Wed.'s Devo - Rock Our World

Wed.'s Devo - Rock Our World 10-7-09
Read John 3:1-21
This is the account of Nicodemus, the Pharisee. Pharisees numbered around 6,000 at the time and Nic was one of their rulers. They believed in the immortality of the soul and reincarnation. They were staunch keepers of the law and the written law which was all the jots and tittles added by different rabbis over the ages. They determined that the Torah contained 613 commandments, 248 positive, 365 negative. Their job was to keep all of them and make sure everyone else did too.
Nicodemus came to Jesus in secret at night to talk to him. He knew Jesus was from God because of the miracles he did. Since he was a Pharisee he believed in eternal life he just didn't know how to get it. Jesus said, "You must be born again." That was a new concept. Nicodemus didn't understand being born again. So Jesus explained you don't get born again in your natural body but in you spirit. Just like the wind, the spirit is invisible you can just see it's results. In verse 13 Jesus is prophesying his death. "No man has ascended up to heaven, but he that came down from heaven." He is saying when you see me ascend up into heaven you will know for sure that I came down from heaven.
Then Jesus gave him the picture of the serpent that Moses put on a pole and lifted up so all the people who had been bitten by the fiery serpents could look on it and live. Jesus was saying I am that serpent on the pole and if you lift me up and look upon me in belief I will give you life. Then we have the famous John 3:16 verse that had to have rocked his world. What do you mean God so loved the WORLD. He knew that God so loved the Jews but not the infidels out there who don't know the torah and don't have Jewish blood. God didn't send Jesus down here to condemn the world. That had to be revolutionary to Nicodemus also since the Pharisee lived to condemn everyone who was not a Pharasee. Verse 18 was "in his face". If you don't believe in me you are condemned. Nicodemus spent his life living not to be condemned and now Jesus is showing him a new way to be condemned that didn't have anything to do with keeping a law. By the time Jesus finished speaking I'm sure Nicodemus had some thinking to do.
The good news is that Nicodemus defended Jesus in his death (John 7:50) and came to the grave and annointed his body after his death. (John 19:39) Nicodemus must have figured out how to be born again!
Lord, let us not look at anyone as "unsaveable". Remind us that you came to save the world. Give us your boldness to speak the truth in love. We long to see your kingdom come.