John 8:12-20

John 8:12-20

Therefore Jesus spoke again to them while saying, “I am the light of the world.  The one who follows me shall never walk around in darkness, but He will have the light of life.”  Therefore the Pharisees said to Him, “You testify regarding yourself.  Your testimony is not true.”  Jesus answered and said to them, “Even if I should testify regarding myself, my testimony is true because I have known from where I came and where I go.  And you all do not know from where I come or where I go.  You all judge according to the flesh, and I do not judge anyone.  And even if I should judge, my judgment is true because I am not alone but I and the Father who sent me.  And even in your Law it has been written that the witness of two men is true.  I am the one who testifies about myself and the Father who sent me testifies regarding me.”  Therefore they were saying to Him, “Where is your Father?”  And Jesus answered, “You all have neither known me nor my Father.  If you all had known me, you all also had known my Father.”  He spoke these words in the treasury while teaching in the temple.  And nobody seized Him, because His hour had not yet come.

Thoughts for Today

First Thought:

Jesus begins this section with a rather incredible statement.  When He says, “I am the light of the world,” Jesus is claiming to be God.  Remember that this teaching occurs during the Feast of the Tabernacles.  The Feast of Tabernacles was full of imagery from the exodus.  Remember in the last chapter Jesus used image of the water from the rock?  In addition to this, during the Feast of Tabernacles a candelabrum was lit to remind the Jews of the pillar of fire that went with them through the wilderness.  Thus, when Jesus speaks about being the light and that those who follow Him will not walk in darkness He is alluding to God guiding the Hebrew people through the wilderness.  The point of all of this is that Jesus is asserting His identity as God.

Do you believe Jesus is God?  Why do some people not believe this?  What is so difficult about believe that Jesus is God?

Second Thought:

This claim is precisely why the Jewish leaders question Jesus about His testimony.  It’s one thing to make any claim.  It is another thing entirely to claim to be God.  For the Jewish leaders, Jesus was running the risk of blasphemy.  The interesting thing is that light has to bear witness about itself because those who cannot see the light are by definition blind!  Thus, Jesus has to say that He and the Father are the witnesses.  They are the best witnesses, because only the Father and the Son can truly see the light.  Any humans who see the light can only see the light because the Father has enabled them to see the light.  Thus, Jesus needs to witness about Himself. Furthermore, the witness of the Pharisees and religious leaders is unreliable because they only judge by outward appearances.  They could only judge based on what human reason allowed, not based on spiritual conclusions.

Are you a better judge of spiritual character or outward appearances?  Why do we tend to judge based on what we see and observe?  How can this impede our ability to see God’s hand at work?

Third Thought:

Jesus never answers the Jewish leaders’ question: “Where is Your Father?”  Instead, Jesus reminds them that they do not know the Father.  This statement explains why Jesus does not answer the question.  If they do not know the Father, how could they possibly ever understand where to find Him?  Jesus tells us in John 14:6 that He is the way, the truth, and the life and nobody comes to the Father except through Him.  The unfortunate reality is that Jesus is correct.  If the Jewish leaders are not willing to know Jesus, they cannot know the Father, either.

Do you know Jesus?  How do you know?  How would you describe your relationship with Jesus?  How does this relationship lead you into an understanding of your relationship with the Father?

Passage for Tomorrow: John 8:21-24