ሖረ ኀቤሁ

26 መጋቢት 2019 · 2027-04-04

Nicodemus is a Pharisee and teacher of Israel, but he comes to Jesus during the night. His darkness is not only physical. He desires truth but has not yet fully understood the identity and mission of Christ. Jesus tells him: “No one can see the Kingdom of God without being born from above.” Nicodemus initially thinks only of physical birth. Jesus speaks instead about a new birth through water and the Holy Spirit. Entry into God’s Kingdom is not achieved merely through ancestry, education, religious status, or human discipline. It is a gift of divine grace. The Holy Spirit is compared to the wind. We cannot control Him, but we can recognise His work. He renews the heart, gives spiritual life, leads believers into truth, and transforms them into children of God. Jesus then connects this new birth with His Cross. Just as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, the Son of Man must be lifted up so that everyone who believes in Him may have eternal life. God’s motivation is love: “God so loved the world that he gave his only Son.” Christ did not come to condemn the world but to save it. Nevertheless, every person must respond. Those who prefer darkness avoid the light because they do not want their deeds exposed. Those who live according to truth come into the light. Saint Paul describes the human struggle with sin and the limitations of the Law. The Law is holy, but knowledge of the commandment alone cannot free the human person. We need the grace and new life that come through Christ and the Holy Spirit. Saint John warns believers to test the spirits because not every religious message comes from God. The true Spirit confesses Jesus Christ, who truly came in the flesh. Discernment must remain joined to love, because God’s saving action is revealed through the gift of His Son. In Acts, Gamaliel advises the council not to act rashly against the apostles. He explains that if their work is merely human, it will collapse, but if it comes from God, no one will be able to destroy it. After being punished, the apostles continue proclaiming Christ with joy and courage. Nicodemus Sunday asks every believer to move from darkness into light. It is possible to possess religious knowledge while still needing inner conversion. Christ calls us to receive new life, surrender to the Holy Spirit, believe in the crucified Son, practise discernment, and live in the love God first showed us.