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The Gospel of John, The Period of Conflict, Continuing discourse after the feast, Jesus as the Light of the World, Part XI, John 8:12-15 - Lesson 58
The assault made by the scribes and Pharisees on Jesus Christ as they exploited the woman taken in adultery provides us a vivid picture of the darkness that had befallen Israel.
They came to Jesus in their darkness attempting to use darkness as a weapon against the light of the world.
But by the use of this single sentence, "He that is without sin among you, let him cast the first stone," he shed light upon their own sinfulness and caused darkness to flee.
The passage of scripture given to us in the first 11 verses of the eighth chapter of John demonstrates the power of the light of God.
The world needs the light of Jesus Christ.
The world lies in darkness because Satan's realm operates in darkness.
Darkness is a necessary environment for him to be successful in.
Darkness does not allow man to see and the devil likes it that way.
If man is blind the devil can lead him in the direction that the devil wishes him to go.
Darkness is confusion for man and that is the way Satan likes it.
Jesus comes along and says he is the light of the world.
A blind man, a man that has lived in darkness all his life asks, "What is light?"
He does not know what light is because he is dead to light.
How can a man who has never seen light know what light is?
The blind man must, by something outside himself, be made to see.
He must be given the power to know that he is in darkness and that he can walk if he is given light by which to see.
In this passage Jesus tells the people how to walk in the light as he continues to instruct the people in the temple.
He refuses to let the rude interuption of the scribes and Pharisees stop him from teaching the people about himself.
He continues to be about his Father's business and does not let the evil works against him hinder his mission to seek and to save that which is lost.
John 8:12, Then spake Jesus again unto them, saying, I am the light of the world: he that followeth me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life.
In the court where Jesus was speaking was a great golden candelabra, which was lighted on the night of the feast of Tabernacles, among other nights during the year.
It symbolized the Shekinah glory light which had guided Israel on its wilderness journeys and which had shown for centuries in Solomon's temple.
It had departed from the city prior to the Babylonian invasion and never lighted the second temple.
So the Jews tried to keep up appearances with this great candelabra, a make believe shekinah.
It is in this context that Jesus Christ pronounces his second "I AM" statement of the book of John.
He earlier said, I AM the bread of life and now he tells the people that he is the true shekinah, the true light.
A glory and a light far greater than the one that shone in the first temple was before them.
Jesus is claiming a distinguishing mark of the Messiah.
He is claiming without a doubt that he is God. See:
Isa. 42:6, I the LORD have called thee in righteousness, and will hold thine hand, and will keep thee, and give thee for a covenant of the people, for a light of the Gentiles;
Isa 49:6, And he said, It is a light thing that thou shouldest be my servant to raise up the tribes of Jacob, and to restore the preserved of Israel: I will also give thee for a light to the Gentiles, that thou mayest be my salvation unto the end of the earth.
The Old Testament abounds in references to the word of God as light:
Prov 6:23, For the commandment is a lamp; and the law is light; and reproofs of instruction are the way of life:
Psa 119:105, Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path.
Jesus invites them to walk in the light by following him because he is the light.
He does not hold the light, he does not shine the light, the light is not outside of him, HE IS THE LIGHT!
He tells them that if they do not follow him they are automatically walking in darkness.
There is no in-between.
This of course infers that there is no other source of light.
It is either Jesus or the spiritual darkness of the world.
The sons of light come to the light and the sons of darkness will remain in the darkness.
He tells them that those who follow him, those who commit themselves without reservation to him, will have the light of life which means that the light that he is, brings life.
He is the one that, if followed, will provide a lighted path for the believer so that the believer does not walk in doubt or confusion but can see the way that he is going.
And without his light there is no spiritual life.
There is no true knowledge, no true holiness, no true happiness while dwelling in darkness.
While dwelling in darkness there are no absolutes, no principles because darkness reveals no enduring path.
Darkness does not reveal a path.
Belief reveals the future.
Unbelief sees no future because it exists in darkness.
Unbelief has no eyes.
But faith provides the eyes to see what is ahead.
By faith God's plan is revealed to the follower of the light.
Darkness cries out this way, that way, without the capability to absolutely know the path of life.
But Jesus says he is the light that reveals the path.
He is the true light and therefore he is the only source of life.
All others who call themselves light, whether it be Buddha, Confucius, Krishna, or Muhammad or the New Age lights, are deceiving and false lights and dwell in darkness.
As we have studied in: John 1:9, That was the true Light, which lighteth every man that cometh into the world and in:
John 1:12 But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name:
John 8:13, The Pharisees therefore said unto him, Thou bearest record of thyself; thy record is not true.
The Pharisees were astounded.
Here was a man that they knew had been born amongst themselves, claiming the attributes of God.
This cannot be. They call him a liar.
They would accept God is the light of the world but they could not accept what Jesus said as true.
They were in darkness and darkness cannot comprehend the light.
Darkness has no capacity to know light.
Darkness is trapped in darkness and is totally incapable of knowing light.
John 8:14,15, Jesus answered and said unto them, Though I bear record of myself, yet my record is true: for I know whence I came, and whither I go; but ye cannot tell whence I come, and whither I go. Ye judge after the flesh; I judge no man.
How absolute were the Pharisees in their judgment!
How they took a stand upon such a faulty foundation.
How quick they were to judge by appearance.
Jesus rebukes them for judging after the flesh, by judging by logic and reason when they had not all the facts to make a righteous judgment.
They presumed to know where he came from.
They did not know that.
They looked back 30 years and saw Nazareth but Jesus looked back and saw the glories of heaven.
He looked back and saw that he had come out of eternity.
He had a full view of himself and therefore could say that his record was true.
He had perfect knowledge of his eternal existence.
No created being knows his own history but Jesus knew every moment of the infinite past and every moment of the future.
He was sure that he came from the Father, that he was going to the Father, and he was sure that he knew the way.
That is why he could say with absolute certainty, follow me for I am the light of life.
I will light the way for you!
But they were ignorant of his true origin and his destiny.
They should have said we don't know where you truly came from and we don't know where you are going.
If they said that, they would not have committed themselves to judgment.
They were in complete ignorance of his heavenly nature and character and totally incompetent to form an opinion and even less to pass a judgment.
He tells them he judges no man.
Perhaps he is saying here that he judges no man like they judge him. He does not judge after the flesh.
He judges according to spiritual and divine principles.
He judges righteously! |