Day # 3 - John 3
SCRIPTURE - John 3
Key verses - John 3:2 He came to Jesus at night and said, "Rabbi, we know you are a teacher who has come from God. For no one could perform the miraculous signs you are doing if God were not with him."
3 In reply Jesus declared, "I tell you the truth, no one can see the kingdom of God unless he is born again. "
17 For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him.
OBSERVATION ~ I love the way Jesus works conversations towards the spiritual. This is why verses 2-3 are key for me. Nicodemus comes to Jesus with a statement, it was a leading question, and in the process Nicodemus says nothing about God’s kingdom, yet that is where Jesus goes with his statement. . . the kingdom of God and being born again. Nicodemus has his head spinning with what Jesus is telling him. Maybe he wanted to make some brownie points with Jesus, just like you would when you tell a respected teacher or lecturer something you appreciate about them, and then they engage you in a way you are totally ill-equipped for.
Finally, John 3:16-17 comes and I love verse 17. God’s plan is never to condemn the world, but that the world would find salvation through Jesus.
APPLICATION ~ I am reminded about arrogance with Nicodemus. He was a respected leader and possibly showed arrogance with his comment to Jesus. Yet, the learning point is what Jesus calls me to do as a follower and pastor . . . bring conversations to the underlying spiritual dynamic. That is where real life is found, in our spiritual world. The lack of a spiritual life is a spiritual life, just a non-existent one.
Finally, as I consider God’s condemnation toward unbelievers, I am reminded that God is love, and what must break God’s heart is those who reject Him. They are ultimately condemned, because they remain in darkness, while those who believe in Jesus, are in the light . . . which leads to another responsibility, showing our light into the world.
PRAYER ~ Lord, help me to humble myself before you and before others. Let me put off that old self on a daily basis, put on that new person, that new creation You want me to be. May I be a person who demonstrates Your light which is in my life to others, believers and unbelievers. Help me as a spiritual leader to lead more people to You, to know You and to find redemption and love in You. May I not waver or be bashful in proclaiming who You are what You seek to accomplish in our lives. Amen.
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I liked the lesson from John the Baptist.
ReplyDeleteWhen people came to him telling of Christ's baptizing followers, they seemed to expect him to be angry that someone else was "taking over." John recognized the importance of Christ and all his works. "He must become greater; I must become less." John showed great faith and humility, and used what could have become a tense situation to further advance and clarify God's will.
It's hard for people to let go of what they are known for, and the better they are at it, the harder it becomes. Sure, in this case John was yielding to Jesus. But what about when we are to yield control to someone sent by God? It takes great faith and, at times, hard work to let someone else become the "star."
(I hope this makes sense... it's 2:28 am, and I've spent the lst 4 hours trying to debug the computer.)
Great point, Indy. I agree that it took a great deal for John to declare Jesus was the one, especially after the fact that John was already the star. He was the center of attention, but he understood he was not the one. I wonder how much of that was a carry over from the time he was in Elizabeth's womb and jumped for joy within her.
ReplyDeleteIt can be hard to step aside and let someone else take over. I like using sports analogies, and think about when a pro is entering the final part of his/her career, how hard it is to let go, and let someone else be the star.
It all made sense, hope your debugging worked.
Michael