Roger Lynn
March 7, 2021
Third Sunday In Lent
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I have a confession to make. “Born again” is not my favorite scriptural phrase. It has been so overworked and abused over the past few decades that I almost shudder whenever I hear it. It has been used by some folks in such simplistic terms that for them the entire Christian faith has come to be defined in terms of this phrase. The question, “Are you born again?” has become almost a password or secret code. That kind of thinking makes me nervous, because too many important issues have to be glossed over or ignored in order to get things down to such a simple level. That having been said, it is an important text and I believe it has something to offer us here in this season of Lent.
In this reading from John’s Gospel, we find a discussion between Jesus and Nicodemus concerning the kingdom of God. It is at one and the same time a very familiar text and a very foreign text. Is there anyone who has spent any time at all in church (and many who have never been to church) who does not know John 3:16? “For God so loved the world...” And who has not at least heard the phrase “You must be born again.”? Many of you may even be familiar with Nicodemus. I know the folks in my Bible Study group have heard of him. He shows up on three different occasions in John’s gospel. Here in chapter 3 he comes to Jesus “by night,” presumably because he didn’t want to risk his reputation by being seen with Jesus during the day. By the time the Gospel is finished, however, it is this same Nicodemus, along with Joseph of Arimathaea, who claims Jesus’ body for burial. One of the more dramatic stories in the whole of the New Testament, and it centers around a character who is mentioned in only a handful of verses in one Gospel.
But for all of our familiarity with the contents of this text, I suspect that it is still very foreign to most of us. For instance, how many of us remember that John 3:16 occurs within the context of Jesus’ conversation with Nicodemus? How many of us remember that it is a part of the discussion about being born again? And how many of us remember that John 3:16 is followed by John 3:17, “For God sent the Son into the world, not to condemn the world, but that through the Son the world might be saved.”? Perhaps, even in this most familiar of scripture texts, there are still mysteries to be explored.
The season of Lent is about faithfully journeying through the wilderness experiences of our lives. If we take this journey seriously we find ourselves faced with the frightening realities of the human experience. We find ourselves faced with our own shortcomings and limitations. But we also find ourselves accompanied on the journeying by God.
It is appropriate, therefore, to deal with Nicodemus’ encounter with Jesus. He comes to Jesus by night, because he is afraid to have even his questions about faith exposed to the light of day. How much like Nicodemus are we? Are there questions or issues which we who have grown up in the church are afraid to face? Would we rather leave well enough alone and flow along with the way things have always been? When we come to Jesus, how often do we do so “by night?”
But, regardless of when he comes, or the shortcomings of his motives, the fact is that Nicodemus does, in fact, come seeking to understand – seeking to grow. And Jesus responds. He tells Nicodemus something to help with that growth. Unfortunately, what he has to say doesn’t make much sense to Nicodemus. For that matter, if we are honest with ourselves, it doesn’t really make much sense to us. “What do you mean, be born again?” Even in the first century Nicodemus knew enough about medical science to know that such a statement made no sense. It isn’t physically possible to be born again. Does that mean it isn’t possible to comprehend the kingdom of God?
Of course we know the rest of what Jesus had to say, so we are never even tempted to hear Jesus’ words in the way that Nicodemus must have heard them. But I think our familiarity has brought us to the same end result. We often don’t understand what Jesus is talking about. “Born again” has become a catch phrase, divorced from any real meaning which it might once have held.
But what if we say it differently? What if we say it using terms related to journeying? Can we begin to hear Jesus’ words with new ears if we substitute the phrase “Fresh Beginnings”? You see, the problem Nicodemus had with understanding the kingdom of God was that he was trying to get there along the old trails he had already learned how to hike, using hiking techniques with which he was already familiar and hiking equipment which he already owned. What Jesus says is, “It won’t work that way. You’ll only end up in places you’ve already been before. The kingdom of God is a new place. You’ve got to get there by following a new trail, using new techniques, new equipment, a new map, and a new guide. You need to start over and begin fresh.”
The kingdom of God isn’t going to make sense to us when we try to think about it in ways we already understand. How could it? It’s the kingdom of God! But that doesn’t mean we can’t make the journey. It simply means we need help. We need a guide. And guess who runs the “Kingdom of God Supply Store And Wilderness Guide Service”? God’s Holy Spirit! And this amazing store has everything we need for the journey. There is bread and wine to sustain us. There is the official guide book, written by fellow travelers who have made the trip before. There is a gathering place, where we can meet others who are also planning to make the trip, so that we don’t have to travel alone. And best of all, there is a guide who blazed the trail in the first place. There is only one restriction to doing business at the “Kingdom of God Supply Store And Wilderness Guide Service.” You can’t get there by continuing down the path you are already on. You have to turn around. And the amazing thing is that as soon as you turn around you’ll find the entrance waiting for you, with the door wide open. You do have to leave your old maps and your old equipment at the door. But new stuff is waiting for you inside and your old stuff won’t do you any good on this journey anyway.
We are on a journey through the wilderness of our lives, and trying to make it on our own is fraught with danger. It is a journey that requires us to begin fresh. And it will mean trusting the grace of God to help us through. The supply store is open for business. Let the journey begin!
