I ONCE WAS LOST: BECOMING CURIOUS
JOHN 3:1-21
Pastor Calvary deJong
June 22, 2025
Introduction: When You’re Curious… But Don’t Want to Ask
Have you ever had a question you genuinely wanted answered, but felt too embarrassed to ask aloud? I remember being a teenager, somewhere in that awkward transitional stage when boys begin to grow little fuzzy patches on their upper lips. One day, the topic of shaving came up, and our friend Joe gave us a surprisingly thorough tutorial: lathering the cream, preparing the blade, practicing short, careful strokes, rinsing between passes. It all felt very grown-up—until my friend Mike turned to him and asked, “Who taught you how to do this?” Joe gave a sheepish grin and said, “Honestly... I Googled it.” He was curious!
Today, we continue our sermon series based on the five spiritual thresholds explored in the book by Doug Schaupp and Don Everts I Once Was Lost. These thresholds mark common stages that skeptics often pass through on their journey toward Jesus. Last week, we looked at the first threshold: moving from distrust to trust. But trust, while essential, is not the destination. It’s only the beginning. The next threshold is subtler, slower, and just as significant—moving from complacency to curiosity.
When Curiosity Comes Knocking
1) Curiosity Begins with Noticing Something Different (John 3:1–2)
Nicodemus was a Pharisee and respected teacher of Israel. He had studied the law his whole life and knew how religion was supposed to work. But when he saw Jesus healing the sick and teaching with an unusual kind of authority, he recognized that something didn’t quite fit. So he came—quietly, under the cover of night—and said, “Rabbi, we know you are a teacher who has come from God. No one could do what you do unless God were with him.” That’s often how spiritual curiosity begins. It’s not about certainty. It’s about a question that keeps coming back. A nudge that something deeper might be going on.
2) Jesus Invites Curiosity (John 3:3–8)
Nicodemus came for answers. Jesus offered mystery. “No one can see the kingdom of God unless they are born again.” Nicodemus was confused, so Jesus spoke of birth and Spirit, of wind and movement—of something real and life-changing, yet invisible and unpredictable. He wasn’t offering more rules or information. He was inviting Nicodemus to a completely new kind of life.
I think of something the scholar and artist Gareth Brandt told me recently when we met at the MCC Relief Sale: “No one is born Anabaptist. You become one by conviction.” That’s akin to the invitation Jesus is making. Following Jesus isn’t about ancestry or background. It’s about letting the Spirit remake you. Nicodemus had plenty of religion. What he lacked was renewal. Jesus didn’t dismiss his questions—He opened a door into a new reality.
3) The Gospel Is About Love (John 3:16–17)
As their conversation reaches its finale, Jesus offers not instructions for a moral life, but love: “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son.” This isn’t about earning salvation. It’s about receiving what God has already done. “God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save it.” Nicodemus came seeking insight. Jesus gave him an invitation. The gospel is not primarily a moral framework or a performance standard—it is a declaration of divine love and a pathway to new life. It is not about condemnation. It is about rescue and renewal.
Application: Ask Better Questions. Tell Better Stories.
Jesus didn’t primarily lead with arguments. Instead, he led with stories and questions. If we want to be like Him, we should do the same. Ask your neighbour where they find hope. Ask your grandchild what they think life is about.
Years ago, while furnishing our shared office while I was serving as a college chaplain, I bought a gently used couch from a man with visibly jaundiced skin. As we loaded it, he shared that he had a terminal diagnosis and was preparing to move in with family. I hadn’t planned to, but I felt prompted to ask him: “Would it be alright if I prayed for you?” To my surprise, he said yes. We stood there and prayed—for healing, peace, and the presence of God. I never saw him again. But perhaps he told someone later, “Some guy came to buy my couch... and didn’t leave until after he prayed for me.” Sometimes, living curiously is what opens the door for someone else to meet Jesus.
Nicodemus: A Transformation from Curiosity to Courage (John 7:50–52; John 19:38–42)
Nicodemus doesn’t vanish after John 3. In chapter 7, during a heated debate among the religious leaders, he speaks up. He doesn’t proclaim faith outright, but he questions the rush to judgment. “Does our law condemn a man without first hearing him?” His peers mock him, but he’s no longer silent. He’s ready to stand out and stand up for Jesus. Then we see him again in chapter 19 after Jesus has been crucified. The crowds are gone and the disciples are in hiding. But Nicodemus shows up bringing burial spices to tend to the crucified body of Christ--an offering fit for a king. Touching a dead body costs him his religious purity, his status, and likely his reputation. But he does it anyway. What began as quiet curiosity became visible devotion. What started under the cover of night ends in costly love. Nicodemus shows us that curiosity isn’t the end of faith, but it may be where it begins.
Reflection
- Who around me is curious, but cautious?
- What would it look like for me to live in a way that makes others curious about Jesus?
Gospel Invitation: The Spirit Is Still Stirring
Jesus said the Spirit moves like the wind—unpredictable, yet powerful. Maybe today you find yourself in Nicodemus’s shoes—curious, but unsure. You’re not quite ready to step fully into the light, but something in your spirit is beginning to stir. That is the Spirit, and the invitation is to be born again.
Prayer of Response
Lord Jesus,
Thank You for meeting us in our questions.
Help us to live lives that spark curiosity—
That invite others to ask, to wonder, to come and see.
Make us a church that listens, tells stories,
And follows the Spirit’s leading, wherever it may take us.
Amen.