The King of Object Lessons
John 8:12; 20
One of the things I love about Jesus’ teaching is that he often used nature and other objects to get his point across. He was masterful at using his environment to make a point. Whether it was talking about a farmer sowing seed, being the bread of life, or telling stories about a hidden treasure, you can imagine that Jesus was often seen pointing at things as he taught people. The scene in John 8 is no different.
In John 8:12, Jesus declared, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.” That’s quite the statement! Light carries some implicit illusions that we can grasp and understand, but for Jesus’ first listeners, the imagery would have been even stronger. See, later on in the chapter John tells us where Jesus was when he made that statement. He said, “These words he spoke in the treasury, as he taught in the temple…” (John 8:20) This is one of those very specific details John gives us that should cause us to ask why he’s so specific. Well, during the Feast of Booths, four great lamps were lit that illuminated the whole Temple area. Each of them was 75 feet tall and was said to cast light over every quarter of the city. Guess where those lamps were? That’s right, in the same court as the treasury… right where Jesus was standing.
The lamps were lit during the Feast to recall the cloud and fire that accompanied the people through their desert wanderings. For the Jewish people, that light in the wilderness symbolized God’s presence with his people, protected them from surrounding armies, and most importantly, was the way God guided his people. When the cloud and fire moved, so did the Israelites. They followed the light - quite literally!
On the last day of the feast, the lights went out. So just imagine Jesus is standing in the very place where the people had been lighting lamps for the last seven days. The lamps had gone dark, and I picture Jesus pointing to the extinguished lamps and saying, “I am the light of the world.” Jesus was claiming that he illuminated in the same manner, but that he would not be extinguished. The light shines in the darkness, but the darkness cannot overcome it. (Jn 1:5)
Just like the Israelites followed the light through the wilderness, we too are called to follow Jesus. Just like he led and guided them, he will lead and guide us. The question we have to answer is: Will we trust his wisdom to be our light? The Israelites had to choose whether or not they would follow the light as it traveled; we too must decide if we will follow Jesus. He is the light of the world, will you trust him as your light?
Pastor Ryan Paulson
Clueless
“They did not understand…”
John 8:27a
When reading the passage of Scripture for this week, John 8:12-30, the first word that came to mind about the Pharisees' challenge to Jesus was ‘clueless’.
They really had no concept of who He was. Being clueless can be caused in a few different ways. As in the 1995 movie Clueless, it was because the lead character was incredibly naïve and had no idea that she was clueless about life! I would describe myself as being clueless when it came to the reason for Jesus’ death on the cross. I knew the story of the crucifixion and resurrection but was clueless as to the why of it. I had some knowledge, just not complete knowledge. That changed at a Youth for Christ rally years ago when salvation was explained to me and I trusted in Him as my Savior.
The third causal factor for being clueless is limiting ourselves by our preexisting ideas and assumptions. It is apparent that no matter what Jesus said, the Pharisees would not see Him as the Messiah. They believed the Messiah would come to be a mighty conquering warrior to free the Jews from Rome. They missed Isaiah 52 and 53 which describes the Suffering Servant and the Sin-bearer lamb that would “bear the sins of many.” The Pharisees assumed the Messiah would come as they wished and so chose not to hear what Jesus was telling them. They asked the right question, “Who are you?” in John 8:25 but they still didn’t hear his answer because it didn’t fit their assumption. Jesus told them who He was by word and deed, but they continued to choose to be ‘clueless.’
In this event, not all were clueless and many chose not to be clueless any longer:
“Even as he spoke, many put their faith in him.” John 8:30
Pray:
LORD, search me and show me where my own preexisting ideas would keep me from truth, keep me from hearing You, keep me from trusting You. Reveal to me what holds me back that I might surrender it to You that I might live in the way You want!
Francie Overstreet
A Short, but Powerful Phrase
In John 8:12-30, I want to highlight four verses…
12 “I am the light of the world.”
18 “I am the one who bears witness about myself…”
24 “Unless you believe that I am he you will die in your sins.”
