Poor Nicodemus;
Everything he has always learnt and taught came crumbling at his feet. All around him were expectations and admiration for his status and knowledge of the scriptures. But within him was a tsunami of conflicting thoughts. He had to deal with this internal turmoil alone because he was trapped by his position as a teacher of the highest order.
Poor Nico,
What would his learned colleagues say?
What would his students say? Can he bear the disappointment he will surely see on their faces?
What would happen to his title as an erudite professor of the scripture?
How can he conflict even himself?
In the cool of the night, when title meant nothing and all expectation had gone to bed, the turmoil was very much awake within him. It remained with him when all the merriment and flattery had gone. Disguised he sought Him out, Jesus from Nazareth. The one he couldn’t approach in the day because their social classes don’t resonate.
Nico, got the answers he wanted, but what will he do with it?
He is torn between following the new truth he heard and going back to the old lies he used to know.
This new truth is alive, he could feel it burning in his soul but the old lie is dead, he knew it never did anything new for him.
This new truth will take away ease and make life ‘hard’ for him, but the old lie will gave him sweetness and merriment.
Poor Nico,
He got just one moment with Jesus instead of a lifetime with Him
He forever followed Jesus at a distance. (John 7:50-52, 19:39)
Have you found yourself in the shoes of Nicodemus?
Are you torn between what you have now and what you truly seek?
Are you scared of what your friends might think of you?
Remember that those friends will not stand by you in the night,
You can choose a moment with Jesus or a lifetime with Him.
You can choose to walk closely with Him, not at a distance.
