Bright Thursday - The Spirit Refreshes
It isn't enough to know about God. The miracle of the Resurrection offers me an intimate communion with God through the work of the Holy Spirit in my life.
Christ is risen!
Ah, the beauties of Springtime! And the hay fever! For those of us susceptible to the reign of terror that is pollen season, the watery eyes, the stuffy nose, basically all the bad stuff on all the commercials we see for medicine to combat this scourge of this wonderful season, we love and hate this time of year!
Especially when the wind is blowing around all that yellowish-green pollen that coats our cars, houses, and NOSE! Every bit of pollen seems to find its way to my nasal cavities with the slightest breeze!
OK, stop your complaining, father!
Yet, I love this time of year, with its gentle breezes and even the spring showers that clean the air and cool the day!
Just watching the breeze blow through the tree branches in my backyard relaxes me and puts life into perspective.
Even though I can’t see the wind, I can follow its path by its effects on the nature around me.
No wonder Jesus uses this illustration with Nicodemus as the Lord tries to explain how the Holy Spirit operates in birthing us into the new life of Christ.
Look at John 3:1-15:
At that time, there was a man of the Pharisees, named Nikodemos, a ruler of the Jews. This man came to Jesus by night and said to him, “Rabbi, we know that you are a teacher come from God; for no one can do these signs that you do, unless God is with him.” Jesus answered him, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born from above, he cannot see the kingdom of God.” Nikodemos said to him, “How can a man be born when he is old? Can he enter a second time into his mother’s womb and be born?” Jesus answered, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God. That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. Do not marvel that I said to you, ‘You must be born from above.’ The Spirit blows where it wills, and you hear the sound of it, and you do not know whence it comes or whither it goes; so it is with everyone who is born of the Spirit.” Nikodemos said to him, “How can this be?” Jesus answered him, “Are you a teacher of Israel, and yet you do not understand this? Truly, truly, I say to you, we speak of what we know, and bear witness to what we have seen; but you do not receive our testimony. If I have told you earthly things and you do not believe, how can you believe if I tell you heavenly things? No one has ascended into heaven but he who descended from heaven, the Son of man who is in heaven. And 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.”
This new life in Christ isn’t going to be a dramatic sign in the sky or a spectacular display on the world stage. No, it will be like the wind; you can’t see it, but you sure can tell where it’s been!
Nicodemus is having trouble with this teaching. He recognizes that Jesus is a great “rabbi” but when he comes to the Lord under the cover of darkness, out of fear for his reputation, since he was a member of the Sanhedrin court of the Jews, Nicodemus stumbles over the Lord’s teaching that we humans must be “born of water and the Spirit.”
We must be “born from above.” And it is Nikodemus’ confusion that Jesus focuses on as He confronts Nicodemus with his inability to understand this fundamental teaching of Christ. Nicodemus should get this, but he doesn’t. He doesn’t see the actions of the Spirit, because he isn’t in tune with the moving of the Spirit. And that makes everything Jesus is saying seem like nonsense to Nicodemus.
But Nicodemus should understand. He is part of the Jewish leadership. He is a scholar and well-versed in the teachings of the Law and the Prophets. He is a good and pious man. But centuries of knowing about God have fallen prey to the temptation of not actually knowing God in intimate love. All head and no heart!
What a price we pay when we fail to humbly pay attention to the subtle wisdom of God's work in the world. We miss things that should be obvious to us. We get confused by basic teachings, which keep us from embracing more profound wisdom, all because we don’t pay attention to the pattern of the “wind.”
Today, where is your life confusing? Where are you in the dark about how to be a faithful follower of Jesus Christ? Have you recognized the “blowing” of the Wind of the Spirit in your life, that gentle breeze of God’s refreshing Presence meant to wake you up to the new life Christ has won for you in His victory over death? You can, but it will take some quietness in your life; some focus, and some willingness by you to shut out the distractions that so easily blind us to the wind of God’s actions. You are called to live the new life of being born of the water and the Spirit. You are called to be a Normal Orthodox Christian.
P.S. Though You went down into the tomb, You destroyed Hades’ power, and You rose the victor, Christ God, saying to the myrrh-bearing women, “Hail!” and granting peace to Your disciples, You who raise up the fallen.
Fr. Barnabas Powell is the parish priest at Sts. Raphael, Nicholas, and Irene Greek Orthodox Church in Cumming, GA. He is also the founder of Faith Encouraged Ministries and produces the Faith Encouraged Daily Devotional on Substack. Watch the Faith Encouraged YouTube Channel here - https://www.youtube.com/@FaithEncouraged
We celebrate Fr. Barnabas’s birthday for the rest of April in our Annual Pascha Fundraiser! Please take a moment and click the link and wish Fr. Barnabas a happy birthday with a special gift for Faith Encouraged! Thank you!