28 “When you have lifted up the Son of Man, then you will know that I am he…”
Do you notice the short two-word phrase that is repeated in each of these four verses? Take a minute to read them again. Do you see it? It is a simple-sounding phrase that can be easily overlooked, but it is a phrase that has profound theological importance. The phrase is, “I am.”
I’m sure that many of you are thinking to yourselves, “Hey I know what that means!” Sure enough, it is the English phrase that translates the Name of God, Yahweh. This is such a sacred name that our Jewish friends don’t even pronounce it. Back in Exodus 3:13-14, Moses asked for God’s name and God answered with the Hebrew word “Yahweh.” When the Old Testament was first translated from Hebrew into Greek, about 100 years before the time of Jesus, the short two-word phrase that they chose to translate God’s Name was: ego eimi, which translates into “I am” or “I am he.” These are the Greek words that are used in each of the four verses above.
Now, here’s the tricky part. Although the New Testament was written in Greek, Jesus would have been speaking a version of Hebrew called Aramaic. That means that in each of these four verses, Jesus would have used a version of the word Yahweh in each instance, thus identifying Himself with Godself! Wow!
Later in John 18:6, the text says, “When Jesus said, I am he, they drew back and fell to the ground”!! Words so powerful they knocked people over!
As we look at these verses again, may they cause you and I to be knocked off our feet. May we fall to the ground in worship of Jesus today.
Josh Rose
Discipleship Pastor
Testify
I am the one who bears witness about myself, and the Father who sent me bears witness about me.
John 8:17
Here we see Jesus stating that the Father testifies about him. I was thinking about what it means to have another testify on your behalf versus testifying about yourself. A story came to mind that illustrates the mechanism perfectly.
I had just graduated high school and was in the middle of an idyllic road trip to Canada with one of my best friends, Alex. I think we were somewhere in Oregon when we saw a lone convenience store/taco shop combo-type establishment right off the highway. That was a no-brainer since we were hungry, so we pulled off the highway and sauntered in. A guy was standing behind the counter, looking jovial and ready to greet some customers. I shot him with my brightest, “Hey, how are you?” hoping to control the first impression right off the bat. For those of you who don’t know, I walk with a walker, and my speech is a little better than a mouth full of rocks. My face contorts itself randomly, giving a kaleidoscope effect to those trying to read my face. As you can imagine, first impressions are rarely my friend.
This poor guy had no idea what I said, as his practiced greeting melted into a nervous smile and a nod, he was clearly in uncharted waters. So I stood next to Alex and ordered a burrito with all the forced confidence and positivity I could muster. Again, not a clue, Alex translated. Understand that at this stage of my life, I was fairly insecure about the whole thing and was trying to figure out how to do the palsy thing while desperately not wanting anything to do with it. I always hated being the curve ball in someone’s day.
I found a table in the corner and removed myself from the awkward mess, leaving Alex on damage control. I proceeded to have my little pity party while listening to the conversation Alex struck up with this guy. They were talking about the highlights and plans of our road trip. At some point, the guy subtly gestured at me and said,” It’s really good of you to take him with you. You’re his caregiver, right?” My heart sank, but Alex came through in a big way. He proceeded to explain that I’m an ordinary guy with cerebral palsy, that we’re best friends and equals, business partners even. The guy came over, and the three of us talked for quite a while. We ended up having a fantastic time together.
Alex testified to my equality with him and leveraged his own validity to change our new friend’s perspective of me. So now, Alex and I are on equal footing! It’s pretty annoying to try to convince someone you are their equal when they don’t think so. So when Jesus says that the Father testifies about him, he’s saying the Father is granting his own validity to Jesus, so the Jews would see him on par with the Father. Likewise, when we are face to face with our maker, Jesus will testify about us, securing our validity forever.
