Upside Down Inside Out
John 3:1-17
Good news! It looks like we are all going to receive a free gift from above. The “powers that be” have decided from on high, that we will all receive a free gift which will arrive in the mail in May.
In the last few weeks, the trinity of higher powers, the President, members of the House and Senate, worked and came together to sign into law a stimulus package designed not only to boost the economy but to give a temporary financial boost to all who receive it. This $168 billion package will give middle class single taxpayers a $600 tax rebate, married couples a $1200 rebate, and those with dependent children $300 more per child. Seniors and disabled veterans will receive $300. [1] This has been both hailed as a great move and described as “booster shot” for the economy as well as been hailed as a pretty bad example for a country already steeped deep in debt. However it is now a reality and whether we like it or not, we are all going to get a free gift from above.
Now those powers from above have a different view about this than from those who are below. One of the realities in life, in almost any organization or situation, political or religious, is that those who hold the power and the money, have a different view than those who are poor - who are at the bottom looking up.
In this case - the powers from above are the White House and members of Congress who passed the stimulus package. From their point of view, from above, this bill is a win-win situation. They believe the bill will help the middle class, and will stimulate a sluggish economy when people go out and spend their checks. Most of our lawmakers, but not all, are quite proud of the “swift bipartisan” efforts that pushed this through. I think “swift bipartisan” is usually an oxymoron.
If you are from the middle-class, defined in this case as a couple making less than $150,000 or a single person making under $75,000, you will have to decide what to do with that check when you receive it. You may decide to save it, invest it, pay off some debt or buy something new. In fact you may already be imagining or dreaming about what you are going to do with that extra $600 - $1200 or $1500.
- That 52” large flat screen HD television that you walk by in Circuit City - might be looking pretty good right now.
- A down payment on - a new car?
- Plane tickets to somewhere - warm?
- A Wii - with the latest edition of Guitar Hero featuring Aerosmith?
The powers from above are hoping that the middle class will make good use of their money.
However if you are a senior citizen or a disabled veteran – or one of the millions of people below the poverty threshold then you might be thinking about using your money for:
- Your groceries.
- Shoes for the kids.
- The unpaid hospital bills - that weren’t covered by insurance.
- The unpaid gargantuan heating - bill that is two months overdue.
- Your prescriptions that you can’t afford to purchase so you cut your pills in order to make them last. You might be thinking that you might actually be able to take the correct dosage for a few months.
Those who view this “boost” from below are most likely thankful for the immediate relief that it will bring – but who are also saying at the same time – it just isn’t enough as they try hard to make ends meet. The view of the stimulus package sure looks different to those who are looking up from below – those who are usually grateful one meal, one prescription, or one day of health at a time.
There is more good news this week from above. Jesus said “I tell you the truth, no one can see the kingdom of God unless they are born from above.”
We have received an additional free gift from “above” - a gift of grace from God the Creator, given through Christ the Savior, kindled and empowered by the Holy Spirit. This story today in John 3, a nighttime conversation between Nicodemus and Jesus, is one filled with rich and life-giving images of birth, water, wind and Spirit. The story speaks to our head and our heart, fills us with love and grace from above, whether we are down and out, whether we are looking from above or below, or wandering around in the middle. For God so loved –a love that infuses our very being from the inside out.
This story of Nick at night talking with Jesus is the context for John 3:16. John 3:16 is both greatly loved and loathed. We see people on street corners and sporting events holding up signs that say “John 3:16”and we also know people who use it to judge and condemn. It is one of those scriptures that speak of God’s great love and gift. It has been said that the entirety of scripture – God’s story with humankind – could stand on this verse alone.
"For God so loved the world that He gave his only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life.”
I like to include the verse that immediately follows as well:
“For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him.”
