John 3:1

NICODEMUS

‘There was a man of the Pharisees, named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews.’

John 3:1

The accounts given us in Holy Scripture of Nicodemus are, in many respects, of peculiar interest.

I. A night visitor.—Of the early years of Nicodemus we know nothing. We first hear of him in this third chapter of John. It may be asked, Why did Nicodemus go to our Lord by night? The answer, no doubt, is, He was afraid to go by day. We are not told how long the visit lasted, but we may be sure that the gracious words that proceeded out of His mouth could never be forgotten by Nicodemus. Very precious in after years must have been the memory of that personal and private converse at such a time, and in such a place, with the Son of God Most High.

II. A defender of Christ.—Now let us turn to the next occasion on which we read of Nicodemus (John 7:50). The time soon came when the Pharisees and Chief Priests became so jealous of our Lord’s power and influence that they determined to silence Him. For this purpose officers were sent to apprehend Him; but they did not, for, said they, ‘Never man spake like this Man.’ Then do we read of Nicodemus making a stand on our Lord’s behalf. We notice that he is still timid and cautious, but he does try to throw His shield over our Lord, and appears to stand alone in so doing, thereby exposing himself to the taunts of the most blind and ignorant prejudice.

III. A lover of Christ.—Once more do we read of Nicodemus. After the sad scene was ended at Mount Calvary, Joseph of Arimathea came and begged the body of Jesus and took it and laid it in his own new tomb in the adjacent garden. ‘And there came also Nicodemus, which at the first came to Jesus by night.’ How careful John is to identify Nicodemus and prevent our mistaking him for anybody else! ‘And brought a mixture of myrrh and aloes about a hundred pound weight.’ There is something very touching in this pious act of Nicodemus. All His disciples had forsaken Him in the hour of His deepest need. And now the faithful women and Joseph of Arimathea and Nicodemus gather round the sacred remains and perform the last sad offices of love. The humiliation and reproach of the Cross had intensified rather than lessened their feeling of reverence and love, and so to them was allowed the holy privilege, never to occur again, of committing the Sacred Body to the tomb.

We know nothing more of Nicodemus, but we may gather from his simple story that our Lord does not reject a weak faith, provided it is sincerely directed towards Himself, and gives proof of its vitality by its growth.

Illustration

‘If Christ reveals to Nicodemus great fundamental truths, it must have been because He saw in His hearer some fitness to receive these thoughts. “He knew what was in man,” and He recognised in His visitor one upon whom transcendental conceptions would not be thrown away, but in whose mind they would rest and germinate and “bring forth fruit.” We have here the introduction of the Gospel to a religious philosopher, who was certainly no stranger to the remoter depths of theological thought, who well understood the use of figurative language, who could see the substance behind the metaphorical drapery, and could himself use such drapery to veil his meaning. He was no fisherman upon the Sea of Galilee, no country peasant, no publican called straight from a dishonourable seat of custom, but one of the religious élite, trained in a famous school of interpretation, occupying a high position.’