Thanks, Alex
Jonathan Duncan
Safe Danger
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.” John 8:12
“After centuries of study, just 200 years ago, we were finally able to come up with a mathematical representation for the very first thing God created. Einstein came on the scene and he actually demonstrated that light acted as both a particle and a wave, and he said that that discovery was the only truly revolutionary thing he ever did. Let there be light. It took two words and one moment for light to enter into human history, and it has taken us millennia of time to barely scratch the surface of understanding that first thing that God called into existence.”
In John One verses four and five, he would say... " In him was life, and that life was the light of all mankind. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it." The light of Jesus brought community to the marginalized and healing to the sick. It brought hospitality to the foreigner. It brought prominence to women, food to the hungry, and deliverance to the oppressed.
Obedience does nothing to help us earn or keep eternal life, sin does nothing to cause us to lose it or prove we never had it. The reason God doesn’t want us to sin is because sin damages us. You see, sin doesn’t stop God from loving us, nor does it stop God from doing everything He can to rescue us from the devastating and destructive consequences of sin (darkness). Sin definitely doesn’t prove that we were never His son or daughter to begin with.
If you really understand grace, and if you really understand God, and if you really understand God’s love for you, and after understanding all this, you really want to go sin, then you are free to do it but also reap the destructive consequences. He loves us that much.
Mark Battterson said, “Jesus didn’t die to make us safe… but dangerous…” Faithfulness isn’t holding the fort. It’s storming the gates of hell with the light and love of Jesus Christ knowing that we’re safe with him. His light in us causes change, causes us to take risks, maybe risk everything for him, knowing that we are safe and protected by his love and grace.
Father, I thank you today that your word is a lamp to our feet and a light to our path. We thank you that your presence 2000 years ago pierced through a very dark world and the darkness of our world still today does not overcome your light, your grace, your peace, your joy. God, I pray today that we would see your light, that it would illuminate the way ahead and that it would warm our souls and our hearts.
Deb Hill
No Condemnation
I can’t imagine the humiliation the woman in John 8 felt being put in front of a crowd of people, Jesus’ teaching interrupted, and her accusers putting all the attention on her. The scribes and Pharisees were looking on her only as an instrument whereby they could formulate a charge against Jesus. They didn’t even bother to bring the man who was also at fault.
Of course, Jesus saw through their trap, but more than that he saw this woman’s humiliation and felt compassion for her. As though he didn’t even hear them, he stooped down and wrote on the ground. He acted as if did not hear their accusations, trying to calm down the tension at the scene but also out of concern for the woman’s dignity and safety. Jesus didn’t respond to the accusing men, instead he did everything he could to make things less tense. We know how the story goes, Jesus eventually stood up straight and asked any man without sin to throw the first stone at the woman, because her sin required stoning to death by their law.
Jesus’ clear message was no one has the right to condemn someone else for their sin. He even showed patience for their self-righteousness while causing them to look at themselves. . He did not come to judge or condemn the lost but to pay the price for their sin with his own blood. All of the accusers left one by one and the woman looked in Jesus’ loving, compassionate eyes as he asked her ” Where are your accusers?” “Has no one condemned you?” And she answers “No one, Lord.” Notice she calls him Lord. And he responds, "Neither do I condemn you, go and sin no more." The woman – guilty of sin, and a great sin – knew the goodness of having no condemnation. She passed from sin and a death sentence to forgiveness and hope.
The woman needed hope because the consequences of her sin would be severe enough. After this, she would likely be shunned by her community, and rejected by her husband, perhaps even divorced (assuming she was married or betrothed).
God’s mercy reaches out to all who are willing to admit the need for forgiveness. Scripture clearly teaches us that we all have that need. Isaiah said it this way…“All of us like sheep have gone astray. Each of us has turned to his own way. But the LORD has caused the iniquity of us all to fall upon Him.” (53:6) His mercy never fails and his love never ends.
