St. Christopher's Episcopal Church: Sermons

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A Sermon Preached at St. Christopher's Episcopal Church, Oak Park, IL
on the Second Sunday in Lent (Year A, RCL), February 17, 2008
by the Rev. Paris Coffey

"Jesus answered, 'Very truly, I tell you, no one can enter the kingdom of God without being born of water and Spirit. What is born of flesh is flesh, and what is born of the Spirit is spirit. Do not be astonished that I said to you, 'You must be born from above.'" - John 3:5-7

Although the King James is often a challenging version of the Bible to follow, its translation from the Greek is sometimes more revealing than its modern variations. For example, the phrase we just heard, "you must be born from above," reads in the King James, "ye must be born again." Both are accurate translations of the Greek, but the latter is clearly what Nicodemus heard, since he moans "Oh, no. You mean I've got to start all over again? How can I enter a second time into my mother's womb?"

Nicodemus seems upset, but he may be less upset about the possibility of having two belly buttons, than he is about the thought of having to start again from scratch. After all, he might have to live through his teenage years again, a harrowing thought for any sane-minded person. Of course, Jesus' meaning is not quite so literal. Rather Jesus means something closer to today's translation, "you must be born from above," although his visitor hears something different.

To be fair, part of this miscommunication lies in the fact that Jesus' declaration comes before his nocturnal caller has had a chance to state the purpose of his visit. In fact, all Nicodemus manages to say before Jesus starts in on him is, "Rabbi, we know that you are a teacher who has come from God; for no one can do these signs that you do apart from the presence of God." Nicodemus uses the royal "we," acknowledging himself as a public figure representing the religious party line. The fact that he comes by night, though, suggests that he's either the first Episcopalian - wanting to keep a low profile in matters of faith - or that his religious cohorts do NOT know he's there.

Whatever the case, Nicodemus is hardly the Temple Welcome Wagon coming to say, "Thanks Jesus, all of us in the temple court think you're great." Rather, he wants to find something out in secret, curious but cautious about this man who has performed miraculous signs. And he should be cautious, for prior to events in today's Gospel, Jesus had turned over the money-changers' table in the temple, which was no minor challenge. On the contrary, money-changing was big business, since pilgrims coming to Jerusalem for Passover - which is the time our story takes place - had to exchange Greek and Roman coins for Hebrew ones. Greek and Roman coins bore a human image, which the Law forbade, so only Hebrew money could be used to buy animals for sacrifice and pay the temple tithe required of pilgrims. This was Law, and so when Jesus challenged the money-changers - accusing the Jewish leaders of caring more about business than belief - he challenged the very structure of their system. This means he challenged Nicodemus, too, for Nicodemus is a leader of the Jews.

No wonder, then, the learned leader is confused, for on one hand he believes Jesus just might be "a teacher come from God," but on the other, Jesus is challenging teachings Nicodemus has accepted all his life. "What am I supposed to think?" Nicodemus must be asking himself. "What rules do I follow now to be right with God?" Nicodemus is a serious seeker of God, but is confused about who Jesus is and what his teachings mean. Consequently, the Jewish leader goes at night to Jesus, thinking as he goes. He knocks and Jesus answers, but before Nicodemus can finish his well rehearsed speech, Jesus blurts out the answer to a question he has not even asked.

"Truly I tell you, Nicodemus, no one can see the kingdom of God without being born again." And Nicodemus is more confused than ever, for less than a minute into his visit with Jesus, Nicodemus has lost control of the conversation. Bumper sticker theology flashes before him as he thinks to himself, "Born again? Does that mean I'll have to carry the Bible around with me wherever I go? Does it mean I'll have to give away all my possession and become a missionary to no-man's-land? Does it mean I'm supposed to corner every Tom, Dick and Harry who comes along and witness to them until they repent?"

Actually, those are the thoughts running through my head when I hear the phrase "born again." What went through the mind of Nicodemus I can't say for sure, although I suspect that were equally confusing. After all, like Nicodemus, we - and I use the royal pronoun here intentionally - also want to know the rules and regulations of right relationship with God. Jesus, on the other hand, says that it's not about a formula but a way of life. Indeed, his remarks to Nicodemus remind me of a story told by a friend of mine - a recovering alcoholic - about his first encounter with AA.

"I'd had a particularly bad night," my friend recalls, referring to the last time he ever took a drink. "So bad, in fact, that I vowed never to drink again. I wasn't exactly sure how to go about this, but I was ready to do whatever it took. Read up on alcoholism? I was willing. Go to a few meetings? I was ready to do that, too. I was determined," my friend insists, "and so set off to AA headquarters to get the scoop. Arriving at a place they called Central Service, I met a couple of guys who told me to have a seat. 'I'm ready to stop drinking,' my friend boldly announced. 'Just tell me what to do and I'll do it.'" Smiling patiently, one heavy-set guy poured his visitor a cup of coffee, while the other lit a cigarette. They both looked at each other, and then at my friend saying, 'Well, buddy, this program's real simple. All you have to do is stop drinking, and change your whole life."

Jesus says somewhat the same thing in this morning's Gospel; oh, not that you have to stop drinking - unless, of course, that's part of your particular problem. He does say, though, that we have to change our whole life, beginning with our need to be in charge. "You must be born from above," Jesus tells Nicodemus. "You must be born of water and the Spirit." It's a charge that's tempting to dismiss as simply a call to Baptism. The truth is, though, that although John's readers would have heard baptismal undertones in Jesus' charge, Nicodemus would not. Nicodemus would have heard or seen water as a baby's literal exit from the birth waters of the womb, which Jesus capitalizes on, holding together both the physical and spiritual in his phrase "born again."

Indeed, Jesus does the same with "Spirit," which in Greek and Hebrew translate both as the physical wind and mystical Spirit. Again, new birth cannot be reduced to a single meaning. It can and does, though, reduce us to an act of surrender, acknowledging that we are not in charge. "The wind/the Spirit blows where it chooses," says Jesus, reminding us that, unlike bumper sticker theology that makes us agents of change, Jesus' theology of "born again" makes God the change agent. To be born again means to let go of what we think we know to make room for the Living God. It means letting get of certitude and assumptions that keep us from truly knowing God and receiving God's gift of love.

Receiving, though, isn't always easy. It wasn't easy for Nicodemus, who, as a member of the Sanhedrin (the Jewish judicial body), held an elevated position in society. Neither, though, is it easy for us, for even though we may not have the means of Nicodemus, we are used to being on the giving end of things. We're used to being in charge, praying weekly or even daily, "Thy Kingdom come," while refusing to acknowledge that this means, "My Kingdom go." Unless we let go, though, unless we are "born from above," there's little room for God's great gift of love . . . and love is everything. As Leo Tolstoy once said, "I believe in God, who is for me spirit, love, the principle of all things . . . I believe that the reason for life is for each of us to grow in love . . . (which) will contribute more than any other force to establish the Kingdom of God on earth."

Jesus believed this, too. Indeed, he died that we might know love's power over hatred, fear, betrayal and even death. All we have to do is to be born again from above, to receive the gift of love revealed in Jesus Christ, to let go and change our whole life - not by human will alone - but by the power and grace of One who came not to condemn the world but to deliver it from darkness.

Amen.