Peter and John had been arrested for preaching about Jesus and the resurrection. The authorities finally released Peter and John and warned them to stop talking about Jesus. When Peter and John arrived where their friends were staying, the community prayed for boldness to speak God's Word. They were not willing to let anyone stop them. God answered their prayer by filling them with the Holy Spirit in a powerful way - almost like a mini-Pentecost. Do we allow the Holy Spirit to work through us like the early Christians?

Nicodemus was a Pharisee who was very interested in Jesus; in fact, he might have been a secret believer for he came at night. Nicodemus knew that Jesus was from God, and yet he could not understand the message that Jesus shared about being born from above - he took Jesus literally rather than looking for a deeper meaning.

So, Jesus explained that a person entered the kingdom of God after being born of water and the Spirit. The Spirit would provide believers with a different understanding of the kingdom of God. Not only was the kingdom of God represented by the community of believers, but most importantly, it was a state of being. Are we open to hearing the deeper meaning of Jesus' teachings?