The greatest conversation

“There was a man of the Pharisees, named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews:

The same came to Jesus by night, and said unto him, Rabbi, we know that thou art a teacher come from God: for no man can do these miracles that thou doest, except God be with him.

Jesus answered and said unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.

Nicodemus saith unto him, How can a man be born when he is old? Can he enter the second time into his mother’s womb, and be born?

Jesus answered, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God.

That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit.

Marvel not that I said unto thee, Ye must be born again.

The wind bloweth where it listeth, and thou hearest the sound thereof, but canst not tell whence it cometh, and whither it goeth: so is every one that is born of the Spirit.

Nicodemus answered and said unto him, How can these things be?

Jesus answered and said unto him, Art thou a master of Israel, and knowest not these things?

Verily, verily, I say unto thee, We speak that we do know, and testify that we have seen; and ye receive not our witness.”
(John 3:1-11).
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I would like to thank you for taking time to read the devotionals I try to send out every day. I am encouraged by those who do not simply read through the devotionals as they are presented, but take time to read the Bible references. In the process, some have drawn my attention to references that were wrongly quoted. I am very grateful.

In yesterday’s devotion, under the subheading: I SUFFERED THESE THINGS, I referenced Philippians 2:29 instead of Philippians 1:29. Also, under the subheading: I AM NOT ASHAMED, I referenced to 1 Peter 20-25 instead of 1 Peter 2:20-25. I am very grateful that my attention was drawn to these to enable me effect the corrections. I am sorry – this shows the need for you to bear me up in your prayers, for we are working together for God’s glory.

Our text today is the greatest conversation that ever ensued, between the Lord Jesus Christ and a man called Nicodemus. It is a conversation that is full of important questions and answers. It is important to examine the text to be sure that we have asked these questions and received the needed answers. The conversation began with a visit by an individual to Jesus Christ. Let us observe the following:

1. THE CREDENTIALS OF THE VISITOR – John 3:1. The text begins with “There was a man…”. Who was this man?
a. He was a Pharisee. He belonged to one of the prestigious religious sects in Israel, and he was a member of the Sanhedrin. He was a religious man who was knowledgeable in the law. In John 3:10, Jesus alludes that he was a master of Israel, which translates to mean: a teacher or rabbi.

b. He was called Nicodemus. His name means “victory of the people”. He was a historical person who lived during the time of Jesus.

c. He was a Ruler of the Jews. He was a very important person who was highly revered in society by his people.

2. HE CAME TO JESUS BY NIGHT – John 3:2 places emphasis on the fact that the same man whose credentials had been given in verse one, came to Jesus by night. The Pharisee, the member of the Sanhedrin, a teacher and ruler of the Jews, came to Jesus by night. He was a great man by all standards, but he sought audience with the greatest of all – Jesus Christ. Several reasons have been given to explain why he chose to come to Jesus by night. Some have explained that he came to Jesus by night so that he could have an uninterrupted quality time with the Lord since the Lord was extremely busy during the day. Others have said he came by night because he did not want people to know that he had gone to meet the newly-arrived teacher, considering his position in society and his impressive credentials. He probably wondered what his people would think about him after the visit. Whatever his reason was, the most important thing is that scripture tells us he visited Jesus and he went by night.

3. HIS CONVERSATION WITH JESUS – John 3:2. It is very interesting to notice that he began the conversation with commendation of Jesus and was very emphatic about what he said.

a. He addressed Jesus as Rabbi, teacher or master and affirms: “We know that you are a teacher from God. Nicodemus saw Jesus as a great teacher from God.

b. He saw Jesus as a Miracle worker. “No man can do these things except God be with him”. He affirmed that the source of Jesus’ power to perform miracles came from God and that God was with Him.

Beloved, this is the beginning of the greatest conversation, which is full of commendations. At that point, Nicodemus saw Jesus Christ as a great Teacher and a great Miracle worker. How do you see Jesus Christ? What is He to you? A great Teacher and a great Miracle worker as Nicodemus saw Him, or more? The conversation has just started. Let us study our text as the conversation continues. Shalom.

OUR PRAYER
Lord, help me to have quality time of conversation with you, as I seek to know who you really are to me. Help me to know you better each passing day. Amen.