The Light of the World
Published by Stanley Pouw in 2021 · 28 February 2021
Verse 12-21, “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.”13 The Pharisees replied, “You bear witness of Yourself! Your witness is not true. 14 Jesus told them, “These claims are valid even though I make them about myself. For I know where I came from and where I am going,
“But you don’t know this about me. 15 You judge me by human standards, but I do not judge anyone. 16 And if I did, my judgment would be correct in every respect because I am not alone. The Father who sent me is with me.” 17 Your own law says that if two people agree about something, their witness is accepted as fact. 18 I am one witness, and my Father who sent me is the other.”
“19 Where is your father?” they asked. Jesus answered, “Since you don’t know who I am, you don’t know who my Father is. If you knew me, you would also know my Father.” 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. 21 Later Jesus said to them again, “I am going away.”
“You will search for me but will die in your sin. You cannot come where I am going.” We have already seen this conflict escalating, and it will escalate further through the final six months of Jesus’ life until it reaches the climax of hate in the Passion Week which takes Him to the cross in God’s perfect time. But the things that Jesus said were escalating this animosity.
When Jesus said, “I am the light of the world,” they knew exactly what He claimed. This is one of the ‘I am’ statements in the Gospel of John, of which there are seven. This is a memorable one and one with which we’re all familiar. But we may not fully understand the essence of this and the way those Jewish leaders received it. Let us break this little narrative down so we can understand it.
Let’s start with the exact location where these words were uttered. He spoke these words as He taught in the temple. The first court was be the Court of the Gentiles where anybody could come. The second court was a large courtyard there that had 13 receptacles, which was called The Court of the Women. But once you left the Court of the Gentiles and came in, it was only for Jews, men and women.
And all the offering places were placed where both men and women could come. The next would be the Court of the Priests, and that was restricted. And there were 13 allocated places to give money, which were trumpet shaped. They were very specific as to their use based on their number. Number one and number two trumpet receptacle was for the half shekel temple tax.
Number three and number four were where women had to purchase the two pigeons to purify themselves from childbearing. Number five and six were for things related to the sacrifices. Number seven was to keep up the golden vessels of the temple. Then you have number eight through 13 that were for the general fund. And that is where Jesus is. He’s in this Court of the Women that is the most packed.
At the opportune moment, in verse 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.” He didn’t say, “I am a light in the world,” which some rabbi or teacher might say. Jesus said, “I am the light.” He didn’t say, “I am a light in Jerusalem.” He said, “I am the light of the world.”
This is exclusive. More importantly, this is a direct claim to be the Messiah, and they knew it. They were very familiar with the Messianic promises in Isaiah 42, 49, 50, and 53. There you have the Messianic chapters of Isaiah in which the Messiah is called the slave of Yahweh or the servant of Jehovah. And in Isaiah 42:1, you have this prophecy about the Messiah.
“Look at my servant, whom I strengthen. He is my chosen one, who pleases me. I have put my Spirit upon Him.” This is a prophecy of the Messiah’s coming and His power is through the Holy Spirit. Verse 5, “God, the Lord, created the heavens and stretched them out. He created the earth and everything in it. He gives breath to everyone, life to everyone who walks the earth.”
God is speaking now to His Messiah in verse 6-7, “I, the Lord, have called you to demonstrate my righteousness. I will take you by the hand and guard you, and I will give you to my people, Israel, as a symbol of my covenant with them. And you will be a light to guide the nations. 7 You will open the eyes of the blind. You will free the captives from prison, releasing those who sit in dark dungeons.”
Again, in Isaiah 49:6, “He says, “You will do more than restore the people of Israel to me. I will make you a light to the Gentiles, and you will bring my salvation to the ends of the earth.” This is from God. The Messiah will be the light of the world. When Jesus says, “I am the light of the world,” He is making the claim to be the prophesied Messiah, to be the Son of righteousness.
John begins his Gospel this way, “In the beginning was the Word, The Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 He existed in the beginning with God. 3 God created everything through Him, and nothing was created except through Him. 4 The Word gave life to everything that was created, and His life brought light to everyone. 5 The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness can never extinguish it.”
When He says, “I am the light of the world,” He uses the tetragram YHWH, the ’I am.’ The claim to be God and the Messiah. To say, “I am the light of the world,” is to identify yourself as God. Psalm 27:1 has said, “The Lord is might light and my salvation.” First John 1:5 says, “God is light, and in Him is no darkness at all.” They understood that He was claiming to be God.
It’s important to understand another ritual at the feast of tabernacles. When the feast of tabernacles began, candelabras were set up all through the Court of the Women. As far as historians say, they literally filled the Court of the Women with a lot of light. Every night, they would light these large candles, which would burn all night. This was actually called by the Jews the illumination of the temple.
During those 40 years, they wandered in the wilderness. How did they know where to go in the wilderness? They were led by light. They were led by a pillar of fire at night and a lighted cloud during the daytime. This was the light that led them in the wilderness. To commemorate that, they had this illumination of the temple, where they lit all these candles and let them burn all night.
It’s a profound moment. Jesus says, “I’m the light that never is extinguished. And as the pillar of light in the day and the night led Israel to the Promised Land, I am the light that will lead you to the kingdom. I will lead you to God, to heaven, to everlasting life. It’s not a light to be looked at. Not a light to be admired. It’s a light to be followed. It moves and you have to follow it.
