BORN AGAIN

INTRODUCTION

The title of my homily for this Tuesday in the Second Week of Easter is, “Born Again!”

That idea, that image, that theme, comes from this 3^rd chapter of the Gospel of John - when Jesus tells Nicodemus, “You must be born again from above.”

And Nicodemus - like many of the main characters in the Gospel of John thinks literally. He doesn’t get the poetry and thinking patterns of Jesus. To him water is water. Wind is wind. And birth is your birthday - once.

CHANGE!

And Nicodemus - here in the 3^rd Chapter of John changes.  For him it's a process. In 7:50 we hear him speaking up for Jesus. In 19:39 he comes with Joseph of Arimathea who asked Pilate if they could remove the body of Jesus after his death. Like many of these main characters in the gospel of John, Nicodemus changes. He is reborn. It happens to the Samaritan Woman in Chapter 4. It happens to the cripple in Chapter 5. It happens to the Bread in Chapter 6. It begins to happen to the guards in Chapter 7. It happens to the men who want to stone the woman caught in adultery in Chapter 8. It happens to the blind man in Chapter 9. It doesn’t happen to the Jews who want to stone Jesus to death on the feast of the dedication in Chapter 10. It happens to Lazarus in Chapter 11.

Jesus is all about calling people to change - to be reborn. Just as water can change and become wine - and wine can change and become the Blood of Jesus -  just as wheat can change and  become flour and then can become bread and then bread can change and become the Body of Christ, so too we can change.

CHANGE OR REMAIN STUCK?

Jesus came and called people to change - to conversion -  to become brand new - to be born again.

When was the last time I have changed: how I see life, how I see another, how I see family members, how I see myself? When was the last time I changed? 

It should be happening every other day - like watching the winds shake the trees - like watching the trees come back to life in the spring - so too we should see ourselves shaking at times - budding at times - growing at times - becoming new a lot of times.

Last night I was talking to a couple at dinner and I said how stupid I thought the Russians were when it comes to tourism. I said they could make a lot more money if they didn't appear to look so cold and Stoic with their faces at  the customs and passport checking in places when we went to St. Petersburg in Russia. The husband said, “I said the same thing to some Russians once and they said to me, ‘Do you know how tough your custom agents are when we come into America?”

I thought for a moment and then said, “I never thought of it that way before. Thank you!”

Will I ever make my first statement again? I hope not. Time will tell.

We’ve all heard the saying that a cat has nine lives?

How about human beings?

I once heard a talk on Frank Sinatra. The speaker was saying that Frank Sinatra had 4 lives. Critics said he was finished when he broke up his marriage with Nancy to marry Ava Gardner for her third marriage. He was a national hero at that point. The bobby soxers swooned over him. When he fell in love with Ava,  he disappointed his fan base. However, it wasn’t his end - nor hers. The speaker told us that Sinatra had 3 more lives after that.

I always like to quote Glenn Close, as Iris Gaines, the old girl friend of Roy Hobbs - Robert Redford - in the movie, The Natural - how we all have 2 lives. 

Roy Hobbs said to Iris, “My life didn’t turn out the way I expected.”

Iris says, "You know, I believe we have two lives."

Roy says, "How ... what do you mean?"

Iris says, "The life we learn with and the life we live with after that."

Think about that one.

A relative once said to me, “You’ve changed in this new assignment." 

It wasn’t here. 

I was intrigued by that comment and asked, “How so?” 

“Well, you seem so different.”  

I couldn’t get a specific - so I didn’t find that comment too helpful. 

I would hope each birthday, each job, each assignment, each experience, can find us wiser or more experienced. So that comment was heard - and even though it wasn't specific, it got me thinking.

CONCLUSION

The Gospel of John keeps challenging us to growth - to new life. I love John 10:10b where Jesus says, “I have come that you might have life and that you live it to the full.”

Am I?

I think one practice would be to see ourselves as each character in the Gospel of John. Picture the Gospel of John as a mirror and see ourselves as Nicodemus, or the cripple,  or any of the characters in his story and then ask Jesus for help to be reborn into the image and likeness of God. Amen.