Lose Your Marbles - A Sermon for Sunday January 25 2026

LESSON INTRODUCTION

To help us prepare for the hearing of the Gospel,

we ought to remember that John’s Gospel

was written for this purpose:

That we may continue to believe in Jesus Christ,

the son of the living God,

and that through believing

we may have life in Jesus’ name.

Jesus is the Word of God in flesh,

who lives with us,

tabernacles with us,

Jesus pitched his tent beside us.

Believing is living.

Nathanael believed in because Jesus saw him under the fig tree.

The disciples believed in Jesus

after turning water into wine.

Those who witnessed Jesus cleansing the temple,

those who gathered for that Passover,

many believed in Jesus

because of the signs he performed.

Nicodemus has seen signs,

Yet he comes to Jesus at night with questions.

Nighttime in John’s gospel means unbelief.

For example,

when Judas left the room to betray Jesus,

then it was night.

Nicodemus comes not in the light of day,

but hidden, in secret.

Perhaps Nicodemus has heard about water turned to wine,

and the cleansing of the temple,

and like you and I,

he’s got questions.

So as we move into the gospel today,

may we be open to the questions,

may we listen for the answers,

maybe like Nicodemus,

we too need to sit in the darkness,

Trusting that Jesus is the Light

that shines in the darkness.

Indeed, Jesus is the Word of God,

and God’s Word is a lamp unto our feet,

that guides us in the darkness,

alighting our path.

DRAMATIC READING OF THE Gospel: John 3:1-21

Readers: Narrator, Nicodemus, Jesus.

Scene - Lights should be turned off or low. Jesus is alone in front of altar. Nicodemus enters and approaches Jesus.

Narrator: Now there was a Pharisee named Nicodemus, a leader of the Jews. He came to Jesus by night and said to him,

Nicodemus: “Rabbi, we know that you are a teacher who has come from God; for no one can do these signs that you do apart from the presence of God.”

Narrator: Jesus answered him,

Jesus: “Very truly, I tell you, no one can see the kingdom of God without being born from above.”

Narrator: Nicodemus said to him,

Nicodemus: “How can anyone be born after having grown old? Can one enter a second time into the mother’s womb and be born?”

Narrator: Jesus answered,

Jesus: “Very truly, I tell you, no one can enter the kingdom of God without being born of water and Spirit. What is born of the flesh is flesh, and what is born of the Spirit is spirit. Do not be astonished that I said to you, ‘You must be born from above.’ The wind blows where it chooses, and you hear the sound of it, but you do not know where it comes from or where it goes. So it is with everyone who is born of the Spirit.”

Narrator: Nicodemus said to him,

Nicodemus: “How can these things be?”

Narrator: Jesus answered him,

Jesus: “Are you the teacher of Israel, and yet you do not understand these things? Very truly, I tell you, we speak of what we know and testify to what we have seen; yet you do not receive our testimony. If I have told you about earthly things and you do not believe, how can you believe if I tell you about heavenly things? No one has ascended into heaven except the one who descended from heaven, the Son of Man. And just as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, so must the Son of Man be lifted up, that whoever believes in him may have eternal life.

Narrator: For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him may not perish but may have eternal life. Indeed, God did not send the Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him. Those who believe in him are not condemned; but those who do not believe are condemned already, because they have not believed in the name of the only Son of God. And this is the judgment, that the light has come into the world, and people loved darkness rather than light because their deeds were evil. For all who do evil hate the light and do not come to the light, so that their deeds may not be exposed. But those who do what is true come to the light, so that it may be clearly seen that their deeds have been done in God.”

Nicodemus leaves. Jesus bows his head.

Narrator: The gospel of the Lord.

C: Praise to you, O Christ.

I read a story about a pastor in large city,

where homeless people would sell newspapers

to try and earn a living.

The pastor had gone into the coffee shop,

and was walking down the street

with his steaming hot cup of $7 coffee.

He saw a woman selling the paper,

and feeling noble,

he took out a dollar to buy the paper.

The woman asked him,

“Do you really want the paper,

or can I keep it to sell to someone else?”

The pastor said “Keep the paper.

How are you today?” he asked.

She said “I am so cold!” (Pause)

“I hope the sun comes out,

it warms up,

and you have a good day.”

the pastor said to her,

and he turned and walked away.

A block or two down the road,

he stopped for a moment,

and thought about the conversation,

and continued on walking.

Ever since that day, he’s been thinking to himself

“Why didn’t I just give her my cup of coffee?”

Deep down in our hearts,

we really do wish the best for people,

but how often do we actually listen

to what people are saying?

Jesus is the Saviour who listens.

Jesus listened to Mary’s encouragement

at the Wedding at Cana.

Next week we will hear about how Jesus listens

to the woman at the well.

Jesus listened to Nicodemus.

To be fair,

I’ve always found this interaction

between Jesus and Nicodemus to be a little curious.

It's like Nicodemus is asking Jesus one question,

and Jesus answers a different one.

Nicodemus asks Jesus,

How can you be born again, or born anew?

Can you enter into the womb a second time?

And Jesus says “No one can enter the kingdom of God

without being born of water and the Spirit.”

