Today we will finish up our sermon series on the names of Jesus. We have looked at names given to Jesus through the Old Testament prophets and the names that were given to Jesus through the writers of the New Testament. Today we will look at a name Jesus gave to Himself, Light of the World.
John 8:12
12 Jesus spoke to the people once more and said, “I am the light of the world. If you follow me, you won’t have to walk in darkness, because you will have the light that leads to life.”
Here in the gospel of John, we have the second of the seven I AM statements. Jesus is recorded saying in this gospel when He declares Himself the Light of the World. What does this mean? Jesus said when you have the Light of the World you won’t have to walk in darkness but will have a light that leads to life. The idea of darkness in Jesus' time would have brought up ideas of death and ignorance while the idea of light would represent wisdom and life (just like He says at the end of the verse). I think there is something very important that we might miss if we don’t read the entire chapter because of the location of where Jesus made this declaration. Listen to what it says in verse 20.
John 8:20
20 Jesus made these statements while he was teaching in the section of the Temple known as the Treasury. But he was not arrested, because his time had not yet come.
Jesus made this statement and it ruffled more than a few feathers. Why would such a simple statement cause such an uproar? While His I AM statement is powerful on its own, in order to grasp the full effect of what was being said and what was happening we need to understand a little bit about the location in which Jesus spoke these words. Here it tells us that He spoke these words in the Treasury.
In Herod's temple (the temple at Jesus’ time), the Treasury was located right outside the women's court. In the women's court were 4 pillars that each contained 4 lamps that were to be lit during the Feast of Tabernacles as a reminder to the Jewish people of God’s provision and presence with them while they were in the wilderness. The lamps would have been able to be seen throughout all of Jerusalem to remind the people of when the Shekinah glory of God was with them as a pillar of fire at night and a pillar of cloud in the daytime. Jesus was identifying with the Shekinah glory of God (or the actual presence of God). That’s what was causing such a fuss and why it said they wanted to arrest Him. Jesus was identifying not only as someone who would bring wisdom and life into the world but someone who would be for the world what the Pillar of Fire by night and the pillar of cloud did for the children of Israel in their wilderness journey. So what exactly is Jesus saying about Himself by saying He was the light of the world there in the temple?
1. The Light of the World will protect us - Exodus 14:19-20
Exodus 14:19-20
19 Then the angel of God, who had been leading the people of Israel, moved to the rear of the camp. The pillar of cloud also moved from the front and stood behind them. 20 The cloud settled between the Egyptian and Israelite camps. As darkness fell, the cloud turned to fire, lighting up the night. But the Egyptians and Israelites did not approach each other all night.
When Jesus declared Himself the light of the world, those in attendance would have thought back to the records of their ancestors and would have remembered this event. They would have remembered the children of Israel being terrified by the approaching Egyptian army. They would have also remembered their doubts, and Moses telling them all “Don’t be afraid, God will rescue you today.” There was a lot that went along with Jesus’ declaration, but first and foremost Jesus promised He will protect us. In their minds those in attendance might have thought about protection from the Romans, but as we talked about in the message about Jesus being the Redeemer. Jesus' promise of protection was a promise to protect us from much more than we could ever imagine - protection from sin, protection from the wages of that sin, and the list goes on and on.
2. The Light of the World will guide us - Exodus 13:21-22
Exodus 13:21-22
21 The Lord went ahead of them. He guided them during the day with a pillar of cloud, and he provided light at night with a pillar of fire. This allowed them to travel by day or by night. 22 And the Lord did not remove the pillar of cloud or pillar of fire from its place in front of the people.
After God had protected the Children of Israel from the advancing armies of the Egyptians, God would guide them. Sometimes He would have them move, or He would have them wait, but He never left them and was always doing what was best for them. Jesus was making the same promise with His statement. He would be the one who guides those hearing His words as well as the entire world. He was promising He would always go before them and always lead them, but sometimes He would make them wait until His timing was right. Jesus promised He would guide everyone the right way and into life - eternal life.
3. The light of the world will heal us - Malachi 4:2 & Luke 1:78-79
Malachi 4:2
2 “But for you who fear my name, the Sun of Righteousness will rise with healing in his wings. And you will go free, leaping with joy like calves let out to pasture.
Luke 1:78-79
78 Because of God’s tender mercy, the morning light from heaven is about to break upon us,
79 to give light to those who sit in darkness and in the shadow of death, and to guide us to the path of peace.”
One of the very last prophecies in the Old Testament was recorded here and it was a promise. The sun was coming, and that sun will rise and there will be healing in His wings. 500 years later after God had been silent, He spoke through the prophet Zechariah that the sun had come. It was Jesus, the Light of the World, that had come to give light to those who sit in darkness and are surrounded by death. The one who had come to heal was here. Jesus was promising just that. We saw Him restore the adulterous woman, heal the blind, cause the lame to walk, cleanse the leapers, and bring the dead to life. Jesus promised to heal.
These were some very big claims that Jesus made with the seemingly simple statement “I AM the light of the world”. Understanding the context helps us know why those who were listening made such a big deal of it and evidently wanted Him arrested at this time. These statements from Jesus were true! Jesus did come to protect us, to guide us, and to heal us. You might be here this morning saying, “I’ve never experienced any of this, I’m not sure any of this is even true”. Perhaps you believe this is just a fairytale, I deliberately left out the part of all this that makes Jesus the light of YOUR world and that’s Obedience.
You see just like a toy on Christmas morning that doesn’t have batteries, Jesus cannot do these things in your life without obedience. Obedience is where the power of these promises comes from. When Jesus said that He was the light of the world in John 8:12, He says “IF YOU FOLLOW ME” and to follow Jesus is to be obedient. Jesus said if you love me you will keep my commandments, not because we have to, but because we want to. That’s where the power is - being obedient out of the love we have for Jesus. When we are obedient Jesus protects us because that’s what His commandments are meant to do. They aren’t there to make sure we don’t have fun, but they are given for our good and His glory to protect us from things He knows will harm us and cause suffering. It’s through obedience that God guides us. When scripture says “Thy word is a lamp unto my feet and a light unto my path” it’s not that these words will literally be like a flashlight on a dark night, but rather when they are applied in our lives they guide us and help us not to stumble as we walk through the light. Jesus knows the way because He is the Way. When the Light of the World promises healing it’s through obedience as well. It’s how we are healed from bitterness, healed from pain, and ultimately healed from the sickness and hurt of this world when He takes us out of this broken world and gives us a new body. However, that only comes through obedience that starts with making Jesus the Lord of our lives.
So here on Christmas day, Jesus wants to be the light in YOUR world. He wants to give you all these promises we looked at today and so much more. It all comes through obedience. The first step is putting your faith in Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior. The Light of the World has come.
