First Presbyterian Church of Inglewood
Telephone numbers: (310) 677-5133 Fax (310) 330-8342
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The ‘Born
Again’ Ultimatum
by
Suzanne M. Swartz
February 17, 2008
John 3:1-16
Our New Testament lesson
this morning is from the Gospel according to John. It comes early in John’s narrative after we
read of the testimony of John the Baptist and his identification of Jesus as
the lamb of God. In chapter 1, Jesus
calls his first disciples: Andrew, whom Pastor Kidd preached about a couple
weeks ago, and Peter, Andrew’s brother, who became the rock on which Jesus
would build his church. Jesus has also
called Philip and Nathanael to be his disciples.
In chapter 2 Jesus attends
the wedding at Cana and performs his first miracle of turning water into
wine. Thereafter Jesus travels to
Jerusalem where he cleanses the temple.
Needless to say Jesus has done a lot in John’s first 2 chapters, so keep
that in mind as you listen to John 3: verses 1-16, from the New Revised
Standard Version:
“Now there was a Pharisee
named Nicodemus, a leader of the Jews.
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
apart from the presence of God. Jesus
answered him, “Very truly I tell you, no one can see the kingdom of God without
being born from above.” 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?” Jesus answered, “Very
truly I tell you, no one can enter the kingdom of God without being born of
water and Spirit. What is born of the
flesh is flesh, and what is born of the Spirit is spirit. Do not be astonished that I said to you, ‘You
must be born from above.’ 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.”
Nicodemus said to him, “How can these things be?” Jesus answered him, “Are you a teacher of
Israel, and yet you do not understand these things?” “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. If I have told you about
earthly things and you do not believe, how can you believe if I tell you about
heavenly things? No one has ascended
into heaven except the one who descended from heaven, the Son of Man. And just as Moses lifted up the serpent in
the wilderness, so must the Son of Man be lifted up, that whoever believes in
him may have eternal life. 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.”
* * *
Many of you may be familiar
with the fictional character Jason Charles Bourne of the Robert Ludlum novels
and subsequent film adaptations. Jason
Bourne first appeared in The Bourne
Identity in 1980. This novel was adapted for television in 1988 and a film
by the same name, with Matt Damon in the lead role, was released in 2002. The character has since been in four sequels
and two other films, The Bourne Supremacy
and The Bourne Ultimatum.
Well Jason Bourne’s saga in
which he is killed and “born again” three times reminds me a lot of our
scripture this morning in which we are introduced to a new participant in the
Gospel of John: Nicodemus. John’s Gospel is the only place in the Bible
where Nicodemus is mentioned. Who was
this man and what do we know about him?
Well first of all, we know
he was a Pharisee and a member of the Sanhedrin, the highest governing body of the Jewish
people. This body was presided over by
the High Priest, and most of its 70 members were Sadducees, but there were also
some Pharisees among its members.
Second, we know that
Nicodemus came to Jesus and acknowledged Jesus as a teacher sent by God. Nicodemus was convinced that Jesus could not
perform the miracles he had performed if God were not with him. Nevertheless, he was an important man among
the Jews; he was the local equivalent of “an elder” or “a Jewish counselor,”
referring to the position of the leading men in a society, who give their
advice to a chief or king.
Third, we know that
following this interchange concerning the need to be born again, Jesus asked
how Nicodemus, presumably a very smart man, could fail to understand such
things. During this conversation with
Jesus, Nicodemus made no profession of faith, but later did defend Jesus before
the Sanhedrin. And After Jesus’ death,
Nicodemus openly assisted Joseph of Arimathea with the burial of his body.
In verse 2 we learn the
setting for the dialogue; it took place one
night. The reason should be obvious: Nicodemus was intimidated by the
religious establishment and was concerned that if someone saw him, he would be
excommunicated. So he went at night to
where Jesus was staying. He actually sought Jesus out and John provides a
setting for the conversation to avoid the implication that Nicodemus met Jesus
unexpectedly.
Nicodemus addresses Jesus
with the word which is translated Rabbi
or my teacher. Nicodemus also says “you have come from
God.” These words indicate that Nicodemus knew Jesus was not simply any teacher but a teacher who has divine
authority.
The Kingdom of God is mentioned only twice in the Gospel of John, but it is a familiar
theme throughout Matthew, Mark and Luke.
It refers to God’s rule in the lives of humankind, rather than of a territory
over which God rules. The expression see
the Kingdom of God is therefore often translated “experience God’s ruling
over one” or “have God as one’s ruler” or “enjoying the ruling of God over
one.”
Nicodemus’ discussion with
Jesus is the source of several common expressions of contemporary Christianity,
specifically, the descriptive phrase born
again used to describe the experience of believing in Jesus as Savior, and
John 3:16, a commonly quoted verse used to describe God's plan of salvation
which we teach our children to memorize at a young age in Sunday school.
