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St. Stephen's Episcopal Church

215 N. 7th, Terre Haute, Indiana

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A Word: Everyday Heroes

Sermons · March 8, 2020

Nicodemus comes to him because he saw the signs, because he believes, because he wants something more, something only Jesus can give.


Seeking a grace beyond pessimism
Lent 2A | John 3:1-17

by Drew Downs

Everyday Heroes
Photo by Justin Hamilton from Pexels

I love this story about Nicodemus. And one of the reasons is that it has a bit of humor in the middle. Almost like a buddy comedy. One guy is talking about big picture stuff. And the other guy is like “Wait, how can anyone be born twice?” I can almost picture Nicodemus using his hands to figure out how to crawl back in.

It is funny because the place Nicodemus goes in his mind is absurd.

Now don’t you dare tell me you haven’t done this. You hear something you don’t quite understand and your mind goes literal. And you go “That doesn’t make sense?” This happens with my kids all the time. They mishear something and they’re just trying to get it.

So the question for us should not be about defending Nicodemus or insulting him or any of that. We’re all Nicodemus sometimes. The question is why he would take Jesus so literally here. And I think it is less a misunderstanding and more an expression of his theology.

Jesus is talking about being re-born and Nicodemus is like, Nah, I’m thinking its more of a “one life” deal.

And yet, he came to Jesus anyway. At night, so he’s not super-psyched to have other people see him talking to Jesus. But he comes to Jesus nonetheless. And he shows up with a different theology. But he comes because he’s entertaining a thought that I’m sure disturbs him.

Maybe I’m wrong.

But before we dive in, let’s see why Nicodemus is coming to him at all.


The full text may be found here.

For a limited time, you may find the audio here.

Filed Under: Sermons Tagged With: belief, John 3:1-17, Lent 2A, Nicodemus

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CONTACT

St. Stephen’s Episcopal Church
215 N. 7th St
Terre Haute, IN 47807

812-232-5165

officeadmin@ststephensth.org

ABOUT

St. Stephen’s is a sacramental community following Jesus’s Way of Love.

We worship on Sundays at 8 & 10.

AFFILIATIONS

St. Stephen’s is a member of The Episcopal Church and congregation of the Episcopal Diocese of Indianapolis.

St. Stephen’s is a member of the Wabash Valley Homeless Coalition

PARKING

St. Stephen’s is across from Indiana State University. Nearby parking lots are run by ISU and are free after 5pm weekdays and are free all weekend long. 

Five marked spots in the lot directly behind the church are available during the week.

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