a Revised Common Lectionary passage for the second Sunday in Lent / Easter Preparation, March 1.
Now there was a Pharisee named Nicodemus, a leader of the Jews. 2 He came to Jesus by night and said to him, “Rabbi, we know that you are a teacher who has come from God, for no one can do these signs that you do unless God is with that person.” 3 Jesus answered him, “Very truly, I tell you, no one can see the kingdom of God without being born from above.” 4 Nicodemus said to him, “How can anyone be born after having grown old? Can one enter a second time into the mother’s womb and be born?” 5 Jesus answered, “Very truly, I tell you, no one can enter the kingdom of God without being born of water and Spirit. 6 What is born of the flesh is flesh, and what is born of the Spirit is spirit. 7 Do not be astonished that I said to you, ‘You must be born from above.’ 8 The wind blows where it chooses, and you hear the sound of it, but you do not know where it comes from or where it goes. So it is with everyone who is born of the Spirit.” 9 Nicodemus said to him, “How can these things be?” 10 Jesus answered him, “Are you the teacher of Israel, and yet you do not understand these things? 11 “Very truly, I tell you, we speak of what we know and testify to what we have seen, yet you do not receive our testimony. 12 If I have told you about earthly things and you do not believe, how can you believe if I tell you about heavenly things? 13 No one has ascended into heaven except the one who descended from heaven, the Son of Man. 14 And just as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, so must the Son of Man be lifted up, 15 that whoever believes in him may have eternal life. 16 “For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him may not perish but may have eternal life. 17 “Indeed, God did not send the Son into the world to condemn the world but in order that the world might be saved through him.
So, Chris, how would you herald the gospel if you were preaching this text to your congregation?
Chris: I’m really struck by this scene because it features someone in Nicodemus that is so serious and also in some ways so staked to the status quo but also is courageous and humble enough to ask Jesus to reveal something new to him.
Just think these days it can be really distressing. Maybe you feel this to live in a world, in a media environment where two people can. Receive the same data or receive the same video or hear the same words and interpret those things like drastically differently. And sometimes in host hostile opposition.
And this happens in our church community. Sometimes it’s happening around them and inside them. Putting aside for a second that we’re that we’re all sinful and our vision and our hearing are in some ways, like provisional, still seems like there’s always a subset of folks who can and want to see and hear with clarity.
There’s a subset who can’t maybe yet, and there’s a subset who won’t or don’t want to. And so, I think this is remarkable on a human level: the curiosity and the courage of Nicodemus here. Although he does meet at night with some level of concealment and caution.
Anthony: Sure, sure.
Chris: And also the patience and the creativity of Jesus in his response. So, that’s the lens I’m approaching this with. This is a fascinating scene of Jesus encountering someone who can’t see but wants to. Jesus, Flannery says, draws large and startling images, like the image, the main image, being born again.
But he doesn’t quite shout at Nicodemus here. Jesus is complicating. Nicodemus is closed, too small vision in the world, but also opening up a window so that he can begin to feel how the Spirit is blowing, where it comes or where it goes, you know. So, it seems like Jesus is like loosening Nicodemus’ grip, his control. We talked about a minute ago in likening the coming of God’s kingdom and Nicodemus’ participation in it as passing through a birth canal. This is so scandalous. I’m in a season of life where this seems like every two months is another kid coming up on the talk, and so, dropping birth canal language is — I’m sure that’s not what Nicodemus assumed was he was getting himself into, right?
Anthony: Yeah.
Chris: Like I also I wonder if there’s a little bit of a parallel, not directly, but this strikes me a little bit like the story of the rich young ruler and that story doesn’t show up in John’s gospel. All Nicodemus wanted was something to do, some takeaway, something to achieve, conquer, progress, know that he was right. And all Jesus gives him is an invitation to do less, to give it away, to take his hands off, to gain an innocence that is only able to receive from God like a newborn baby.
