I AM the Light of the World -- Part 1 (John 8:12-38)

Daniel L. Arter

The Gospel according to John • Sermon • Submitted 2 years ago

John 8:12–38

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If you’re free to join us Wednesday at 7pm, we’d love to have you join us for our weekly Bible Study & Prayer, online via Zoom as we study through the Letter to the Ephesians. The Wednesday Bible Study & Prayer is about an hour to an hour and a quarter and includes 45-50 minutes of teaching straight from the Scriptures and the remainder of the time is spent sharing prayer requests and praying for one another. We’d love to have you join us, contact Natalie to get all the details.

Starting May 22nd, which is a Saturday and every other Saturday after that, we’re going to be setting up a booth at the Philipsburg Farmer’s Market. We do need some volunteers to help with that, we’d love someone to help do some free face painting for children and then we need people that are willing to just sit at the booth, hand out flyers for the church, free Bibles and water, and really just talk with and get to know people. Our goal is really to utilize the farmers market as an outreach so that the community knows that we’re here and that we care about them. There is a sign-up sheet for that next to the snack sign-up sheet.

And just a reminder, the only reason we can do outreach like the farmer’s market is because of your faithful giving. So, let me encourage you to continue to give as part of your worship of God. In order to help you give, we have three ways for you to do so: (1) you can give in-person at the offering box in the back of the room—this would be for check and cash giving (checks should be written to Grace & Peace and if you’d like a giving receipt for your cash giving, please place it in an envelope with your name on it so we can properly attribute it to you); (2) you can give with debit, credit, and ACH transfers by texting the number 84321 with your $[amount] and following the text prompts; or (3) you can give online at graceandpeacepa.com by visiting the “Giving” button in the menubar. Everything that you give goes to the building up of this local church and for the spread of the Gospel of Jesus Christ in and around Central Pennsylvania.

Prayer of Repentance and Adoration

Call to Worship

Psalm 14 ESV

To the choirmaster. Of David. 1 The fool says in his heart, “There is no God.” They are corrupt, they do abominable deeds; there is none who does good. 2 The Lord looks down from heaven on the children of man, to see if there are any who understand, who seek after God. 3 They have all turned aside; together they have become corrupt; there is none who does good, not even one. 4 Have they no knowledge, all the evildoers who eat up my people as they eat bread and do not call upon the Lord? 5 There they are in great terror, for God is with the generation of the righteous. 6 You would shame the plans of the poor, but the Lord is his refuge. 7 Oh, that salvation for Israel would come out of Zion! When the Lord restores the fortunes of his people, let Jacob rejoice, let Israel be glad.

Congregational Singing

Come Behold the Wondrous Mystery

Wonderful, Merciful Savior

Come Thou Fount

Scripture Reading

Our Scripture reading this morning is from Matthew 5:1-16, which is part of the Sermon on the Mount given by Jesus to a vast multitude of people. This morning’s sermon focuses in on Jesus’ statement of being the light of the world in John 8, but Jesus doesn’t just say that he’s the light of the world; in Matthew 5, he also makes the statement that if you truly believe, you are also the light of the world and the salt of the earth. That you are here as a beacon of God’s truth to proclaim the Gospel as you live your lives. Let’s read Matthew 5:1-16.

Matthew 5:1–16 ESV

1 Seeing the crowds, he went up on the mountain, and when he sat down, his disciples came to him. 2 And he opened his mouth and taught them, saying: 3 “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. 4 “Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted. 5 “Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth. 6 “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied. 7 “Blessed are the merciful, for they shall receive mercy. 8 “Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God. 9 “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God. 10 “Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness’ sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. 11 “Blessed are you when others revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account. 12 Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you. 13 “You are the salt of the earth, but if salt has lost its taste, how shall its saltiness be restored? It is no longer good for anything except to be thrown out and trampled under people’s feet. 14 “You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden. 15 Nor do people light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a stand, and it gives light to all in the house. 16 In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven.

Sermon

Introduction

Last week, we took sort-of a break from the Gospel according to John and spent the sermon in 2 Peter talking about the inspiration and inerrancy of Scripture. The reason for that break was to explain why scholars don’t believe John 8:1-11 is original to John, but then to assure us that we are confident that what we have today is truly the Word of God that we can rely on. We spent quite a bit of time last week discussing textual criticism, manuscript evidence, and what the Bible means when it says that it was breathed out by God. The goal of last week was to provide evidence of the validity of Scripture in order to give you confidence in what it says.

