PM Home Bible Study Group; January 9, 2013
John 8:12-30
Theme: In His confrontation with the Pharisees, Jesus declared who He is.
(Unless otherwise noted, all Scripture references are taken from The Holy Bible, New King James Version; copyright 1982, Thomas Nelson, Inc.)
The things that we read Jesus saying of Himself—almost twenty centuries later—have been reflected on and expounded by God’s people. To those of us who have believed on Him and loved Him after His death on the cross and resurrection from the dead, many of these things are self-evident. They are the content of the gospel message we proclaim to the world.
But when they were first spoken by Him, they were new. His self-declarations were made before He went to the cross and was resurrected; and those who heard them considered them offensive and extreme—even blasphemous. In the section of John’s Gospel that’s now before us, we read of how Jesus’ self-witness was met with great opposition. His self-declaration would lead, finally, to Him declaring, “Most assuredly, I say to you, before Abraham was, I AM” (John 8:58). This was a clear declaration that He is none other than God in human flesh; because all Jewish people would have understood the phrase “I AM” to be the same declaration that God made of Himself before Moses (Exodus 3:14). And with this final declaration, the Jews took up stones in order to throw at Him.
As we have seen increasingly in this Gospel, Jesus’ self-witness puts people at the forks of a decision. Some, we’re told, believed in Him (v. 30-31). But some didn’t understand what He was saying (v. 19, 22, 25, 27). Some thought He was a demonic madman (v. 48, 52). And some were so outraged by what He said of Himself that they sought to lay hands on Him and kill Him (v. 20, 59). Jesus’ self-witness not only shined a light on who He is, but also on who those who heard Him were—and it still does. In verses 31-59, we’ll concentrate on what Jesus’ words said about those who heard Him. But tonight, let’s consider what Jesus said about Himself.
I. “I AM THE LIGHT OF THE WORLD” (v. 12).
A. This encounter occurred after Jesus’ conversation with the woman caught in adultery (which story, found in John 7:53-8:11, we have taken as genuine). And that being the case, this new encounter would have taken place in the temple (8:2). Because His conversation with the woman caught in adultery occurred “the next day” after the events of chapter 7 (see 8:2), then it would have occurred in the temple during the season of the Feast of Tabernacles. One of the features of this feast was that the temple was lit with candles. The scene would have been surrounded by bright light. And so—either because bright lights were burning, or because the memory of them was still fresh in people’s minds—Jesus’ first self-declaration in this passage would have been striking: “Then Jesus spoke to them again, saying, ‘I am the light of the world. He who follows Me shall not walk in darkness, but have the light of life'” (v. 12).
B. Note that Jesus did not declare Himself to be “a light in the world”, but rather, “the light of the world” (see also John 1:4-5, 9). What a remarkable claim! Those who followed Him would not walk in spiritual darkness. And more; they would have “the light of life”. As John puts it elsewhere, “if we walk in the light as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin” (1 John 1:7). The woman that He had just forgiven would certainly have been an illustration of this. The others had sought to condemn her. But He told her, “Neither do I condemn you; go and sin no more” (v. 11).
II. “I KNOW WHERE I CAME FROM AND WHERE I AM GOING” (vv. 13-14).
A. On hearing Jesus bear this testimony of Himself, the Pharisees piped in—and in a way that sought to turn His own words against Him. Earlier, in John 5:31, He said, “If I bear witness of Myself, My witness is not true”; and He then went on to declare how others— John the Baptist, Jesus’ own works, the Father Himself, and even Moses through the Old Testament Scriptures—all bore witness of Him. But as Jesus bore witness of Himself, we’re told, “The Pharisees therefore said to Him, ‘You bear witness of Yourself; Your witness is not true'” (v. 13). It’s interesting how Jesus’ enemies showed how closely they had paid attention to what He said—even if they didn’t understand what He said correctly; or sought to invalidate what He said altogether.
B. But note how He responded to the way they threw His words back at Him. “Jesus answered and said to them, ‘Even if I bear witness of Myself, My witness is true, for I know where I came from and where I am going; but you do not know where I come from and where I am going'” (v. 14). Where He had come from was His place of glory with the Father (see John 17:5); and it was to the Father’s glory that He was returning. He knew exactly who He was, where He came from, and where He was about to go. He had perfect self-awareness; although His opponents proved that they did not know these things about Him. Therefore, His self-witness—though perhaps not accepted as decisively ‘valid’ in the context of a court of law—was nevertheless perfectly true. Jesus, as the Son of God in human flesh, knew and declared absolute truth about Himself.
III. “I AM WITH THE FATHER WHO SENT ME” (vv. 15-20).
A. Perhaps as an explanation of what He had just said to the Pharisees about their not knowing where He came from or where He was going, He went on to say, “You judge according to the flesh” (v. 15a). That is, they judged only on the basis of what they saw. This is very much like what He said in 7:14, “Do not judge according to appearance, but judge with righteous judgment.” We’re told in the Old Testament that “He has no form or comeliness; and when we see Him, there is no beauty that we should desire Him” (Isaiah 53:2). But His identity was not based on outward appearances; but on the witness borne of Him by the things that He had declared earlier in John 5.
B. Even though they judged Him wrongly, He went on to say, “‘I judge no one. And yet if I do judge, My judgment is true; for I am not alone, but I am with the Father who sent Me'” (vv. 15b16). Here, He makes another striking self-declaration. The Father is with Him. As He would later say in John 10:30, “I and My Father are one.” If indeed He were to judge at that time, His judgment would be authoritative. But He did not come the first time to judge the world; but rather to save the world (John 12:47). He would judge only at His second coming.