And the last thing I notice is that Jesus is fleshing out God’s word. And this is like the theme of John’s gospel, right? The Word made flesh.
Anthony: Yeah.
Chris: But the Word in our translations at the end in famous, like, stadium rainbow wig verse John 3:16, the Word is doing so much work. Most of my life, I considered that like a quantitative statement like, God loves the world so much, which of course is true that he would give his only Son. And maybe that, so muchness has some connections to certain ideas about atonement and, like, mismatch, and what God gives, and what we have.
But what if that so is also like qualitative, like God loves the world, just so. You know, just so. God loves the world by entering into it. The way God loves the world is by giving his Son. The gift of Jesus is a gift of God’s own presence and God’s unbreakable decision to have skin in our game.
Those are some of the things that jump out.
Anthony: Yeah, you just reminded me. We have a mutual friend who likes to say God didn’t just write us a letter, he paid us a visit. And I like the way you said it, that he has skin in the game. You’d mentioned how two people could read the same social media post or watch the same video and come to polar opposite positions.
And in that often what is people condemning one another, that there’s such disdain for the other position that we condemn. But God, as we read in verse 17, did not send this Son who he loved and so loved the world into the world to condemn it. And it gets me thinking if Jesus wasn’t sent to condemn, I’m pretty sure we’re not called to do that either.
And yet, we just have this enormous capacity to do that, to condemn one another. Can you talk about it? What’s the way forward in this roux that we’re finding ourselves swimming in at this constant condemnation of one another?
Chris: Yeah. I don’t know. I don’t know that I can speak generally, but when I feel most condemning of other people, that’s when I’m most insecure or when I feel most out of control or when it seems like, if I don’t lock this down, there’s not going to be enough.
I love that Nicodemus seeks out Jesus and gets this message of non-condemnation. I imagine him, Nicodemus, like, being glad that it’s at night so that Jesus can’t see him like writhing in his chair.
But what if this verse is true? I think it is. Like, what if God’s capital “YES” is so pronounced in our world that any “no” is lowercase and like only makes sense in light of God’s love and care and provision. Like, we don’t get that much about Nicodemus’ response or what happened after this encounter. Like the rich young rulers, he went away sad and we’re not really sure where that sadness is located or aimed. But we do get a story of Joseph, or of Nicodemus popping up later in the gospel alongside Joseph of Arimathea to help bury Jesus in John 19.
I think that’s like profoundly telling, that Jesus has this imaginative, non-condemning encounter with Nicodemus, and then somewhere along the line that turns him into a follower of Jesus, in the sort of person who used to only sidle up to Jesus in the shadows and in whisper tones, and is now out there with tenderness and sorrow tending to the body of a lynched dissident, who for all intents and purposes lost, was pulverized, was erased by the state and the church. People don’t know the bad news about themselves. There’s no need for the good news. Take a look at Nicodemus’ life of slow, steady unspectacular discipleship and the way he grew as a disciple. It’s really remarkable.
And it didn’t come from any condemnation of Jesus.
Anthony: Yeah. I love what you said. What if it’s true? Because it is, and I’m convinced of that, and the Lord has said yes. And so, any response back to the Lord as a yes is contained within his larger objective yes to us, that he so loved us, that he sent his Son.
Small Group Discussion Questions
- Nicodemus came to Jesus at night, possibly out of fear or uncertainty. What might keep us from openly following the Spirit’s prompting, especially when reaching out to people who are different from us?
- When Jesus tells Nicodemus he must be “born of the Spirit” (v. 5–8), what does this teach us about listening to and following the Spirit’s leading in our own lives? How can we become more sensitive to that pull?
- John 3:16 shows God’s love extending to “the world,” meaning everyone, not just a few. What are some practical ways we can demonstrate this same inclusive, Spirit-led love to people outside our comfort zones?
- Have you ever experienced “forgiveness that frees, welcome that heals, and/or courage that carries” as spoken about in the sermon? How did that renewal show up in your life?
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