The verb rendered by most
translations born can refer to being
born of a mother or to being begotten of a father. Most commentators and
apparently most modern English translations prefer the meaning of “to be
born.” The word translated again may also carry the meaning “from
above.” John uses words with a possible
double meaning quite a bit. It often
serves as a means of transition in thought, on the basis of the misunderstanding
of the person or persons with whom Jesus is speaking. It attempts to incorporate both areas of
meaning “born over again from above.”
The term “born again” also means “regenerated”
and is synonymous with spiritual rebirth — salvation. The term is most
frequently used by the Evangelical, Fundamentalist, Pentecostal, and some
Mainline branches of Protestant Christianity. It is also sometimes associated
with non-denominational individuals, groups and/or churches. It does not
mean “reincarnation,” in which the Buddhists believe our souls keep coming
back to earth in new bodies over and over again until we learn what it is we
are meant to learn or until we “get it right.”
Some Christian denominations
hold that a person must be born again in some sense to be a Christian, and are
explicit about this with their use of the words. The term is most popular here
in America, and is making inroads into other parts of the world. Theologically,
all who are true Christians are considered born again, whether they describe
themselves as such or not. However, the
meaning of born again varies among Christian traditions, how literally or
symbolically they take the term, and how central it is within their belief
system:
The Roman Catholic Church
associates "being born again" with baptism. It holds that
"Baptism is ... the sacrament by which we are born again of water and the
Holy Ghost." This is also a belief held by Eastern Christianity,
Anglicanism, and Lutheranism, among other Christian traditions.
Most Protestant churches
place less emphasis on a conversion experience and rely on the individual's
personal statement of belief in and commitment to Jesus Christ as
"Lord" and "Savior." While they do not deny the validity of
a conversion experience, they would seldom use the term "born again"
to describe the experience per se, but as a result of accepting the free gift
of salvation.
Some Evangelical,
Fundamentalist, and Pentecostal Christians associate "being born
again" with a conversion experience that involves a personal – and sometimes
intense – encounter of the individual with the power of God; a moment or period
when they acknowledged their response to accept God's salvation and follow Him.
Some Christians in these groups may say that those without such a conversion
experience are not "saved.” In other words, since the Bible teaches that
salvation comes by Faith, it is thus Faith and not the experience that makes a person born again; the experience
itself is often a way in which God encourages and inspires Faith. For some of
these groups, "born again" can refer to two separate experiences. One
is being baptized in water by full immersion and the other being filled with
the Holy Spirit. Pentecostals believe
baptism in Jesus name is essential for the new birth and the baptism of the Spirit
is manifested through the speaking of new tongues.
The idea of being "born
again" carries with it the idea that a Christian is a "new
creation," given a fresh start by the action of God, freed from a sinful
past life and able to begin a "new life" in relationship with Christ
via the Holy Spirit. The Apostle Paul described it as such in 2nd
Corinthians:
Therefore, if anyone is in
Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things
have become new.
John Wesley and Christians
associated with early Methodism referred to the "born again"
experience as "the New Birth." They based this on the previously
cited biblical passages and included the following:
But as many as received Him
(meaning Jesus), to them He gave the right to become children of God, to those
who believe in His name: who were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the
flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.
In recent history, “born
again” is a term that has been associated with evangelical renewal since the late
1960s, first in the United States and then later around the world. Associated
perhaps initially with Jesus People and the Christian counterculture, “born
again” came to refer to an intense conversion experience, and was increasingly
used as a term to identify devout believers. By the mid 1970s, born again
Christians were increasingly referred to in the mainstream media as part of the
Born Again Movement.
In 1976 a book titled “Born
Again” was published by Watergate conspirator Charles Colson. It describes his
path to faith in conjunction with his criminal imprisonment and played a
significant role in solidifying "Born Again" identity as a cultural
construct in the U.S. The term became sufficiently prevalent that during that
year's Presidential campaign Jimmy Carter described himself as born again, as
did musicians Donna Summer, Bob Dylan, Johnny Cash, and Alice Cooper. Presidents Ronald Reagan and George W. Bush,
writer and theologian C.S. Lewis, as well as J.R.R. Tolkien, Mr. T, and M.C.
Hammer are also mentioned as being born again.
Returning to today’s text,
in verse 4, it is evident that Nicodemus is not asking whether a man can enter his mother’s womb and be born a second
time; rather he is emphasizing the impossibility of such a thing happening.
Then in verse 5, Jesus uses
the phrase of water and the Spirit. The mention of “water and spirit” opens
an opportunity for a further development of Jesus’ thought. It is not clear
just what “water” refers to. Several
possibilities have been suggested. Some
persons have suggested that in this context “water” refers to the baptism of
John the Baptist or to Jewish purification as a whole. Other scholars have seen in this occurrence
of “water” a reference to Christian baptism: “water” being the reference to the
outward symbol and “Spirit” a reference to the transforming power of God in the
life of the believer. Since the phrase is “water and Spirit,” it is important
that the two be joined in such a way as not to suggest any contrast.
