Coptic Orthodox Answers

In the Father and Son, the Holy Spirit, One God. Amen.

Welcome to Coptic Orthodox Answers Deep Dive where we dive deeper together in studying the Gospel of John. So far, we have covered the introduction and chapters 1 and 2, and we're about to dive deeper into chapter 3 and the encounter of Nicodemus with Christ. So, let's jump right into it.

So, verses 1 and 2 say:

'' 1 There was a man of the Pharisees named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews. [A ruler of the Jews here means a member of the Sanhedrin, right?, the leaders of the Jewish community.] 2 This man came to Jesus by night...'' (John 3:1-2)

So, we have two opinions here. The first opinion says that Nicodemus came to Jesus by night, because he was afraid. The other opinion says that, because Christ was busy, you know, healing people and doing all these miracles throughout the day, and potentially, Nicodemus also had much to do, that the only available time for him to encounter Christ was at night. We don't know which one it is.

For the second opinion, people that believe this, they base themselves on the fact that Nicodemus defended Christ later on in His trial with the Sanhedrin. But as well, Nicodemus could have grown in faith. He could have grown in understanding who the Messiah was, right?, and have found the strength only then, none... not necessarily at this specific time. So, we don't know which opinion is the correct one.

And then, so:

'' 2 This man came to Jesus by night and said to Him, ''Rabbi, we know that You are a teacher come from God; for no one can do these signs that You do unless God is with him.'' '' (John 3:2)

Here Nicodemus says we know. So, Nicodemus is not coming only for himself. He's coming on behalf of a group of people, potentially a group of people from the Sanhedrin. How many people are involved in that group we do not know, but he comes on their behalf, because they have seen the mission or heard of the mission that Christ is doing. And because they think that they can find life in the law, they want to approach Christ to get advice from Him to see how is it that they could better apply the law, and therefore, better have life within the law. But as we will see, Christ leads them in a completely different direction.

So, verse 3 says:

'' 3 Jesus answered and said to him, ''Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.'' (John 3:3)

So, Jesus here, understanding Nicodemus' mindset, knew that he's trying to find life in the law. He redirects him towards the true source of life here and He starts talking about this second birth. Here, the words are rendered born again, but a better rendering, if we look at the Greek, is born from above. Of course, we are born again, but the emphasis is that we are born from above. The second's birth is from above. It is spiritual. You will not find life in the law. You will find life in a second birth, right? And this is where Christ was leading the conversation.

So, in verse 4, it says:

'' 4 Nicodemus said to Him, ''How can a man be born when he is old? Can he enter a second time into his mother’s womb and be born?'' '' (John 3:4)

In other words, he's saying: I'm a grown man. How am I supposed to do this? I don't understand. So, in verse 5:

'' 5 Jesus answered, ''Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God. 6 That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit.'' '' (John 3:5-6)

So, He's saying, other words: Don't confuse the fleshly birth with the spiritual birth. What I'm talkin' about here is a birth from on high, a spiritual one, right? It's not as you think it is. So, remember, in verse 3, how Christ was saying that we are born from above or born again? So, in verse 5, He clarifies how are we to be born again. He says: I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit... So, He clearly speaks about baptism like the Church Fathers have mentioned, which I'll show you in a few seconds.

So, notice here how God makes baptism a condition to enter into the kingdom of God. Therefore, baptism is not a mere symbolic act. There are mysterious things that happen to us in the sacrament of baptism that make us worthy to enter the kingdom of God. So, this is very important. So, I will put a link or two in the comments section 1 explaining why baptism is crucial for our salvation and I encourage you to watch these videos.

So, let us look at a couple of quotes from the Church Fathers regarding baptism. There are many quotes, obviously, we can discuss, but I have chosen two for the sake of time. The first

1 Unfortunately, these links have been removed. We apologize for any inconvenience this may cause.

one is from St. Clement of Rome and I chose St. Clement because he lived at the end of the 1 st century. His name is actually mentioned in Philippians, chapter 4. So, he knew St. Paul and, obviously, was a member of the first Church. So, this quotation is very important. So he says:

''For thus the prophet [talking about Jesus] has sworn to us, saying, ''Verily I say to you, unless you be regenerated by living water into the name of the Father, Son, and the Holy Spirit, you shall not enter the Kingdom of Heaven.'' (St. Clement of Rome, 35-99 A.D.)

So, he's taking here being born again of the water and spirit to mean regeneration by the living water, which is fine... we find in Titus, chapter 3, as well, into the name of the Father and Son, the Holy Spirit, so, the baptism in the name of the Trinity, and without it, we cannot enter the Kingdom of Heaven. So, he makes it very clear for us.

So, the second quote I've chosen is obviously from St. Cyril of Alexandria, because we love St. Cyril so much. And he's one of the prominent theologians, truly, and there's a reason why the Church called him or nicknamed him the pillar of faith. So, he says:

''For our Lord Jesus Christ was calling the new birth through the Spirit from above, showing that the Spirit is of the Essence that is above all essences...'' (St. Cyril of Alexandria, Commentary on John 3:5)

So, here, he's talkin' 'bout the Spirit with capital S, meaning the Holy Spirit, and obviously the Holy Spirit is a person of the Trinity, so he's saying that the Essence of the Spirit is above all standard essences, right? So, there's a difference between a human essence and the divine essence. Here, the Spirit is divine.

