Jesus is still at the Feast of Booths, which had two culminating events:

  • one involving water, and Jesus discussed living water in chapter 7;
  • one was a torchlight ceremony commemorating God’s appearance in a Pillar of Fire leading the Jews in the Wilderness
    • The lit 4 huge lamps in the temple’s Court ofWomen
    • Exuberant celebration, dancing with torches in hand, singing praise songs all night long

Jesus used this celebration as the backdrop to explain He is the light of the world and to condemn the Pharisees and Jews for sinfulness and unbelief.

Encounter Jesus – John Week 10

I AM…the Light of the World

John 8: 12-38

AUDIO

Lecture Handout

John Week 10 – I AM… The Light of the World Handout

Lesson Notes

Jesus – the Light of the World (John 8: 12-30)

  • Verse 12 – “Again” – Jesus continues the teaching from earlier in the festival
    • Jesus is the Light of the World – the 2nd great “I AM” statement
    • Implications of this statement from throughout the Old Testament
      • Psalm 27: 1-  the Lord is my light and salvation
      • Psalm 119: 105 – God’s Word is a light and lamp
      • Isaiah 9: 1-2 – from Galilee, seen a great light
      • Isaiah 49: 6 – A light to the nations
      • Isaiah 60: 19-20 – God will be the people’s light
      • Zechariah 14: 6-9 – Light and living water on the Lord’s Day
    • Jesus is God, receive Him as such
    • The end of the age has dawned in Christ, the source of living water and light
    • Whoever follows Jesus won’t walk in darkness -> will have light of life
      • Follow Him, like the Jews followed the Pillar of Fire in the Exodus
      • Action is required – it isn’t enough to know Jesus, we must follow Him!
  • Verse 13 – The subject of witnesses comes up again, last discussed in chapter 5
    • Pharisees won’t accept Jesus’ claims because He doesn’t have a second witness
    • The exchange gets increasingly pointed
    • Verse 14 – Jesus claims validity because He knows where He came from and where He’s going, while the Pharisees don’t
    • Verse 15 – Jesus explains the Pharisees judge according to the flesh
      • Meaning, the natural understanding and standards of the world – what the 21st century post-modern world judges on too!
      • They utterly miss the point that Jesus is the Word made flesh
      • Jesus judges nobody (now) – He’s currently there to save the world
        • Judgment will come, but not on His 1st coming
        • And He won’t judge like they do, by the flesh
        • Jesus doesn’t judge on appearances but on the heart
    • Verse 16 – Even if Jesus does judge, it’s true judgment because He and the Father who sent Him are one
      • Verses 17-18 – 2 witnesses are valid, both Jesus and the Father (God) bear witnesses
      • Verse 19 – the Jewish leaders don’t get that He means God the Father
        • Thinking in strictly human terms – where is your father?
        • Jesus says if they know Him, the know His Father
        • To know Jesus is to know God
        • They truly don’t know either Jesus or God!
    • Verse 20 – He’s used dangerous words, but God wasn’t ready for Him to die yet, so He couldn’t be arrested
  • The rest of chapter 8 expands on the key themes from 12-20- where Jews came from, where He’s going to, who the Father is, and who Jesus is
    • In each case, the opposite of what Jesus is will be applied to the Jews in the audience
  • Verse 21 – I’m going away (to heaven, God’s presence)
    • They will seek Him – not Jesus literally, but the will continue fruitlessly looking for Messiah to come, having rejected the one Messiah
    • You will die in your sin (singular) -> the sin of unbelief, the rejection of Jesus as Lord and Savior
    • You can’t come where I’m going -> because of unbelief they will never enter God’s presence
  • Verse 22 – they totally misunderstand, think He’s describing suicide
  • Verse 23 – They’re from below / Jesus is from above
    • They’re of the world = Fallen, sinful, rebellious / Jesus is not
  • Verse 24 – Unless they believe “I am he” they will die in their sins
    • Jesus explains what He means by they can’t come – because they don’t accept Jesus as God
    • Plural sins here, the messy outworking of the core sin of unbelief
    • In Isaiah 40-55,God repeatedly says of Himself, “I am he” – this is an identification with God
    • Note this implication for all of our friends and family who don’t acknowledge that Jesus is “he”
  • Verse 25 – Who are You? But they don’t really want to know
  • Verse 26 – Jesus says He who sent me is true, and Jesus declares what He heard from Him
    • Jesus is the sent one, God is the sender
    • Jesus speaks the words and thoughts of God
    • Speaks to their respective roles in the Trinity
  • Verse 27 – John tells us they didn’t get that Jesus was talking about God
  • Verse 28 – When you have crucified me (lifted up the Son of Man)
    • Then you will know “I am he” – the cross reveals who Jesus is as it glorifies Him and lifts Him up to heaven
    • And “speak only what God tells Him”
  • Verse 29 – He who sent (God) is also with Jesus
    • Jesus is always doing things that are pleasing to God
    • Jesus is without sin and always does the will of the Father perfectly
  • Verse 30 – Many “believed” in Him – but that’s happened before, in chapter 2, and it wasn’t lasting faith, most followers abandoned Jesus when they didn’t like His teachings
    • This is still common today – many people hang around churches awhile, but they abandon Jesus when the don’t like His teachings
    • The teachings of Jesus, the real teachings, are hard, unpleasant, and offensive to every political stripe and personal lifestyle
    • Are we more committed to our habits, lifestyles, culture, nation, or political views than we are to Jesus?
    • Russell Moore – “To be a gospel people means that we don’t seek cheap reconciliations but a cross reconciliation”…If we have to change our worship styles, let’s crucify our worship styles. If God’s way upsets our political alliances, let’s crucify our political alliances.”
    • We also get wonderful insight in these verses into the Trinity – though both God the Father and God the Son are equally eternal and equally God, we see their different roles
      • The Father as sender
      • The Son voluntarily submitting to the Father, going, speaking the word of the Father, and pleasing the Father