I have a confession to make. “Born again” is not my favorite scriptural phrase. It has been so overworked and abused over the past few decades that I almost shudder whenever I hear it. It has been used by some folks in such simplistic terms that for them the entire Christian faith has come to be defined in terms of this phrase. The question, “Are you born again?” has become almost a password or secret code. That kind of thinking makes me nervous, because too many important issues have to be glossed over or ignored in order to get things down to such a simple level. That having been said, it is an important text and I believe it has something to offer us here in this season of Lent.
In this reading from John’s Gospel, we find a discussion between Jesus and Nicodemus concerning the kingdom of God. It is at one and the same time a very familiar text and a very foreign text. Is there anyone who has spent any time at all in church (and many who have never been to church) who does not know John 3:16? “For God so loved the world...” And who has not at least heard the phrase “You must be born again.”? Many of you may even be familiar with Nicodemus. I know the folks in my Bible Study group have heard of him. He shows up on three different occasions in John’s gospel. Here in chapter 3 he comes to Jesus “by night,” presumably because he didn’t want to risk his reputation by being seen with Jesus during the day. By the time the Gospel is finished, however, it is this same Nicodemus, along with Joseph of Arimathaea, who claims Jesus’ body for burial. One of the more dramatic stories in the whole of the New Testament, and it centers around a character who is mentioned in only a handful of verses in one Gospel.
But for all of our familiarity with the contents of this text, I suspect that it is still very foreign to most of us. For instance, how many of us remember that John 3:16 occurs within the context of Jesus’ conversation with Nicodemus? How many of us remember that it is a part of the discussion about being born again? And how many of us remember that John 3:16 is followed by John 3:17, “For God sent the Son into the world, not to condemn the world, but that through the Son the world might be saved.”? Perhaps, even in this most familiar of scripture texts, there are still mysteries to be explored.
The season of Lent is about faithfully journeying through the wilderness experiences of our lives. If we take this journey seriously we find ourselves faced with the frightening realities of the human experience. We find ourselves faced with our own shortcomings and limitations. But we also find ourselves accompanied on the journeying by God.
It is appropriate, therefore, to deal with Nicodemus’ encounter with Jesus. He comes to Jesus by night, because he is afraid to have even his questions about faith exposed to the light of day. How much like Nicodemus are we? Are there questions or issues which we who have grown up in the church are afraid to face? Would we rather leave well enough alone and flow along with the way things have always been? When we come to Jesus, how often do we do so “by night?”
But, regardless of when he comes, or the shortcomings of his motives, the fact is that Nicodemus does, in fact, come seeking to understand – seeking to grow. And Jesus responds. He tells Nicodemus something to help with that growth. Unfortunately, what he has to say doesn’t make much sense to Nicodemus. For that matter, if we are honest with ourselves, it doesn’t really make much sense to us. “What do you mean, be born again?” Even in the first century Nicodemus knew enough about medical science to know that such a statement made no sense. It isn’t physically possible to be born again. Does that mean it isn’t possible to comprehend the kingdom of God?
Of course we know the rest of what Jesus had to say, so we are never even tempted to hear Jesus’ words in the way that Nicodemus must have heard them. But I think our familiarity has brought us to the same end result. We often don’t understand what Jesus is talking about. “Born again” has become a catch phrase, divorced from any real meaning which it might once have held.
But what if we say it differently? What if we say it using terms related to journeying? Can we begin to hear Jesus’ words with new ears if we substitute the phrase “Fresh Beginnings”? You see, the problem Nicodemus had with understanding the kingdom of God was that he was trying to get there along the old trails he had already learned how to hike, using hiking techniques with which he was already familiar and hiking equipment which he already owned. What Jesus says is, “It won’t work that way. You’ll only end up in places you’ve already been before. The kingdom of God is a new place. You’ve got to get there by following a new trail, using new techniques, new equipment, a new map, and a new guide. You need to start over and begin fresh.”
The kingdom of God isn’t going to make sense to us when we try to think about it in ways we already understand. How could it? It’s the kingdom of God! But that doesn’t mean we can’t make the journey. It simply means we need help. We need a guide. And guess who runs the “Kingdom of God Supply Store And Wilderness Guide Service”? God’s Holy Spirit! And this amazing store has everything we need for the journey. There is bread and wine to sustain us. There is the official guide book, written by fellow travelers who have made the trip before. There is a gathering place, where we can meet others who are also planning to make the trip, so that we don’t have to travel alone. And best of all, there is a guide who blazed the trail in the first place. There is only one restriction to doing business at the “Kingdom of God Supply Store And Wilderness Guide Service.” You can’t get there by continuing down the path you are already on. You have to turn around. And the amazing thing is that as soon as you turn around you’ll find the entrance waiting for you, with the door wide open. You do have to leave your old maps and your old equipment at the door. But new stuff is waiting for you inside and your old stuff won’t do you any good on this journey anyway.
We are on a journey through the wilderness of our lives, and trying to make it on our own is fraught with danger. It is a journey that requires us to begin fresh. And it will mean trusting the grace of God to help us through. The supply store is open for business. Let the journey begin!
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