The context for this much quoted passage is the story of a seeker and a Savior – who have a late night conversation about what it means to find the Kingdom of God. Nicodemus comes at night to talk with Jesus, either because he was afraid of what others might think, or because nighttime was a time in that culture where teachers of the law would gather to talk and discuss. What was it that was running through his mind and his heart that drew him to Jesus? What was he seeking? Nicodemus asks three things; Jesus responds three times. Nicodemus begins the story by indicating his interest, or possibly his hope, that Jesus is the teacher “who has come from God.” Jesus responds using a word that has multiple meanings, which leads to some confusion on the part of Nicodemus.
Jesus replies, “I tell you the truth, no one can see the kingdom of God unless he is born “anōthen.” “Anōthen” is the Greek word meaning “from above,” as well as “again or anew.”[2] Jesus says unless one is born “anōthen,” meaning from “above,” but Nicodemus interprets it as “again”, which we can tell by Nicodemus’ response and confusion.
“Well how can a man be born when he is old?" Nicodemus asked. "Surely he cannot enter a second time into his mother's womb to be born!"
Jesus answered, “I tell you the truth, no one can enter the kingdom of God unless he is born of water and the Spirit. Flesh gives birth to flesh, but the Spirit gives birth to spirit. You should not be surprised at my saying, “You must be born anōthen.” (meaning above) The wind blows wherever it pleases. You hear its sound, but you cannot tell where it comes from or where it is going. So it is with everyone born of the Spirit."
Nicodemus is still a bit confused and asks, “How can this be?”
Jesus, who is talking about a spiritual rebirth, goes on to speak of things of earth as well as heaven. He then references an obscure story from Numbers 21, in which Moses had bronzed a poisonous snake and displayed it on the top of a pole. This bronze serpent was a reminder for the people not to forget that God was in control, would lead and save them. This image of the serpent on the pole foreshadows Jesus up on the cross, as the one who saves. It is then that Jesus concludes with John 3:16-17. “For God so loved the world….”
In this story, Jesus speaks about a spiritual rebirth, a birth of water and spirit that is initiated from above whether we like it or not. This is a work of God, through Jesus, by the power of the Spirit - a trinity of higher powers. It is a gift given in grace and not a work done on our part. It comes from above. A spiritual rebirth is important for understanding because a birth signifies a new beginning. This spiritual rebirth happens when the love and grace of God intersects with your life and your heart.
Nicodemus didn’t quite get it. His last words were “How can this be?” Words that we may often find ourselves thinking during the night or during the day; “How can this be?”
Maybe you are trying to work or read and there is something you can’t get out of your mind. Maybe you are driving around and there is a nagging question that you are struggling with. Maybe it is a:
A conversation or a fear
Sadness or anxiety over something
Clarification or a sense of direction
Maybe a deeper faith and a desire for serenity.
You are a seeker and there are times you are just like Nicodemus.
We see Nicodemus again two more times in the gospel of John. In John 7 he is seated at the place of power, with the powers-that-be, the chief priests and Pharisees, and speaks up on Jesus’ behalf. But then at the end of John, Nicodemus is at the foot of the cross helping Joseph of Arimathea carry the bloodied body of Jesus to the tomb, caring for and preparing his body with myrrh, aloe and wrapping him in strips of linen, before placing him in a tomb in the garden nearby. (John 19: 38-42)
Nicodemus the Pharisee - Nicodemus the seeker of faith - Nicodemus the follower who struggled to understand and make sense of it in his head - still practiced love with his heart and his hands for one who had been dismissed and discarded as a worthless criminal.
We can go forward in our faith life, even with the questions that we struggle with, by putting our love into action and caring for those at the bottom of life’s hierarchy of importance. God’s love for all of us, was so strong that He sent His Son. God does not see a hierarchy of importance among us. We are to care with our heart and our hands, for those who are also ignored, dismissed and discarded. We don’t have to wait to figure everything out – because it is most often in the doing and the helping - that we find the clarity for that with which we struggle. It is the doing for the least of these - that we will find direction and serenity.
It is my greatest hope that the gift you will receive from above will make some cents/sense. It is my greatest prayer that as you seek, you will come ever closer to the God from above who loves you. And may our faith be a faith of our head, of our heart and of our hands – which are called to tend to and care for the lost, the least and the lonely.
Amen.
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