Nicodemus
Nicodemus in the Tomb, by Lester Yocum Lections: The Second Sunday in Lent , AD 2026 A Homily: Lord, we pray for the preacher, for you know his sins are great. Grace, mercy and peace to you from God our Father and from our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Amen. Nicodemus is a man of wealth, power, education, and faith. John describes him as “a ruler of the Jews,” with a seat on the Sanhedrin, the high council of Jerusalem. He joined the Pharisees, a scrupulously pious Jewish sect, concerned with the democratization of religious law. And he is fully hellenized. Nicodemus thinks like a Greek, speaks like a Greek, and even has a Greek name, which means “victory of the people.” In short, he is smart, successful, faithful, well-respected, and possesses high status religiously, socially, intellectually. Thus, in associating with Jesus, Nicodemus has a lot to lose. Early on in Jesus’ ministry, according to John’s Gospel, our Lord attends the Passover festival in Jerusalem, at which He takes to ...
