There are moments in life that stay with you forever — moments so intense, so spiritually weighty, that even decades later they still feel close enough to touch. For me, one of those moments came in 1995 when I found myself face-to-face with one of the most feared terrorists in the world!

When Nicodemus learned that Jesus had died, his attention turned to giving an honorable burial to the Messiah. A spirit of persecution still filled the atmosphere, so any public connection to Jesus could spell trouble. Nicodemus therefore faced his third dilemma: should he go to the cross of Calvary or not?

While Nicodemus’ night visit to Jesus followed a lot of deliberation, this dilemma seemed to spring up suddenly. Some of the leading Pharisees (some of whom also served on the Sanhedrin) claimed that none of the Pharisees or Sanhedrin members had believed in Jesus. This public condemnation of believers in Christ created a crisis for Nicodemus. He faced a dilemma much like MBBs do today!

Muslims, and especially Muslim religious leaders, can strongly identify with the dilemma faced by Nicodemus. They, too, are parts of religious systems which largely reject Jesus as being Lord and Savior. Receiving Jesus as Lord triggers apostasy status in Islam and typically a lot of persecution as well.