John 8:12-20 - The Light of the World

John 8:12-20

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." 13 The Pharisees therefore said to Him, "You are bearing witness of Yourself; Your witness is not true. 14 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. 15 You people judge according to the flesh; I am not judging anyone. 16 But even if I do judge, My judgment is true; for I am not alone in it, but I and He who sent Me. 17 Even in your law it has been written, that the testimony of two men is true. 18 I am He who bears witness of Myself, and the Father who sent Me bears witness of Me." 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." 20 These words He spoke in the treasury, and He taught in the temple; and no one seized Him, because His hour had not yet come. 

Message: The Light of the World

Time: John most likely wrote between A.D. 85 and 90. John's purpose in writing was, "that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; and that believing you may have life in His name (John 20:31)." 

What the Lord is Saying: Now in verse 12, Jesus continues where we left off in chapter 7, verse 52. He is in Jerusalem, having arrived there for the Feast of Booths and then going to the temple to speak and teach, while also the Pharisees heard and questioned. But Jesus has been firm and clear - we are to seek Him. We are to believe in Him. In Him, our thirsts are quenched. Jesus is sent by God. And what I see Jesus doing over and over is adding more reason to do this, but also pronouncing more and more that He is the answer. 

I am constantly amazed at man's thirst to find answers that primarily include self as the answer. I see it as this training that occurs in our life that to achieve results we must perform. And Jesus here over and over is declaring that He is the answer, not obedience to a construct, like the Law and not obedience to a pattern of living. Our lives need right living that we are reminded of continually by the Law but this right living doesn't result in God's acceptance because as good as the design, we are broken and fail and not perfect, as such not Holy as He is. And so we must keep turning our necks to God and to Him and what He provides for us. 

And so Jesus does that again, here. He says, "I am the light of the world" which is really again a sort of audacious statement, as well as even pompous. He is stating He is it and the Pharisees respond with, "No, you are not." But Jesus is saying that He is the preferred contrast. He is the light to the darkness. 

What follows is what has continued to be consistent in this book - Jesus' defense for who He is - the Father sent Him. 

The complaint by the Pharisees was that Jesus could not self-proclaim Himself. Jesus states that the second witness is the Father. And Jesus mentions Deuteronomy 19:15 - "..on the evidence of two or three witnesses a matter shall be confirmed." It is interesting because that idea is a tie in to the last passage when the Pharisees brought the woman caught in adultery. 

Summary: Jesus proclaims Himself as the Light of the World based upon two witnesses, Him and the Father. 

Promise: We are prone to look for light and guidance everywhere but in Christ. Let us turn from these attempts and seek only the light of Christ. 

Prayer: Lord, You are the light. You not only shine, but you are the contrast to the darkness and a contrast to the dark and dissatisfying world in which we live. I know You to be My Light. And I pray that You would lead me continually to uphold it and make You known. 

Note: If you are interested in other studies/devotions, check out my index of Bible Study's.  

Romans 3:21-22a - Faithful Through The Ages

Romans 3:21-22a - But now apart from the Law the righteousness of God has been manifested, being witnessed by the Law and the Prophets, even the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ for all those who believe.

Message: Faithful Through The Ages

Time: The Apostle Paul wrote to the Romans from the Greek city of Corinth in AD 57, just three years after the 16 year old Nero had ascended to the throne as Emperor of Rome. Persecution of Christians wouldn't begin until AD 64. The church was experiencing times of relative peace. From where he wrote, Corinth, was a hotbed of sexual immorality and idol worship.

What the Lord is Saying:

As the title of this devotion declares, God has been faithful through the ages. The idea here is that throughout history God has called people to Himself and throughout history there has been one people called. As RC Sproul spoke about in his first message, My Faithful God from the series Living By Faith, we do not come to faith in God like we are leaping into something with no evidence. I have always been marveled at how the Mormons when they have shared with me focused so much on a feeling and they shared this verse from Moroni 10:3-4 telling me to ask God if it is not true and if you are sincere, then you will told it is true. But God shows us that our faith is not based on a feeling or no evidence (in fact, most of the evidence for LDS belief is very questionable). 

We have evidences in the natural world. One of my favorite passages is Romans 1:18-32 which shows how the world in which we live, the creation is constantly testifying of God. We can't look at all of this beauty without wondering how it came about. 

And we have a God in history that has shown mercy continually to His people. In my study of Genesis this past year with Bible Study Fellowship I have seen this. I have seen continually how God interceded on behalf of his people, giving them promises of blessing their descendants and it coming to pass. He shows His divine favor continually. He has shown me mercy. I shared at BSF about the hopelessness I felt early on in our marriage and finding little worth in my life for providing for my family and yet, He was with me and has carried me through this to where I am today.

We have evidences in the Bible of a chosen people. Throughout scripture He chooses the people of Israel, and then gives them many reminders of this through the Law and Commandments. We can see God's faithfulness in this and Paul reminds us of this continually in his letters that we are chosen by God. There are differences in people obviously throughout history, but it is clear that God has chosen people, not everyone. But, He has chosen certain ones. Often it is not by the way of the birth order but simply out of His great grace. God is faithful forevermore. 

And in today's passage is another example of how God chose us apart from our works. What a comfort to know that God isn't waiting for my righteousness. This is the way of the world. We do good continually to receive rewards, but with God, He chooses us and His righteousness is manifested apart from our doing of His Law.  But now apart from the Law the righteousness of God has been manifested ...through faith in Jesus Christ for all those who believe. I can became righteous by faith. If my obedience merits Him, I get some or all of the glory, but if the righteousness of God is given to me simply by faith, then God is glorified. 

God did something new in the New Testament through Jesus. And yet God has been faithful in every age to His people: through a new Prophet (Deut. 18:15), a new Priest (Isa. 53), or a new King (Ezek. 37:24). It is actually easy to know Him and His purposes. He is faithful through the ages. 

Promise: God is faithful and this is why I study His Word, to understand His promises and what He has done, can do in my life and will do. I abandon my life to Him, not to receive gifts, but to receive Him and the prize of eternal life with Him. 

Prayer: O God, you are faithful. I praise you and glorify you for saving me. You showed me faith clearly. Thank you for not staring at my achievements and waiting for my faithfulness. In Christ as I abandon and surrender my life to You, You show yourself to me and to others. Thank you for the evidence of You and the presence of You in life. You have affected me and provided for me. You have given me a peace that surpasses all understanding. Thank you for choosing me. 

Question: What sort of evidence do you see in your life of God providing or rescuing you?