The Gospel of John can be considered, in many ways, the ultimate evangelist text, with the intention, as John made clear, to make the reader believe that Jesus is the Christ, Son of God. , and that by believing in Him you may have life in his name. From John's perspective, he often creates a "narrative" that provides a teaching point for the reader and it depicts a fascinating theme of light versus darkness. This is most evident, more than anything else, in the “story” of John in the “story” of Nicodemus. Before we can delve into Nicodemus' natural progression as a believer in Jesus Christ, the Son of God, we must understand John's intention. by including Nicodemus in his gospel. I have not seen it once in any other part of the Bible, which makes it unique and intriguing that it is more of an inclusion in John's rather than an exclusion in the rest of the Bible. The character of Nicodemus, seen from the narrator's perspective, can be seen as a symbol of faith, as well as something that any other prudent believer can relate to when considering trusting and following the Lord. John, the evangelist par excellence, seems to get his message across and is very convincing. Nicodemus appears three times throughout the Gospel of John. The first of these is found in John chapter 3, the second time in chapter 7, and the third and final time in chapter 19. In each of these, John has a clear theme of light versus darkness which is mentioned several times. The main progression of Nicodemus, which is perceptible in each appearance, is his ability to emerge from darkness and enter into the “light” of Jesus. By interpreting this text through narrative criticism, one can see the story told through a U-shaped plot, where it plays...... middle of paper ......possible for one who has aged to be born again and traditional ways of thinking can be transformed. Works Cited Gibbons, Debbie. “Nicodemus: Character Development, Irony, and Repetition in the Fourth Gospel.” ATLA Religion Database. EBSCO, January 1, 1991. Web. April 22, 2014.John. “Books of the Bible.” Books of the Bible. United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, Web. Apr 20, 2014. Renner, Rick. “Two friends bury Jesus.” LightSource.com. Internet. April 20, 2014. Resseguie, James L. Narrative Criticism of the New Testament: An Introduction. Grand Rapids, MI: BakerAcademic, 2005. Print. Witherington, Ben. The Wisdom of John: A Commentary on the Fourth Gospel. Louisville, KY: WestminsterJohn Knox, 1995. Print.