A Study of John's Gospel. Pt. 44 Jesus said "I Am the Light of the World!"

What a good day our Lord has granted to us today. 

In our last post we studied about the woman caught in the act of adultery. Her accusers ended up leaving one by one because Jesus spoke as Judge of all humanity to show them the wretched condition of their hearts. However, the remainder of "all the people" who came to hear Christ were still in the Temple, waiting for the Messiah to teach. 

The Second "I Am" statement from Christ. 

John 8:12  Then spake Jesus again unto them, saying, I am the light of the world: he that followeth me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life. 

After Jesus dealt with the situation involving adultery thrust upon Him by the scribes and Pharisees, He resumed teaching the people.

John's gospel records 7 "I Am" statements of Christ and each one reveals a bit more about God manifest in the flesh. The Divine Name translated "I Am" is Jehovah as we noted before and it has beautiful meanings for us to think about. 

Jehovah means the God who inhabits eternity but dwells with those who have humble hearts and contrite spirits. Jehovah is the covenant keeping God who will always do what He says He will do. 

He is the God of lovingkindness and He is the unchanging God. We can always trust Him knowing that His heart toward us will never change.

When Jesus declares "I Am" He is telling us that He is speaking as Jehovah in the flesh. Thus, we must pay close attention to what He wants to teach us about Himself. 

I Am the Light of the World!

What is Jesus saying about Himself with this "I Am" declaration? Well, there are a few things that we can think about to help us understand this particular "I Am" statement. First, a bit of historical context is helpful. 

 

Light from Jesus Christ drives darkness away.

2 Corinthians 4:3-6  But if our gospel be hid, it is hid to them that are lost: 

4) In whom the god of this world hath blinded the minds of them which believe not, lest the light of the glorious gospel of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine unto them. 

5) For we preach not ourselves, but Christ Jesus the Lord; and ourselves your servants for Jesus' sake. 6) For God, who commanded the light to shine out of darkness, hath shined in our hearts, to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.

The world exists in a state of darkness and decay due to the fall of man into sin. Satan works in this fallen world and seeks to keep all people enslaved in darkness. He blinds men's minds so  they cannot see the glory of Christ and the gospel. 

The following text from Mark's gospel is Jesus' explanation of the parable of the seed and the sower. Notice that when the Word of God is preached, Satan comes immediately to take away the Word from their hearts so they will remain blinded to the truth. 

Mark 4:14-15  The sower soweth the word. 15) And these are they by the way side, where the word is sown; but when they have heard, Satan cometh immediately, and taketh away the word that was sown in their hearts. 

Darkness and death have reigned since Adam chose to sin. Light is needed to dispel the darkness and to show us the way of salvation. Christ grants us the light we need to be saved and to begin a relationship with our all glorious God. 

Jesus Christ is Light for the whole world.

John 1:4-5  In him was life; and the life was the light of men. 5) And the light shineth in darkness; and the darkness comprehended it not. 

Jesus Christ is the Light for the entire world. This encompasses all generations, races, locations in the world. Jesus came offering the Light of Truth, the Light of Salvation to all. Like the light from our sun, Jesus shines as the Light of the world for all mankind to benefit from, though all may not value or use His light. 

In the text above, Jesus promises deliverance from the darkness of sin in this corrupt world and Christ exchanges the darkness, and gives us Light to live by, until we are given our eternal future home in heaven. The word "followeth" means becoming a disciple, learner of Jesus Christ, committed to following, learning and putting into practice what He teaches us. 

Jesus Christ is the source of Light. 

1 John 1:5-7  This then is the message which we have heard of him, and declare unto you, that God is light, and in him is no darkness at all. 6) If we say that we have fellowship with him, and walk in darkness, we lie, and do not the truth: 7) But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from all sin. 

Jesus Christ is the Source of all Light. Speaking light into existence was the first creative act of God in Genesis. Light reveals things. Think about when the sun goes down at night and all of the beauty in God's creation is hidden from view but as the sun rises in the morning, all the incredibly beautiful things around us can once again be seen. 

As the Light of the world, what does Jesus reveal? He reveals God to us and the true spiritual realities that we could not otherwise know. He reveals the moral government of God and the future day of judgment for unbelievers and a future day of potential reward for believers. 

He reveals the true redemption provided for fallen man by God through which the enmity has been removed and man can be rightly related to God once again. 

The Light of Jesus Christ is a Light to guide all humanity into the right ways of God. His light is a quickening, life giving light! Life would not exist on earth if there was no sun. Similarly, there is no spiritual life apart from Jesus Christ. 

John mentions walking in darkness which means loving the world and the things of the world and making moral choices based upon the world's values instead of God's commands. He tells us that God is light and no darkness is in Him. If we claim to have a relationship with God but we walk in darkness, then we are liars. 

However, if we walk in the light as He is in the light then we have real fellowship with God and when we do stumble or fail Him, the blood of Jesus will cleanse us.

Thoughts to Ponder...

Today our closing thoughts will focus upon some verses of application concerning Jesus Christ as the Light of the world. These texts will show us what it means to you and me in the choices we make and how we choose to live. 

Psalm 27:1 The LORD is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear? the LORD is the strength of my life; of whom shall I be afraid? 

LORD is the Divine Name Jehovah. Jehovah is also the great "I Am." Notice with me that David is telling us that Jehovah is our Light and Salvation. He is the one who grants us strength for this life and for eternity. Therefore, we are not to be afraid or live under a cloud of fear because our confidence is in Jehovah.

Psalm 119:105  Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path. 

This text relates back to Jesus Christ the Light of the world illuminating where our feet are stepping and showing us the path ahead so we can avoid trips and falls. The Word is a lamp and a light. 

Psalm 119:130  The entrance of thy words giveth light; it giveth understanding unto the simple. 

This text from Psalm 119 speaks of the Light of God's truth breaking through the darkness that shackles our souls so that we can respond to the gospel in repentant faith. It is the Light of Divine Truth that can bring us to the Savior, Jesus Christ. 

James 1:17-18  Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and cometh down from the Father of lights, with whom is no variableness, neither shadow of turning. 18) Of his own will begat he us with the word of truth, that we should be a kind of firstfruits of his creatures. 

All good and perfect gifts come down to us from the Father of Lights. He regenerated us through the Light of His Word and He will always receive the born again believers to Himself.

Ephesians 5:8  For ye were sometimes darkness, but now are ye light in the Lord: walk as children of light: 

When we are born again and know Jesus Christ, the Light of the world, there are some responsibilities we have from Christ that impact how we choose to live. Here, Paul tells us that we used to be children of darkness, slaves of sin and under the dominion of the devil. 

The new birth frees us from those chains and in Christ, we partake of His Light. Therefore, we are commanded to walk as children of Light. The word walk refers to how we think, speak and act. We are to think, speak and act as a child of Light because we are born again as citizens of the kingdom of light. 

Matthew 5:16  Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven. 

Finally, our Lord Jesus reminds each believer to let our lights shine. This is the idea of not being ashamed of being born again into God's family. It means submitting to the authority of scripture and seeking to allow the Spirit of God to lead us day by day. 

It refers to the fruit of the Spirit being evident in our lives because He is at work in our heart making us more like Jesus Christ. Our life pattern will be changed and other people will notice a change in us. 

I know my own words are woefully inadequate to fully communicate the glorious truth of what Jesus meant when He said "I Am the Light of the World." However, I trust I have given all of us enough to think about and meditate on so God's Spirit will stir our hearts into praising God for His Son, our Savior and the True Light that all men need.

Bob