Nicodemus ‘came to Jesus by night’: the night and darkness bring fears: for nothing to do we pray the Evening Collect. Some have said that Nicodemus was hiding in the darkness. By day Nicodemus knows who he is. He has an identity. He is a Pharisee. He has a role and a reputation as a leader of the Jews. He is ‘Israel’s teacher’. But by night Nicodemus is confused: and so comes to Jesus to be illuminated.
Why should we settle for recreating ourselves with one more possession, hope, ambition? All the time, Jesus is dying to give us a new life – one we can’t create for ourselves. Can we not instead find Jesus in the darkness of our lives – and in the night time wake anew to a new life with Christ?