Sermon Tone Analysis

This passage contains the second out of the eight ‘I Am’ sayings of Jesus in the gospel of John.

The setting of this one is very particular, and we could better understand these words of Jesus if we get a little better feel for what else is happening in this passage.

In the beginning of chapter seven, the disciples are all planning to go to Jerusalem for the feast of Tabernacles.

Jesus says that he will not go with them because his time has not yet come.

But after the disciples go, Jesus makes his way on his own sort of undercover to Jerusalem for the feast.

About halfway through the time of the festival, Jesus begins teaching in the area of the temple, and his teaching begins attracting some attention.

It’s not the first time that Jesus went to Jerusalem for one of the Jewish festivals.

In fact, John tells us back in chapter five that Jesus has already been in Jerusalem for a festival and has already gotten into some trouble with the Jewish leaders for his controversial teachings.

But this time is a little different.

Only John includes these stories in his gospel, and there is something unique going on in these chapters that draw a deeper meaning from this second “I Am” statement about light.

The Feast of Tabernacles

First of all then, let’s get a picture of what was happening in Jerusalem around Jesus during this festival.

The celebration of the tabernacle was a time for the people of Israel to remember the stories of their ancestors who traveled in the wilderness for forty years with Moses.

Perhaps that is why references to Moses figures so prominently in the exchanges that Jesus has with the religious leaders in chapters seven and eight.

Specifically, this festival commemorated the tabernacle.

The tabernacle was the big tent that the Israelites would set up at the center of their nomadic camp.

It served as their movable temple during the years of those wilderness travels.

We read in Exodus that God’s presence went before Israel in two forms.

During the day, God’s presence was visible as a cloud.

During the night, it was a glowing pillar of smoke.

In Exodus we learn that whenever the presence of God would move, the people would move along with it.

Wherever the presence of God stopped, the people would make camp there and set up the tabernacle right in the place where God’s presence was visible in the daytime cloud and nighttime glowing fire.

Fast forward to the time of Jesus and the celebration of the feast of tabernacles.

The temple in Jerusalem replaced the tabernacle tent.

So now the temple was the place where the Israelites would go to be near the presence of God.

During this particular festival, the people would commemorate the way in which God’s presence was first revealed to the Jewish people in the time of the original tabernacle.

Presence of God displayed over the Tabernacle: cloud by day, glowing fire by night

This festival takes place in the autumn.

It is a celebration coincided with the harvest of all the produce that becomes ripe to pick at the end of the growing season—fruit trees and that sort of thing.

It also meant that daylight was getting shorter and darkness came sooner as the season was approaching the winter solstice.

And so it is said that one of the feature of the feast of Tabernacles took place in the outer courtyards of the temple.

The priests would set up sixteen enormous brass bowls on high stands.

The bowls would be filled with oil and then soaked with the old priestly garments that the Levites used for the past season, which served as the wicks.

As sundown approached, a priest would climb a ladder and use a torch to light each of these sixteen caldron-style lanterns.

As darkness fell, the light coming from the temple court upon the hill would be visible to the entire city of Jerusalem.

16 caldrons lit in temple court

Remember that this is a time long before electricity or lightbulbs.

When the sun went down, it was dark—completely dark.

Imagine, then, that during this one particular festival, all the people in Jerusalem would see this great light coming from the temple court and be reminded that this is how God revealed his presence at night to their ancestors so long ago in the wilderness—through the light that shone above the tabernacle.

Jesus is beneath these festival torches when he says, “I am the light of the world”

The last verse we read today in chapter eight tells us that Jesus spoke these words while teaching in the temple court where the offerings would be received—the outer court where these sixteen giant lamps would be set up during this festival time.

It is right beneath these lights that symbolized God’s presence that Jesus spoke the words, “I am the light of the world.”

The connection seems so very obvious.

This festival of God’s presence seen symbolically in these lights right here…that’s Jesus!

The presence of God is right there among them in the person of Jesus.

The story right after this scene beginning in chapter nine is the healing of a man who had been blind his whole life.

Again, Jesus brings light to someone who had only ever known darkness.

But all the people there miss the connection.

They completely miss it.

