In John 3: 1 - 17, we read of a defining moment in Nicodemus' life when Jesus meets him and challenges him to have a deeper relationship with God. In John 19: 38 - 40, we see the fruit of that deeper relationship when Nicodemus has the courage to risk his life by stepping forward with Joseph of Aramethia to claim the body of Christ following his crucifixion.
Of all of the Biblical Characters who can provide us great insights for our Advent journey of preparation for a joyful and renewing Christmas, perhaps none is better then Nicodemus, the hesitant disciple of the Lord. No, he was not present for the first Christmas but his defining moment came when he accepted the message of that Christmas Heavenly Host of Angels who proclaimed the Good News that: "This very day in Bethlehem your Saviour is born who is Christ the Lord." But it wasn't an easy journey for Nicodemus to accept this Good News, so let us reflect upon that journey and see what insights it provides for our Advent Journey.
The first chapter of his journey is a lifetime of participation in his religious community that had left him feeling spiritually hungry! Believe me, Nicodemus was not the only person who had such a journey, but let's consider what had happened before this night when he comes to meet Jesus. In many ways, much that had happened in his life must have been a source of blessings and comfort for Nicodemus. Yes, he was living in a time of great trial and tribulation for the nation of Israel. He, like all of the faithful members of his faith tradition, knew of their rich heritage of God's blessings to the people of Israel. As a leader within his faith community, part of his responsibility would be maintaining such sacred religious rituals as the observance of Passover. And as he and his fellow believers observed that day and remembered the blessing of God leading them out of slavery in Egypt to the Promised Land, they would praise God for his faithfulness to them. And surely, he and his fellow believers were aware of the great Kings, Prophets and religious leaders of the Old Testament who had helped to build a great nation and so again, they would praise God for his faithfulness to them.
But what had happened now? No longer was Israel a great nation. Now they were living as prisoners within their own land, and they must have wondered what went wrong. Nicodemus was a brilliant scholar, and so he well knew that God had promised that he would send a Messiah, and it was believed that this Messiah would re-establish Israel as a great nation once again. But after years that had turned into generations of waiting for this promised Messiah, it wasn't easy to keep hope alive, but that's exactly what Nicodemus did. And in that quest to keep hope alive, Nicodemus heard about this new teacher who had come upon the scene and inspired many with his acts of compassion and great wisdom, and he would do whatever it took to meet this teacher and see if the spiritual hunger that he and many others felt could be addressed by the ministry of this man who Nicodemus clearly believed was sent by God. He had heard of the miracles and the teachings and now he came wanting to experience the miracle of his own spiritual renewal!
Does this first chapter of Nicodemus' journey intersect with our Advent Journey? I think so. For aren't there times of waiting and worrying that we experience within our individual and collective lives? Yes, we have personal and shared memories of the ways that God has blessed us also, but aren't there also times when our personal or global concerns have made our own ability to keep hope alive feel like Mission Impossible?
Many years ago I met a young man of great potential. He had been the Valedictorian of his High School Class; earned a scholarship to one of our finest Universities and done wonderfully there also to that point that at a very early age he himself became a University Professor. But then everything turned in his life, and the life of his family as he fell victim to mental illness. His academic career seemed over. His family life turned into a nightmare, and keeping hope alive seemed impossible for him. And because this is a true story, I will tell you that for more then five years it was impossible. Frankly, my ministry to this young man was rejected by him during those years, but his mom continued to be a part of our church, and many times over those five years we would have a conversation that had different words and different struggles and joys, but which always contained the question "How do we keep hope alive?"
Yes, there is a happy ending to this story, for somehow Mom and a wonderful support network that included our Church, the local Counseling Center and many others helped Charlie to move beyond his mental health crisis and resume his life. Now I hope and pray that none of you are dealing with that particular struggle but I know all of us at times deal with the struggle of keeping hope alive in one way or another. Nicodemus did, we do and so the essential question for Advent, as well as for life in general is: How do we keep hope alive at a time of trial and tribulation?