So rather dramatically, powerfully and effectively does Jesus capture the crowd and the temple ritual turns to Him. He says. “I know the way out of the darkness of ignorance. I know the way out of the darkness of sin. I know the way out of the darkness of sadness and sorrow. I know the way out of the darkness of death. Follow me, and I will lead you to life, that is eternal life.”
What does it mean to follow? The way it’s used in those days, it’s used of a soldier following his commander, as the believer follows Christ as his sole commander. It’s used of a slave following his master as the believer is to do the same. It’s used of someone following the law obediently. It’s used of a student following the teacher’s line of argument. To be a follower is to give yourself totally to Christ.
“Follow me,” Jesus said, “and I’ll lead you to the heavenly Promised Land. I’ll be the true light.” The rabbis themselves declared that Messiah’s name is light. They knew what Isaiah was saying. So Jesus is claiming not only to be the ‘I am’, not only to be God, but to be the Messiah that was prophesied. That’s what He asserts. This is captivating the people, and they understand.
Certainly the leaders understood because you see the antagonism that rises immediately. The antagonism appears in verse 13, “The Pharisees replied, “You are making those claims about yourself! Such testimony is not valid.” There are no witnesses to confirm this. His works of healing, power over disease, demons, death, and nature are His proof. But unbelief never has enough proof.
The worst possible scenario is to be ignorant because you’re an unbeliever so that when you’re given the proof, your unbelief locks you into your ignorance. They didn’t process anything He said. They just wanted Him trapped and dead. Be very careful if you’re rejecting Jesus Christ. It is better if your unbelief is because you’re ignorant than if your ignorance is because of your unbelief.
John 7:17, “If you’re willing, the truth is there.” When somebody says, “I don’t believe the gospel. I don’t believe Jesus is the son of God. I don’t believe in Him as the Savior,” there are usually two things to say. Number one, “That’s such an amazing and such an astute conclusion. You must have studied the Bible intensely for years and years to come to that conclusion.”
Because the world is full of people who have studied it deeply their whole lives and are convinced Jesus is who He said He was. So for you to overturn that, you must have made some kind of an extensive effort to understand everything in Scripture. That’s a thing to say to someone who probably hasn’t even read the New Testament. The second thing you would want to say is, “Are you willing?”
Verse 14, “Jesus told them, “These claims are valid even though I make them about myself. For I know where I came from and where I am going, but you don’t know this about me.” Deuteronomy 19:15 talk about two or three witnesses. That’s for people who are liars. We all live in a world of lies and deception. We have to confirm things with several people hoping to get the truth.
But that doesn’t apply to God. Jesus is saying, “I’m eternal. I’m transcendent.” The law was made for man, not for God. The Sabbath was made for man, not for God. I speak the truth because of who I am.” So His answer is, “First of all, my claim is valid because of who I am and where I’m from and where I am going.” Jesus says, “You don’t know anything about me, you don’t even know what town I’m from.”
Verse 15, “You judge me by human standards, but I do not judge anyone.” Your judgment is superficial. By the way, they judged everyone. That’s what Jesus referred to in Matthew 7:1, the Sermon on the Mount when He said, “Do not judge others, and you will not be judged.” The final judgment is based on how you judge others. That’s what the leaders were doing on everybody, judging according to the flesh.
Jesus then says, “I’m not judging anyone,” meaning “I don’t judge in the flesh.” He meant I don’t judge people superficially. Verse 16, “And if I did, my judgment would be correct in every respect because I am not alone. The Father who sent me is with me.” Look at John 5:22, “the Father judges no one. Instead, he has given the Son absolute authority to judge.”
Then He goes to the second point. Verse 17, “Your own law says that if two people agree about something, their witness is accepted as fact.” I am He who testifies about myself, and the Father who sent me testifies about me. You want two? You have two, Myself and the Father. Verse 18, “I am one witness, and my Father who sent me is the other.” And their response is predictable.
Verse 19, “Where is your father?’ they asked. Jesus answered, ‘Since you don’t know who I am, you don’t know who my Father is. If you knew me, you would also know my Father.” In John 5:23 He said, “If you don’t honor me, you don’t honor the Father.” Later He said to the disciples, “If you’ve seen me, you’ve seen the Father.” But this is the conclusion when He says, “you don’t know Him at all.”
This is a devastating statement. This is a characterization of the leadership of Judaism at the time of Christ. And this is still true of those who reject the Savior. Verse 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.” They are so angry that they want to seize Him to kill Him, but they can’t.
The final statement is the judgement in verse 21, “Later Jesus said to them again, “I am going away. You will search for me but will die in your sin. You cannot come where I am going.” Your ignorance is confirmed. It’s willful, and it’s the product of your unbelief in the face of the revelation. We know how extreme their rejection was because they attributed what He did to Satan.
That’s why in hell there’s weeping and gnashing of teeth. Where I go, you cannot come. You will die in your sin. John 12:35, “Jesus replied, “My light will shine for you just a little longer. Walk in the light while you can, so the darkness will not overtake you. Those who walk in the darkness cannot see where they are going.” The prophecy in Isaiah 6 is about Jesus being rejected, and then God rejecting the rejecters. Let us pray.