How then will you believe if I speak of heavenly things?<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Simon Walker, in his book Leading out of Who You Are<\/em>, brilliantly \u201csteals like an artist\u201d [1] and adopts Erving Goffman\u2019s theory on human behavior with \u201cthe metaphor of a theatre.\u201d [2] He describes people having a front stage where they can present themselves well and gain favor from others. He also describes a person as also having a backstage where someone \u201cstruggles with unmet needs and unresolved problems. [3] This metaphor serves well in unpacking psychological and spiritual dynamics which take place in a person\u2019s inner world.\u00a0 Let\u2019s look at how this took place in Nicodemus\u2019 conversation with Jesus. Nicodemus came to Jesus and began to have his \u201cglossy image\u201d as a Pharisaical leader dismantled. [4] We will see how this conversation allowed for Nicodemus\u2019 backstage to not be a \u201cplace of fear;\u201d but instead a place where pursuing conversation with Jesus produces \u201cfruitful exploration.\u201d [5]<\/p>\n In John 3, this conversation of eternal proportions ensues between Nicodemus and Jesus. Nicodemus has a need to process his backstage conflict, relating directly to Jesus. So it is to Jesus that he opens the backstage door. \u201cThe leader\u2019s backstage may become the repository for all that cannot be made visible- the doubts, the confusions, the ambiguities, and the defeats.\u201d [6] A private meeting was sought:<\/p>\n \u201cNow there was a Pharisee, a man named Nicodemus who was a member of the Jewish ruling council. He came to Jesus at night and said, \u201cRabbi, we know that you are a teacher who has come from God. For no one could perform the signs you are doing if God were not with him.\u00a0 John 3:2-3<\/p>\n It is curious that Nicodemus says that \u201cwe know that you are a teacher.\u201d\u00a0 Is he speaking for himself or on behalf of the Pharisees with whom he is associated with? Jesus states in verse 11, \u201cbut still you people do not accept our testimony. I have not spoken to you of earthly things but still you people do not accept our testimony.\u201d This possibly addresses Nicodemus\u2019 reluctance to take a personal stand to believe who Jesus says he is, which is a manifestation of doubt backstage. This being stated, Jesus doesn\u2019t miss a beat in engaging Nicodemus as this \u2018ruling council member\u2019 sought Jesus alone, at night, hoping to gain attention from the one whom he believed had power from God. is an undefended leader who welcomes dialogue around thoughts, feelings, and beliefs.\u00a0 Walker states, \u201cCollaboration always involves creating space for other people genuinely to express themselves.\u201d [7]<\/p>\n Jesus boldly asserts that \u201cno one can see the kingdom of God unless they are born again.\u201d v.3 When Nicodemus doesn\u2019t understand how someone might enter a mother\u2019s womb to be reborn, his confusion would be understandable to anyone eavesdropping on this conversation. But Jesus asks him, \u201cI have spoken to you of earthly things, and you do not believe; how then will you believe if I speak of heavenly things?\u201d Jesus is introducing a paradigm shift from things of the world to His kingdom; it is this kingdom that Nicodemus should have some knowledge of. John 3:10 \u201cYou are Israel\u2019s teacher,\u201d said Jesus, \u201cand you do not understand these things?\u201d Jesus, as an undefended leader, knows himself, not for his own benefit but for the benefit of his followers. Walker states that it is important \u201cto not only know ourselves but to be free from ourselves.\u201d [8] Jesus, knowing Himself and being free of Himself, knows Nicodemus may choose to reject him, but Jesus remains implacable.<\/p>\n This metaphor remained difficult for Nicodemus to grasp. For greater understanding, Jesus recounts the Old Testament story of the snake in the wilderness which Moses lifted for the nation of Israel to be healed. Jesus stated that \u201cJust as Moses lifted up the snake in the wilderness, so the Son of Man must be lifted up, that everyone who believes may have eternal life in Him.\u201d (John 3:14-15) This Old Testament reference would be familiar to Nicodemus. Jesus spoke to Nicodemus as one who was well versed in Scripture. Jesus approached Nicodemus believing he had a higher ability to make abstractions. In Levine and Heller\u2019s book Attached<\/em><\/span>, they state that \u201cBowlby speculated, attachment continues to play a major role throughout our entire lifespan. The difference is that adults are capable of a higher level of abstraction, so our need for the other person\u2019s continuous physical presence can at times be temporarily replaced by the knowledge that the person is available to us psychologically and emotionally.\u201d [9] Jesus knew that Nicodemus had the ability to understand spiritual truths and made His relationship (a spiritual one)- the focal point of the conversation.<\/p>\n Jesus had the final word in this conversation; I believe this reflects Jesus\u2019 secure ego. It may be that trust was being established in the relationship with Nicodemus, as Jesus explained who he was. Attachment theory helps explain what Jesus was about. \u201cJohn Bowlby\u2019s work has been seminal in developing an appreciation of the role of trust in forming our ego. Trust is, to put it simply, the degree to which you can rely upon a relationship.\u00a0 It is like a rope between two people: how strong the trust determines the weight it can bear.\u201d [10] Jesus, in essence, left no slack in the rope he was holding with Nicodemus. He was saying, \u201cDo you trust me to be who I say that I am?\u201d Nicodemus sought out Jesus to have a safe conversation where issues in his backstage might be explored. \u00a0Jesus provided the trust that Nicodemus might need in the relationship Jesus offered him, as Jesus explained who he was. \u00a0A demonstration of personal belief was not noted by Biblical authors until we find Nicodemus bringing Jesus\u2019 burial spices to Jesus\u2019 body in John 19:39. Nicodemus demonstrated personal belief in Jesus, based on a secure attachment due to a conversation when Jesus had been invited backstage.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n [1] Austin Kleon, Steal Like an Artist, 2012<\/p>\n [2] Walker, Simon. Leading Out of Who You Are, Discovering the Secret of Undefended Leadership. 2007, p.24<\/p>\n [3] Ibid.27<\/p>\n [4] Ibid. 33<\/p>\n [5] Ibid. 33<\/p>\n [6] Ibid. 26<\/p>\n [7] Ibid. 45<\/p>\n [8] Ibid. 47<\/p>\n [9] Amir Levine, Rachel Heller. Attached. 2011, p.24<\/p>\n [10] Ibid. 54<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" How then will you believe if I speak of heavenly things? Simon Walker, in his book Leading out of Who You Are, brilliantly \u201csteals like an artist\u201d [1] and adopts Erving Goffman\u2019s theory on human behavior with \u201cthe metaphor of a theatre.\u201d [2] He describes people having a front stage where they can present […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":165,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[2041,1722],"class_list":["post-29329","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized","tag-leading-out-of-who-you-are","tag-simon-walker"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/29329","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/165"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=29329"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/29329\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":29373,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/29329\/revisions\/29373"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=29329"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=29329"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=29329"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}