To answer this crucial question, we need to look at the Nicodemus we meet in the second and third chapter of his journey. For you see, at a very difficult time in his faith journey, Nicodemus is wise enough to throw caution to the wind and goes to meet Jesus. He goes, to find in him, some insights as to what he should do to keep hope alive.
If Nicodemus was expecting an easy answer or a quick fix, it just didn't happen. For as we look at their conversation, we see that at first, Nicodemus must have felt that he had made a huge mistake by coming to meet Jesus. What do you mean that I must be born again? Am I to enter my mother's womb a second time?
Yes, he probably was on the verge of throwing his hands up in the air and walking away in disgust but he didn't. Rather, he stayed to listen to our Lord's response to his questions and began a conversation that was going to turn his life upside down. For how else can you describe the experience of Nicodemus? He had come to visit Jesus at night because he knew that he had everything to lose if he was identified as a disciple of this religious outsider. And because keeping hope alive was more important to him then his personal comfort, he had listened that night and many other times to his teachings to the point that as his journey continued he, at great personal risk, is first willing to defend Jesus before his fellow religious leaders and then, at the point of his death, before the resurrection, is bold enough to step forward with Joseph to claim the body of Christ.
Somehow, in a way that is not fully explained by the Scriptures, Nicodemus grows from the hesitant disciple to the one who is first willing to risk his own life in order to keep the hope that Christ came to bring alive! How did he find that courage? Why would he risk everything? The answer is obvious, for you see in the conversation that began that night, Nicodemus had become convinced that Christ was the long promised Messiah, and he had given his life to Christ to be used as an instrument of his grace and hope in the lives of others!
Isn't that what our Advent Journey is focused on also? For we gather this day to affirm him as our Lord and Saviour and to recommit ourselves to the noble calling of serving as his instrument of grace in the lives of our loved ones and all who are affected by our faithful witness! Of course there are many examples I could site that illustrate your willingness to serve as an instrument of God's grace. After all, as you look at the life and budget of our Church you will see many examples of how your faithful stewardship provides the time, talents and treasures that allow our Church to support the effort to keep Christ's hope alive but today is Adopt-A-Family-For-Christmas-Day, so I want to use that as our example. At the end of this day, because of your support, which has inspired the participation of Rita Maniscalco's Long Island Life Coaching Network and the Wong Family's Chinese Heritage Association, we will have collected and distributed over 400 gifts and $2,500 worth of Food Coupons to provide a more blessed and joyful Christmas to 40 Military families and 100 additional local families!
Your support, as our Poster indicates, has helped to make a Christmas Miracle and it also has served as another way that we keep the hope that Christ came to bring alive. I thank Judy Boyd, our Christian Action Commissioner who has coordinated this year's program. I thank her special assistant Melissa Schachter, who as part of her work to earn the Girl Scout's Gold Award has done, according to Judy, so much to make this happen. And finally, I thank all of you who have taken the time and provided the gifts and funds for these 50 families. May God continue to bless you all and all of the efforts we provide to thank God for the gift of his salvation in Jesus Christ. For as our Lord told Nicodemus: God so loves the world, including you and I, that he has sent his son to be our Saviour. Accept that most precious of all Christmas gifts, and continue to do all that we can do to keep Christ's hope alive!
The first chapter of his journey is a lifetime of participation in his religious community that had left him feeling spiritually hungry! Believe me, Nicodemus was not the only person who had such a journey, but let's consider what had happened before this night when he comes to meet Jesus. In many ways, much that had happened in his life must have been a source of blessings and comfort for Nicodemus. Yes, he was living in a time of great trial and tribulation for the nation of Israel. He, like all of the faithful members of his faith tradition, knew of their rich heritage of God's blessings to the people of Israel. As a leader within his faith community, part of his responsibility would be maintaining such sacred religious rituals as the observance of Passover. And as he and his fellow believers observed that day and remembered the blessing of God leading them out of slavery in Egypt to the Promised Land, they would praise God for his faithfulness to them. And surely, he and his fellow believers were aware of the great Kings, Prophets and religious leaders of the Old Testament who had helped to build a great nation and so again, they would praise God for his faithfulness to them.
