Exposed

During the course of the fall semester I have been teaching out of the gospel of John on Wednesday nights. It has been a great challenge for me to teach out from John as it has forced me to dive into the text. At the beginning of the year I thought it was a great idea for us to take a look at what the Bible says about Jesus and how that then impacts our lives.
As I have been studying (need to do deeper study for own personal growth) to teach I have been impressed with the various ways that Jesus used biblical allusions such as temple, water, bread of life, and the light.
Last night we looked at John 8:12-59. It is in vs 12 that these well known words of Jesus are spoken, "I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life. This is not the first reference to light found in the gospel of John. In the gospel of John this word, "light," is used 16 times. It is used 9 times before it is found in chapter 8.
I believe that this is a climatic point in the book. Tension has been building up since the beginning of Jesus' minitry between he and the pharisees.
I believe John is very intentional in his usage of Jesus' cleansing of the temple in the 2nd chapter immediately following the first of his signs. It is in this cleansing that John is showing the conflict between Jesus and the religious establishment/pharisees.
In chapter 6 Jesus declares his first "I am" statements. The first is actually very subtle and is found in vs. 20. In our english translations it is typically stated as "it is I." The actual greek phrase the "I" probably translates into "I am who I am." Of course the disciples would have known exactly what Jesus was claiming. He was making a bold statement concerning his divinity. He is the very God who revealed himself to Moses in the burning bush. The very God who lead the people of Israel out of Egypt, through the Red Sea, as a pillar of cloud by day and a pillar of light by night.
Continuing in John 6 Jesus uses the "I am" statement a couple more times but his words are not received as warmly.
Moving into Ch. 8 and why I believe that this is such a climatic point. At the end of the chapter we find Jesus and the pharisees once again squaring off against one another. They have said some awful things about one another. The pharisees have called Jesus an illegitimate child, while Jesus has called the sons of satan. Neither of these are nice things to say or hear so we can see the height of the conflict.
It is in this moment that Jesus makes his stongest claim to divinity. Vs. 58 reads, "Truly, truly, I say to you, before Abraham was, I am." To their ears this was blasphemy at the highest level. They could not bear to hear His Word (vs. 43).
Jesus as the light of the world had come to reveal the darkness. He had come to show the sin in their hearts. Just like today, through the ministry of the Holy Spirit, Jesus continues to come and show the sin that is in our hearts.
It is here that we cling to the cross of Christ. Jesus as our substitute paid the price for our sin. As we see our sin for what it is and confess our need for a Saviour, and turn in true repentence, the Bible tells us that he is faithful and just to forgive our sins.
Jesus not only reveals the sin in our hearts but he purifies us as well. Jesus' ongoing ministry, throught the Holy Spirit, is to sanctify His Church. As we look to Jesus, the light of the world, he teaches us what it means to live in obedience. As we walk in obedience, in accord with the Spirit, he shapes and molds our lives.
Let us be a people who cling to Jesus as the light of the world and then reflect that light to a world that is decaying and needs the light of life.