Living in Darkness

People respond to Jesus with confusion & skepticism

All through John chapter seven and eight there are people who hear the teachings of Jesus and don’t understand what he is saying about himself.

The Pharisees and religious leaders are offended and respond in adamant opposition to Jesus.

But the great crowd of general population in town for the festival all seem to respond with something more like confusion and skepticism.

They simply don’t get it.

They do not understand.

They are in the dark—a cliché metaphor that is perfect for this instance.

Years ago when my kids were younger we would take road trips all together as a family in the minivan.

This was before the day of everyone having portable electronic devices.

But we did have a dvd player in the van.

Ion a long trip we would pack some movies and the kids could pass the time that way.

But sometimes we had to take turns when not everyone could agree on which movie to watch.

And one of my kids would complain about the movie.

And Laura would say, be patient and wait for your turn; we all have to share this one space together.

Meanwhile, I’m just trying to get us there as quickly as possible, inevitably having to deal with some traffic and put up with that slow guy who just hangs out in the left lane and won’t get back over while I’m trying to pass.

And then I would say, yes kids, listen to your mother, be patient and wait your turn, we all share this space together; and why won’t this guy get over and get out of my lane?

Can’t he see I’m trying to pass? …oh wait, maybe that comment was meant for me too.

Often we want to think that only non-believers are living in darkness

Here is where the story hits hard.

You see, I believe everyone here wants to take the benefit of the doubt—myself included.

We all want to be the ones who read this story and hear these words and react with some sort of righteous indignation towards those who oppose Jesus and stand opposed to the gospel.

We all want to breathe a sigh of relief that we get it, that we know Jesus, that we see Jesus, that we are not the ones living in darkness.

We all want to quickly jump to a conclusion that the ones living in darkness today are the people who don’t know Jesus, don’t belong to a church, don’t read the Bible.

It seems like a pretty quick and easy answer for us to close the book here and say thank you to Jesus that we are not the ones living in darkness.

It seems like a pretty tidy answer and application to wrap this up with a mission to go and share the light of Jesus with all those unbelievers out there in our community and around the world.

There are plenty of other places in the New Testament which call for exactly that.

The apostle Paul especially advocated for sharing the gospel of Jesus with an unbelieving world.

Jesus is calling out the insiders as missing the real light

But this story here in John eight doesn’t bend that way.

It is not only the people outside away from Jesus who are living in darkness.

It is the people right there among him who are confused and cannot see the light of Jesus even though he is right there.

It would be a mistake for us to walk away from this story without placing ourselves into the shoes of those many other people in Jerusalem who hear Jesus, and yet struggle to understand and apply the full truth of who Jesus is and what Jesus is teaching and why he has come.

We need to place ourselves into this story as those who desperately need to hear those words of Jesus even again today.

We are the people who still need every day for Jesus to light our hearts and reveal himself among us.

How do we miss the real light of Jesus?

What does this look like?

Where are those moment when you and I may think we are in the light, but actually fumble around in darkness?

Any time I miss the truth of the gospel of Jesus in my life, I miss the light and I fumble in the dark.

Any time I start thinking that I am not good enough and I cannot walk into this place with anything to offer God, then I miss the light of the gospel.

Truth: every single one of us is here by God’s grace alone.

That’s the light of Jesus for the whole world.

Any time I start thinking that I was way too messed up in my younger days and there is just way too much baggage for me to carry that I cannot ever get rid of, then I miss the light of the gospel.

Truth: God’s grace covers over all the mistakes and brokenness we have ever committed.

That’s the light of Jesus for the whole world today.

Any time I start thinking that maybe I do not know enough, I am not smart enough to understand the Bible and to somehow unlock all the secrets of salvation, then I miss the light of the gospel.

Truth: The light of salvation comes from Jesus, not from my own wisdom or understanding.

Whenever we conditionally attach the gospel to good works

So, I keep coming to church and I keep hearing messages about Jesus and about his love and about his forgiveness, but maybe I am just not sure that it’s really for me.

Sure, there are other people here who get it and have the light of that love and grace, but I just pray and hope against hope that this is a mercy that will somehow be there for me too.

Or maybe it’s completely the other way around.