What do Elvis, Enoch Powell and Charlie Chaplin have in common? They’ve apparently all entered lookalike competitions of themselves and not won. I’m sure that wasn’t the response they were expecting!
When Nicodemus secretly came to see Jesus under the cloak of darkness, he was met with a very unexpected response. This man was religious, rich, educated, moral and respected. He’d only known doors open for him. That’s why Jesus’ opening words to him would have been a huge shock. Jesus effectively said, ‘Nicodemus, you cannot enter the kingdom of God’ (John 3:3).
Nicodemus’ story isn’t just about him. In it, Jesus shows us fundamental truths about humanity and being part of God’s kingdom. These are truths we need to grasp as we seek to share the gospel with others.
A heart that rebels
‘Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God… That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit’ (John 3:3,6). Jesus is pointing out that, naturally, we cannot be part of the kingdom of God. That goes for everyone who has ever been born.
Why is that the case? To be part of God’s kingdom, God must be our king. However, naturally, all humans have removed God as king and placed themselves there. We have effectively said to God, ‘I will sit on the throne of my life. I will call the shots.’ We are all rebels.
It might seem that only the irreligious are rejecting God as their king, but what about those who are religious? Surely those who show an interest in God are not rebels? Jesus illustrates this in the parable of the prodigal son in Luke 15. The younger brother represents those who ignore God. He openly rebels against his father. He wants all his father’s stuff, but not a relationship. He wants to be in control.
On the other hand, the older brother is physically close to the father and seemingly obedient. Yet, when the younger brother returns home and has a party thrown for him in celebration of his return, the older brother responds, ‘Look, these many years I have served you, and I never disobeyed your command, yet you never gave me a young goat, that I might celebrate with my friends’ (Luke 15:29).
His true motives are exposed. The only reason he was obeying his father was in order to get things from him. He was obeying to be in control. He, too, was rebelling, but being very good whilst doing it! We can live a life that outwardly looks obedient to God, but inwardly be doing it all for ourselves.
Have you ever thought, ‘If I have a good week, get to the prayer meeting and read my Bible every day, then God will give me what I want?’ Or have you thought, ‘The reason I’m having such a bad week is because I didn’t get to church this week?’ What outwardly appears as obedience can be a ploy to gain control of God. Notice that this puts both the amoral and moral in the same place. We are all rebelling against the king. This fleshly instinct is something we’re born into and can’t get out of alone.
A new heart
If we’re all born as rebels to God, is there any hope for us? Jesus tells us that our only hope is supernatural intervention. Doesn’t this make sense of what we see around us? As humans, we’ve got this knack of messing everything up; from generation to generation, from political party to political party. Socially and personally, we’re a bundle of contradictions. How many times have you said, ‘Never again,’ and yet we fail. We’re born into this mess, we cause it, and we’re stuck in a cycle of repeating it.
What if there was a way of being born with a new heart? One that wasn’t rebellious against God, but lovingly trusted and submitted to him as king? That’s what Jesus tells Nicodemus: ‘Unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God.’ Jesus is showing us here that something miraculous has to happen to us for us to be part of God’s kingdom.
Referencing Ezekiel 36:25-26 (a passage Nicodemus would have known well), Jesus points out we need to be washed clean, forgiven and given a new heart. For us to be part of God’s kingdom, we need this second birth with a new heart.
How? Jesus takes Nicodemus to another passage in the Old Testament (Numbers 21:4-9) that he would have known well. God’s people were in the wilderness and bitten by poisonous snakes. They were infected with this venom and needed healing. God provided a way for them to be healed. All they had to do was look to the bronze snake lifted up. Jesus makes the connection with himself. We are all poisoned with rebellious hearts of sin, and the only way to be healed is to look to the one lifted up, Jesus, as he died on the cross.
A supernatural solution
How does this passage help us to share the gospel?
Pray
For someone to be part of God’s kingdom, a supernatural work has to happen in their hearts. From a human perspective, it’s impossible. Since this is the case, we cannot change anyone’s hearts, but the Spirit of God can. Ask him to work! If everyone you prayed for to be saved this week turned up in church Sunday morning, how much fuller would your church be? ‘You do not have, because you do not ask’ (Jas. 4:2)
Point
The answer to the snakes’ venom was the bronze snake lifted up on the pole. The answer to the poison of rebellion and sin in our hearts is to look to Jesus and his death on the cross. We need to point people there. Encourage others to read a gospel. Why not offer to read it through with them? Let them see the beauty and wonder of the person of Christ for themselves. Thankfully, other people’s salvation is not dependent on our intellect and skill. We just need to point to Jesus and let him do the rest.
Patience
This isn’t the end of Nicodemus’ story. We see him again in John 7, where he timidly defends Jesus before the council, then in John 19 as he and Joseph of Arimathea retrieve Jesus’ body from the cross. There is a process here. Nicodemus is thinking it through and weighing it up. Then, when he sees Jesus lifted up on the cross, it all falls into place. When he gets Jesus’ body to place in the tomb, he steps out of the darkness and into the light. Notice that even after a conversation with Jesus himself, he wasn’t saved; it took time!
We must be willing to walk prayerfully, lovingly and patiently with people as they ask questions. observe and weigh things up. By the end of John’s gospel, Nicodemus had been welcomed into the kingdom of God. This wasn’t through his intellect, influence or morality but by the supernatural work of God’s grace.
This reminds us to never give up on anyone, however far (or near) from the kingdom they might seem.
