In this Sunday’s reading Nicodemus, a deeply religious person and leader, comes to visit Jesus. It is likely that Nicodemus was well known in Judean society and may have been a kind of religious celebrity in his day. This might explain why he chooses to meet with Jesus under the cover of darkness. It seems likely that Nicodemus did not want to draw too much attention to himself. This night time visit would enable the conversation to happen without anyone else overhearing.

Nicodemus knows what Jesus has been doing through his teaching, signs and miracles. Consequently, Nicodemus seems confident that Jesus has been sent by God, who is the source of the divine power that Jesus has demonstrated. However, as Jesus and Nicodemus discuss the Kingdom of God it is Jesus’ insistence that person be ‘born from above’ or ‘born anew’ depending on the translation (John 3:3) that leaves Nicodemus puzzled:

“How can anyone be born after having grown old?” (John 3:4) he asks Jesus.

Jesus goes onto explain that the believer must be born of water and of Spirit (John 3:5). Here Jesus refers to baptism by water, practiced by his disciples, and the baptism of the Holy Spirit. For it is through the life-giving Spirit that all creation was brought and the Spirit that continues to give and sustain life. Therefore, we can only experience God’s transforming power, and the Kingdom of God, if we receive that same life giving Spirit into our hearts and minds.

Nicodemus may have found Jesus’ teachings to be challenging to hear at first. As a well-respected and high achieving religious leader and scholar he would have achieved much in his lifetime through study and argument. Jesus is suggesting that it is by God’s Grace, mediated to us through the Son and the Holy Spirit, that we become part of God’s Kingdom.

Jesus goes onto draw from a story found within the Book of Numbers. His words regarding the serpent being lifted up in the wilderness go back to the days when the Hebrew people wandered in the desert. During this wandering they complained against God and then encountered poisonous snakes that bit them. Through Moses they were told to look up at a bronze staff with a snake on it and by the power of God they were miraculously healed (Numbers 21:8-9).

“Just as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, so must the Son of Man be lifted up, that whoever believes in him may have eternal life.” (John 3:14-15)

Jesus here is talking about his death on the cross and how it will be the key to everyone receiving eternal life:

“For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him may not perish but may have eternal life.” (John 3:16)

This Sunday’s Gospel reading serves as a helpful reminder that our faith does not depend on our own achievements but rather on the Triune God who gives, sustains, and redeems all life. It is through Jesus’ action on the cross and in the resurrection that we find our salvation and receive new life in the Kingdom of God. This life is offered to us through the gift of the Holy Spirit.

As we celebrate the mystery of the Trinity today, we are reminded that God as Father, Son, and Spirit are joined together. It is through Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit that we see God’s love and presence amongst us.

So let us trust in Christ and in God’s Spirit to be present with us as a helper and guide. May we remember that all we have comes as a gift from God. And may we know that as members of Christ’s Kingdom we are saved by the power of the cross and the resurrection as we are constantly held in the divine love of the triune God that never ends.