2ND WEEK OF EASTER

How can a man once grown old be born again?

Poor Nicodemus!   He really wanted to understand Jesus. Jesus’ words and actions had attracted Nicodemus’ attention and, quite possibly, his admiration.   So he visited this mysterious rabbi from Nazareth.   Finding him, Nicodemus began his conversation by listing some of the impressive things said about Jesus:  “a teacher who has come from God” and someone whom “God is with” in a unique way (John 3:2).

But Nicodemus didn’t get very far before Jesus interrupted him:  “Unless one is born from above,” he said, “he cannot see the Kingdom of God” (John 3:3).   You don’t get it yet.   Without a new birth, both I and the kingdom I am preaching will remain a mystery to you.

There really is something mysterious about the Christian life.   Think of how puzzling the saints can seem to us.   How could St. Mother Teresa of Calcutta keep smiling in the midst of all the suffering she encountered in the poorest of the poor?   Or what about St. Maximilian Kolbe, a prisoner in Auschwitz who volunteered to take the place of a fellow prisoner who was condemned to die by starvation?   While he wasted away, he peacefully led his fellow prisoners in prayer.   “Who does that?” some might wonder.

Believers do, that’s who.

You are a mystery as well.   When you were baptized, you were born from above and filled with the Holy Spirit.   The same Spirit that empowered Mother Teresa and Maximilian Kolbe lives in you.   He is that mysterious presence who moves you to acts of generosity and kindness when you could just as easily walk away.   He is the One who helps you forgive a long-standing hurt even though the wound still stings.   And he is the One who can give you courage to share your faith with a neighbor despite an inner reluctance.

Every time you follow these promptings, you become a little more mysterious to the people around you—and a little more attractive.   That’s because with each act of kindness or faithfulness, you become more like Jesus, the most mysterious and attractive person who ever lived.

“Thank you, Holy Spirit, for coming to live in my heart.”

Acts 4:23-31
Psalm 2:1-9