This morning, we’re back in the Gospel according to John and this passage (John 8:12-38) seems to be a continuation from 7:52, so let me remind you a little bit of what occured prior to this point:

Jesus went to the Feast of Booths and in the middle of the week, he goes into the temple to teach and as he teaches, he claims that he has the authority to say the words that he’s teaching them because the words themselves come from God.

Jesus makes the claim that the Jewish people really don’t understand God’s Law at all and his example of their misunderstanding concerns the man that he healed at Bethesda—he states that they’re upset at this miracle of healing that he performed because according to him healing this man was considered work and he did this miracle on the Sabbath, but they’re willing to circumcise men on the Sabbath in order to keep the Law, but they don’t consider that work at all.

Ultimately, what it came down to was that they didn’t believe in him as the Messiah because they didn’t actually know God and they didn’t actually understand God’s Law.

Jesus ends the Feast of Booths by making the statement that “if anyone thirsts, let him come to me and drink. Whoever believes in me, as the Scripture has said, ‘Out of his heart will flow rivers of living water.’”

And this statement causes some to believe, many to question his validity, and the Pharisees to utterly oppose him (with the exception of Nicodemus, of course).

All of this is leading up to this section starting in Vs. 12, so keep it in mind as we read through the passage. After we read the passage, I’ll explain how we’ll break the passage down and we’ll dig into the Word of God.

John 8:12–38 ESV

12 Again Jesus spoke to them, saying, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.” 13 So the Pharisees said to him, “You are bearing witness about yourself; your testimony is not true.” 14 Jesus answered, “Even if I do bear witness about myself, my testimony 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 judge according to the flesh; I judge no one. 16 Yet even if I do judge, my judgment is true, for it is not I alone who judge, but I and the Father who sent me. 17 In your Law it is written that the testimony of two people is true. 18 I am the one who bears witness about myself, and the Father who sent me bears witness about me.” 19 They said to him therefore, “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, as he taught in the temple; but no one arrested him, because his hour had not yet come. 21 So he said to them again, “I am going away, and you will seek me, and you will die in your sin. Where I am going, you cannot come.” 22 So the Jews said, “Will he kill himself, since he says, ‘Where I am going, you cannot come’?” 23 He said to them, “You are from below; I am from above. You are of this world; I am not of this world. 24 I told you that you would die in your sins, for unless you believe that I am he you will die in your sins.” 25 So they said to him, “Who are you?” Jesus said to them, “Just what I have been telling you from the beginning. 26 I have much to say about you and much to judge, but he who sent me is true, and I declare to the world what I have heard from him.” 27 They did not understand that he had been speaking to them about the Father. 28 So Jesus said to them, “When you have lifted up the Son of Man, then you will know that I am he, and that I do nothing on my own authority, but speak just as the Father taught me. 29 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.” 30 As he was saying these things, many believed in him. 31 So Jesus said to the Jews who had believed him, “If you abide in my word, you are truly my disciples, 32 and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.” 33 They answered him, “We are offspring of Abraham and have never been enslaved to anyone. How is it that you say, ‘You will become free’?” 34 Jesus answered them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, everyone who practices sin is a slave to sin. 35 The slave does not remain in the house forever; the son remains forever. 36 So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed. 37 I know that you are offspring of Abraham; yet you seek to kill me because my word finds no place in you. 38 I speak of what I have seen with my Father, and you do what you have heard from your father.”

As we study this passage, we’re going to take it in three primary parts: (1) Vs. 12-20, Jesus is the Light of the World, covers the initial statement that starts this discourse and this is actually the section in which Jesus flat out accuses the Pharisees of not knowing God; (2) Vs. 21-30, Jesus is from Above and Jesus is God, tells us where in which all of Jesus’ authority comes from. It is the fact that Jesus is God and Jesus is from above that makes what he says authoritative, but the Pharisees completely miss the point, which prompts Jesus to say that when they “[lift] up the Son of Man, then [they] will know;” (3) Vs. 31-38, Jesus’ Truth will set you Free, which covers an often misquoted and misused verse, that “the truth will set you free” and we’ll take the end of this sermon to discuss what exactly Jesus is referring to when he makes that statement. All of this—the fact that Jesus is the Light of the world and because Jesus is from above and Jesus is God, should compel us to abide in Jesus’ words as his disciples.

