John 8:12-30: “Jesus States To
The Pharisees That He Is The Light Of The World And Then Defends Himself For
Attesting Of Himself To Them”
By
1.
INTRO:
1.1.
In our last study we looked at verses 1-11 of chapter 8.
1.1.1. We saw that that study occurred as a parenthesis that
John included in his telling of the events of this Feast of Tabernacles
attended by Jesus six months before His crucifixion.
1.1.2. The morning after the last day of the Feast of
Tabernacles, when Jesus went into the temple and sat down to teach the
Pharisees took a woman caught in the act of adultery and brought her to Jesus
to see whether He would call for her to be stoned as the Law of Moses
specified, or not. The Pharisees were
not interested in justice being carried out they were simply trying to
discredit Jesus with the common people or have Him prosecuted or possibly put
to death under the law.
1.1.3. We saw that the story was very important because it
brought out how that the holiness and justice of God can be reconciled with His
love and mercy. In response to the trap
set for Jesus by the Pharisees He responded to the Pharisees by saying, “Let
him who is without sin cast the first stone.”
1.2.
In our
study today, we are going to discuss verses 12-30 of chapter 8.
1.2.1. In chapter 7, we saw that Jesus had gone up to
Jerusalem for the Feast of Tabernacles, however that He had gone up secretly
because He knew that the Pharisees were now plotting to kill Him and it was not
yet His time to die. We looked also at
lots of the prophetic symbolism embedded by the Lord in this feast, all of
which pointed to Jesus, the Messiah, including :
1.2.1.1.We saw previously that the Feast of Tabernacles was
one of three feasts held each year in which all of the males in
1.2.1.2.The yearly observance of the Feast of Tablernacles was
to perform the following things for the Israelites :
1.2.1.2.1.The Hebrew name for ‘Tabernacles’ is “Sukote” which is
plural. A ‘tabernacle’ (‘suka’) is a temporary shelter or tent and the
feast was to be a remembrance for that time when the Israelites wondered for 40
years in the wilderness after their deliverance from
1.2.1.2.2.This feast was also called the “Feast of
Ingathering,” for it occurred at the end of the harvest. The people thought about God’s provision for
them throughout the previous year, they counted their many blessings.
1.2.1.2.3.The feast has prophetic connotations because it caused
the Israelites to remember and think about their coming Messiah, the one who
would appear when the “spiritual harvest” was complete, and, the
Israelites have even encouraged Gentiles to participate with them in the
feast. In this sense the feast is the
only one of the three required feasts which still has a future fulfillment when
the Lord shall bring in the last soul to salvation.
1.2.1.2.4.The feast reminded the people of the rain that the
Lord had provided for them in the previous year, rain without which it was
impossible to have any kind of a harvest.
The water rite ceremony held during this feast caused the people to
remember this and also to pray for rain for the next year.
1.2.1.3.We saw previously that each day of the Feast of
Tabernacles (but the last) included a water rite ceremony at the temple :
1.2.1.3.1.Avram Yehoshua wrote
the following about this rite that was performed :
“As the priest with the gold picture of
water approached the
The Levites led the People in singing and were playing musical instruments. The
shofars blasted along with the trumpets and other musical instruments.
Sacrifice was offered and the contents of the pitchers mingled together as they
were poured out into the silver basin pipeline at the base of the Altar.
This was an expression of thanks for past rains. No rain, no food. No food, no
life. Their prayers that day were for future rain. The wine mingled with the
water pictured life with joy!
It was a picture of Messianic hope. As Moses supplied water in the Wilderness
so
'Has a nation changed gods when they
were not gods? But My People have changed their Glory for that which does not
profit. Be appalled, Oh Heavens at this and shudder, be very desolate, declares
Yahveh. For My People have committed two evils: they have forsaken Me, the
Fountain of Living Waters, to hew for themselves cisterns, broken cisterns that
can hold no water.' (Jer. 2:11-13)”
1.2.1.3.2.We saw that Jesus’ crying out on that last day of the
feast inviting any who were thirsty to come to Him and drink, for he who
believes in Him from his innermost being shall flow rivers of living water,
occurred because He was trying to communicate to those Jews (and perhaps
Gentiles) present that He was the fulfillment of this Feast of
Ingathering. Now, if men would just come
to Him and drink that they would receive the incredible promise of eternal
salvation and the outpouring of the Holy Spirit.
