The True Light of Mankind

Read

John 1:6–13 (ESV)

6 There was a man sent from God, whose name was John. 7 He came as a witness, to bear witness about the light, that all might believe through him. 8 He was not the light, but came to bear witness about the light.

9 The true light, which gives light to everyone, was coming into the world. 10 He was in the world, and the world was made through him, yet the world did not know him. 11 He came to his own, and his own people did not receive him. 12 But to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God, 13 who were born, not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God.

Opening Prayer

John has already told us...

Critical information about the Word...

He’s told us that the Word, the logos...

Is God.

Existed before creation with God...

And was God.

All things that came into existence owe their existence to the Logos, the Word.

Creation is an expression of the character of God.

God spoke light into the darkness...

And created the world.

Life does not exist without light.

Life came into existence by, through, and for “the Logos”.

The Logos is the true Light and the life that all mankind needs is found in Him.

God expressed Himself in Creation...

And, in spite of the Fall, God continued to give Light/Revelation into the world through Creation...

The giving of His Law, the old testament through it’s prophets, priests and kings...

But, the Word, the true Light is the perfect, exact self-revelation of the character, holiness and righteousness of God.

Now John gives us this information about the Logos...

The Light of Mankind before any earthly manifestation...

But now, in v.6 he moves on to give us more information leading up to the ministry of the Word.

Followers of John the Baptist

There were some at the time that John wrote this gospel who were attributing too much to John the Baptist.

Whether John is correcting these heretical views is unknown.

But, it does seem that John wants to set the record straight...

Because our fallen condition drives us to settle for lesser things.

Idols rather than God.

Creatures rather than the Creator.

John doesn’t want there to be any confusion, whatsoever, regarding who is...

the Messiah

the Christ

the Son of God

the Savior of the World.

Who’s greater, Jesus or John the Baptist?

Both came on the scene around the same time.

Both had followers.

Both intrigued the religious leaders.

Both were disliked by the religious leaders.

Both were put to death.

Who deserves our worship?

Who do we believe upon?

Who is greater?

John answers this by contrasting critical features of both...

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Christ John the Baptist

Was from all Eternity Was not from all Eternity

Is God Himself A Mere Man Commissioned by God

Creator Created Creature

Is the True Light Not the True Light

The Object of Faith Only an Agent of Faith

The Messiah The Forerunner of the Messiah

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John was not the Christ.

John was not the True Light.

But, John had a role to play regarding the True Light...

John’s Role to the Light

John 1:6–8 (ESV)

6 There was a man sent from God, whose name was John. 7 He came as a witness, to bear witness about the light, that all might believe through him. 8 He was not the light, but came to bear witness about the light.

John was given a specific task from God.

He was to have a ministry that started just before the Messiah appeared....

And, John’s ministry was to prepare the people for Him...

And, to point people to Him.

To prepare people for His coming and appearance.

John is not the true light.

John is a reflector.

We will hear more about John the Baptist, but...

John’s life and ministry is for the purpose of exalting the true Light.

Thinking about John and his purpose makes me ask these questions...

What is our life pointing at?

What is our testimony to the world?

Are we pointing people to the Light?

Jesus is the True Light

John 1:9–11 (ESV)

9 The true light, which gives light to everyone, was coming into the world. 10 He was in the world, and the world was made through him, yet the world did not know him. 11 He came to his own, and his own people did not receive him.

The true (genuine) Light, which is also the Word was coming into the world.

John the Baptist was preparing the True Light’s people so they might receive the True Light.

Notice that John makes a distinction here.

He reminds us in v.10…read.

Everything that was created was created by the true Light, the Word.

But the true Light was coming into the world in some act that is distinct from creation.

And His coming into the world was the genuine and ultimate self-disclosure of God to man.

Now, what does John mean when he says in v.9...

The true light, which gives light to everyone.

How does the Logos give light to everyone?

In the context, and everything must be interpreted within the context of the passage...

the Light is the life of God in Christ...

And, therefore Christ Himself...

And, Christ is made manifest to the world in two ways:

A personal confrontation with Him in His life on earth.

A personal confrontation with Him in the preaching of the gospel.

