My Memory Fails Me

John 3:13-17

One of the things I disliked most about the Sunday school I grew up in was scripture memorization. We would have bible games followed by bible drills followed by bible quizzes followed by bible burnout. Seriously, how many times did we have to drill into our psyche all of the verses we needed to defend and live in our faith.

Let's see how well you do.

1. Romans 3:23 
2. 1 Corinthians 13:13
3. Proverbs 3:5
4. Jeremiah 29:11
5. Psalm 23

I have to be honest and tell you I had to do a search for bible verses in order to give that quiz. It's true - I do not memorize bible verses. I can recite stories, I can tell you what those stories mean to me, but I cannot tell you exactly where in the bible those stories are. The fact that I can't spew verses out from the top of my head is something I actually find peace in. Mainly because I can define stories from my heart, and to me that's a lot more important.

Let's use as an example today's passage. A simple glance at the verses chosen for today will tell you that John 3:16 is a part of the reading. (How many of you instantly quoted that verse in your head?) John 3:16 is probably the most memorized, most recited, most used verse in the bible. However, in my opinion it is wrongly utilized as the single most important evangelical tool by fundamentalist Christians.

Nicodemus visits Jesus in the dark of night, not wanting to be exposed as someone interested in the message of Jesus. Jesus engages Nicodemus in a conversation in which Nicodemus has no idea what is being said. "How is it possible to be born again? How can one be put back into the womb?", he says, completely missing the point.

Jesus' response is that being born again has nothing to do with a physical birth, rather a spiritual journey. Yes, a spiritual journey. When the Jews at the end of the first century heard this story they would understand that being "born from above" meant a journey towards God. John, in its use of light and darkness as metaphors for understanding or not, is emphasizing that those who come to Jesus in the darkness are not ready for the message of Christ. 

As we follow the story into today's reading we find Jesus still in conversation with Nicodemus, but clearly stating that Nicodemus doesn't understand. Here's where some of you will have difficulty, but for the purpose of opening your minds and hearts I want you to try this...close the quotation marks at the end of John 3:15 and reread the story of John 3. Do not include John 3:16-36 as actual words spoken by Jesus.

When this is done we find that the writer of John is now turning his focus from the conversation between Jesus and Nicodemus to the reader. As a result we can see that Jesus has become the one whom God has sent to bring light into a world filled with darkness. Jesus is the one who brings understanding into a world without understanding. Jesus has indeed been sent into this world through the love of God to bring into the world the love of God. John is trying to make the point that God's love is made understood in the life of Jesus.

Ok, I'll give those of you still reeling from my asking you to remove the quotation marks a while longer to re-read the passage. I also want to remind you that quotation marks weren't invented until the middle of the last millennium - around the 16th or 17th century. We really have no idea if or where the quotation marks in this, or any passage, truly belong. It's all an educated guess. All I ask is that you don't condemn me for suggesting that the single-most quoted bible verse may not actually be a quote by Jesus, but rather part of a story which is meant to tell us that sometimes we come to Jesus without understanding the love of God, and that through our journey with Jesus we will eventually come to understand.

For, you see, God loved all of us so much that God sent Jesus to guide us through the journey that will eventually lead us into the understanding of that love.