C. As an additional response to their accusation of the supposed invalid nature of His self- witness, He went on to point to the law of the very Father who was with Him: “‘It is also written in your law that the testimony of two men is true. I am One who bears witness of Myself, and the Father who sent Me bears witness of Me” (vv. 17-18). To this, they responded with a dreadful insult: “Then they said to Him, ‘Where is Your Father?'” (v. 19a). We shouldn’t try to soften those words. They were thinking back to the stories of His birth—which they didn’t believe; and were accusing Him of being an illegitimate child. This is why they would later say to Him, in verse 41, “We were not born of fornication; we have one Father—God.” But Jesus nevertheless asserted that He did indeed have a Father—but that they didn’t know Him: “Jesus answered, ‘You know neither Me nor My Father. If you had known Me, you would have known My Father also'” (v. 19b). Because they did not believe that He truly was virgin-born, they neither knew Him as they should, nor His Father as they should.
D. Note that we’re told, “These words Jesus spoke in the treasury, as He taught in the temple” (v. 20a). The reason this is important is because it was in a very public place. But in spite of their opposition, we’re told “and no one laid hands on Him, for His hour had not yet come” (v. 20b). Surely, this showed even further that the Father truly was with Him.
IV. “I AM GOING AWAY” (v. 21).
A. Already, He had declared that they didn’t know where He was from or where He was going. And we’re told that Jesus added even further to their bewilderment. “Then Jesus said to them again, ‘I am going away, and you will seek Me, and will die in your sin. Where I go you cannot come'” (v. 21).
B. He would later say something similar to the disciples; and in their case, added, “but you shall follow Me afterward” (John 13:36); and afterward, He told them that He was going to go and prepare a place for them in His Father’s house. But He said no such thing to the Pharisees. In fact, He warned that if they did not believe properly about Him, they will die in their sins—indicating that where He was going was to a place that those who were in their sins could not go; that is, to “the Father’s house”.
V. “I AM FROM ABOVE” (vv. 22-24).
A. The Pharisees horribly misunderstood this—as they did with almost everything He said. “So the Jews said, ‘Will He kill Himself, because He says, “Where I go you cannot come”?'” (v. 22). They never imagined that they could not come where He was going because of their own sinful blindness. How sadly people misunderstand our Savior even today!
B. Perhaps as an answer to their misunderstanding, we’re told, “And He said to them, ‘You are from beneath; I am from above. You are of this world; I am not of this world. Therefore I said to you that you will die in your sins; for if you do not believe that I am He, you will die in your sins'” (vv. 23-24). They could not follow where He was going because they were not from the place that He was from. As John the Baptist [or it may be John the apostle] put it, “He who comes from above is above all; he who is of the earth is earthly and speaks of the earth. He who comes from heaven is above all. And what He has seen and heard, that He testifies; and no one receives His testimony. He who has received His testimony has certified that God is true. For He whom God has sent speaks the words of God, for God does not give the Spirit by measure” (John 3:31- 34).
VI. “I SPEAK TO THE WORLD THOSE THINGS WHICH I HEARD FROM HIM” (vv. 25-27).
A. Jesus began to reveal more clearly where it was that He was going in this conversation— that is, to His bold declaration at the end: “I AM”. He told the Pharisees that if they didn’t believe—as He said—”I am He”, then they would die in their sins. So; we’re told, “Then they said to Him, ‘Who are You?'” (v. 25a). This question of ‘who Jesus was’ was not a sincere one, however—as Jesus’ own response shows: “And Jesus said to them, ‘Just what I have been saying to you from the beginning'” (v. 26a). He had hidden nothing about Himself. He had entered the temple long ago, cleaned it out, and declared, “Take these things away! Do not make My Father’s house a house of merchandise” (John 2:16).
B. Then, Jesus declared to them, “‘I have many things to say and to judge concerning you, but He who sent Me is true; and I speak to the world those things which I heard from Him'” (v. 26b). The judgment would come later; but it would be based on what they did with the things they heard from Him at that time. Later He would say, “He who rejects Me, and does not receive My words, has that which judges him—the word that I have spoken will judge him in the last day. For I have not spoken on My own authority; but the Father who sent Me gave me a command, what I should say and what I should speak. And I know that His command is everlasting life” (John 12:48-50a). Again, we’re told, “They did not understand that He spoke to them of the Father” (v. 27).
VII. “I AM HE” (vv. 28-30).
A. What a remarkable—and tragic—dialog! It seemed that there was a great deal of misunderstanding of what He was declaring about Himself. But there was an event coming that would clear-up much of the misunderstanding, and that would open the hearts of those who didn’t understand. We’re told, “Then Jesus said to them, ‘When you lift up the Son of Man, then you will know that I am He, and that I do nothing of Myself; but as My Father taught Me, I speak these things. And He who sent Me is with Me. The Father has not left Me alone, for I always do those things that please Him'” (vv. 28-29). The cross itself would have a power to validate that Jesus truly spoke these words from the Father; and that He truly is all that He said He is. As it says earlier in this Gospel; “And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life” (John 3:14-15). And as He Himself said in John 12:32; “And I, if I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all peoples to Myself.”
B. Even the battle-hardened centurion who stood witness at His cross declared, “Truly this Man was the Son of God!” (Mark 15:39). But apparently, the belief of some didn’t have to wait for the validation of the cross. We’re told, “As He spoke these words, many believed in Him” (v. 30). May we also believe everything that Jesus said about Himself!