A “Stranger” in the Night
As you know, my previous church
was in
A young man speaking in Armenian with an Arabic accent called through the interphone: “I am looking for the pastor. I want to get married!” I went down, opened the office, and welcomed the man in. He showed me his identification card where it was recorded that his family belonged to the Armenian Evangelical church. He said: “Pastor, I don’t know what this church is all about. My friends say you are Jehovah’s Witnesses. Is that right?” He was such a kind and honest man. That night we had a very long conversation about that church and about Christ. I will tell you the rest of the story later…
Just like Nicodemus, this man was a “stranger” in the night.
Nicodemus, a new name, a stranger. In his Gospel, John tells us about Nicodemus only twice. However, when we look at him, he is not a complete stranger. He is a known Pharisee, a judge, a member of the Sanhedrin, but a stranger to Jesus Christ.
Pharisee: The best thing that could happen to somebody! There were no more than 6000 of them. The word meant “the separated one.” They were separated from the public to live a life pleasing to God. They were interested in keeping the Law in all its details. They had the Talmud which gave them all the little details about anything you could imagine. Even things like tying shoe laces on the Sabbath were issues to be taken seriously!
Judge: Nicodemus belonged to the Jewish ruling council. He was a member of the Sanhedrin, the 70 member supreme court of the Jews. This group had religious jurisdiction over every Jew in the world; one of its duties was to examine anyone suspected of being a false prophet.
Belonging to a well known family: He came from a distinguished family. Historical books even write about his parents who were famous.
We are talking about a person who has a rich background, has studied the Law, and has studied theology. He is a judge; he has the authority to make decisions.
What was missing? What made Nicodemus go to Jesus one night? Other people would refer to him for their concerns. Now it is amazing that this aristocrat comes to a “Poor prophet”, son of a carpenter, to talk to him about the emptiness of his soul.
With all his knowledge, he was a stranger to Jesus. Who was Jesus for him?
In the television series based on Alex Haley’s famous book “Roots”, there is a memorable scene. The captain of the slave ship was a religious man. As he read his Bible every night, the cries of the suffering of the slaves would disturb him. He would close his door so he could continue reading!
It is possible to be religious, church going, yet a stranger to Christ.
To be continued in English…