Joplin Community of Christ

Born of the Spirit

Today’s Prayer for Peace – Cambodia

Direct link to download today’s audio message http://jcoc.no-ip.org/media/JoplinCOC-03-20-2011.mp3
http://jcoc.no-ip.org/media/JoplinCOC-03-20-2011.mp3

Announcements        
             Wednesday, March 23
                       Mid-Week Renewal of the Spirit – 6:00 PM

              Sunday, March 27
            Theme:  Living Water
            Presider:  John Williams
            Speaker:  Wim Van Klinkin
            Musician:  Diana Martin
            Morning Devotions:  BREAKFAST, 9 AM, Ben & Pat Jones
            Deacon in Charge: Geneva Reed 
           
    Saturday, April 9
            Intentional Ministries of Welcome – Greeter Training
            Workshop, 9:00 AM to 3:00 PM
To register or for more information please see the Outreach          Steering Team: Shane, Barbara, James, Wade, or Steve. We are
counting on everyone to attend in this next phase of         transformational Hospitality.  To be held at the church.    

  Birthdays & Anniversaries, March 20 – 26
None listed

  Administration Teams, March 13 – 26  
Daytime:    Pat Jones and Patsy Lay
Evenings:  Mark Shank and Jim Kingore

   Camping Schedule
May 1               Kid’s Camp
June 11-15        Junior Camp
June 15-19        Ozark Reunion #1
June 19-24        Jr/Sr High Camp
July 9-15           Ozark Reunion #2
July 16-22         Camp Quality Ozark
July 23-30         2011 Spectacular

Scripture: John 3:1–17

Exploring the Scriptures

Two men meet in an out-of-the-way place late at night. The setting is simple. There are a few props in low, flickering lamplight. Yet, the scene is etched with fresh transformative brilliance into the faith story of every generation. The encounter is a backdrop for the most quoted scripture passages in Christian history: “For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son.” “[N]o one can enter the kingdom of God without being born of water and Spirit.” “God did not send the Son into the world to condemn the world.”

Nicodemus is a Pharisee, a teacher of the law, and a leader of the Jews. He knows authority when he hears and sees it. He has public credentials and a role of power, but sees in Jesus something he knows he does not possess. Humble and yearning for truth, he wants to meet Jesus.

But Nicodemus gives mixed signals. Apparently he wants to keep this meeting private, thus the night meeting. He represents other Pharisees (“Rabbi, we know that you are a teacher who has come from God…” [emphasis added]), but he and his colleagues are cautious. Do they prefer darkness to light? Will they ever be free to fully enter eternal life with God? We are left with the questions.

Jesus is not intimidated by the Pharisee’s power and position. He seems surprised—shocked that this teacher of the law does not understand what is basic to a relationship with the Divine. He is disappointed, maybe even angry, that those in positions of leadership have not been grasped by essential truths about the longed-for reign of God upon the earth.

We learn that no one can see the kingdom unless they are born of the Spirit, unless they “are born anothen.”This Greek term has a double meaning often lost in the English, French, or Spanish translations. It means “from above” as well as “again” or “anew.” The double meaning must be kept in mind in verses 3 and 7 to discern Jesus’ meaning and the nature of Nicodemus’ misunderstanding. To be born anothen speaks of a time of birth (again) and the place from which the new birth emerges (from above). This new birth gives new access to God.

Pneuma(spirit/wind) can be felt and heard, but it cannot be controlled or predicted. It is a mystery beyond human knowledge. Jesus seems to be saying, “These are the basics. How could anyone be a religious leader without understanding that? Open yourself to this uncontrollable but trustworthy Presence.”

The Gospel writer yearns for readers to have their own encounter with Jesus through this recorded event. Like Nicodemus, we must go to an unsettling place. We must let go of what we know and what makes sense to be reborn through the alternative life of Jesus. We approach the text knowing that we also do not yet know what it is about. As the speaker, we also have assumptions and certitudes that must be set aside!

This birth in the Spirit is not about physical rebirth (Nicodemus’ quandary), nor is it only about an individual’s private moment of conversion (a common interpretation). Being born of the Spirit “envisions a new mode of life for which there are no precedents, life born of water and the Spirit, life regenerated through the cross of Jesus” (Gail R. O’Day. The New Interpreter’s Bible, vol. IX, p. 555). To be fully human we are invited to ground our life in Christ and in the corporate dimensions of that life.

Central Ideas

1. We will not live fully unless we open our lives to receive new life through God’s Spirit, which is beyond our control or understanding.
2. The purpose of this account is to lead the reader into a place where they can encounter the transforming Spirit of God. Transformation comes through encounter.
3. We miss the deeper meaning of the phrase “born of the Spirit” unless we understand the double meaning of the Greek term anothen, which can be translated as “again,” “anew,” or “from above.”

© 2011, Joplin Community of Christ. All rights reserved.