Meditation for March 4, 2009
From The Rev. Peter A. Munson
John 3:1-8
1 Now there was a Pharisee named Nicodemus, a leader of the Jews. 2 He came to Jesus by night and said to him, "Rabbi, we know that you are a teacher who has come from God; for no one can do these signs that you do apart from the presence of God." 3 Jesus answered, "Very truly, I tell you, no one can see the kingdom of God without being born anew [or, "born from above"]. 4 Nicodemus said to him, "How can a man be born after having grown old? Can he enter a second time into his mother's womb and be born?" 5 Jesus answered, "Very truly, I tell you, no one can enter the kingdom of God without being born of water and the Spirit. 6 What is born of the flesh is flesh, and what is born of the Spirit is spirit. 7 Do not be astonished that I said to you, 'You must be born anew.' 8 The wind [spirit] blows where it chooses, and you hear the sound of it, but you do not know where it comes from or where it goes. So it is with everyone who is born of the Spirit."
The Uncontrollable Spirit
Those of us who live in Colorado know something about experiencing the wind. Some parts of Colorado can be worse than others. I didn't know, for example, until I actually lived year-round in Estes Park for the first time in 1985-1986, that the wind practically blows non-stop in Estes from November through April. Most of the tourists come in the summer and say, "Wow, what an amazing place!" And, of course, they are right. But the residents might say, "Yeah, but you should see what it is like in the winter. The wind never stops blowing." And they weren't just trying to discourage more people from moving to Estes; they were also speaking the truth.
We had some very windy days in Boulder last week. The wind was so strong it was opening up the unlocked doors at church, and then banging them. As a staff, we noticed that we all were getting a little edgy at times. A non-stop wind can make you a little nuts. It's hard to relax. (Fortunately for us, the wind isn't always blowing!)
"The wind blows where it chooses, and you hear the sound of it, but you do not know where it comes from or where it goes." My children ask me sometimes, "Dad, why is it so windy today?" I suppose sometimes we can answer the question with a meteorological explanation. "A front is moving in... the cold temperatures in the mountains and the warmer temperatures down here create the conditions for it to be windy..." Blah, blah blah... But there is a mystery about the wind, and Jesus seized upon that in his discussion with Nicodemus, in comparing the wind to the Spirit. And the comparison is even more interesting when you realize that in both Hebrew and in Greek, the same word means both "wind" and "spirit" (and "breath").
Jesus says that if Nicodemus wants to see the kingdom or enter the kingdom of God, he must be born anew (or from above); that is, he must be born of the Spirit - born of God. And then he adds that the Spirit of God is like the wind; you don't know if it's coming, when it's coming, or how strong it will be. All of a sudden it is a windy day, and you are left wondering, "Dear God, why is it so darn windy today?" That's how it is with everyone who is born of the Spirit, Jesus says. All of a sudden, we are left to wonder, "What happened to this person?"
She used to be afraid of her shadow, and now she is telling everyone about her relationship with Jesus.
He used to drink until he passed out, and now he doesn't touch a drop, and leads AA groups.
He used to avoid conflict like the plague, and now he is one of the most adept people I've ever seen at working through conflicts.
She used to think only of herself, and now she is always volunteering and giving back.
He used to never talk, and now he leads workshops and speaks in front of large groups of people.
She used to be an attorney. Now she is studying to be a priest. (or vice versa)
What happened?
What happened? The Spirit happened.
My Bible has a note on verse 7: "The Greek word for you here is plural". That is, Jesus said, "You (all) must be born anew." If we want to see or enter into the kingdom of God, all of us - every last one of us - must be born anew... born of God... born again, but this time of the Spirit. I believe it is an ongoing process. By that I mean, again and again and again we must be born of the Spirit. If you want to remain alive, you must keep breathing. And if you want to be really alive in a spiritual sense, you must constantly be open to the uncontrollable, unpredictable, powerful-crazy Spirit of God, which blows where it chooses, and you hear the sound of it, or feel it, but you do not know where it comes from or where it goes, or where it might be taking you next.
This makes some sense if you think about it for a second or two, because God is mystery, and therefore, the Spirit... and Jesus, for that matter... are mysterious, too. The Spirit suddenly thrust Jesus upon the world's stage, and - just like the wind - they wondered where he had come from. Even the great teachers like Nicodemus wondered where he had come from. "Aren't you Joseph's son? Aren't you just the son of a carpenter? We know your brothers and sisters. We grew up taking wood shop with you. Where did you get all this wisdom? How are you now healing people?"
I think the change they saw in Jesus had something to do with the uncontrollable, unpredictable and powerful-crazy Spirit. Don't you?
And that uncontrollable, unpredictable and powerful-crazy Spirit is inside of you and me, too! So here are a few questions to ponder:
How does that make you feel? What do you think about that? How does it feel to know that you are not in control of the power of God, the will of God, and what God wants to do in your life? How boring is life without this Spirit of God? Are you open to this uncontrollable Spirit working on you and in you and through you, and changing your life, and the lives of those around you?
"The wind blows where it chooses, and you hear the sound of it, but you do not know where it comes from or where it goes. So it is with everyone who is born of the Spirit."