Journey through John 3:3-8

Good Morning Church Family – Journey Through John

Read John 3:3-8

Devo Thought: Are the type of person who enjoys a good puzzle? I’m not much of a puzzle person myself. I see all those pieces and feel overwhelmed pretty quickly. My wife, Julie, and my daughter, Lorelei, aren’t that way though. They love a good puzzle. Recently, Lorelei took the time to put together a 1000-piece puzzle. After she completed it, she glued it and framed it for her room. I can’t imagine her level of frustration if, at the end of her work, there was a piece or two missing, leaving the puzzle incomplete. I think this is where we find Nicodemus. He is a man, who is a leader in his country and is deeply invested in his religious community. He knows the sacred text and seems to want to understand, but he also knows deep down that there is a piece or two missing from the puzzle. That’s why, I think, he comes to Jesus. He thinks Jesus might have the missing pieces. The truth is that Jesus does, in fact, have the pieces Nicodemus is seeking. Jesus starts by trying to give him one: to see the Kingdom of God, you must be born again. Instead of this piece helping Nicodemus, it confuses him. It makes the rest of the puzzle look a little unclear, so Jesus provides more. What he does is he begins to rearrange Nicodemus’ puzzle to help him put the pieces into the right places. He starts making references to spirit and water and wind. All of these are references to Ezekiel 36 and 37, a place where God promises to give His people a new birth with a new heart, a place where God tells Him dead bones will be given new life and the breath of God will come by the four winds as they blow upon this new people. The question is whether Nicodemus will take these pieces of the puzzle he’s been missing and put them in place or not. Jesus has the missing puzzle pieces of your life, to everyone’s life.

Let us ask God to reveal to us places where we have been missing puzzle pieces and ask for His help in finding them.