Prayer for Illumination

Jesus is the Light of the World (12-20)

John 8:12–20 ESV

Jesus continues this conversation from Chapter 7 by making a profound statement, Vs. 12, Jesus says, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.”

This statement is profound for two primary reasons:

Remember that this is during the final day of the Feast of Booths, which was a week-long celebration of the provisions of God both during their current time period and during the Exodus when God provided for their ancestors.

One aspect of the Feast of Booths is that great candles lit up the courtyards of Jerusalem every night with the point of reminding the Israelites of their ancestors being led through the wilderness by the light of the pillar of fire.

The Mishnah, which are Jewish writings states that, “At the close of the . . . Festival-day of the Feast they went down to the Court . . . There were golden candlesticks there with four golden bowls on the top of them and four ladders to each candlestick, and four youths of the priestly stock and in their hands jars of oil holding a hundred and twenty logs which they poured into all the bowls. They made wicks from the worn out drawer and girdles of the priests and with them they set the candlesticks alight, and there was not a courtyard in Jerusalem that did not reflect the light”

Gerald Borchert, “On the first night of Tabernacles and apparently on each night of the feast except on Sabbath, the worshipers awaited the signal of the special lighting of the festive golden lamps of Tabernacles. . . The lamps were intended to remind worshipers of God’s leading the people of Israel through the wilderness at night by a pillar of fire. The lighting of lamps also signaled Israel’s recommitment to the God of light.”

And thus when Jesus claims to be the light of the world, he’s doing it during a time when the Israelites are remembering their commitment to Yahweh and they’re remembering, in particular, a time in history when Yahweh led them as a pillar of fire; and by claiming to be the light of the world, he’s essentially claiming to be the same God who led them as a pillar of fire.

In addition, not only is Jesus making the claim to be the same God who led their Israelite ancestors by a pillar of fire, he’s actually utilizing Old Testament prophecy to substantiate his claim:

Isaiah 42:6, 49:6 and 51:4, speak of the Servant of the Lord and the LORD himself as the light to the world.

Isaiah 42:5-7, says, “Thus says God, the LORD, who created the heavens and stretched them out, who spread out the earth and what comes from it, who gives breath to the people on it and spirit to those who walk on it : ‘I am the LORD; I have called you in righteousness; I will take you by the hand and keep you; I will give you as a covenant for the people, a light for the nations to open the eyes that are blind, to bring out the prisoners from the dungeon, from the prison those who sit in darkness.”

Isaiah 49:5-6, “And now the LORD says, he who formed me from the womb to be his servant, to bring Jacob back to him; and that Israel might be gathered to him—for I am honored in the eyes of the LORD, and my God has become my strength— he says: ‘It is too light a thing that you should be my servant to raise up the tribes of Jacob and to bring back the preserved of Israel; I will make you as a light for the nations, that my salvation may reach to the end of the earth.”

Isaiah 51:4-6, “Give attention to me, my people, and give ear to me, my nation; for a law will go out from me, and I will set my justice for a light to the peoples. My righteousness draws near, my salvation has gone out, and my arms will judge the peoples; the coastlands hope for me, and for my arm they wait. Lift up your eyes to the heavens and look at the earth beneath; for the heavens vanish like smoke, the earth will wear out like a garment, and they who dwell in it will die in like manner; but my salvation will be forever, and my righteousness will never be dismayed.”

In all three instances, Isaiah is prophesying of a coming redeemer who will bring salvation to the people, in hindsight, we know that this is referring to Jesus Christ. And in all three instances, Isaiah calls this Redeemer, Jesus a light for the nations or a light to the people.

So when Jesus makes the statement that he is the light of the world, he’s simultaneously utilizing the festival’s use of candles and the prophecy from Isaiah to make the claim that he is the Messiah. And then he continues the statement by utilizing imagery from the wilderness wandering—In the book of Exodus, as the Israelites wandered in the wilderness Yahweh led them as a pillar of smoke during the day and a pillar of fire during the night.

Which means that as the Israelites followed the pillar of fire during the night, they could have light in order to see in the darkness and Jesus continues in this imagery by saying, “Whoever follows me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.”

Whoever follows Jesus walks in spiritual light rather than spiritual darkness.