It almost sounds like a student asking her math teacher

“What’s the square root of 144”

and the teacher says “California."

But Jesus listens.

Nicodemus hears Jesus’ answer,

and he leaves.

Here’s a question for you:

who is the last person that you listened to?

I mean, really listened to?

It doesn’t count

if you’re listening to your wife

talking about what Betsy did the other day,

while you’re playing wordle on your iPhone.

That’s not listening.

Think just about this past week,

who did you really listen to?

I’d like to show you a video.

This is from The Missional Network,

featuring Alan Roxburgh.

This is Why Join God in the Neighbourhood?

Let’s listen….

Alan Roxburgh video. https://youtu.be/JVbUwmBbSrw

There are so many reasons

why the church finds itself unravelling.

One reason I’m convinced is that,

often, the church is answering questions

that people just aren’t asking.

Here are two truths:

1. The church seems to be less and less relevant in society

2. But the Gospel of Jesus Christ is still and always relevant.

We all have people in our lives

that we want to be sitting in these or similar pews.

We all have people who, we know,

need the Gospel.

But do we know what kind of questions they are asking?

When we really listen to our neighbours,

by God’s grace,

perhaps we will be given some insight into

how the Gospel is responding to our community.

Perhaps we can learn the questions,

the deep longings that people have.

When we really listen,

then perhaps by God’s grace

we can bear the life-saving Gospel,

to know the Gospel that our friends,

our neighbours, our family members

are longing to hear.

I am reminded of a conversation at an Area Gathering recently.

the young person asked the elders at the table

why they want young people in the church.

They thought about it,

and talked about continuity.

If we lose a generation,

the church might not go on.

The young person said:

maybe we should want young people in church

for their own benefit.

I asked this young person

what are the kinds of questions young people are asking

about God and Jesus and faith.

She said “We’re too busy trying to write papers

and trying to afford food

to be asking those questions.”

It sounds like the pastor

who didn’t really hear the woman say

“I am so cold!”

while holding a steaming cup of coffee.

We are called to share our faith,

to invite others to come and see,

and in this time that folks aren’t too willing

to come and see,

our call is to go and be,

to go into the world,

our neighbourhoods,

and be the baptized in our neighbourhoods.

The call is to listen,

and not with the answer already in mind.

The call in community,

in relationships,

in the neighbourhood

Is like the YoungLife tagline:

earn the right to be heard.

First we listen.

we listen to hear what is really going on,

we love the other,

we get to know them,

and then, when trust has been earned,

should they come with questions

then, by God’s grace,

might we respond with a word of Light.

Nicodemus listens to Jesus, and disappears.

We don’t know when,

we don’t know how.

He is just.. gone.

But before he left,

Jesus listened to Nicodemus in his darkness.

The more I consider Jesus’ answer,

the more I am convinced Jesus really was

answering Nicodemus’ questions,

even if it didn’t seem so at first.

Jesus answered what it means to be from God,

to be God in the flesh,

Jesus answered what it means to be born from above,

Jesus answered “How can these things be?”

And Jesus answered with the Gospel

that Nicodemus needed to hear.

And He came back.

Nicodemus left, but he showed up again John 7.

Amidst an argument about why

Jesus was not arrested,

Nicodemus seems willing to give Jesus a chance.

Then We don’t hear from Nicodemus again

until right after Jesus is crucified.

Nicodemus helped prepare Jesus’ body for burial.

That’s how much Jesus’ answers meant to Nicodemus.

He may have come to Jesus in the cover of darkness,

but he came into the Light.

That Gospel never left Nicodemus.

If you find yourself like Nicodemus,

asking questions,

asking “How can these things be?”

Then Listen to Jesus.

Pray.

Read the bible,

Worship.

Relate with neighbours.

Serve.

Give.

Trust that Jesus listens to you,

and in faithful relationship

Jesus will answer you.

I’d like to invite you all into an experiment.

You might think I’ve lost my marbles,

but my goal here is for you - for us -

to lose our marbles.

I’m going to give every one of you a marble,

to remind us to lose our marbles, so to speak.

Like Alan Roburgh explained,

the old way of thinking about church isn’t working,

so we ought to forget a little,

lose those old marbles,

And come into a new way of thinking;

to be people of peace,

kindness,

love and acceptance,

not expecting anything in return.

So here’s the experiment:

take one marble

and let it be a sign of our calling

to be people of peace,

kindness, justice,

love and mercy.

I invite you to do one thing each day:

listen to one person,

go and meet one new person in your neighbourhood,

or do some random act of kindness for one person.

When you do - then move the marble

from one pocket to the other.

If you don’t have pockets,

well, that’s your problem.

May we take a leap of faith,

and make it our goal each day

to be able to move that marble

from one pocket to the next.

If you do something nice,

and want something in return,

don’t move the marble.

Move the marble from one pocket to the other

when you offer a word of peace,

or an act of kindness -

or when you simply listen to your neighbour

expecting nothing in return.

That is joining God’s work in the world.

Maybe you think I’ve lost my marbles -

but I don’t think I have.

I want to give away my marbles.