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The passage will be referenced with the hopes that people will pray in the Lectio tradition and then post in the "comment" section the insights that they have encountered. Thanks!

Unless otherwise noted, all Scripture passages are taken from the NAB.

Friday, April 8, 2011

John 3:1-21


Now there was a Pharisee named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews. 
He came to Jesus at night and said to him, "Rabbi, we know that you are a teacher who has come from God, for no one can do these signs that you are doing unless God is with him."
Jesus answered and said to him, "Amen, amen, I say to you, no one can see the kingdom of God without being born from above."
Nicodemus said to him, "How can a person once grown old be born again? Surely he cannot reenter his mother's womb and be born again, can he?"
Jesus answered, "Amen, amen, I say to 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 spirit is spirit.
Do not be amazed that I told you, 'You must be born from above.'
The wind blows where it wills, and you can hear the sound it makes, but you do not know where it comes from or where it goes; so it is with everyone who is born of the Spirit."
Nicodemus answered and said to him, "How can this happen?"
Jesus answered and said to him, "You are the teacher of Israel and you do not understand this?
Amen, amen, I say to you, we speak of what we know and we testify to what we have seen, but you people do not accept our testimony.
If I tell you about earthly things and you do not believe, how will you believe if I tell you about heavenly things?
No one has gone up to heaven except the one who has come down from heaven, the Son of Man.
And just as Moses lifted up the serpent in the desert, so must the Son of Man be lifted up,
so that everyone who believes in him may have eternal life."
For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him might not perish but might have eternal life.
For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world might be saved through him.
Whoever believes in him will not be condemned, but whoever does not believe has already been condemned, because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God.
And this is the verdict, that the light came into the world, but people preferred darkness to light, because their works were evil.
For everyone who does wicked things hates the light and does not come toward the light, so that his works might not be exposed.
But whoever lives the truth comes to the light, so that his works may be clearly seen as done in God.
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1 comment:

  1. TMarkHApril 10, 2011 at 5:37 PM

    Always, before I begin Lectio, I pray that God will give me eyes to see and ears to hear and a heart to understand His words and His message in that Word. For that reason, verse 12 was an eye opener: "If I tell you about earthly things and you do not believe, how will you believe if I tell you about heavenly things?"
    Lord, I believe. Help Thou my unbelief!

    One of the things that I first saw is that Nicodemus came to Jesus at night... in darkness. Nicodemus. A ruler of the Jews. Probably Sanhedrin. Came from darkness to the Light. Verse 19-21 shows this significance: "And this is the verdict, that the light came into the world, but people preferred darkness to light, because their works were evil.
    For everyone who does wicked things hates the light and does not come toward the light, so that his works might not be exposed.
    But whoever lives the truth comes to the light, so that his works may be clearly seen as done in God."
    I think Nick made it to the Light. He defended Christ in John 7:50 and he helped at the burial of Jesus along with Joseph of Arimathea (John 19:39).

    In verse 5, Jesus says, "no one can enter the Kingdom of God without being born of water and Spirit." The Greek (as the English) does not have an article in front of 'Spirit.' IF IT HAD READ, "being born of water and of the Spirit," it would have definitely meant two separate births (a water birth and a spirit birth). Perhaps, however, our physical birth is already assumed and being born "of water and Spirit" is actually only ONE birth: the birth at baptism. After all, when Jesus was baptized, the Holy Spirit descended on Him -- water and Spirt at one time (ie, ONE birth). Interesting notion is to think that God might say the same thing of us when we were baptized, "This is my beloved son/daughter..."

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