1.2.1.4.We saw in a previous study also that the Candlestick
Ceremony was always performed on the first day of the feast:
1.2.1.4.1.The Messianic World Site states :
“At the end of the first day of the Feast, three
eighty foot high golden candlesticks were set up in the
Yeshua spoke publicly on Sukkot, saying,
"I am the light of the world; he who follows Me shall not walk in the
darkness, but shall have the light of life." (John 8:12)”
from: www.messianic.ws
© 2000-2004 Beikvot HaMashiach Association All rights reserved
Produced using Microsoft® Office, and BibleWorks®.
1.2.1.4.2.Avram Yehoshua wrote the following about this ceremony :
“…the ceremony involving the lighting of
the Lampstands in the
This fire or light was symbolic of Creation Light and of Salvation or Freedom
Light.
'Then the Cloud covered the
Tabernacle and the Glory of Yahveh filled the Tabernacle. Moses was not able to
enter the Tabernacle because the Cloud had settled on it and the Glory of
Yahveh filled the Tabernacle. Throughout all their journeys whenever the Cloud
was taken up from over the Tabernacle, the Sons of Israel would set out but if
the Cloud was not taken up, then they did not set out until the day when it was
taken up. For throughout all their journeys the Cloud of Yahveh was on the
Tabernacle by day and there was Fire in it by night in the sight of all the
House of
The light from the Lampstands were a
Picture of God's Light of Creation and Salvation, provision, shelter and
guidance, going forth from Jerusalem. Isaiah 2:3 proclaims:
'And many peoples will come and say,
'Come, let us go up to the
1.2.2. In our study today, Jesus will make the second of His
seven “I am” statements in this gospel, stating to the Pharisees in the
temple, “I am the light of the world.”
1.2.2.1.The other “I am” declarations by Jesus in the
book of John are:
1.2.2.1.1.1.I am the
Bread of Life : 6:35.
1.2.2.1.1.2.I am the
Light of the World : 8:12
1.2.2.1.1.3.I am the
Gate for the sheep : 10:7
1.2.2.1.1.4.I am the
Good Shepherd : 10:11,14
1.2.2.1.1.5.I am the
Resurrection and the Life : 11:25
1.2.2.1.1.6.I am the
Way, the Truth, and the Life : 14:6
1.2.2.1.1.7.I am the
True Vine : 15:1.
1.2.3. Jesus will then begin arguing with the Pharisees who
confront Him as being a false teacher for bearing witness of Himself. Jesus will attempt to explain to these
Pharisees why He is indeed their awaited Messiah.
1.2.4. The Old Testament scriptures foretold that the Messiah
would be a great light bearer when He comes, including :
1.2.4.1.Isaiah
42:1-6, “1 “Behold, My Servant, whom I uphold; My chosen one in
whom My soul delights. I have put My Spirit upon Him; He will bring forth
justice to the nations. 2 “He will not cry out or raise His voice,
Nor make His voice heard in the street. 3 “A bruised reed He will
not break And a dimly burning wick He will not extinguish; He will faithfully
bring forth justice. 4 “He will not be disheartened or crushed Until
He has established justice in the earth; And the coastlands will wait
expectantly for His law.” 5 Thus says God the Lord, Who created the heavens and
stretched them out, Who spread out the earth and its offspring, Who gives
breath to the people on it And spirit to those who walk in it, 6 “I
am the Lord, I have called you in
righteousness, I will also hold you by the hand and watch over you, And I will appoint you as a covenant
to the people, As a light to the nations.”
1.2.4.2.Isaiah 49:6,
“6 He says, “It is too small a thing that You should be My Servant
To raise up the tribes of Jacob and to restore the preserved ones of Israel; I will also make You a light of
the nations So that My salvation may reach to the end of the earth.”