Vs 13, the Pharisees contradict Jesus, “You are bearing witness about yourself; your testimony is not true.”

Which again, reveals their level of unbelief and unwillingness to believe what Jesus was teaching and what Jesus was saying. And their rejection of Jesus’ teaching is based on one fact, “you are bearing witness about yourself.” The question for us is what exactly is bearing witness?

To bear witness is a courtroom term and it has to do with a person who claims to have seen the event that transpired. In the legal system, they call for witnesses to corroborate for or against the defendant. And the idea is that these witnesses actually saw what occurred and can thus be considered trustworthy in their testimony about the defendant.

In the Jewish law, all faults and sins are to be established by two or more witnesses and this is the same pattern for accusing elders of sin and for disciplining people within the church. If one person makes a claim, then it may not be true, but if multiple people make the same accusation, the likelihood of that accusation being legitimate increases.

In this instance, the Pharisees are making the claim that Jesus doesn’t have anyone to corroborate his claims. Jesus alone is claiming to be the light of the world and Jesus alone is claiming to satiate spiritual thirst and thus they refuse to believe him.

The issue is that Jesus isn’t the only one bearing witness about him and Jesus responds to the Pharisees pointing this out. Vs. 14, “Jesus answered, ‘Even if I do bear witness about myself, my testimony 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. You judge according to the flesh; I judge no one. Yet even if I do judge, my judgment is true, for it is not I alone who judge, but I and the Father who sent me. In your Law it is written that the testimony of two people is true. I am the one who bears witness about myself, and the Father who sent me bears witness about me.’”

Jesus responds to their criticism of his statement by saying that, “even if I do bear witness about myself, my testimony is true.”

So, even if the Pharisees were correct in their assessment that he alone was bearing witness about himself, it doesn’t stop the fact that he’s still correct.

And let me be clear that Jesus isn’t saying that they’re right in their assessment, he’s really just emphasizing the fact that even if they were right, he’s still telling the truth.

He says, “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.” This response is rooted in the discussion that he had earlier in the week during the Feast of Booths and the division amongst the people concerning his Messiahship and his birth location.

Remember in John 7:25-31, the question of whether or not Jesus is the Christ is posited by the people and the question concerns the location of his birth.

Jesus in both John 7 and John 8 is making the argument that his teachings and his bearing witness about himself is true because he’s really from heaven and he’s really going to heaven, “but [they] do not know where [he is coming] or where [he is going.]

Not only are they clueless concerning his origins and future destination, he makes the accusation that, “[They] judge according to the flesh; [but he judges] no one.” Vs. 16, “Yet even if I do judge, my judgment is true, for it is not I alone who judge, but I and the Father who sent me.”

Now this can be a little confusing and it could easily be taken out of context, particularly when Jesus says, “I judge no one.” And this could very easily be taken out of context and assumed to mean that Jesus is such a loving God that he only loves people, he never judges people. So, let’s nip that in the bud and be clear about one thing, Jesus is the judge who judges all people. To claim that Jesus is so loving that he won’t judge anyone is a heresy meant to placate those who would rather continue in sin than follow the words of Jesus.

Paul states in 2 Corinthians 5:10, “For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each one may be recompensed for his deeds in the body, according to what he has done, whether good or bad.”

Acts 17:31, “God has fixed a day in which he will judge the world in righteousness through [Jesus] whom he has appointed, having furnished proof to all men by raising him from the dead.”

If you remember with me, even in John 5:22-23, “For the Father judges no one, but has given all judgment to the Son, that all may honor the Son, just as they honor the Father.”

What Jesus is saying here when he says “I judge no one,” is that he isn’t judging them at that moment. The Pharisee’s are laying their human standards and judgments against him, but Jesus isn’t on earth during that moment in history to judge them, he’s on earth during that moment of history to provide salvation for those who would believe.

It isn’t that Jesus will never judge anyone, it’s that Jesus is reserving his judgment for a later date.

Nevertheless, if he were to judge them, then he’d be right in his judgment.

And his rightness in his judgment is because he isn’t judging them alone, he’s judging them with the Father.

Jesus is making the statement that what he says about himself is true despite the fact that they refuse to believe him and then he continues in that idea in Vs. 17-18, “In your Law it is written that the testimony of two people is true. I am the one who bears witness about myself, and the Father who sent me bears witness about me.”

