JESUS TEACHES NICODEMUS

Visit of Nicodemus to Christ by John La Farge, 1880

John 3: 1-21

There was a man of the Pharisees, named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews. The same came to Jesus by night, and said to him, “Rabbi, we know that you are a teacher come from God: for no man can do these miracles that you do, except God be with him.”

This is almost the full extent of what we know of Nicodemus. We can conclude he was a man of wealth from the information in John 19:39-40 when he brings 75 pounds of myrrh mixed with aloes to prepare Christ’s body for burial. Myrrh was an expensive spice.

We can also infer from his aiding Joseph of Arimathea in caring for Christ’s body and from his stance against the Pharisees in John 7: 50-51 that he was a follower of Jesus, and from the reaction to his statements this was probably secretly. 

John 7:40 When they heard these words, some of the people said, “This really is the Prophet.” 41 Others said, “This is the Christ.” But some said, “Is the Christ to come from Galilee? 42 Has not the Scripture said that the Christ comes from the offspring of David, and comes from Bethlehem, the village where David was?” 43 So there was a division among the people over him. 44 Some of them wanted to arrest him, but no one laid hands on him.

45 The officers then came to the chief priests and Pharisees, who said to them, “Why did you not bring him?” 46 The officers answered, “No one ever spoke like this man!” 47 The Pharisees answered them, “Have you also been deceived? 48 Have any of the authorities or the Pharisees believed in him? 49 But this crowd that does not know the law is accursed.” 50 Nicodemus, who had gone to him before, and who was one of them, said to them, 51 “Does our law judge a man without first giving him a hearing and learning what he does?” 52 They replied, “Are you from Galilee too? Search and see that no prophet arises from Galilee.” (ESV)

The passage in John 7 also indicates that the events described in John 3 took place well before the Passion month, another indicator that there were two separate cleansings of the Temple.

We really don’t have any information outside of scripture on the man. There was a Nicodemus (or Naqdimon) written about in the Babylonian Talmud, a rich man of Jerusalem who was living in the late 60 ADs during the time of the war with Rome. Some scholars have claimed this was the same Nicodemus, but more likely he was a nephew or other member of the same family. 

This man was of the ben Gurion family, and probably Nicodemus was a member of it as well. The ben Gurions were rich, with a long history as Pharisees, teachers of the law and members of the ruling class. Members of the family carried the name Nicodemus at least as far back as 64 BC with a Nicodemus ben Gurion written about in Josephus’s Antiquities (14:37). We’ve already mentioned that the Nicodemus ben Gurion of the Babylonia Talmud lived in the 60s AD. The Nicodemus, who met with Jesus, fits with this family in social status and time period.

Why did he come to Jesus at night? Perhaps his duties kept him busy during the day, but more likely he came secretly. Jesus was not exactly making friends with the Pharisees and Sanhedrin, both of which Nicodemas was a member. (There was another member of the Sanhedrin, who was a secret follower of Jesus and who Nicodemus apparently had a friendship with, Joseph of Arimathea.)

He shows respect toward Jesus by calling him Rabbi and says the miracles he has done show that God must be with him.

Jesus replies by answering a question never asked. Obviously Jesus knows what is weighing on Nicodemas’ mind. The question is how can I know the Kingdom of God. The answer, and the only answer, is one must be born from above.

Jesus answered and said to him, “Verily, verily, I say to you, except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.”

Nicodemus said to him, “How can a man be born when he is old? Can he enter the second time into his mother's womb and be born?”

Jesus answered, “Verily, verily, I say to you, except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God. That which is born of the flesh is flesh and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. Marvel not that I said to you, you must be born again. The wind blows where it lists, and you hear the sound thereof, but cannot tell whence it comes, and whither it goes. So is every one that is born of the Spirit.”

Jesus’ reply rocked Nicodemus back on his heels. He couldn’t understand it for it made no sense.

In reply Jesus declared, "I tell you the truth, no one can see the kingdom of God unless he is born again. John 3:3 (NIV)

“Verily, verily, I say to you, except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.” John 3:3 (KJV)

I show both translations here because the NIV misses some of the emphasis of its import shown by the King James. The NIV says, “I tell you the truth…” The double “Verily, verily” of the KJV means “I tell you the truth of truths.”