1.2.4.3.Malachi
4:1-2, “1 “For behold, the day is coming, burning like a furnace;
and all the arrogant and every evildoer will be chaff; and the day that is
coming will set them ablaze,” says the Lord
of hosts, “so that it will leave them neither root nor branch.” 2 “But
for you who fear My name, the
sun of righteousness will rise with healing in its wings; and you will
go forth and skip about like calves from the stall.””
1.2.5. “Light” is one of the three things that the
scripture tell us that “God is” :
He is spirit (John 4:24), love (1 John 4:8), light
(John 8:13).
1.2.6. The scriptures tell us that God dwells in “unapproachable
light” : 1 Timothy
6:16, “16 who alone possesses immortality and dwells in
unapproachable light, whom no man has seen or can see. To Him be honor
and eternal dominion! Amen.”
1.2.7. The scriptures tell us that this present world is a
dark world and in the control of powers of darkness: Ephesians 6:12, “12 For
our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against
the powers, against the world forces of this darkness, against the spiritual forces
of wickedness in the heavenly places.”
1.2.8. In the scriptures, non-believers are referred to as “darkness”
and believers are referred to as “light” in God’s word, for
instance: Ephesians
5:8, “8 for you were formerly darkness, but now you are Light in
the Lord; walk as children of Light.”
1.2.9. Arthur Pink has written the following, ““Light” in
Scripture, is sometimes the emblem of true knowledge, true holiness, true happiness: while “darkness” is the figure for ignorance and error, guilt and
depravity, privation, and misery.
Because the believer follows the One who is Light, he does not grope his
way in doubt and uncertainty, but he sees where he is going, and not only so,
he enjoys the light of God’s countenance.
But this is his experience so far as he really “follows” Christ. Just as if it were possible to follow the sun
in its complete circuit, we should always be in broad daylight, so the one who
is actually following Christ shall not walk in darkness.”
2.
VS
8:12 - “Again therefore Jesus spoke to them, saying, ‘I am the light of the
world; he who follows Me shall not walk
in the darkness, but shall have the light of life’.” - Jesus tells the people assembled there at the
temple that He is the light of the world
2.1.
When Jesus begins this teaching, note that He is
saying this with reference to the incident of the woman caught in the act of
adultery who was brought to Him by the Pharisees in order to trap Him. The greatness of Jesus’ glory is seen in how
Jesus handled this incident, refusing to condemn the woman. Mercy and grace were extended to this woman
because the justice of God against her sin would soon be satisfied when Jesus
goes to the cross and pays the debt of sins for all mankind.
2.2.
Certainly, there is a connection also between Jesus
speaking about being the light of the world here and the performing of the
candlestick ceremony on the first day of the feast which we just discussed.
2.3.
Jesus claims in this verse to be the ‘light of the
world.’ His word shines in the darkness,
and reveals the things that are hidden in this darkness in which we live. Spiritual truth that is not learned from any
other source, is revealed through Jesus.
2.4.
Likewise, those who follow Jesus will no longer walk
in the darkness, but they shall see truth (His light), and the light they have
shall be in them and shine through them.
The Holy Spirit fulfills this role in the believers life.
2.5.
The light
of God:
2.5.1.
Shines in the darkness.
2.5.2.
Reveals the things that are hidden.
2.5.3.
Overcomes the world and the evil in the world.
2.5.4.
Frees those held in bondage to the evil in the
darkness.
2.5.5.
Reveals the glory of God.
2.5.6.
Reveals “truth.”
2.5.7.
We all formerly lived in the darkness before we came
to know Christ.
2.5.8.
The light we first saw revealed our sin as well as the
way of salvation from that sin.
2.5.9.
Paul writes of us as ‘children of light,’
exhorting us to be light bearers and walk in the light no longer performing the
deeds of darkness.
2.5.10.When the light initially shines in our
lives , it isn’t usually pleasant.
