There is something pathetic in the Scriptural account of our Savior's brief interview with Nicodemus, who, under cover of night, sought counsel of him who spake "as one having authority, and not as the scribes." So gentle and persuasive were Jesus' words that this "master of Israel" knew he could listen to them with profit. Doubtless, it had been a day of great rejoicing among the Nazarene's humble followers, because the blind had received their sight, lepers had been cleansed, and many other wonders had been performed upon the highways leading into the holy city. Are we not right in supposing that Nicodemus, possibly along with other dignitaries, had witnessed these works, and heard the marvelous words which so astounded the ears of both doubters and believers?
So sanguine and implicit was the Nazarene's faith in the Father's immanence and love, and so deep was his knowledge of the law of spiritual causation, we do not wonder that when his counsel was rejected and his works denounced or scandalized, his heart was fraught with deep sorrow. But Nicodemus came, not to berate or criticize, but to inquire and receive a verification of the faith that was already taking root deep down in his consciousness.
"Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God." Were not these strange words to be given to a ruler? But Nicodemus' reply showed that he had not in the least caught the meaning of the rebirth of which Jesus was speaking. "Art thou a master of Israel, and knowest not these things?" was our Savior's rejoinder, so candid in diction that the heart of the listener must have been deeply touched by it. A "master of Israel" and a maker of laws for men—yet he was deficient in the very essentials that would fit him to perform his official duties unerringly. The pathos of it became apparent when his counselor wisely and lovingly talked on, without rancor or even a trace of impatience, doubtless so convincingly that the listener must have gone his way with a conviction and faith more complete and lasting than perhaps he realized at the time.