Jesus agrees with them, that he’s bearing witness about himself and that their Law requires the testimony of two people in order for his assertion to be true, but his claim is that he isn’t the only one claiming that he is the Christ and that he is the Messiah.

The Father himself claims that Jesus is the Messiah, remember during Jesus’ baptism in John 1, John the Baptist when bore witness about Jesus, “I saw the Spirit descend from heaven like a dove, and it remained on him. I myself did not know him, but he who sent me to baptize with water said to me, ‘He on whom you see the Spirit descend and remain, this is he who baptizes with the Holy Spirit.’ And I have seen and have borne witness that this is the Son of God.” Matthew 3:17, in Matthew’s record of the baptism of Jesus adds that, “a voice from heaven said, ‘This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased.”

Jesus is making this claim to be the Messiah, the claim to be the Christ, the claim to be God—and he’s providing evidence that even God is making the same claim that Jesus is the Messiah, the Christ, that Jesus is God.

But the issue is and Jesus makes this abundantly clear, they don’t know God and that’s why they won’t accept him. In Vs. 19-20, “[The Pharisees] said to him therefore, ‘Where is your Father?’ Jesus answered, ‘You know neither me nor my Father. If you knew me, you would know my Father also.’ These words he spoke in the treasury, as he taught in the temple; but no one arrested him, because his hour had not yet come.”

In their unbelieving hearts, the Pharisees don’t understand that when Jesus refers to his Father, he’s referring to God.

Their assumption is that he’s speaking of Joseph, the man who raised him, when in reality he’s looking at things from a spiritual lens

Again, emphasizing the contrast between spiritual things and physical things.

So, what we’ve seen so far is Jesus making this statement that he is the light of the world and looking at the historical context of the end of the Feast of Booths and taking into consideration all of the prophecies form Isaiah that compare the coming Redeemer to coming light, Jesus has again, made it abundantly clear that he is the Messiah; but the Pharisees are still rejecting him and now it seems almost as if he’s changing topics, but in reality he’s continuing with the idea of where he’s from and who his Father is.

We’re actually going to go through this middle section fairly quick because the point that Jesus is driving at is really in the last section and we need to spend more time in that section than this middle section. So, let’s reread Vs. 21-30.

Jesus is from Above and Jesus is God (21-30)

John 8:21–30 ESV

21 So he said to them again, “I am going away, and you will seek me, and you will die in your sin. Where I am going, you cannot come.” 22 So the Jews said, “Will he kill himself, since he says, ‘Where I am going, you cannot come’?” 23 He said to them, “You are from below; I am from above. You are of this world; I am not of this world. 24 I told you that you would die in your sins, for unless you believe that I am he you will die in your sins.” 25 So they said to him, “Who are you?” Jesus said to them, “Just what I have been telling you from the beginning. 26 I have much to say about you and much to judge, but he who sent me is true, and I declare to the world what I have heard from him.” 27 They did not understand that he had been speaking to them about the Father. 28 So Jesus said to them, “When you have lifted up the Son of Man, then you will know that I am he, and that I do nothing on my own authority, but speak just as the Father taught me. 29 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.” 30 As he was saying these things, many believed in him.

Jesus in Vs. 21, tells them again that he is leaving them. This is the second time that he makes this statement (the first time is in John 7:33), but this time, he actually gives them a warning, “you will seek me, and you will die in your sin.” And Jesus actually repeats this again in a few verses, so I’ll expound on it when Jesus expounds on it in Vs. 24.

Jesus tells them that he’s about to go away, and “where [he is] going, [they] cannot come,” and remember, throughout the Gospel according to John, those that Jesus teaches and those that oppose him typically view everything from an earthly mindset.

Because they’re thinking with this earthly mindset, they assume that he’s thinking of killing himself; which is a bit surprising because in orthodox Judaism (the sect of Judaism that the Pharisees were a part of) suicide is a grievous sin. It’s actually still considered a grievous sin amongst orthodox Jewish people today.

But in reality, Jesus isn’t contemplating suicide. He’s making the statement that they cannot come with him because he’s returning to his Father.

Which is further explained after the Jews contemplate whether or not he plans to kill himself when Jesus says in Vs. 23, “You are from below; I am from above. You are of this world; I am not of this world. And then in Vs. 24, “I told you that you would die in your sins, for unless you believe that I am he you will die in your sins.”