Deb Hill
Stay with Jesus
7 [Jesus] stood up and said to them, “Let him who is without sin among you be the first to throw a stone at her.” 8 And once more he bent down and wrote on the ground. 9 But when they heard it, they went away one by one, beginning with the older ones, and Jesus was left alone with the woman standing before him. 10 Jesus stood up and said to her, “Woman, where are they? Has no one condemned you?” 11 She said, “No one, Lord.” And Jesus said, “Neither do I condemn you; go, and from now on sin no more.” - John 8:7-11
These people who were ready to stone this woman to death had brought her to Jesus because she was guilty of sin. Jesus doesn’t deny that she is guilty. Instead, he simply asks everyone else to be honest with themselves, and then he invites anyone who is sin-free to go ahead and carry out judgment on this sinner. However, one thing that Jesus didn’t do is ask them to leave. Apparently, they just started walking away. But this story is written in such a way that suggests that some of them thought about it more than others. The older people were quicker to realize that they too had sinned. The younger people fought it a bit more. However, and this is important, every person there realized that they had sinned. Every single person. One of them was brought in as a sinner, and then a whole crowd of people walked away as sinners. However, only one person was forgiven; the person who stayed with Jesus.
I wonder what would have happened if some of the angry mob would have stayed with Jesus. Would they have been forgiven as well? What I do know is that the only place where we can find forgiveness is Jesus. We don’t find forgiveness when we hide our sin when we ignore our sin, or when we try to make ourselves look better than we are. The only way that you or I will ever find forgiveness is if we allow Jesus to be there with us… even in our sin. This poor woman was having the worst day of her life, but she stayed with Jesus and because of that, it turned into the most beautiful day of her life.
Let’s be people who stay with Jesus.
Josh Rose
Discipleship Pastor
Cast the First Stone
Some scholars over the centuries have questioned whether the story of the woman caught in adultery was originally in the Gospel of John. In response, Dr. Wilbur Pickering notes that it’s found in 85% of the surviving ancient Gospel manuscripts. For most people that’s pretty convincing evidence! But even more convincing to me is that Christians through the centuries have discerned both the wisdom and the heart of Jesus in this passage.
Regarding wisdom, we discern that Jesus knew the hidden motives of the scribes and Pharisees who accused the woman before him. They weren’t actually seeking “justice” under the Mosaic Law for her adultery; they simply wanted to spring a trap upon Jesus. Decades earlier Roman authorities had stripped Jewish leaders of their right to inflict capital punishment. According to Pastor Skip Heitzig, historical documents reveal that Jewish leadership felt that loss of authority represented “a departure of the royal scepter from Judah” (Gen. 49:10). If the woman caught in adultery had been stoned with Jesus’ approval, the Pharisees would have used it to implicate Jesus in a crime before the Romans. Jesus was too wise for their trap.
The story also shows the heart of Jesus through his grace and mercy toward the woman. Jesus lovingly shifted attention off the woman by leaning over before the crowd and writing in the dirt. He knew she was a victim of entrapment by the scribes and Pharisees. Jesus did not excuse the woman’s sin but he simply commanded her “go your way and sin no more.” Obeying Jesus’ command and turning from her sin was an act of repentance. Jesus’ words affirm that both her sin and her guilt would be removed.
But while the woman left forgiven, her accusers walked away in guilt. They had laid a trap for the woman then accused her alone of sin. They brought no accusation against the male partner who participated in this sin. And they turned a blind eye to their own sins of deceit, manipulation and seeking to turn Mosaic Law into a weapon against the woman and Jesus. The one person on earth who could release them from their sin was standing right there before their very eyes. Yet, when their plot was foiled, they simply turned and walked away. Tragically, they missed the opportunity to know Jesus as savior!
May we guard against every temptation to judge a sister or brother in Christ. Rather, let us point people to Jesus for mercy, forgiveness and renewal.
Pastor Dave Korinek
Parchment in the Wind
“It just feels like a lot of weight to put into one book.” That’s the way my friend responded when I told him about Jesus. I’m not sure why the truth of what they said had never struck me before, but it hit me like a ton of bricks that they were right. I base the way I live and what I believe about eternity based on what the Scriptures say. I really do believe that “All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness.” (2 Tim. 3:16) However, that is a lot of weight to put in one book.
