Flattery Will Get You Nowhere
Read John 3:1-21.
It's the way the world works, and kids learn it early on. My daughter, more than my son, will come up to me and say something like, "Dearest father, I hope you are feeling well today..." or something like that. Usually beginning with "Dearest father..." I still have the note saved in my phone that she wrote to me when she was trying to convince us to get her a cell phone (pictured above). It was written when she was 11 years old!
We live by the adage, "Flattery will get you everywhere!"
But Jesus doesn't agree. Right on the heels of yesterday's incident, where Jesus made it clear that human opinion matters very little to him, Jesus receives a visit from Nicodemus. Nicodemus was a Pharisee, someone who believed in strict adherence to the law of Moses. What's interesting is that the Pharisees and Jesus differed very little in terms of theology and Biblical interpretation. What caused conflict between the two groups was Jesus calling them out on their failure to practice what they preached. The Pharisees, it seemed, were more concerned about outward appearances than they were with actual heart change, actual lived faith.
So Nicodemus comes under cover of night. He knows it's dangerous for his public image to be seen with Jesus, so he comes at a time no one else is out and about. And he begins with what was, for him, a typical conversation starter: flattery. "Rabbi," he says, "we know that you are a teacher who has come from God. For no one could perform the signs you are doing if God were not with him" (3:2). Notice how quickly Jesus shuts him down. He tells Nicodemus what the bottom line is. Flattery will get you nowhere. The only thing that matters in the long run, Jesus says, is whether or not you are born again.
In the 70's, when I was growing up, that phrase became "popular" with some Christians. It was a badge of honor or a mark of distinction to say you were born again. For many, I think there was about as much understanding of that phrase as Nicodemus has. He doesn't get it. But he's only able to engage in a serious theological discussion with Jesus once he has left the flattery behind. Jesus isn't interested in the flattery. He wants to see your heart change. He wants to see you made new, as if you've been born all over again. Does he see that in you?
By the way, you may notice if you compare Bible translations, that the "most famous verse" in this chapter (3:16) is sometimes in red (indicating that the words were spoken by Jesus) and sometimes not. It's important to know that there are no punctuation marks in the original text; any punctuation in our modern text is an addition, and sometimes a guess. In the case of the end of this chapter, 3:16-21, most scholars today believe John at this point has stopped writing and "gone to preaching." These verses are John's reflection on the conversation Jesus and Nicodemus had, and not actually part of the conversation. But since the original text doesn't tell us for sure (where conversation ends and preaching begins), we won't know 100% until we see Jesus and can ask him!
It's the way the world works, and kids learn it early on. My daughter, more than my son, will come up to me and say something like, "Dearest father, I hope you are feeling well today..." or something like that. Usually beginning with "Dearest father..." I still have the note saved in my phone that she wrote to me when she was trying to convince us to get her a cell phone (pictured above). It was written when she was 11 years old!
We live by the adage, "Flattery will get you everywhere!"
But Jesus doesn't agree. Right on the heels of yesterday's incident, where Jesus made it clear that human opinion matters very little to him, Jesus receives a visit from Nicodemus. Nicodemus was a Pharisee, someone who believed in strict adherence to the law of Moses. What's interesting is that the Pharisees and Jesus differed very little in terms of theology and Biblical interpretation. What caused conflict between the two groups was Jesus calling them out on their failure to practice what they preached. The Pharisees, it seemed, were more concerned about outward appearances than they were with actual heart change, actual lived faith.
So Nicodemus comes under cover of night. He knows it's dangerous for his public image to be seen with Jesus, so he comes at a time no one else is out and about. And he begins with what was, for him, a typical conversation starter: flattery. "Rabbi," he says, "we know that you are a teacher who has come from God. For no one could perform the signs you are doing if God were not with him" (3:2). Notice how quickly Jesus shuts him down. He tells Nicodemus what the bottom line is. Flattery will get you nowhere. The only thing that matters in the long run, Jesus says, is whether or not you are born again.
In the 70's, when I was growing up, that phrase became "popular" with some Christians. It was a badge of honor or a mark of distinction to say you were born again. For many, I think there was about as much understanding of that phrase as Nicodemus has. He doesn't get it. But he's only able to engage in a serious theological discussion with Jesus once he has left the flattery behind. Jesus isn't interested in the flattery. He wants to see your heart change. He wants to see you made new, as if you've been born all over again. Does he see that in you?
By the way, you may notice if you compare Bible translations, that the "most famous verse" in this chapter (3:16) is sometimes in red (indicating that the words were spoken by Jesus) and sometimes not. It's important to know that there are no punctuation marks in the original text; any punctuation in our modern text is an addition, and sometimes a guess. In the case of the end of this chapter, 3:16-21, most scholars today believe John at this point has stopped writing and "gone to preaching." These verses are John's reflection on the conversation Jesus and Nicodemus had, and not actually part of the conversation. But since the original text doesn't tell us for sure (where conversation ends and preaching begins), we won't know 100% until we see Jesus and can ask him!
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