Jesus uses the double “verily”; this is the truth of truths, the absolute, “Verily, verily, I say to thee, if any one may not be born from above, he is not able to see the reign of God” (Young Literal Translation).  This is the source of the oft-used phrase, “born again.” We find it confirmed in 1 Peter 1:23: “For you have been born again, not of perishable seed, but of imperishable, through the living and enduring word of God.” The literal translation of 1 Peter is “being begotten again”, or in modern English, “born again”. (Perhaps it could be interpreted as reconceived as well.)

Nicodemus may have been surprised by this reply. We don’t know that, but we know it confused him. Oh, he took it as meaning born again all right; he just didn’t understand how that was possible because he was thinking of physical birth. He may have been thinking he made a mistake in coming to Jesus. It was ridiculous, re-entering the womb and being reborn? 

Jesus, with another “verily, verily,” strongly reiterates this fact. There is no way around this truth; a person must be born again to see the Kingdom of God.

Nicodemus answered and said to him, “How can these things be?”

Jesus answered and said to him, “Are you a master of Israel and know not these things? Verily, verily, I say to you, we speak that we do know, and testify that we have seen; and you receive not our witness. If I have told you earthly things, and you believe not, how shall you believe if I tell you of heavenly things? And no man hath ascended up to heaven, but he that came down from heaven, even the Son of man, which is in heaven. And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of man be lifted up that whosoever believes in him should not perish, but have eternal life.

Jesus gently admonishes Nicodemus for not understanding. Nicodemus is a teacher and a leader, yet he missed it. What kinds of things did he miss? Such things as these among many others:

"The time is coming," declares the LORD, "when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah. It will not be like the covenant I made with their forefathers when I took them by the hand to lead them out of Egypt, because they broke my covenant, though I was a husband to them, " declares the LORD. This is the covenant I will make with the house of Israel after that time," declares the LORD. "I will put my law in their minds and write it on their hearts. I will be their God, and they will be my people. Jeremiah 31:31-33

"Therefore, O house of Israel, I will judge you, each one according to his ways, declares the Sovereign LORD. Repent! Turn away from all your offenses; then sin will not be your downfall. Rid yourselves of all the offenses you have committed, and get a new heart and a new spirit. Why will you die, O house of Israel? For I take no pleasure in the death of anyone, declares the Sovereign LORD. Repent and live! Ezekiel 18:30-32

Then Jesus makes reference to an event Nicodemus would have known well when he says, “And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of man be lifted up that whosoever believes in him should not perish, but have eternal life.”

Then the LORD sent venomous snakes among them; they bit the people and many Israelites died. The people came to Moses and said, "We sinned when we spoke against the LORD and against you. Pray that the LORD will take the snakes away from us." So Moses prayed for the people. The LORD said to Moses, "Make a snake and put it up on a pole; anyone who is bitten can look at it and live." So Moses made a bronze snake and put it up on a pole. Then when anyone was bitten by a snake and looked at the bronze snake, he lived. Numbers 21:6-9

Nicodemus probably did not understand what Jesus was talking about. He couldn’t see the cross for that was in the future. When he came and helped bury Christ’s body that reference to Numbers 21 probably came back to him in total clarity.

“For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believes in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through him might be saved. He that believes on him is not condemned, but he that believes not is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God. And this is the condemnation, that light is come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil. For every one that does evil hates the light, neither comes to the light, lest his deeds should be reproved. But he that does truth comes to the light that his deeds may be made manifest, that they are wrought in God.”

Nicodemus may have left that night still confused and in wonder. He probably hit the scrolls and over the course of time came to understand and believe in Jesus as the Messiah. He probably came to understand that no man was capable of following the Law completely and that a study of the men of God in the Old Testament clearly shows their relationship with God was not one of perfection in deed, but in faith in the Lord.

This passage, early on in Christ’s ministry, leaves no doubt that Jesus declared there is but one way to Heaven and that is through belief in Him.

It is also important to take note Jesus came to save the world, not condemn it.