What gives us such bravado to make the claim that Scripture is worthy of such weight? Is it blind faith? Is it the fact that we have more and better manuscripts (by a long shot) than any other ancient writing? Is it simply the perspective that we have been handed? What is it that gives Jesus followers such confidence in this ancient collection of writings? As I was reading the end of John 7, I was struck by one of the things that gives me confidence - and it initially might seem ironic, so hear me out.
At the end of John 7, there is a non-inspired sentence inserted by the translators that reads:
“The earliest manuscripts do not include 7:53–8:11.”
You might be wondering why telling me that an upcoming section was not in the earliest and best manuscripts instills more confidence in Scripture. Shouldn’t it inspire less? No. One of the things that gives me such high confidence in Scripture is the integrity with which it was assembled. I absolutely love that we know that the story in John 8:1-11 wasn’t in the earliest manuscripts because our Bible tells us that it wasn’t. The Scriptures and the translators are not trying to hide anything. They’re not trying to pull the wool over our eyes; they are not disingenuous in any way. The translators are telling us in a very upfront manner that for the first 350+ years of church history, this section was not included in John’s gospel.
I’m not suggesting any conclusions about whether or not we should have it in our Bibles, I’m only pointing out the intellectual integrity to state that it was not in the earliest manuscripts. That gives me confidence that we can trust the Scriptures we have. Sure, we have to decide how much weight we give to John 8, but we can have confidence that the people who have compiled and translated Scriptures have done so in an honest way… and that gives me confidence in the rest of the “book” as well.
As I read the translator's editorial note, it made my heart soar with confidence. I pray that it does the same for you and that it persuades you that when you hold the Scriptures, you are holding a collection of writings that you can have confidence in. So much confidence that you can base your life on it.
Pastor Ryan Paulson
Asking A Better Question
“At our college, you’ll learn how to ask a better question!” touted a prospective college’s admissions campaign. I remember snickering at that. I’m going to attend a college that costs $50,000 a year so I can learn to ask a better question? Yeah, right! Not gonna happen.
But funnily enough, with a few more years behind me now, that slogan doesn’t make me snicker, it makes me think, “That college is on to something.”
The reason I’ve come to gain a deeper respect for those who not only ask questions but for those who ask good ones, is because questions can be deeply significant indicators of a person’s humility or lack thereof. Sorry to burst your bubble, but you can ask a bad question. And it’s a question that stems from a place of feeling you know it all already, and you have nothing to learn or to hear from anyone but yourself or the people you already agree with. Think of the truly dumb questions your classmates asked in school–weren’t they the questions asked out of arrogance?
Take the Pharisees rolling their eyes at Jesus, for example. Right after Jesus said, “I will be with you a little longer, and then I am going to him who sent me. You will seek me and you will not find me. Where I am you cannot come,” they quip back with, “Where does this man intend to go that we will not find him? Does he intend to go to the Dispersion among the Greeks and teach the Greeks?” At first glance this might look like they’re actually confused (Jesus is undoubtedly being cryptic), and at worst, just plain clueless, but I think the fact that they asked “Where will he go that we can’t follow?” instead of “Why can’t we follow him?” tells us something very significant about the Pharisees.
We can give the average Jew a pass for being confused by Jesus’ words, but these extremely educated men should have picked up on the layers of meaning Jesus was putting down for them, and yet they utterly failed to grasp his meaning. The next possibility to consider is they weren’t clueless, but refusing to listen.
Ah, now the confusing pieces start to fall into place. The Pharisees don’t really want to know what Jesus means, because they’re already determined to hear nothing but nonsense from him. Why? Because he offends them. “We’re right, he’s wrong.” They had already decided to believe this before Jesus opened his mouth.
How many of us refuse to listen and so miss out on asking the questions that will bring us to further growth, life, and the fullness of what God has for us? Only Jesus has a corner on the market for truth, not us. So let us not be like the Pharisees by closing off our ears, and instead, cultivate an ability to listen well, knowing we have more to learn. And then maybe, just maybe, we’ll learn how to ask a better question.
Ashley Carr
