Video Access Available Above
“I AM The Light Of The World"
• 9.8.19 • Calvary Christian Fellowship, Sunday Morning Service
Intro.
- If you recall, Jesus and His
disciples are attending the Feast Of Tabernacles in Jerusalem. Once again,
Jesus has made a statement that has set off a divisive argument about His
person.
- His latest claim had been to be
the Rock of Israel, the source of living water for those that would believe
upon Him. Naturally, this set off a firestorm of controversy.
- There were those who believed
upon Him, but the majority of the religious elite fought against the notion
with every fiber in their being.
- Instead of investigating His
claims, they have determined to find a way to catch Him in some spiritual
impropriety that would ruin Him publicly.
- The story that is set before us,
found in over 9,000 manuscripts and attested to by several early church Fathers
as authentic, represents one of their best efforts to day. John 7:53.
Text
• John 7:53-8:2 : "And
everyone went to his own house. But Jesus went to the
Mount of Olives. Now
early in the morning He came again into the temple, and all the people came to
Him; and He sat down and taught them." : The religious leaders have gone away, firm in their unbelief and
Jesus has gone to His favorite resting place.
- When you are approaching
Jerusalem, you will be traveling through the Kidron valley with the city on one
side and the Mount of Olives on the other.
- Luke 22:35 notes that
Jesus customarily made use of the Mount of Olives and probably made their
pilgimage camp in the Garden of Gethsemane. The next morning, they'd return to
the city.
- This is the morning after the Feast
of Tabernacles had concluded. The crowds have dispersed and the Lord came again
into the Temple to teach the locals.
- When you consider how despised He
is by the religious leaders and the tension that His presence would invite, it
speaks to His obedience to the Father and His love for His people.
- He is willing to endure their
spite in order to bless His people! They were worth His attention and He cared
for their spiritual nourishment. Where else would they get a good spiritual
meal?
- John doesn't let us know how many
were there, but consider this: The ones that were there were taught directly by
God Himself! What an amazing study that must have been!
- Predictably, when Jesus is
teaching, you'll need to know that He will rarely be allowed to finish! Verse 3.
• John 8:3-6a : "Then the
scribes and Pharisees brought to Him a woman caught in adultery. And when they
had set her in the midst, they said to Him, 'Teacher, this woman was caught in adultery,
in the very act. Now
Moses, in the law, commanded us that such should be stoned. But what do You say?'
This they
said, testing Him, that they might have something of which to accuse Him." : There is no reverence for the Word
and no time like the present for these religious leaders.
- There is no regard for
righteousness here, nor is there a modicum of decency. There is a desire for
shock value and a hope that this surprise attack will yield an unguarded
response.
- Consider their cruelty. This was
a woman that was caught in adultery, as verse 4 says, in the very act.
There is no doubt that she is sitting in this public square without proper
clothing.
- The religious leaders have done
nothing to mute this woman's shame.
- They have no compassion, no sense
of modesty, making her stand in front of the assembled group. With sheer
brutality, they dumped her off and began their insincere questioning.
- Listen to their feigned regard
for Him: "Teacher!" They more than likely said this through clenched
teeth, barely able to acknowledge Him without spite!
- They lay out their charge, as if
one could not put the pieces together. Their faces are contorted, their fingers
are pointing, their voices are filled with disgust.
- She was seized while engaging in
adultery. At this time in history, evidence and eyewitness accounts had to be
very specific and thoroughly consistent.
- When they say that they caught her
in the act, this meant that they had witnessed activity that could not have
been misconstrued in any other way.
- That raises a flag as to how
these men could have obtained their evidence. Additionally, if justice were their
aim, there were courts that were established by the Romans to judge these
actions.
- Most interestingly though, if she
had been seized at the point of evidential no return, where was the man that
she was "acting out" with? Why had they not brought him to stand
before Jesus?
- The Mosaic law treated adultery
as a capital offense, but these men seem to conveniently leave out the fact
that the adulterers were to be stoned together! Listen to Deuteronomy 22:22.
