Seeking Jesus in the Dark

There once was a guy named Nicodemus. Nicodemus was a man of the Pharisees, the group that was trying to find a way to get rid of Jesus. Nicodemus comes to Jesus in John 3:1-2 under the cover of night. He didn't want the people he worked with to see him meeting with Jesus. How many of us fail to pray when we feel like we should at work or when we're out with friends because we don't want to look funny to them?
Nicodemus came to Jesus in secret, and Jesus told Nicodemus that he needed to be born again, not of flesh, but of the Spirit. If you aren't familiar with the story, you can read it all in John 3:1-21. But what ever became of Nicodemus? Well, apparently Nicodemus, being a member of the Jewish ruling council had several more occasions to interact with Jesus. He redeems his shady behavior somewhat in John 7:45-52, where he defends Jesus from the chief priests and other Pharisees.

Nicodemus' last mention in the Bible is an amazing and honorable mention. John 19:38-42 tells the story of Jesus' burial, where Joseph of Arimathea (also a secret follower of Jesus) and Nicodemus ask for the body of Jesus, and bury Him in a new tomb. Nicodemus brought about 75 pounds of spices to bury Jesus with, including myrrh, one of the gifts the wise men also brought Jesus at His birth.

Apparently Nicodemus' heart was changed by his secret meeting with Jesus, and he became more and more open about following Him as time continued on. We can't hide Jesus forever in our lives, acting like Christians only at church and trying to blend in with the world the rest of the time. At some point we will be faced with the decision to witness, to share the Gospel of Jesus, and to do what's right, or to turn our back on Jesus and deny Him. How will we respond? Will we try to stay in the shadows, or will we openly proclaim that Jesus is Lord?

Friendly Wisdom

Do you listen when God speaks to you? You may say, ...but God doesn't speak to me." God speaks to those who are willing to hear His voice. Last week we read in Proverbs 2:1-2 about listening to the voice of wisdom, seeking it as a treasure. Proverbs 2:10 carries on this message about seeking wisdom. It says you will find wisdom, and knowledge will be pleasant to you. This parallels Matthew 7:7 as well as Luke 11:9, where they both say "seek and you will find".

The next verse, Proverbs 2:11, gives the basic result of this wisdom and knowledge. With wisdom comes discretion; with knowledge comes understanding. Could a man without wisdom know when to be discreet, or a man without knowledge understand even the most simple of things?

Next, we are given two sets of examples of this discretion and understanding. We're only going to look at the first one this week, and come back to the second one next Friday. Proverbs 2:12-15 talks about wicked men that wisdom will save us from. Proverbs 2:16-19 tells us about wicked women that wisdom will save us from.

If we're claim to be saved from wicked men by the wisdom and knowledge that comes from seeking God, how can we defend having close friends fitting the description of wicked men in Proverbs 2:12-15? Likewise, if we're close friends with other men fitting that description, how likely are we to spend time earnestly praying and seeking God? We often say things like "don't judge me by the people I hang out with", but truly, the people we hang out with shows a lot about our own character.

Let us learn and strive to seek out other Godly men as our closest friends. We don't need wicked friends drawing us into things we wouldn't otherwise be involved in. The wisdom of God makes all the difference in discerning who are truly friends worthy of our friendship, and friends that are not.

Wise Counsel

Do you make all your decisions willy-nilly? Are you constantly finding out after the fact that you made the wrong choice? Well we've got what you need. Get yourself a brand-new, never used, Wise Counsel. Just the people you need to ask before making those big decisions! Now for the low price of....

This may sound like an infomercial, but it turns out this is a real problem for a lot of men. Too often they let pride get in the way and don't ask for help. The older I get the more I find that if a decision can affect me very much at all, then it's worth taking to God and a small group of people that I feel are wise. Proverbs 15:22 makes it clear that wise counsel is important to any plans. When you really think about it why would you make those decisions alone? You have the wisdom of God to help you.

The flip-side of this coin is that if you never USE your wise counsel it's pointless to ask them for advice. If you seek wise counsel every time something comes up and don't listen to the wise counsel, you've wasted their time. Proverbs 12:15 says "The way of a fool seems right to him, but a wise man listens to advice." So the next time you ask for advice, ensure the people you ask are truly wise, and then follow it.

It's Good for Everyone

With Christmas fast approaching, I feel it is appropriate to remind people exactly what it is that we are celebrating, and the sort of men that were used by God for this to all come to pass. There were 3 distinct groups of men represented in the birth of Jesus: the government, the family, and the church. Essentially, this represents every type of man possible by representing government, the family unit, and the church.

The Government
Matthew 2:1-2 introduces us to the "wise men" or "Magi". We don't know their whole story, but obviously there was a star that these men spotted in the sky that was different or new, and they recognized it as a sign that Jesus had been born, and came to worship Him. These men were obviously significant emissaries of their countries, bearing gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh, all very expensive items. These Magi encountered another type of governmental leader, Herod, who according to Matthew 2:3-9 and Matthew 2:12-16 wanted to kill Jesus. Jesus' mere lowly presence on earth was such a threat and offense to Herod that he wanted Him dead the moment He was born. Christ represents a very real threat even now to worldly leadership. Those following Him have the power of Christ through prayer to tear down the authority of men who would oppress them. To these Magi though, Christ, this little newborn baby, was worthy of their allegiance and their worship.

The Family
In Luke 2:8-20 we find the magnificent appearance of angels to the working man, heralding the birth of Christ. These men get to be the first average Joe to hear the good news and come seek Him. These men wouldn't have necessarily been educated men, and a sign in the stars may well have passed their understanding, so for them, it was made much clearer. An angelic for broke throughout the heavens and sang praise to them! How awesome and amazing it must have been! These men didn't have expensive gifts to bring, but Luke 2:16 says they hurried or made haste to find Jesus. When they heard the news, they immediately rushed to find Jesus. Luke 2:20 shows them returning glorifying and praising God.

The Church
Luke 2:25-39 shows us Simeon and Anna, who immediately upon seeing Jesus began to worship and praise and speak about Him. We often hear of Simeon here, but unfortunately Anna is commonly overlooked. Anna is an important piece here, as in the church she is the confirmation of Simeon's praise. Matthew 18:16 and 2 Corinthians 13:1 show us that we should be able to confirm anything with the word of 2 or 3 people. It's an important part of Judaism, established in Deuteronomy 17:6 and in Deuteronomy 19:15, then repeated for the New Testament church also in 1 Timothy 5:19 and Hebrews 10:28. This event established the practice again for those who follow Christ.

Every Walk of Life
We've seen here that by the time Jesus was 8 days old, His presence had been acknowledged by people from every walk of life, and members of every group had given praise to Him. Not everyone who heard of Him worshiped Him, as is still the case today. His words and a life pleasing to God and patterned after the example Jesus left us is good for every man, every group, and every walk of life. Have we acknowledged His presence in our lives this season? Have we praised Him? Have we spread the news of His birth to everyone we've come across?