2.5.11.How much of Jesus’ light to do you have
in our life? Are you constantly coming
to the light, and letting that light of yours shine out into the room so that
all can see it? Or, do you hide your
light under a bushel? You are called not
only to know the truth and the light, you are called to walk in that same truth
and light!
3.
VS
8:13-14 - “The Pharisees therefore said to Him,
‘You are bearing witness of Yourself;
Your witness is not true’. Jesus answered
and said to them, ‘Even if I bear witness of Myself, My witness is true; for I know where I came from, and where I am
going; but you do not know where I come
from, or where I am going’.” - The
Pharisees tell Jesus that because He is bearing witness of Himself that His
witness is not true, but Jesus tells them that if He bears witness of Himself
that His witness is true
3.1.
The Pharisees try to discredit Jesus, accusing Him of
error by bearing witness of Himself.
They remembered that Jesus had said at an earlier time that if He bore
witness of Himself, His witness was not true.
However, if the Pharisees were saying this for this reason, they
misunderstood Jesus’ intent in His saying.
Jesus was saying that if He ‘alone’ bore witness of Himself, His
statement would not be true. However,
Jesus was true and genuine because the Father was bearing witness of Him,
displaying signs and wonders through His life.
3.2.
Jesus in these verses is simply testifying of what is
true, namely that He is in fact the ‘light of the world.’ Because the Father was bearing witness of
Jesus through signs and wonders, therefore the Pharisees should have believed
His words because of the signs, not to mention the testimony of the Old
Testament scriptures.
3.3.
Jesus tells these Pharisees that even if He did bear
witness of Himself, His witness would be true, for He knew the truth, though
they did not know Him, nor where He was really from.
3.4.
Jesus tells these men that He had come from heaven,
and to heaven He would return.
4.
VS 8:15-16 - “‘You people judge according to the flesh; I am not judging anyone. But even if I do judge, My judgment is
true; for I am not alone in it, but I and He who sent Me’.”
- Jesus accuses the Pharisees of judging
according to the flesh while His judgment is true if He judges
4.1.
Jesus accuses the Pharisees on this day of being
incorrect in their evaluation of Him because they were judging things according
to the flesh. In the flesh, the Pharisees
had judged and condemned Jesus, saying that He was worthy of death. In reality however He had actually done no
wrong, He had only broken the Pharisees’ laws and traditions, not the actual
law of God.
4.2.
In saying that these Pharisees were judging Him ‘according
to the flesh’ I believe that Jesus is inferring that they were judging Him
according to their own preconceptions and prejudices rather than being
objective and prayerful before the Lord about Him and His claims and ministry.
4.3.
Then, He says something that is difficult to
understand. He tells them, ‘I am not
judging anyone.’ If this teaching
time occurred directly after Jesus dismissed the woman caught in the act of
adultery, then it could be argued that from that teaching an incident with the
woman that Jesus was not acting judgmentally.
4.3.1.
Remember, Jesus did not believe He was called at this
time to be a judge as His purpose was not to be a civil magistrate and
pronounce judgments for sins and crimes committed.
4.3.2.
Jesus told the woman that He did not condemn her for
her sins, wrong though they were, for He was not going to give her what she
deserved.
4.4.
Finally, Jesus tells the Pharisees that if He should
judge anyone, His judgment would be true, for the Father would be in His
judgment.
4.5.
If we Christians are to walk in the light with Jesus,
then we must not live in the realm of the flesh, and be dominated by the
motivations of the flesh! Our own
inclinations tend to always be wrong also because we are a sinful and fallen
race, and therefore we need to look to the Lord to guide our thoughts and
decisions and give us the ability to be objective.
5.
VS
8:17-18 - “‘Even in your law it has been written,
that the testimony of two men is true. I
am He who bears witness of Myself, and the Father who sent Me bears witness of
Me’.” - Jesus
reminds the Pharisees that in their courts of law that the testimony of two men
is received as being true, and both He and the Father were bearing witness of
Him
5.1.