• Deuteronomy 22:22 : "If a man
is found lying with a woman married to a husband, then both of them shall die -
the man that lay with the woman, and the woman; so you shall put away the evil
from Israel." : In
other words, without the man, this entire charade was illegal, outside of the
bounds of the Mosaic law!
- Unless they were willing to
produce the man, they had no grounds to stone the woman. There is no provision
for a one person stoning! They ignore that entirely.
- They really get to the teeth of
their agenda when they attempt to pit Jesus against Moses. "This is what
Moses says, but what do you say?" What a loaded question!
- We've noted the Mosaic statute,
but there must also be a consideration of context. The laws of Moses governed
Israel as they dwelt in the wilderness or in their own land, as a Theocracy.
- Israel did not have the sovereign
ability to enforce Mosaic laws, especially as they pertained to execution.
Rome, when they seized control over Israel, removed that "right" from
them.
- The leading priests will
acknowledge this in John 18:31 when they seek the death penalty for
Jesus before Pilate: "It is not lawful for us to put anyone to death."
- If Jesus affirms execution, the
religious leaders will run to the Romans and make Jesus out to be a leader of
sedition against Rome, as well as an enemy of sinners.
- Of course, if Jesus denies the
law, He will be viewed as being soft on sin, a liberal teacher!
- Certainly, the entire crowd with
all of their opinions about this woman and what should be done to her, are
waiting with baited breath to hear His response.
- The religious elite are licking
their chops! Could they get Him to commit as a law breaker? What could they
accuse or categorize Him as? They think that they have Him. Verse 6b.
• John 8:6b-8 : "But Jesus stooped down and wrote on
the ground with His finger, as though He did not hear. So when they continued asking Him, He raised
Himself up and said to them, 'He who is without sin
among you, let him throw a stone at her first.' And again He stooped down and wrote on the ground." : The urgency of the religious leaders
pressed in upon the Lord, but He would not cower to it.
- Instead of instinctively reacting as we are
prone to do, Jesus bent over to begin writing something on the ground, acting
as if He was unaware of their question.
- John doesn't let us in on His motivation or
what He might have been writing. Many have offered their unfounded speculation,
which I won't add to.
- The point is not that He is writing. The
point is that He is not responding to their tactic!
- The picture however, is somewhat telling. He
is not standing among the accusers, but stooping near the accused! Jesus is the
friend of sinners, prone always to assume their position.
- Knowing that this was an unjust proceeding,
Jesus didn't give it the attention that they thought He would, so they kept on
relentlessly begging for His reply. They will not let Him off!
- They had to feel that they had Him in a bind.
The longer He was silent, the better they thought their case to be!
- It must have felt like hours to the woman,
but finally, Jesus stood up and laid this on them: "He who is without sin
among you, let him throw a stone at her first."
- The NLT puts it like this: "All
right, but let the one who has never sinned throw the first stone."
The religious leaders can think only of execution. Jesus gives them the
condition.
- A "sinless" person would have the
right to stone this woman. When He said that, He returned to the ground and His
masterpiece! What had He meant?
- Certainly, this cannot refer to sinless
perfection. Only He could claim that. It also cannot mean that God will not
allow His people to participate in the due course of lawful activity.
- The law established the duty of God's people
to involve themselves in capital punishment when the crime deserved it.
- In fact, according to Deuteronomy 17:6, 7,
the first two to witness the crime were to be the first two to cast stones! The
issue of being "without sin" comes into play in Deuteronomy 19.
• Deuteronomy 19:15-19 : "One witness shall not rise against
a man concerning any iniquity or any sin that he commits; by the mouth of two
or three witnesses the matter shall be established. If a false witness rises against
any man to testify against him of wrongdoing, then both men in the controversy
shall stand before the Lord, before the priests and the judges who serve in those days. And the judges shall make careful
inquiry, and indeed, if the witness is a false witness, who has testified
falsely against his brother, then you shall do to him as he thought to have done to his
brother; so you shall put away the evil from among you." : Jesus is acknowledging the law's
demand for execution, but is reminding them that if there is any malpractice,
their sin will find them out! With that, He returned to His sand doodle! Verse 9.