In explaining this contrast between who he is and who they are, he emphasizes the point that he isn’t like them—Jesus says that “I am from above” and “I am not of this world” whereas the Jews are “from below” and “of this world.”

Isaiah 55:8-9 actually explains to us just how different God is from mankind, “‘For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways,’ saith the LORD. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts.” (KJV) Not only is the origin of God different than the origin of man, but the very way that God thinks is different than how humans think.

Which is why Romans 12:1-2 teaches us to be transformed by the renewing of our minds in order to properly worship God. We have to think like God thinks.

And in John 8:23, Jesus is emphasizing this point and then he reminds them of his previous statement from Vs. 21 in Vs. 24, “I told you that you would die in your sins, for unless you believe that I am he you will die in your sins.”

Further proving that Jesus does intend to eventually judge mankind, but that judgment isn’t to occur yet.

In addition, he clearly presents the Gospel to the people around him—he very clearly tells them how to avoid dying in their sins. “Unless you believe that I am he you will die in your sins.”

In making the contrast between himself and the people abundantly clear, he also explains why his words are authoritative—he explains why they should listen to what he has to say. It is because he is from above and it is because he isn’t of this world; and it is because God bears witness as to who he is that they should actually listen to him.

And yet, the Jewish people hear Jesus make these statements and they ask him “Who are you?”

Now to us, who are reading what’s happening in this passage several thousand years after the fact, the fact that they ask this is a bit absurd.

Jesus has repeatedly told them who he is—he’s told them directly and indirectly, some of these people have witnessed his miracles and heard his teaching and yet, because they still refuse to believe that he is the Messiah, they ask him “who are you?”

Jesus’ response is simple—he essentially tells them that he is who he has been telling them he is. Vs. 25, “Just what I have been telling you from the beginning” and he tells them that he has much to judge about them and what he judges is true because the one who sent him is true and Jesus declares what the Father declares.

Jesus ends this section by stating that when he is crucified, they will understand that he is God. In Vs. 28-30, “When you have lifted up the Son of Man, then you will know that I am he, and that I do nothing on my own authority, but speak just 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 was saying these things, many believed in him.”

Now that last verse is when Jesus starts to transition. So, starting all the way back in Vs. 12, Jesus makes this claim to be the light of the world, which in the Jewish mind would bring up images of the pillar of fire because of the festival that they’re celebrating, the Feast of Booths. There’s immediate opposition from the Pharisees who accuse him of bearing witness about himself and in essence lying about who he is, but Jesus’ response is quite simple, God also bears witness about who Jesus is and the Pharisees don’t know who God is and that’s why they don’t recognize who Jesus is. In the section that we just worked through, Jesus explains that his words are authoritative because he is from above and not of this world.

And the Bible continues through the rest of chapter 8 by showing us how the people responded to Jesus’ statements here at the end of the Feast of Booths. This week, we’re only going to look at the initial response and next week we’ll look at the rest of the conversation. The Bible tells us that after Jesus said these things, “Many believed in him.” So Jesus turns his attention to those who claim to have believed in Vs. 31-38.

Jesus’ Truth will set you Free (31-38)

John 8:31–38 ESV

31 So Jesus said to the Jews who had believed him, “If you abide in my word, you are truly my disciples, 32 and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.” 33 They answered him, “We are offspring of Abraham and have never been enslaved to anyone. How is it that you say, ‘You will become free’?” 34 Jesus answered them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, everyone who practices sin is a slave to sin. 35 The slave does not remain in the house forever; the son remains forever. 36 So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed. 37 I know that you are offspring of Abraham; yet you seek to kill me because my word finds no place in you. 38 I speak of what I have seen with my Father, and you do what you have heard from your father.”

Jesus turns his attention to those who claim to have believed him and he essentially tells them what the next step is after believing in him. “If you abide in my word, you are truly my disciples, and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.”

The word that’s translated as abide is the Greek meno and the idea is to remain in or to stay in or reside in. And Jesus’ whole point here is that if they truly believe, then they should remain in his word—learn, understand, internalize, and apply his word, and that abiding in his word is evidence that they’re truly disciples of Jesus Christ,

The idea is that a true disciple of Jesus is one who obeys the teachings of Jesus, which is where truth is found.

