Pushed Around by the Spirit

I love the story of Nicodemus coming to Jesus. Nicodemus was a smart man and one of the religious leaders of that time, and Jesus used their meeting as an opportunity to teach Nicodemus a lesson about God’s Spirit. The lesson that jumps out and speaks to me is that no matter how educated we may be, or how much authority we may have, we need to let God guide our lives. There are things we don’t understand - plain and simple - God has plans for us that we don’t know about. We need to let God guide us - literally we need to let God’s Spirit push us around like the wind pushes around leaves.

There is sort of a play on words in verse 8. In the original language that the Bible was written in the same word could be translated as “spirit” or as “wind”. So Jesus uses the example of the wind in talking about God’s Spirit. We can’t see it and we can’t really feel it, and we can’t really hear it, but we can see things being moved around by it, like leaves. We can feel the effects of it as it pushes air against us, and we can hear the sounds created by its movement through the trees and through an open window and the noise made by whatever the wind may be tossing around in the yard.

We don’t have to understand how God works...

Just as you don't know the path of the wind, or how bones develop in the womb of a pregnant woman, so you don't know the work of God who makes everything. (Ecc 11:5 CSB)

...We just need to have faith that He has a plan for us and wants to use us to help others. We should let God’s Spirit push us where He wants us to go, that way God will guide us to the work He wants us to do.

Here's the story:

John 3:1... There was a man from the Pharisees named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews.

 ² This man came to Him at night and said, " Rabbi, we know that You have come from God as a teacher, for no one could perform these signs You do unless God were with him."  ³ Jesus replied, " I assure you: Unless someone is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God."  ⁴ "But how can anyone be born when he is old?" Nicodemus asked Him. "Can he enter his mother's womb a second time and be born?"  ⁵ Jesus answered, "I assure you: Unless someone is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God. ⁶ Whatever is born of the flesh is flesh, and whatever is born of the Spirit is spirit.  ⁷ Do not be amazed that I told you that you must be born again. ⁸ The wind blows where it pleases, and you hear its sound, but you don't know where it comes from or where it is going. So it is with everyone born of the Spirit." (Joh 3:1-8 CSB)

How is your relationship with God coming along? Are you praying for God’s Spirit to push you where God wants you to be?

Pray a lot and love God.

Treasure the journey as you yield to God’s Spirit.

Unless otherwise noted, all Scripture quotations are taken from the Holman Christian Standard Bible®, Used by Permission HCSB ©1999,2000,2002,2003,2009 Holman Bible Publishers. Holman Christian Standard Bible®, Holman CSB®, and HCSB® are federally registered trademarks of Holman Bible Publishers.