• John 8:9 : "Then those who heard it, being
convicted by their conscience, went out one by one, beginning with the
oldest even to the last. And Jesus was left alone, and the woman standing in
the midst." : When
Jesus spoke these words, each religious leader's face changed a bit as the
meaning sunk in.
- They went from arrogance and rage, to quiet
discomfort. Some might have even thought of the personal humiliation that they
had brought upon themselves!
- Each one was being convicted by their own
conscience. This is an interesting word, as on the one side, it embodies
exposure, reproof and a demand for explanation.
- On the side of the recipient, the one who is
being convicted, there is shame and a sense of chastening. Jesus hadn't touched
them or made a move to stop them. His words did all the work.
- Their minds were flooded with their own guilt.
They knew that they had perverted justice!
- The oldest man there was the first to drop
his stone and walk out and the younger followed suit. The older you get, the more
in tune you are with your faults!
- A few moments later, Jesus alone stood there
with the woman. Frankly, this is the only audience that should have been
looking in on this woman's actions!
- The law should not make any of us proud! It's
designed to humble us, to know for certain that there is only one that can
render final judgment. Verse 10.
• John 8:10,11 : "When Jesus had raised Himself up and
saw no one but the woman, He said to her, 'Woman, where are those accusers of yours? Has no one condemned you?' She said, 'No one, Lord.' And Jesus
said to her, 'Neither
do I condemn you; go and sin no more.'" : When the dust settled, the entire group that had come to perform
this stoning was gone. The only one left was the woman.
- Can you imagine what she looked and sounded
like? The fear and the shock were immense. There is no doubt that she cowered
there on the ground, wondering why it was that she was still alive!
- The noise has stopped and she hears a single
set of footfalls coming toward her. Instead of being hit with a rock, Jesus
spoke softly to her, "Women, where are those accusers of yours?"
- Her response was simply, "No man,
Lord." No man could carry out her sentence. No man could take that away
from Jesus, but Jesus wasn't going to condemn her either!
- Lest you consider Him soft on sin, consider
His words closely: "Go and sin no more." What she had done was evil
and wicked. Adultery is a woeful act, destructive to the core.
- Jesus calls it a "sin" and calls
her to keep herself from engaging in it again! Jesus said a similar thing to
the man that He healed at the pool of Bethesda in John 5:14.
- Why did Jesus not simply condemn her at that
moment? He was without sin and she was obviously guilty of the charges that had
been levied against her.
- The answer is that this was not a time of
condemnation, but of salvation! The Lord's mission, unlike that of the
religious people, was not to use God's word to condemn, but to deliver!
- Jesus allowed His power to restore this woman,
to raise her from the dust, to open to her the possibility of a new life! He
has come to seek and save that which was lost.
- There will come a time when Jesus will stand
in judgment over humanity, but on this day in time, He allowed His mercy and compassion
to lead the way, to avert this woman from disaster!
- At this point, John looks back at what had
happened just hours ago, at the close of the Feast of Tabernacles and sees this
point as the Lord's previous teaching about Himself. Verse 12.
• John 8:12 : " 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.'" : You
might recall us talking about the three daily ceremonies that took place during
the feast of booths. We looked at two last week, which took place at sunrise,
and then, a mid-morning.
- There was also the third ceremony that took
place in the evening with the lighting of three 75 foot high menorah, which
were put up on the first day of the feast.
- These lights were strategically placed in the
court of the women and their reach was powerful enough to light all of the
courtyards in Jerusalem!
- These menorah symbolize the presence of God's
Shekinah glory, which lead the camp of Israel during their 40 year wilderness
wandering.
- These lights were kept on during the feast of
tabernacles, the fuel of which was oil that burned upon worn out priestly
garments.
- Every night, young men would climb the
ladders and light the menorah, while people danced below in celebration. I read
of a certain rabbi that would juggle torches to entertain the crowd!
- Without ambient light, cities were only
minimally and personally lit in the evening time.
