Born Again (1)
John 3:1 (A)
There is a well-known story in the Bible about a conversation between Jesus and a man named Nicodemus. It begins in the third chapter of the Gospel of John, but to better appreciate what happens in the conversation, we should first take a look at the verses that come immediately before chapter 3, since they give us the background against which John presents us with the story.
So we will start from 2:23-25: "Now while he was in Jerusalem at the Passover Feast, many people saw the miraculous signs he was doing and believed in his name. But Jesus would not entrust himself to them, for he knew all men. He did not need man's testimony about man, for he knew what was in a man." Here John tells us that many people have seen the miracles that Jesus did in Jerusalem and so they believe in him. But although they trust him, Jesus, on the other hand, does not trust them. The HCSB is correct where it translates, "Many trusted in His name…Jesus, however, would not entrust Himself to them."
John gives us an interesting explanation for this, and that is, he says that Jesus did not entrust himself to these people because "he knew all men," and that "he knew what was in a man." It is with this in the background that John proceeds to recount several examples from the life of Jesus showing that the Lord knew the circumstances and even the very hearts and secrets of the people he encountered. He saw their motives, perceived their needs, and even their sins were transparent to him. Then, like a master physician of souls, he would deal with them in ways that precisely addressed each person's unique condition.
In chapter 3, John tells us about the conversation between Jesus and Nicodemus. This is what we are about to discuss, and so we will come back to it in a moment. Then, in chapter 4, John tells us about an encounter between Jesus and a Samaritan woman. This woman is very different from Nicodemus – in fact, they are opposites on many points – but Jesus also sees into her background and her heart. He speaks to her accordingly, and with as much skill and insight as when he deals with Nicodemus in the previous chapter. In verse 29, when the woman returns to her town to tell the people about Jesus, she says, "Come, see a man who told me everything I ever did. Could this be the Christ?"
After that, in chapter 5, John relates an incident in which Jesus heals a person who has been an invalid for thirty-eight years. Jesus approaches him and asks, "Do you want to get well?" (v. 6). Certainly, the story demonstrates the power of Jesus to heal, and the fact that he performs this healing on the Sabbath carries important implications. But there is still more to it, for if we will keep in mind what John says in 2:24-25, then we will also perceive the significance of what he records in 5:14, where Jesus says to the man who has just been healed, "See, you are well again. Stop sinning or something worse may happen to you." Jesus knows this man's background, and he is aware of a connection between his spiritual condition and his physical condition. Jesus does not merely assume this connection, but he perceives it, since he offers a different explanation for "a man blind from birth" in chapter 9. He has supernatural insights into people.
(to be continued)
January 10 2006 | Expositions