Humankind Week 4: Encounters with Jesus, “Under the Cover of Night”
In this series, we have been looking at encounters that various people had with Jesus. This week, Pastor Brad examines an interesting conversation between Jesus and a religious leader named Nicodemus. Jesus’ Temple visit (ch. 2) made an impression on the rulers and chief priests, so much so that one of them sought out the Lord for a late night talk.
Nicodemus began his conversation with Jesus by acknowledging the young rabbi’s powerful ministry. Rather than respond in kind, Jesus begins an illuminating conversation about new birth. Their interaction tells us a lot about our own need for Jesus and our inability to enter the Kingdom of Heaven by reforming our behavior. Instead, Jesus makes it abundantly clear that following him into his Kingdom requires God’s miraculous, transforming work in our lives, something He is willing to do because of His great love for all of humanity.