- This would have been a profound light show to
that ancient culture accustomed to the overwhelming power of darkness!
- On the final night, on the same day that
Jesus invited the Israelite crowds to come to Him to drink, the final act of
the feast of tabernacles was to extinguish the light of the menorah. Why?
- It pointed to a time when God's people would
not have to dwell in a symbol of light, but with the light Himself, who would
expel all darkness, physically and spiritually! Turn to Isaiah 60.
- Isaiah is writing of the future glory of
Israel when she has returned from captivity and been restored by the Lord in
the millenial Kingdom. Listen to his prophecy beginning in verse 19.
• Isaiah 60:19, 20 : "The sun
shall no longer be your light by day,
Nor for brightness shall the moon give light to you; But the Lord will be to you an everlasting light, and your God your glory. Your sun shall no longer go down, Nor shall your moon withdraw itself; For the Lord will be your everlasting light, and the days of your mourning shall be ended." : You can find a similar promise to this in Zechariah 14:6,7.
Nor for brightness shall the moon give light to you; But the Lord will be to you an everlasting light, and your God your glory. Your sun shall no longer go down, Nor shall your moon withdraw itself; For the Lord will be your everlasting light, and the days of your mourning shall be ended." : You can find a similar promise to this in Zechariah 14:6,7.
- The people of God, in this ceremony, were
looking forward to the time when Messiah would stand in their midst and be the
source of their eternal light!
- Notice that John writes that He spoke to them
again! This is the second time during that day when He made an obvious
reference to Himself as the fulfillment of their hopes.
- Just as the light of the menorah is
extinguished, Jesus calls out again to Israel and says, "I am the light of
the world!" The symbol is giving way to the substance!
- For those of you who are counting, note that
this is the second time that Jesus employs the phrase, "I AM."
"Ego Eimi." We looked at this in John 6, when Jesus said "I AM the Bread of
life."
- The use of that unique phrase connected Jesus
to the designation of Israel's God from Exodus 3! Jesus is calling
Himself the self-existent One!
- He is pointing the people to His presence as
the fulfillment of the Shekinah glory! He is the Light of the World, literally,
the light of the cosmos!
- Salvation is the extension of light
throughout the entire created order! Jesus takes away the shadows and expels
any place of spiritual darkness! He shines in every corner of the Universe!
- When we are following after Him, when we are
in the same way with Him, we won't be able to walk in darkness! This is true
now in a partial way.
- The Spirit of God directs us away from that
which is dark in our lives. He erodes our desire for those paths, but ultimate
salvation is to deliver us from the possibility of going down those paths!
- Today, we consider adultery, but that isn't
the only darkness that we would choose. Hatred and rage. A desire to cheat and
steal for our own advantage. The reliance of falsehood.
- Whatever darkness we would engage in, Jesus
is the light that exposes it and forces it to flee! A believer in Christ will
never be able to permanently walk in darkness!
- Turn in your Bibles to Revelation 21.
Listen to this description of the Kingdom.
• Revelation 21:22-26 : "But I saw no temple in it, for the
Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are its temple. The city had no need of the sun or
of the moon to shine in it, for the glory of God illuminated it. The Lamb is
its light. And the
nations of those who are saved shall walk in its light, and the kings of the
earth bring their glory and honor into it. Its gates shall not be shut at all
by day (there shall be no night there). And they shall bring the glory and
the honor of the nations into it." : What is the light of life? It is the Messiah's presence in the
Universe and in the person, which reveals His glory forever!
- The Jews, the nations, all who have ever
believed upon Christ, will one day bring their glorified selves into the gates
of the Kingdom, where His light will shine forever!
Conclusion
- You may or may not be an adulterer today.
Whatever sin you are engaged with, let the Lord's Word convict you, from the
oldest to the youngest: "Go and sin no more!"
- That is the message of the Light of the
World! You don't have to walk in darkness! In fact, with Him walking beside
you, you cannot!
- We don't know what happened with this woman,
but we can know what will happen if we will heed His words: We will be free and
whole, because that is what the Messiah does for His people.
No comments:
Post a Comment