"The Other Saint"

 "And there came also Nicodemus, which at first came to Jesus by night, and brought a mixture of myrrh and aloes, about an hundred pound weight." (John 19:39 KJV)

  "You are my private garden, my treasure, my bride, a secluded spring, a hidden fountain. Your thighs shelter a paradise of pomegranates with rare spices - henna with nard, nard with saffron, fragrant calamus and cinnamon, with all the trees of frankincense, myrrh, and aloes, and every other lovely spice. You are a garden fountain, a well of fresh water steaming down from Lebanon's mountains." (SONG OF SONGS 4:12-15 NLT)

 As previously stated, Nicodemus came to Jesus by night, hoping to understand what gave Him the boldness and authority to do things, which common people, as well as those in priestly positions, were unable to have the nerve or the gumption to attempt to do. The Temple was considered to be a sacred place, a place of worship, a place of refuge, and a place where the Spirit of God would manifest and do things that only God had the power to do. 

 Thus, the reason the Jews requested the Jesus show them a sign, to show His authority to cleanse out the Temple, chasing out the moneychangers and turning over tables! As I mentioned before, these things Jesus did twice, and during my upbringing, this was made known to me as the proof that Jesus was not perfect, as I was told, 'He had some serious anger issues, basically decimating the Temple.'

 That would have been the J.W. version of the story; but what I know now, is that Jesus was honoring His Father's house; cleansing it, as it was being used for making money, not for a place dedicated to worship. This was something that caused Nicodemus to need to know the things he did not understand! Having been a teacher of the Scriptures, you would think he would think he knew everything; but like most who seriously search the Scriptures for truth, the more you search, the more you need answers! 

 There is something that I have been amazed with, since the mid-nineties, which I have shared with several pastors and friends that study and teach the Word of God. The verse is found in Job 38:22-23, as God is asking Job if he has entered into the treasures of the snow and the hail. They say that the Book of Job is the oldest know writings of the Bible, and many of the things which are written in those verses, to this day, explain certain things about our existence, that science is just beginning to figure out. 

 With this mystery that God speaks about, He says: "Which I have reserved against the time of troubles, against the day of battle and war?" As it turns out, the first global conflict was started in 1914, which happened to be around ten years after the first pictures were taken of magnified snowflakes, which were considered to be treasures! 

 This might not seem all that important to some, but to me, it tells me that God's timetable is not that far off from being fulfilled. Our planets troubles have just begun, things will become terribly worse before they get better. We need to be prepared for what is going to happen, "Study to show yourself approved!" (2 Timothy 2:15)

 Back to Nick, the one that needed to know more: Jesus told him more than could comprehend in one sitting! Therefore, it would make sense to those that try to make sense, that this was not the first and only encounter that Nicodemus had with Jesus. If you are someone who wants answers, you don't give up searching for answers when you only given more things to question. 

 By the way, the whole reason that Nicodemus had so much spice, many believe was to preserve the body of Jesus, and to keep it smelling good. Another reason that I believe Nicodemus was a strong believer that Jesus was telling the truth about rising up from the grave in three days. Both of these Saints believed, doing their parts to assist in the preservation of Jesus' body. Although, they really didn't need to do it, it was done out of respect and admiration to their Lord and King! 

 Another little tidbit, Nicodemus means, "Conqueror" which is also defined as, "victorious among his people". There are certain cultures that have portrayed both Joseph and Nicodemus as Saints; some even have the two of them pictured in paintings, standing beside Jesus after His resurrection. Whatever you might think of them, they both sacrificed a bit of themselves to protect the body of Christ...

"So let us stop going over the basic teachings about Christ again and again. Let us go on instead and become mature in our understanding. Surely we don't need to start again with the fundamental importance of repenting from evil deeds and placing our faith in God. You don't need further instruction about baptisms, the laying on of hands, the resurrection of the dead, and eternal judgment. And so, God willing, we will move forward to further understanding." (Hebrews 6:1-3 NLT)