Certain serious complications
may arise from a literal translation of born
of water. In some languages this expression is a specific reference to
“afterbirth.” In the present context born
clearly refers to the rebirth. Therefore it may be appropriate in some
languages to translate “if he is not born again by means of water and by means
of the Spirit.” This rendering would be taken to refer to some kind of baptism
by water and the transformation produced by the Spirit of God, spoken of as
“the baptism of the Spirit.” When John says,
“the Spirit” he means “the Holy
Spirit” rather than “a person born without any lymph fluid in his body and
without any human spirit.”
Verse 6 is in the form of a
general statement, similar to a parable. John uses a self-evident truth from
everyday life to explain what Jesus has just said. In Greek, verse 6 is literally “that which is born of the flesh is flesh,
and that which is born of the spirit is spirit.” John is not contrasting two
aspects of human nature, rather, he is speaking of two orders of
existence: that of the physical world
and that of the world of the Spirit. So “the flesh” is best taken as a
reference to human parents, and “the
spirit” as a reference to God’s Spirit, who brings about spiritual birth. The entire verse is a kind of parable in
which Jesus makes an analogy between a familiar experience in this world and
that which happens in the realm where God’s Spirit works: human parents give life to their children, but only the Spirit can give spiritual life.
Be careful in
the use of singular or plural in referring to “spirit” or “spirits” in order
not to suggest that each person has a number of different spirits. Rather,
there should be simply one spirit for each individual. This passage refers, of
course, to man’s spiritual nature or capacity.
So when Jesus
speaks in parables, he is drawing an analogy between something that happens in
this world (the freedom of the wind to blow where it will), and what happens in
the realm where God’s Spirit operates (the freedom of the Spirit to give
spiritual birth to whomever he will).
In verse 12, The things of this world is literally
“earthly things,” and the things of
heaven is literally “heavenly things.”
What does John mean by using these expressions? The least complicated solution is to assume
that the things of this world refers
to the things that Jesus has already spoken to Nicodemus about, while the things of heaven points forward to
what Jesus will now say to him. Jesus has drawn analogies between things that
happen on earth and things that happen in the realm where God’s Spirit
operates, but Nicodemus has failed to perceive the spiritual truths of which
Jesus is speaking. Now, without the use of earthly analogies, Jesus will speak
directly to Nicodemus about the things of
heaven. If the use of earthly analogies could not make Nicodemus understand
and believe, how can he be expected to believe when Jesus speaks directly about the things of heaven?
Verse 12 also
says The Son of Man… came down from
heaven to tell men on earth about the
things of heaven. That is, the
coming of the Son of Man is an act of
divine revelation. But more than
revelation is involved, as can be seen from the following verses - it is also
an act of self-giving which leads to the death of the Son of Man.
The purpose of
verse 13 is to emphasize the heavenly origin of the Son of Man. John is the only one of the Gospel writers to
emphasize this truth; in fact, it is basic to his theology. What gives the Son of Man his authority is his
heavenly origin.
* * *
So what does this “Nic at Nite” passage
teach us today? Both respect and
challenge mark this encounter between the two men, and ambiguous language opens
rather than closes their conversation. At stake, then and now, is the potential
for birthing to new life and opening to God’s blessing. Faith beckons us to go
out from what is known and journey toward the One whose promises are trusted.
Lent is a season of yielding to the work of
Spirit. The first step we can take is the one that Nicodemus didn’t: admit that we do not know everything and surrendering our un-teachable spirits to
God’s Spirit. The promise is sure that in being born by water and by Spirit,
our un-teachable spirits can and will be transformed. So one thing we learn is to be teachable,
open to what the Holy Spirit is trying to tell us and listening with an open
heart and mind.
The second thing we can do is actually
return to our New Year’s Resolutions.
It’s now the 17th of February and usually by now our
resolutions have gone by the wayside.
What “new thing” did you promise to do for yourself this year? Jesus basically tells Nicodemus to get rid of
his old life and start anew. What old
thing in your life, what nagging habit or characteristic, do you need to lose
this Lenten season?
Yet a third thing this passage may inspire
us to do is to give up our earthly things, the stuff we have accumulated that
we thought we needed but is now just taking up space in our lives. It’s stuff we don’t use. It’s just clutter polluting our lives. What Jesus told Nicodemus is the same as what
he is telling you and me: focus on Him, focus on heavenly things, rather than
acquiring more stuff here on earth.
During this season of Lent, as we journey with Christ toward Palm
Sunday, Holy Week and Easter, maybe the thing we most need is to add something
to our weekly routine, like perhaps the Wednesday Lenten Soup lunch or the
Thursday night fellowship dinner.
Finally, if you want to accept Jesus Christ
as your Savior and be born again, you can say this sample prayer. Remember,
saying this prayer or any other prayer will not save you. It is only trusting
in Christ that can save you from sin. This prayer is simply a way to express to
God your faith in Him and thank Him for providing for your salvation. "God,
I know that I have sinned against you and am deserving of punishment. But Jesus
Christ took the punishment that I deserve so that through faith in Him I could
be forgiven. I place my trust in You for salvation. Thank You for Your
wonderful grace and forgiveness - the gift of eternal life! Amen!”