'' (...) through Whom we become partakers of the Divine Nature [So, we share in the attributes of God. How?], as enjoying Him who proceeds from it essentially, and through Him and in Him re-formed to the Archetype-Beauty, and thus re-born unto newness of life, and re-moulded to the Divine Sonship.'' (St. Cyril of Alexandria, Commentary on John 3:5)

So, what does this all mean? It means the following. So, sin, in us, leads to corruption. Sin means that we are missing the mark. We have the image of God in us, but we are missing the mark. The image is incomplete, is deformed, is corrupted, in other words, right? Now, what baptism does is that it takes that image of God in me and reforms it to the Archetype's Beauty's state, right? So, I am brought back to where I was prior to sin, where Adam was prior to sin.

So, that's what baptism does. One of the things that it does is that it takes that corruption side of me and removes it. And now, the image of God that was corrupted, it's back to its

former estate. I am therefore recreated as a human. I am born again. I am born from above. That's what he means: in Him re-formed to the Archetype-Beauty, and thus re-born unto newness of life, and re-moulded to the Divine Sonship. So, baptism is crucial for our salvation and our communion and fellowship with God. And without it, we cannot be truly in fellowship with Him.

So, Nicodemus is coming on behalf of a group of the Sanhedrin to ask about how to better have life in the law. Christ tells him: Forget about the law. I will fulfill the law on your behalf, but I need you to be baptized. I need you to allow Me to take that corruption inside of you and to heal it. I need you to allow Me to restore My image in you to its original state, that you may have true fellowship with Me. And since I am the source of life, therefore, through baptism, you will have communion with the source of life, and therefore, you will automatically have life.

So, moving forward to verses 7 and 8. Verse 7 says:

'' 7 Do not marvel that I said to you, 'You must be born again.' '' (John 3:7)

Here, Nicodemus is marvelling. Nicodemus cannot believe what he's hearing, because in their understanding at the time, all Jews had life in the law and it was a guarantee for them to have life, as long as they abide by the law. But here, Christ is telling him something very different. He's telling him: No, even the Jews need to be baptized if they are to truly have life. And that shocked him. It was news to him, right? So, he's marvelling.

And then, in response to this, Christ says, in verse 8:

'' 8 The wind blows where it wishes, and you hear the sound of it, but cannot tell where it comes from and where it goes. So is everyone who is born of the Spirit.'' '' (John 3:8)

Here, Christ plays on the word πνεύμα (pneuma), right? So here, the wind, which is pneuma 2 , right?, blows where it wishes. But pneuma also means spirit. So, if we look at the Greek, we find the word pneuma for wind in the beginning of verse 8, and for spirit at the end of verse 8.

So, in other words, Christ is saying this... As you see the pneuma, the wind, and you experience it, right?, you see it, you know, moving the trees, branches, moving the tree leaves and so on, and you can experience it... although you don't see the wind itself, you can experience it, therefore believe what I'm saying.

But I'm talking about the other pneuma, the Spirit, the Holy Spirit. Although this pneuma you will not see like the other one, right?, but you can still experience it by having the Holy Spirit, this pneuma inside of you, right? So, Christ is playing on the word pneuma here to say:

2 The Greek word referenced here is actually ρεύμα (revma), which means current, in the sense of draft, airflow in this context. The word πνεύμα (pneuma) is the one that really means spirit.

Believe Me, you will experience what I'm telling you in the future, but for now, just have faith that you need to be baptized to have life within you. But Nicodemus is still having trouble understanding what Christ is saying. So, it says, in verse 9:

'' 9 Nicodemus answered and said to Him, ''How can these things be?'' [He's not getting it.] 10 Jesus answered and said to him, ''Are you the teacher of Israel, and do not know these things? [In other words, meaning if you had studied the Scriptures better, you would understand what I'm talkin' about.] 11 Most assuredly, I say to you, We speak what We know and testify what We have seen...'' '' (John 3:9-11)

The we here, he's talking about the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. St. Cyril and St. John Chrysostom talk about how the we means the Father and the Son. There's another opinion talks about or says that here the we means the Son of God, meaning Christ and St. John the Baptist. It's another opinion that is out there, but we'll stick with St. Cyril and St. John Chrysostom.

'' 11 (...) and you do not receive Our witness.'' (John 3:11)

The you here is plural, so, meaning Nicodemus and the colleagues that sent him. Obviously, in the English, we cannot tell if it's a plural or a singular you, but in the Greek, it is obvious that it's a plural you. So, it's not only about Nicodemus, but about his colleagues as well and potentially all the Jews altogether that are not understanding this Old Testament Scriptures properly, and therefore, are not able to receive Christ and His message as they should.

Remember: Know your faith, live your faith, and teach your faith. And glory be to God forever and ever. Amen.

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Remember: Know your faith, live your faith, and teach your faith.