John 8:12 - The Second I AM; Jesus the Light of the World!
John 8:12 - The Second I AM; Jesus the Light of the World!
John 8:12 (KJV) 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.
John 8:12 (ESV) 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."
CONTEXT
One of the distinctives of the Gospel of John is its series of
"I am" sayings of Jesus. Their significance is underlined in 8:58,
in which Jesus announces that "before Abraham was born, I am!" His
hearers understood the implicit claim, for they knew full well that "I
am" is the Greek equivalent of YHWH, Yahweh, the revelatory and
personal name of God that vitalizes the Old Testament. What are the "I
am" statements in John, and how do they display the deity that Jesus
claimed?
* "I am the bread of life" (6:35). Jesus is the One who sustains
physical and spiritual life.
* "I am the Light of the World" (8:12). Jesus is the source of
spiritual enlightenment.
* "I am the Gate for the sheep" (10:7). Jesus provides access to
God and salvation.
* "I am the Good Shepherd" (10:11). Jesus lays down His life for
us, His sheep.
* "I am the Resurrection and the Life" (11:25). Jesus is the
source and giver of life eternal.
* "I am the Way and the Truth and the Life" (14:6). Jesus alone
provides access to God the Father and all of the Father's good gifts to
humankind.
* "I am" the true vine (15:1). Jesus is the source of spiritual
vitality. By remaining close to Him we are enabled to bring forth fruit
and so glorify God. [Victor Bible Background Commentary mod]
COMMENTARY
CHRIST IS THE LIGHT OF THE WORLD
As the Light of the world, Christ claimed to be God, for God is
light (1 John 1:5). [Wiersbe Expository Outlines]
I am the light of the world - The fountain whence all
intellectual light and spiritual understanding proceed: without me all is
darkness, misery, and death. (Adam Clarke Commentary)
As the sun is the physical light of the world, so Jesus is the
spiritual light of the world. As the light of the world, Jesus exposes sin
(vv. 1-11) and gives sight (9:1-7). [Nelson SB]
In the manifestation of God to His people, light had ever
been a symbol of His presence. At the creative word in the beginning,
light had shone out of darkness. Light had been enshrouded in the
pillar of cloud by day and the pillar of fire by night, leading the
vast armies of Israel. Light blazed with awful grandeur about the
Lord on Mount Sinai. Light rested over the mercy-seat in the
tabernacle. Light filled the temple of Solomon at its dedication. Light
shone on the hills of Bethlehem when the angels brought the message of
redemption to the watching shepherds.
God is light; and in the words, "I am the light of the
world," Christ declared His oneness with God, and His relation to the
whole human family. It was He who at the beginning had caused "the
light to shine out of darkness." He is the light of sun and moon and
star. He was the spiritual light that in symbol and type and prophecy
had shone upon Israel. But not to the Jewish nation alone was the
light given. As the sunbeams penetrate to the remotest corners of the
earth, so does the light of the Sun of Righteousness shine upon every
soul.
"That was the true light, which lighteth every man that
cometh into the world." DA463-4
CHRIST AND OUR EXISTENCE
Christ is the "LIGHT, which LIGHTETH every man that cometh into
the world." John 1:9. As through Christ every human being has life,
so also through Him every soul receives some ray of divine LIGHT.
Not only intellectual but spiritual power, a perception of right, a
desire for goodness, exists in every heart. But against these
principles there is struggling an antagonistic power. The result of the
eating of the tree of knowledge of good and evil is manifest in every
man's experience. There is in his nature a bent to evil, a force
which, unaided, he cannot resist. To withstand this force, to attain
that ideal which in his inmost soul he accepts as alone worthy, he
can find help in but one power. That power is Christ. Co-operation
with that power is man's greatest need. ED29
CHRIST; PRAYER & BIBLE STUDY
I guess you can afford to be humble after all. You are not
the real light of the world. Jesus is. You are light because you are
connected to Him, because you follow Him.
You have no light of your own any more than the moon has
light without the sun or a light bulb has light without being
connected to a power source.
Yes, we can rejoice because God has given us great privileges
as Christians, but we must be humble in our rejoicing. We are not
the real light, but a reflection or extension of the light in
Jesus.
