God has filled our lives with moments, pieces of poetry, which reveal the gracious beauty and powerful mystery of the Trinity.
Carl Sandburg once defined poetry as “the opening and closing of a door.” I like that definition because it focuses less on what poetry is and more on what poetry does. Poetry gives you a glimpse of something. A door opens and closes. In between the opening and the closing, you catch a glimpse of something. You do not have everything, but you have a glimpse. And the more you think about that small glimpse, the more it grows into a larger vision which transforms your world.
The gospel of John is like that for me. Unlike Matthew, Mark, and Luke, John does not offer us long descriptive narratives that record the fullness of the earthly ministry of Jesus. Instead, John offers us much smaller moments. They are moments when Jesus is with individual people. They are characters we are familiar with like the Samaritan woman at the well, the man born blind, and Lazarus. And those moments, which quickly come and quickly go, open the door onto a much larger vision that transforms your world.
That is the case with the story of Nicodemus. Nicodemus comes to Jesus at night because he has seen or at least heard of the miracles of Jesus. “Rabbi, we know that You are a teacher who has come from God. For no one could perform the miraculous signs that You do unless God is with him” (John 3:2). John has only recorded one miraculous sign of Jesus so far, the changing of water into wine at the wedding in Cana. But we are told how, with that sign, Jesus “revealed His glory” (John 2:11).
Through miracles, Jesus revealed His glory. For John, the glory of Jesus is that He is the only begotten Son of God, full of grace and truth (John 1:14). But Nicodemus, like the reader, is not yet sure of the fullness of what this means. So, John will take this one moment, this short conversation between Nicodemus and Jesus, to transform our vision of who God is and how God works in the world.
Nicodemus says to Jesus, “Rabbi, we know that You are a teacher who has come from God. For no one could perform the miraculous signs that You do unless God is with him.” Here, Nicodemus sees something, but it is just a glimpse, a small window into something more. Nicodemus believes Jesus “has come from God” and that “God is with Him.” This is a start, but not the end, a glimpse, but not the fullness of God’s glory. Jesus has not only come from God, but Jesus is God. God is not only with Jesus. God is Jesus and Jesus is God (John 20:28).
Jesus has not only come from God, but Jesus is God. God is not only with Jesus. God is Jesus and Jesus is God.
In response to Nicodemus, Jesus begins to reveal His glory. His words are poetic. They offer brief glimpses of the work of our Triune God. The Father is present, sending His only begotten Son into the world so the world might be saved through Him (3:16). The Son is present, offering His life, being lifted up like the serpent in the wilderness so that everyone who believes in Him has eternal life (3:14-15). And the Spirit is present, granting new birth. People are being born from above through water and the Spirit (3:5-8).
Father, Son, and Holy Spirit are glimpsed in this brief encounter with Jesus and from that glimpse God opens a much larger vision which transforms the world. Jesus invites Nicodemus and John invites us, his readers, to trust that the gracious work of God the Father is transforming this world, through His Son Jesus Christ, and through the power of the Spirit.
Today, the Church celebrates Trinity Sunday. We find ourselves drawn to confess something about God that we can only glimpse and can never fully explain. The workings of the immanent and the economic Trinity can become a stumbling block for Christians if they are seen as something we need to master and have to be able to explain. Rather, the Trinity is a mystery that masters us and gently unfolds how God is present and active in our lives in His world.
While we cannot fully explain the Trinity, we have experienced God’s saving mystery. The Father sent His Son who sends the Spirit who brings us to the Son who then brings us to His Father. God’s work is eternal and yet enters our lives daily in the smallest of ways. Whether as an infant at the baptismal font or as an adult in an instruction class, whether speaking of Jesus with other Christians or explaining God’s work to our children, whether invoking God’s name at the beginning of worship or crying out to God from a waiting room, we witness the saving mystery of our Triune God.
God has filled our lives with moments, pieces of poetry, which reveal the gracious beauty and powerful mystery of the Trinity. By telling the story of Nicodemus, John invites us to stop and notice these moments, to think about them, pray over them, and pray through them. He encourages us to trust that, although we cannot see all God is doing, we know enough of His person and work to live in His forgiveness and, by faith, to walk in His mysterious ways.
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Additional Resources:
Craft of Preaching-Check out out 1517’s resources on John 3:1-17.
Concordia Theology-Various helps from Concordia Seminary in St. Louis, MO to assist you in preaching John 3:1-17.
Text Week-A treasury of resources from various traditions to help you preach John 3:1-17.
Lectionary Kick-Start-Check out this fantastic podcast from Craft of Preaching authors Peter Nafzger and David Schmitt as they dig into the texts for this Sunday!
Lectionary Podcast-Dr. Peter Scaer of Concordia Theological Seminary in Ft. Wayne, IN walks us through John 3:1-17.
