May 12, 2023
A Culmination of Metaphors
“Then Jesus again spoke to them, saying, ‘I am the Light of the world; he who follows Me will not walk in the darkness, but will have the Light of life.’ So the Pharisees said to Him, “You are testifying about Yourself; Your testimony is not true.” John 8:12-13 (NASB)
Light is a funny thing. Walk in the dark and see how well you navigate. Once light appears, you see much clearer. It keeps you from tripping and falling. Jesus wants to rescue us from our fallen condition. He is the Light who shines on mankind, that we will not walk in darkness.
“I am the Light of the world…” This is the second “I AM,” statement from Jesus in the book of John. The first is found in 6:35, “Jesus said to them, “I am the bread of life…” The statements are meant to point the Jews to God Incarnate (used as water, bread, and light), but they missed them. Their lives existed in externalism (or works to obtain eternal life). We also have discovered on previous days the “Light” metaphor used in John 1:4: “In Him was life, and the life was the Light of men.” Metaphors like these are steeped in Old Testament chronology from Exodus through Habakkuk. In all these statements and metaphors, we see “phrases highlighting Jesus’ role as the Messiah, and the Son of God.”[1] “As the former references to water (Jn 4:13, 14; 7:37–39) and to bread (Jn 6:35) were occasioned by outward occurrences, so this one to light. In “the treasury” where it was spoken (see on Jn 8:20) stood two colossal golden lamp-stands, on which hung a multitude of lamps, lighted after the evening sacrifice...”[2] Marvin also says something really interesting, “In ver. 20, we are told that Jesus spake these words in the Treasury. This was in the Court of the Women, the most public part of the temple. Four golden candelabra stood there, each with four golden bowls, each one filled from a pitcher of oil by a youth of priestly descent. These were lighted on the first night of the Feast of Tabernacles.”[3] Borchert says, “On the first night of Tabernacles… the worshipers awaited the signal of the special lighting of the festive golden lamps of Tabernacles in the court of women. The lamps were intended to remind worshipers of God’s leading the people of Israel through the wilderness at night by a pillar of fire. The lighting of lamps also signaled Israel’s recommitment to the God of light...”[4]
When Jesus said, “he who follows Me will not walk in the darkness, but will have the Light of life,” He wasn’t talking about a burning light in the temple, but all who came to the illumination of God. Their life, once in darkness, could follow the Light of Life. When God reveals our sinful nature, He shows us the darkness we were born into, but it takes Light to reveal man’s darkness. Darkness is the absence of Light. When Light comes to mankind, it reveals man’s blindness. Light allows us to see clearly. We see things from a whole new perspective: God’s perspective. When we decide to follow the Light, we enter into a new life formed in Light. The Pharisees were in darkness, and Light exposed their darkness, and they didn’t like it at all.
[1] (John MacArthur, 2006), 1598
[2] Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset, and David Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible, vol. 2 (Oak Harbor, WA: Logos Research Systems, Inc., 1997), 143.
[3] Marvin Richardson Vincent, Word Studies in the New Testament, vol. 2 (New York: Charles Scribner’s Sons, 1887), 166–167.
[4] Gerald L. Borchert, John 1–11, vol. 25A, The New American Commentary (Nashville: Broadman & Holman Publishers, 1996), 295–296.