It is therefore of crucial importance that we, moment by
moment, remain connected to our source of spiritual power.
An illustration based on a Near Eastern lamp will help us
here. Such a lamp consisted of a bowl filled with oil, with a wick
sticking out.
The oil was absolutely essential to the functioning of the
lamp. Without a supply of oil the lamp was useless and lightless.
So it is with us. We need the infilling of Christ through the
Holy Spirit each day. We cannot function as light without daily
filling, without a relationship with the Lord of light.
This filling is not something that takes place once for all
time, at conversion. No, we need to go to Jesus daily through prayer
and a study of His Word. As we receive the daily oil, we have light
to pass on.
The wick is the other essential in such lamps. Once a wick
gets frayed and begins to smoke it fails to give light efficiently..
It needs to be trimmed so that its light can shine brightly again.
So it is in our spiritual life. We need to day by day take
stock of ourselves in the light of God's love and the Beatitudes, and
"trim" our lives so that they can burn in such a way that they give
light rather than smoke. [Walking With Jesus By Knight]
CHRIST AND OBEDIENCE
With some the knowledge of their true state seems to be hidden
from them. They see the truth, but perceive not its importance or its
claims. They hear the truth, but do not fully understand it, because
they do not conform their lives to it, and therefore are not
sanctified through obeying it. And yet they rest as unconcerned and well
satisfied as though the cloud by day and the pillar of fire by night, as
token of God's favor, went before them. They profess to know God, but
in works deny Him. They reckon themselves His chosen, peculiar
people, yet His presence and power to save to the uttermost are seldom
manifested among them. How great is the darkness of such! yet they know it
not. The light shines, but they do not comprehend it. No stronger
delusion can deceive the human mind than that which makes them believe
that they are right, and that God accepts their works, when they are
sinning against Him. They mistake the form of Godliness for the spirit
and power thereof. They suppose that they are rich, and have need of
nothing, when they are poor, wretched, blind, and naked, and need all
things. 1T406,7
CHRIST AND WALKING IN THE SPIRIT
"I am your light. Yes, you live in a dark world. You walk
among confused people who don't know their right from their left and
can't even see the next step in front of them. You have many teachers
who are blind but trying to impart light and sight to others. My
light is in the world, of course; many of My people see and speak
according to truth. But so many other voices confuse those who listen to
them. You can't distinguish light apart from Me. I'm the only one who
shines pure truth.
"You'll notice that I never told you to learn the truth and
then follow what you know. I said to follow Me. There's a difference
between walking in light and following a light. One is your environment,
the other is your direction. If you learned truth, the absolutes I
have spoken, and then followed them, you would become wise and
principled. You would be living in the right environment, but you would then
rely on living by methods and not by knowing Me. When faced with two
wise options, you wouldn't know which one to take. When moving toward
a wise goal, you wouldn't know when to advance and when to wait
patiently. Wisdom and truth alone don't get you where you need to go. I
want you to follow the light - Me - rather than just living in the
light of My truth.
"Open your spirit to Me. I am your light. Be filled with Me
and follow where I lead. You will still go through dark places, but
you won't stumble in them. I will always shine light on the next
step. Take it, and it will always lead you to life."
Jesus, help me recognize Your light. Fill me with truth and
guide my steps. Teach me to live by the light of Your Presence. [The
One Year Experiencing God's Presence Devotional by Chris Tiegreen]
LINKS FOR FURTHER STUDY ON THIS TEXT:
http://www.abible.com/devotions/2004/20040108-0635.html
http://www.abible.com/devotions/2010/20100514-1320.html
EXCELLENT MINI-VIDEO ON THIS TEXT:
http://www.itiswritten.com/television#episodes/2080
EXCELLENT VIDEO SERIES ON EXPERIENCING GOD:
http://sda.biggytv.com/watch/Revive!_-_Dwight_Nelson:_Experiencing_Gods_Grace/revive/
EXCELLENT BIBLE PROPHECY SERIES BY DR RON CLOUZET:
http://www.propheciesdecoded.com/program
SPECIAL MUSICAL DEVOTIONAL ON CHRISTIAN LIVING:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OcotY5K7T0c