And that truth will set them free—what exactly will it set them free from? We can postulate on what exactly the truth will set them free from, but Jesus tells us what he’s speaking of after the Jews respond to his statement that the truth will set them free.

The Jews answer Jesus by stating that they’re offspring of Abraham and their generation had never been enslaved to another people group. And they ask him “How is it that you say, ‘you will become free?’”

And this is what Jesus is teaching that they can come be freed from—Vs. 34, “Jesus answered them ‘Truly, truly, I say to you, everyone who practices sin is a slave to sin. The slave does not remain in the house forever; the son remains forever. So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed.’”

The argument that Jesus is making is that if they truly believe in him then they ought to abide in his word and if they abide in his word they will learn the truth which sets them free—what is this truth? It’s the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

The Gospel of Jesus sets us free from sin, which also sets us free from condemnation because of sin, it sets us free from darkness, the power of Satan, and of death because the Gospel of Jesus requires us to believe in Jesus in order to be saved.

The issue in John 8:31-38, is that these people don’t actually believe in Jesus—and you might ask yourselves, but doesn’t the Bible say that they believed?

John 8:30, after Jesus makes his initial statement that he is the light of the world and they ought to believe in him because the Father has given him the authority to make the statements that he does, the Bible says, “As he was saying these things, many believed in him” and Vs. 31 claims that Jesus is directing these comments to those who “believed him.”

Remember with me the overall purpose of the Gospel according to John, that those who read it would believe in Jesus Christ as the Messiah. And remember throughout the book so far, John has consistently shown us the contrast between those who truly believe and those who only claim to believe.

In John 2:23, many people who claimed to believe in his name because of the many signs that he did turned out to have a fickle faith.

In John 4:48, after Jesus had performed several miracles he accuses the people of only believing because they see these miracles.

John is doing essentially the same thing here.

The people in John 8:30 and following claim to believe in Jesus, but their response to his statement that they need to abide in his teachings and obey his word in order to be set free is met with opposition.

Thus, what’s happening in this section is that John is telling us that these people didn’t actually believe in Jesus and its evident because they refuse to believe that they need to abide in Jesus’ word in order to be set free.

And Jesus makes it abundantly clear in next week’s passage that they don’t actually believe because if they were actually Abraham’s children (in a spiritual sense rather than just a physical sense) they would be doing the same works that Abraham did and he later accuses them of doing the works of the devil who is their true spiritual father.

Jesus ends this section by telling them that if they truly believed they would have been set free from their sins and yet “[they] seek to kill [him] because [his] word finds no place in you.” And what he has told them is from the Father whom they do not know.

Thus, what has occured so far on the last day of the Feast of Booths in which Jesus makes the claim to be the light of the world is that Jesus, yet again, makes the claim to be the Messiah who gets all of his authority to teach and preach exactly what the Father wants him to say from the Father himself. And yet, the Jews still refuse to believe in him and thus, they remain enslaved in their sin, which is evident from their desire to kill Jesus anyways.

In our remaining few minutes, I want to help us gain a complete understanding of the passage by helping us to apply the passage:

Application

Jesus is the Light of the World (12-20)—in the first section of this paragraph, Jesus makes the claim to be the light of the world, which fits the symbolism of the lamps utilized during the Feast of Booths and it also causes the Israelites to connect Jesus with the pillar of fire that led their ancestors in the wilderness, making it clear that he aimed to equate himself with God.

In making this statement and by equating himself with God, he essentially tells us that because he is God—the proper response is to believe in him and worship him.

Now in this instance, Vs. 19, tells us that the Israelites didn’t know him nor his Father and if they knew Jesus they would’ve known the Father and vice versa. So, the application is quite simple:

Recognize that Jesus Christ is God

One criticism that often comes from unbelievers concerning Christianity is that unbelievers will generally claim that Jesus never claimed to be God.

As we’ve studied through the Gospel according to John, we’ve seen time after time after time in which Jesus himself specifically equated himself with God and time after time after time in which Jesus subtly implied that he is God through his word usage.

In John 8:12, by calling himself the light of the world, Jesus is implying that he is God and he continues in that line of thinking as he differentiates between himself and the people. In John 8:28, Jesus specifically says that when they crucify him, they will know that he is God.

So, don’t believe the criticism that Jesus never claimed to be God.

