Earnestly from the Heart, Reflections from the Pastors of Lord of Life

Reborn by the Holy Spirit

 

Jesus finished with Nicodemus telling him that he must be reborn and renewed by water and the Holy Spirit. In John 3:16-17, Jesus said to Nicodemus, “For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him.” 

 

Jesus did not say that God so loved the church, but that God so loved the world. It is our task to take that message to the world. We receive more than we can imagine from the bounty of God’s grace, and we are expected to pass it on to the whole world.  “God so loved the world that he gave…” People of God are expected to be givers and share the good news with one another.

 

I like the story of the little boy who came to his pastor with an important question.  “God is everywhere, right?” “Yes,” said the pastor.  “And God is big, right?” “Yes.” “Bigger than my dad’s garage?”  “Yes.” The boy asked, “Bigger than the mountains?”  “Yes.”  And God is inside me, right?”  “Yes,” said the pastor.  “Then why doesn’t he stick out more?” the boy asked.

 

Renewed life through the power of the Holy Spirit not only means receiving an unbelievable gift from God; it also means “letting God stick out” by giving witness that others will know the power of His love through the cross.

Was Nicodemus reborn? Yes. He was reborn on Good Friday as he and Joseph of Arimathea retrieved the body of Jesus and prepared it for burial. They anointed it with one hundred pounds of perfumes and spices, and wrapped it in a linen shroud. Nicodemus was there for this sacred ritual, and Nicodemus was reborn in his relationship with God.

”God so loved the world that He gave…” Ponder the wonder of the meaning of it all.  

 

 

                                               Go With God,

                                               Pastor Qualley