The Truth Will Set You Free (John 8: 31-38)

  • Verse 31 – Jesus now talks to those who “believed”
    • If you abide in my word, you are truly my disciple
    • Real belief means abiding belief, ongoing belief, not just some quick altar call response and you’re done
    • We need to know God’s Word if we’re going to abide in it
    • But we need to live it once we know it! Otherwise we aren’t really disciples
    • We’re saved by faith, but a life of obedience should be the result – true faith will persevere!
  • Verse 32 – If you’re truly a disciple, living and abiding in Christ’s word, you will know the truth and the truth will set you free
    • Once again, Jesus is badly misunderstood!
  • Verse 33 – as descendants of Abraham, they claim they’ve never been enslaved, so what does Jesus mean?
    • These aren’t going to prove to be true believers – they’re choking on Jesus’ teaching!
    • They argue they’re spiritually free, they know they haven’t always been politically free
    • Ultimately they can’t admit their slavery to sin and death
  • Verse 34 – Everyone who practices sin is a slave to sin
    • We can’t escape it’s power on our own!
    • Sin controls and dominates our lives without Christ -> worse than any king or dictator
    • But Christ sets us free from slavery to sin
    • The Son remains in the house forever – the assurance that comes through faith in Christ -> freedom and a permanent place in God’s house
    • f the Son (Jesus) sets you free, you’re truly free
  • Verse 36 – Genuine freedom, freedom that matters comes only from the Son
  • Verse 37 – You’re sons of Abraham, sure, but that doesn’t matter much
    • They still are sinners, wanting to kill Jesus
    • The Word finds no place in their hearts
    • Their spiritual condition prevents any impact from Jesus’ words
  • Verse 38 – Jesus speaks of what He’s seen with God -> they do what they’ve heard from their Father (who in verse 44 is identified as the devil)

Prayer – For us to shine the light of the world, for people to receive and believe the light of the world, for people to stop relying on any credentials for salvation other than Jesus Christ

Next Week: I AM … The I AM (John 8: 39-59)