John 19:39 And there came also Nicodemus, which at the first came to Jesus by night, and brought a mixture of myrrh and aloes… Each of these passages contains a vivid picture, and together they unfold the progressive spiritual experience of the man portrayed. In the first the night silence is broken by the footsteps of one who steals along, afraid, to the great Teacher. In the second, in the council-chamber of the supreme assembly of the nation, He interposes a trembling word of expostulation at a gross illegality, a word which brings down on its utterer a storm of indignation, but cannot be recalled; it shows that, though amongst His enemies, Nicodemus is at heart a friend of Jesus. In the third, at Calvary. Two men in the garb of rulers appear, and, braving the shame and scorn, advance, and with reverent gentleness take the Body down, and bear it away to the sepulchre. And of those — the two most courageous hearts in all Judaea at that moment — Nicodemus was one. I. THE RULER'S SECRET APPLICATION TO CHRIST. 1. There was at heart a secret longing for what only Christ could give. No one would have supposed that Nicodemus was unsatisfied; he seems to have had almost every temporal good. But He had hours of anxious wondering, seasons when His thirsty soul turned away from earth as from broken cisterns which could hold no water, and a conviction that somehow what he so much wanted this Teacher sent from God could give. How little we know what is going on in those around us I No one could have thought this of Nicodemus. 2. But the gratification of that longing was opposed by great difficulties. No soul can try to make its way to Christ without finding an enemy there to prevent it; but in the case of some — those whose circle is more or less antagonistic to Christ; whose training has led them to believe that morality is enough — who have taken a position in a contrary direction from which it is hard to recede; the difficulties are almost overwhelming. They are illustrated here. This man was "a Pharisee;" as such he had set ideas on the subject of religion, was one of the council of the LXX. and a doctor of the law. Hardly anything can be more difficult than for a man, perhaps an old man, who has prided himself on his beliefs, to come to say, "Perhaps after all I am wrong, at least I am not satisfied, teach me and let me learn," but when one knows that he must have Christ or perish, he makes short work with these barriers. 3. When these difficulties were broken through, Christ received and taught the applicant. He might have said, "Come to Me by day, I am tired and would rest," or, "Why should I forego repose to listen to a Pharisee?" He might have upbraided him with his fear, or questioned his sincerity. Christ did none of these, "He will not break the bruised reed," &c. How full of help are the words, "The same came to Jesus by night"! Many come by day, and we see them. There are others whom we do not see, and wonder they do not come; perhaps they come to Jesus by night. All who come as he did, are welcomed as he was. II. THE RULER'S UNCONSCIOUS CONFESSION OF ATTACHMENT TO CHRIST. What was the immediate result of the interview we are left to imagine; but that is not difficult. Christ gave him instruction because He recognized in him a sincere seeker, and we cannot doubt that from that time Nicodemus was at heart a disciple of Jesus. But he makes no stand; months pass; he is in the council-chamber, the hatred of his colleagues to Christ breaks out in a storm, and then in spite of himself he lets fall a word which reveals that secretly he is on the Lord's side. But why secretly? Many here may know what it would cost to stand fearlessly forward as the humble champion of righteousness in the social circle or in public, and they find the answer there. But let me remind you that such a position — 1. Is one of great injustice to Christ. If we were to judge by those whom we see come forward, we should be obliged to say that comparatively few are brought to Christ when early life is passed. I have rarely seen a man of years, and position, and learning take it for the first time; and when then, we ask, Are such men past hope? we think of Nicodemus and believe there are many whose surrender to Christ is the secret of their own soul. Such do not reflect how unjust that secrecy is. We cannot estimate what would have been the consequence if Nicodemus had come boldly out at first; many of the rulers secretly believed, and only wanted a fearless leader. He who has deigned to receive us has a right to expect that we let men know what He has done for us. 2. Involves considerable pain to the man himself. Those months in which this Jewish councillor kept his allegiance to Christ a secret must have been months of great discomfort. He could not listen to debates from which he revolted, nor walk the streets and be regarded as one of those who were against Christ, without a guilty conscience. Let one live below what he knows God requires, and from that moment his happiness is doomed. 3. Is a position of great peril to spiritual hope. "Whoso shall confess Me," &c. Confession of Christ is indispensable to salvation because it is the necessary result of that union with Christ in which salvation consists. III. THE RULER'S OPEN AVOWAL OF DISCIPLESHIP TO CHRIST. There is a point where the real disciple must emerge from secrecy. Where is it? Where he has a vision of Jesus crucified. We lose our courage because we do not look at the cross. There are mainly three hindrances to confession of Christ, and the cross conquers them all. 1. The cross is a declaration of redemption. That meets the difficulty in uncertainty as to our position. Many a one feels that he cannot acknowledge that he is redeemed because he is not sure of it. But can he look on the Son of God in the agony of an accursed death, and then doubt whether an atonement of such worth has not satisfied the law? If such a price was paid for my redemption it is enough, I am redeemed. 2. The cross is a revelation of Divine love. That meets the difficulty to confessing Christ in coldness of heart. It is because our hearts are cold that we are "disciples secretly." What we want is hearts aglow with love to the Redeemer, and for that we may go to Calvary. 3. The cross is a manifestation of the Divine will. That destroys the difficulty to Christian confession in ignorance of what He would have us do. Lord, what is Thy will about me whom Thou hast redeemed? "Follow Me," He says; and as we look we see Jesus in the crucified One. The cross becomes the symbol of Christian life which, as His people, we dare not and cannot refuse, for "he that taketh not up his cross and cometh after Me cannot be My disciple." (U. New.) Parallel Verses KJV: And there came also Nicodemus, which at the first came to Jesus by night, and brought a mixture of myrrh and aloes, about an hundred pound weight. |
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