Jesus, the law-giver Himself, refers to the Old Testament
law brought through Moses as ‘their law,’ which is an interesting way to
describe it. The Law of Moses was given
by God for men, and all of its
requirements are for men to fulfill.
However, the Pharisees had added much to God’s law and therefore their
laws could not truly be called God’s laws.
5.2.
Jesus was well acquainted with every letter of the
law, and He never actually broke the law, for otherwise He would have committed
sin and been disqualified to be the sacrifice for men’s sins.
5.3.
Jesus tells these Pharisees that in the law, a civil
matter would be verified by two witnesses, and in His case the Father (God) was
bearing witness of Him and His work through the many and varied signs which He
performed. This should have persuaded
the Jews to honestly consider whether Jesus could in fact be their awaited
Messiah.
6.
VS
8:19 - “And so they were saying to Him, ‘Where is Your Father?’ Jesus answered, ‘You know neither Me, nor My
Father; if you knew Me, you would know
My Father also’.” - The Pharisees
ask Jesus where His father is and He tells them that they do not know Him or
His Father for if they knew Him they would know His Father
6.1.
The Pharisees were unable to understand Jesus’
sayings, and they still do not understand that the ‘Father’ He has been
speaking to them about all along is Jehovah God.
6.2.
Jesus tells them that they do not know Him, nor His
father. If they knew Him, i.e. knew who
He was in reality, they would also know His Father. It is a sad thing when those who are God’s
people in name are completely in darkness and do not know their God.
7.
VS
8:20 - “These words He spoke in the treasury, as He taught in the
temple; and no one seized Him, because
His hour had not yet come.” - Jesus spoke
these words to the Pharisees in the treasury in the temple and no one seized
Him because His time had not yet come
7.1.
John says that this whole narrative he has been
telling occurred in the treasury of the temple.
7.2.
As we saw in chapter 7, John indicates that the only
reason that Jesus was allowed to teach openly in the temple, was that the hour
of His crucifixion had not yet come.
Jesus was being protected by the power of God, and no one could touch
Him at this time.
7.2.1.
It is important for us as Christians to recognize that
the Lord is always on the throne ruling.
When things happen in our lives we need to realize that the Lord has
allowed them and wants to somehow work in and through our lives through all of
the things that come into our life.
8.
VS
8:21-22 - “He said therefore again to them, ‘I go
away, and you shall seek Me, and shall die in your sin; where I am going, you cannot come’. Therefore the Jews were saying, ‘Surely He
will not kill Himself, will He, since He says, ‘Where I am going, you cannot
come’?’” - Jesus tells
the Pharisees that He was going to go away and that they would seek and Him and
that they would die in their sin for they could not go where He was going
8.1.
Jesus now repeats what He had said in chapter 7, that
He would go away, and they would seek for their Messiah. But here He tells them that they would ‘die
in their sin.’ Unless the Pharisees
believed in Him as their personal Savior, they were going to die unforgiven for
their sins, and thus suffer the eternal fate of those who reject Christ in this
life. It is a very solemn thing to
consider someone dying in their sin, yet even more so when the person comes
from a heritage of being one of God’s people.
8.2.
Jesus again tells these Pharisees that they will not
be able to go where He is going to go, namely heaven. The Jews cannot conceive of the Messiah (who
is Jesus) coming to die upon a cross for the sins of man and therefore they
began to think that He may be thinking that He would kill Himself, and thus
they would not be able to find Him or go where He was.
9.
VS 8:23-24 - “And He was saying to them, ‘You are from below, I am from
above; you are of this world, I am not
of this world. I said therefore to you,
that you shall die in your sins; for
unless you believe that I am He, you
shall die in your sins’.” - Jesus told
the Pharisees that they were from below but that He was from above, not of this
world, and that they would die in their sins unless the believed in Him
9.1.
Jesus tells the Pharisees in these verses that He was
from heaven above. They were of ‘this
world,’ but He had not come from this world. The Pharisees had no ability to conceive of
Jesus having come to them from heaven.
Either they had not heard of His immaculate conception, or they did not
believe the report. This possibility was
beyond their wildest expectations.