Jesus definitely claimed to be God and he wanted people to know that he is God and thus the application point for the first section is again, quite simple: recognize that Jesus Christ is God.

Jesus is from Above and Jesus is God (21-30)—Now the second section continues in the line of thinking from the first section concerning who Jesus Christ is and that he is God by showing us what the implications for Jesus being God is. Jesus differentiates between himself and then by telling them that he is from above while they are from below and he is not of the world whereas they are of this world. And then Jesus makes this profound statement, “I told you that you would die in your sins, for unless you believe that I am he you will die in your sins.”

Jesus in this second section makes it abundantly clear that the reason he can make such amazing claims as being God himself is because Jesus isn’t from earth, he’s from above and because Jesus isn’t of the world. In other words, Jesus can make these claims because he has the authority to make these claims.

And since he has the authority to make the claims, he can go further and emphasize that if they don’t believe that he is God, they will die in their sins.

That’s the Gospel message of Jesus Christ right there in one verse—Jesus as God, came to earth to live a perfect sinless life, died on a cross for the sins of mankind, died, buried, and was resurrected and reigns today as king.

Since Jesus is God and since God and Jesus both bear witness of Jesus’ divinity, the only proper response is to believe in Jesus Christ and believe that he is God.

Now you might hear the first two application points and think, well I do those things, so I must be alright. Let’s dig into a little bit more of what I mean when I say recognize that Jesus is God and believe that he is God.

To recognize Jesus is God is to submit your life to Jesus Christ—because Jesus is God, that makes Jesus the Lord of all of creation just like God is Lord of all creation. The Jewish people daily repeat what they call the Shema, “Hear, O Isreal, the Lord thy God is one God and thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, soul, mind, and strength.”

The word that’s translated as hear is actually the word shema and it doesn’t just mean to hear the words themselves.

Shema gives the idea that you don’t just hear the words, but you truly listen to the words and obey the words. So when the Jewish people recite this sentence they’re literally say, Israel, listen and obey, the Lord is one God, love the Lord with all your heart, soul, mind, and strength. Because Jesus is God, this should be applied to Jesus as well and then we could effectively say, “Church, listen and obey, Jesus and God are one God, love Jesus with all your heart, soul, mind, and strength.

To recognize that Jesus is God is to submit yourself to Jesus and to understand that Jesus and the God of the Old Testament are one being.

To believe that Jesus is God is to take the knowledge that you have of God and Jesus and to understand that knowledge alone doesn’t save you and this point is emphasized in the final section.

Jesus’ Truth will set you Free (31-38)--Now the third section extends from the first and second truth and teaches us that recognizing that Jesus is God is not the same thing as believing in Jesus Christ. In Vs. 30-31 both say that the Jews believed Jesus but it becomes clear in their opposition of his next word that they don’t actually believe.

This means that we need to take time to examine that we do believe—how do we do this? Vs. 31 tells us, “If you abide in my word, you are truly my disciples, and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.”

If you claim to be a believer in Jesus Christ, the litmus test is whether or not you follow Jesus’ teachings—in other words, if you claim to believe, but you don’t follow the Word of God, the Bible is telling us that you aren’t truly a disciple of Jesus.

If you claim to be a believer in Jesus Christ, the litmus test is whether or not you’ve been set free—free from what? Free from sin. That doesn’t mean that you’ll be perfect, the Bible teaches that on this side of eternity, we will struggle with sin, but it does mean that you won’t be characterized by your sin. When people think of you, they won’t automatically think of sin. It’s a similar concept to being “above reproach.”

If you claim to be a believer in Jesus Christ and your life is still epitomized by your sin, you ought to question whether you actually believe in Jesus Christ or not. If you claim to be a believer in Jesus Christ, but you don’t actually follow the teachings of Jesus, you should question whether or not you actually believe in Jesus.

Examining ourselves to remove sin and examining our thoughts and heart to make sure that we’re following the teachings of Jesus will result in us truly worshiping him. Romans 12:1-2, “I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship. Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.”

Put simply, John 8:12-38 teaches us to (1) recognize that Jesus is God and then submit ourselves to his authority, (2) believe that Jesus is God and thus, repent from our sins and trust in him to save us, (3) to examine our own lives to determine if we truly believe by comparing the way we think to the way Jesus thinks and by considering if our lives are still characterized by sin or not, (4) and then to simply worship Jesus.

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