Born again!

In the Bible there are some people who are mentioned very briefly that make me wonder about the ‘rest of the story’, as Paul Harvey used to say.  One such person is Nicodemus, who is mentioned only in the gospel of St. John.  He refers to Nicodemus on three occasions, and all three are very brief.  We don't know much about Nicodemus, but we do know a few things.  We know that he had a Greek name, Nicodemus, but we don't know what his Hebrew name was.  St. John tells us that Nicodemus was a pharisee.  He was also probably a member of the Sanhedrin, the ruling council of Israel.  So Nicodemus was a man of power and influence in Jerusalem.

Jesus contended with the Pharisees on many occasions during His travels in Israel.  He often takes them to task for their hardness of heart and for refusing to listen to His teaching and message.  Sometimes it’s hard to remember that Jesus is not issuing a blanket condemnation of all of the Pharisees.  There certainly were some of them who did listen to and believe in Jesus, but Nicodemus is one who is mentioned by name in the gospel story who did believe. This is clear from John’s gospel (John 3:1-8) where Nicodemus says: "Rabbi, we know that you are a teacher who has come from God, for no one can do these signs that you are doing unless God is with him."  But his belief in Jesus puts Nicodemus in opposition to many of his fellow Pharisees and also to those on the Sanhedrin.  So Nicodemus is not ready to shout from the rooftops his belief in Jesus.  He’s cautious in his approaching Jesus; Jesus and possibly some of the apostles are the only ones present to hear the words of Nicodemus on this occasion.  He comes to Jesus at night.  The night hours have always been a time of secrecy.  Things happen in the darkness that can’t stand the scrutiny of the light of day.  For Jesus, the night hours were not only a time of sleep.  They were also a time of prayer. All four Gospels tell us of nights when Jesus retired by Himself to a quiet place to pray.  Nicodemus may have come to see Jesus on such a night. I imagine that he came at night to avoid being seen by the crowds which gathered around Jesus in the daytime.  He did not yet have the courage to openly proclaim his belief in Jesus.  He also feared to antagonize the Pharisees who did not agree with him.

So, what’s the ‘rest of the story’ about Nicodemus?   What happened to him after he helped Joseph of Arimathea to bury Jesus (John 19:39-40)?  Did his belief in Jesus grow?  Did he become a Christian?  According to “small ‘t’” tradition the answer to these questions is yes.  I find that helpful because that is how I want his story to end.

When I die, the priest at my funeral will say, over my coffin, “At his baptism, Stephen died with Christ and rose with Him to new life.”  That’s what this passage from the gospel of John is all about.  Nicodemus is obviously puzzled, and it’s a mystery equally hard for us to get our heads around.  We tend to take Jesus’ statement as a figure of speech – flowery language.  But what if it were literally true?

There are dozens of instances throughout both the gospels and St. Paul’s letters that, taken at face value, seem to assume that it is exactly true.  But Jesus, of course, wasn’t speaking of physical birth, as Nicodemus first thought.  He was speaking of life itself; He was speaking of the spirit that animates us, the spirit we call our “soul”.  He was saying that, unless Jesus’ Spirit animates us – in a sense replaces our soul – we won’t share His life.   But it’s not a matter of our willing it.  It’s what happens in baptism.  We can’t do it ourselves; God does it for us.  

St. Paul wrote, “It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me” (Gal. 2:20).  We may feel that we’re not worthy to be animated literally by the Spirit of Jesus; and that’s true.  It’s pure gift.  Our “worthiness” comes from the gift and is not a pre-condition for it.   That’s why Paul refers to us as “saints” – not because of our behaviors, but because of our baptisms – who we now are.  My folks, on occasion, used to say to me, “Act your age!”   In other words, “Act like who you are!”  Throughout his letters St. Paul insists: “Be who you are.”  Not “Become holy”.  But “You already are holy – not because of your actions, but because of the Spirit of Jesus that animates you now.”  And: “For as many of you who were baptized into Christ have put on Christ . . .  in Christ Jesus you are all children of God.”  (Gal. 3:26-27)

We can ignore that Jesus-life; we can fail to respond to its urgings; in short, we can be lukewarm – or even bad – Christians.  But, once baptized, once my human life is replaced by Jesus’ own life, I can never again be non-Christian.  Baptism is not simply entrance into an organization, which I can drop out of whenever it no longer seems to suit my needs.  It’s a life change that’s irreversible.  It’s not an ideal we have to strive toward.  It’s a reality we have to live.