It’s interesting to me the many problems we have in life that are considered “big deals.” The idea of not having a lot of money, not having a significant other, not doing well in school, etc. Don’t get me wrong, these are all very important, however, life is a little bigger than that isn’t it? As a matter of fact, there’s a dilemma so big in the Bible, that it’s scary…

For those that didn’t make it to Connexion last night, Pastor Dan painted a, “this is going to get worse,” type of picture. He kind of left us on the edge. He spoke about a Pharisee named Nicodemus. Apparently like us, Nicodemus felt like he had all the answers. Well guess what, he was wrong. Jesus explained to Nicodemus, who probably felt like he had done good all his life, that it wasn’t good enough. Scary if you ask me.

I went home with a smile on my face just trying to figure out what it would have been like to be in Nicodemus’ shoes. Imagine this for a second. You’ve grown up in the faith, you’ve done everything the Bible has commanded you to. You are so good at what you are doing that you become a ruler among the Jews. You are asked to lead the people. Sounds like a good deal.

Then out of nowhere, a man named Jesus comes down and tells you that what you’ve been doing is all wrong. As Dan said it last night, how “counter-cultural.” What a way to flip my life upside down. By the way, if I were Nicodemus, I’d ask Jesus just exactly who He thought He was and by what authority He could question me.

But I think as Jesus explained these things to Nicodemus, a light came on. Nicodemus had some major issues that needed to be explained. “How can I be born again?” A man who was supposed to know all the answers now had some questions. Some pretty basic questions I might add.

The smile I went home with almost turned to horror as I realized that Nicodemus realized that he knew nothing. He was so confused that he went back to the very core of how life began and in this case how it re-begins. And not only did he not have the answer, Jesus told him that what he now was trying to accomplish couldn’t be done on his own.

I know much in my life I have to come back to the constant realization that my life is a cry of desperation. I NEED God in ways that I can’t imagine. This problem Jesus draws up for us is a very big deal. So big that we can’t even help ourselves. I think it’s good for us to reflect on where we come from and where our great need is. It’s because that great need, that God will do a miraculous work in our lives. Reflect on the desperation, because it makes Grace that much greater!!!!

This entry was posted on Tuesday, September 12th, 2006 at 12:07 pm and is filed under Stories. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.