you, and me too two

A couple days ago, I was reading Christ plays in ten thousand places and Peterson was talking about Jesus’ conversations with Nicodemus and the Samaritan woman. I will probably end up blogging about some of the stuff that he unpacked, but actually, while I was reading, my mind brought together a different set of observations. Probably because I’d just posted an interpretive version of the Beatitudes, I noticed a connection between Jesus’ “blesseds”, and some points Peterson was making about his conversation with these two people.
Last year, I read with friends, Dallas Willard’s, The Divine Conspiracy. There were many things that strongly impacted me in that book and that experience, but one thing that was baited, or stood out last week was his discussion of the beatitudes. Willard’s thoughts were so much different than anyone’s I’d ever heard before. I won’t explain away my interpretive list from last week, but will say that it appears that the inclusion of Jesus’ discussion with Nicodemus and the Samaritan woman, serves precisely the same purpose. These two conversations are a microcosm of Matthew, chapter 5, which contains the most concise, thorough and shocking teaching of Jesus, all together in a single talk to a large crowd of ordinary, everyday people. So it begins with an all-inclusive invitation. Even these people are blessed, because this kingdom living is for everyone.
In John, chapters 3 and 4, we find conversations with two entirely different kinds of people, the highest of men in the religious culture and the lowest of women in the religious culture. Both are offered the same thing, by the same means. Nicodemus, “Israel’s Teacher”, as Jesus calls him, was offered to be “born of the spirit.” The woman was offered a drink of living water and the opportunity to worship in spirit and truth.
So the first connection I see is the all-inclusiveness of the message. The two conversations represent polar opposites of religiosity and culture and standing. The most educated, wealthy, religious man had missed it just like the lowly, cultural castoff woman.
The second connection is that his teaching to the crowd in Matthew was all about being. He was teaching them how to be. He expanded the dos and don’ts of the law to be and don’t be. It’s not enough not to commit adultery, if you lust in your heart, you already have. Nicodemus comes to find out what to do to get into the kingdom, but Jesus explains how he must be. Jesus knows about the woman’s five husbands and current live-in lover, but says nothing more about them, he just tells her about how she should be, in what manner she should worship. Blows away her notions about where she should worship and what she should do.