9.2.
Then, Jesus tells the people that if they did not
believe that ‘I am,’ they would die in their sins. Jesus says here that unless the people
believed that He was the ‘I am’ of scripture that had called and commissioned
Moses, they would die in their sins. For
saying this, I am amazed that the Pharisees did not call for Jesus to be stoned
for blasphemy, however we see that they are too amazed and dumb-founded by the
things that Jesus is saying to act.
Jesus is in control of the situation not them, for it was not yet His
time.
10.
VS
8:25 - “And so they were saying to Him, ‘Who are You?’ Jesus said to them, ‘What have I been saying
to you from the beginning?’” - The
Pharisees ask Jesus who He is
10.1.
The Pharisees and Jews began to ask Jesus outright who
He really was. They were asking Him to
give them the straight talk.
10.2.
Jesus simply tells these Pharisees that He is exactly
what He has been telling them all along that He was!
11.
VS
8:26-27 - “‘I have many things to speak and to
judge concerning you, but He who sent Me is true; and the things which I heard from Him, these
I speak in the world’. They did not
realize that He had been speaking to them about the Father.”
- Jesus tells the Pharisees that He has
much more to speak and to judge concerning them
11.1.
Jesus tells the people that He has many more things ‘to
speak and to judge’ concerning them.
They were not ready at this time to receive the things that He was
presently speaking, they would certainly not be ready for yet deeper
revelations.
11.2.
The Lord never gives us as Christians more than we can
actually deal with and handle at any one time.
He knows exactly what we can handle, and is merciful in not giving us
more than we can deal with. In Is.
40:11, Jesus, the promised Messiah, is depicted as a gentle shepherd who
carries the lambs and gently leads the nursing ewes. In another place, Isaiah wrote that He would
not bruise the tender reeds.
11.3.
John reveals that the people didn’t even understand
that Jesus had been speaking to them about Jehovah God, ‘the Father.’
12.
VS
8:28-30 - “Jesus therefore said, ‘When you lift up
the Son of Man, then you will know that I am He, and I do nothing on My own
initiative, but I speak these things as the Father taught Me. And He who sent Me is with Me; He has not left Me alone, for I always do the
things that are pleasing to Him’. As He
spoke these things, many came to believe in Him.” - Jesus tells these Pharisees that when they
life up the Son of Man that they will know who He is and that He does nothing
on His own initiative but speaks the things that the Father teaches Him
12.1.
After Jesus was lifted up on the cross and had
ascended up to heaven, then God provided abundant testimony that Jesus was
really the Messiah, and that He said and did nothing but what the Father gave
Him to say and to do.
12.2.
Jesus was always pleasing to the Father in all that He
did. Likewise, the Father was always
pleased with Him.
12.3.
Note that at the conclusion of this teaching,
especially after Jesus told them that He was always seeking just to be pleasing
to the Father, that many came to believe in Him. However as we shall see, their faith was not
deep and they soon are found in unbelief.
Their faith was not of the ‘saving’ variety.
12.4.
We ought to follow Jesus in His example of being one
who always sought to be pleasing to the Father in every way. We should be motivated and encouraged to
follow in His footsteps in this way. God
will also be with us if we do the things that are pleasing to Him in our lives.
13.
CONCLUSIONS:
13.1.
As we
consider this message and how we ought to apply it to our life, I would
encourage you first of all to never be afraid of the shining of God’s light in
your life. Though the shining of light
into our lives is initially often painful it is true what one author once
wrote, “The same light that shows thee thy sin shall also show thee the way
out.”
13.2.
Remember
also, light should never be feared for as Pink has stated, the light of God
brings true knowledge, holiness, and happiness.
13.3.
The
opposite is true of walking in darkness, for it brings blindness and as Pink
stated: ignorance, error, guilt,
depravity, privation, and misery. Why
would you ever want to willingly walk in darkness?
13.4.
Let those of us who confess that we know the Lord of
light walk as children of light seeking to know and to serve the Lord doing
those things that please Him, those things that make our life Christ-like.