He came to Jesus at night and said, “Rabbi, we know that you are a teacher who has come from God. For no one could perform the signs you are doing if God were not with him.” John 3:2
But whoever lives by the truth comes into the light, so that it may be seen plainly that what they have done has been done in the sight of God. John 3:21
Under the cover of darkness, Nicodemus speaks to the light of the world. I can imagine Nicodemus was a bit nervous to talk to Jesus. Jesus was already a polarizing figure, especially among Nicodemus’ religious colleagues. If he were caught associating with Jesus, people would have challenged his indulgence. Yet he is too full of curiosity about Jesus to ignore him anymore. So, in the clandestine hours, he comes to Jesus to probe Jesus’ teachings.
I love this text because the author brilliantly uses Nicodemus’ story to illustrate what it looks like, of light come into the world. He comes to Jesus in the dark, but he doesn’t stay in the dark. In this passage, we don’t know how he receives Jesus’ words. Later in chapter 7, we find Nicodemus running interference for Jesus among his religious colleagues. His defense of Jesus causes the others in his faction to begin interrogating him, along with Jesus. Finally, by the end of the book, we find this man, who once hid in the shadows coming into the open to show love and worship to Jesus in his burial. His life is an illustration of God’s patience. It’s an illustration of how light unfolds in a life.
Jesus plants a few cryptic seeds into this curious soul, and they blossom over the next several years. Could it be he is doing the same for you? Do you know how patient he is with you? Perhaps the answers you expect from God have already come to you, but they have yet to blossom. Perhaps God’s wisdom will unfold in our life like a sunrise, like it did for Nicodemus.
by Aaron Bjorklund