So, a confrontation with Christ in His physical presence or through the preaching of the gospel divides people in two categories...

Those who do not receive Him.

Those who do receive Him.

Which speaks in complete agreement with the context of this prologue...

The true Light, the Logos, came into the world...

He was the life of mankind.

The world did not know Him.

They did not acknowledge Him as the life they need.

And, we still see this truth bore out today and will until the end.

Then v.11...

John 1:11 (ESV)

11 He came to his own, and his own people did not receive him.

He came to His own people, the Jews...

Salvation comes from the Jews.

And, His people did not receive Him.

They wanted nothing to do with what He offered...

—Eternal Life—

To admit they needed eternal life was to admit they are bankrupt of self-righteousness.

And, that was farther than they were willing to go.

His own people, who had been preserved to give birth to the Savior of the World...

Would not acknowledge they needed saving.

But, if His own people rejected the true Light, the Christ, then...

Who Are the Real Children of God?

This is what John is alluding to in the prologue.

He’ll go deeper into it, but...

What “should” the people of God be waiting for?

The Messiah, the Christ.

What is the Christ bringing?

A new covenant.

Blessings to the Nations.

Who will receive these blessings?

How will we know if someone has received the blessings?

Who are the real children of God?

Our fallen condition invents ways to soothe our conscience and convince ourselves that we are okay with God…and god is okay with us.

We will invent ways to convince ourselves that we are true children of God.

John tells us that assurance comes from this truth...

John 1:12–13 (ESV)

12 But to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God, 13 who were born, not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God.

Do you see where we get assurance from?

If you believe upon Jesus you are a child of God.

And, John will spell this out in greater detail in his gospel.

i.e. What are trusting in Christ for?

Now, back to the truth that the True Light’s own people did not receive Him...

John didn’t mean that no Jew received Christ, being a Jew himself, John received Christ.

Some Jews received Him.

But, the nation as a whole, or even in a majority, did not believe in Him.

But some Jews and many Gentiles did.

And, John tells us all who did receive Him...

Meaning believed in Him, the Christ...

Did so because He gave them the right to become the children of God.

How do we become a child of God?

Certainly we must repent and believe upon the Lord Jesus Christ.

But, how and why are we willing?

If no one seeks God no not one. (Rom. 3)

If none are righteous no not one. (Rom. 3)

If we spend our life suppressing the truth in unrighteousness. (Rom. 1)

What changes and how are we changed...

To make us willing and desirous of repenting and believing upon the Lord Jesus.

Let’s look at what John tells us are not the reasons:

not of blood

not lineage, not physical descent from Abraham

this enrages the religious leaders

not of the will of the flesh

we cannot, nor do we, first desire to become a child of God.

something within us must change for that desire to come about.

not of the will of man

it’s not because parents, SS teachers or pastors desire it.

we cannot will anyone into the Kingdom of God.

we cannot talk anyone into the Kingdom of God.

we plant the seed, we water it, but God must give the increase.

Then how?

John says by the gracious work of God.

He’ll expand upon this, but Paul says it like this...

Ephesians 2:1–5 (ESV)

1 And you were dead in the trespasses and sins 2 in which you once walked, following the course of this world, following the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that is now at work in the sons of disobedience— 3 among whom we all once lived in the passions of our flesh, carrying out the desires of the body and the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, like the rest of mankind. 4 But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, 5 even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ—by grace you have been saved—

The new covenant promises a work by the Holy Spirit of God that will come upon a person and give them a new heart.

Make them alive spiritually from being dead spiritually.

Make them understand spiritual things from being unable to discern and understand spiritual things. (1 Cor. 2)

This is what John is speaking of here.

He will expand this truth with even greater clarity in this gospel.

The result of this gracious revelation of the Word:

Certain people and not others become children of God.

So, right now we're drawn in, and John will expound upon these very important questions:

Who are the real children of God?

Who truly are the children of Abraham?

Which people receive the Spirit in the New Covenant and are born again?

Who are given the right to become the children of God?

Take Away

There’s no greater peace, satisfaction, joy, happiness than intimately knowing the Christ, the Son of God, the Messiah.

There’s nothing greater than being a true child of God.

There’s no more important truth to know than that you are a true spiritual child of Abraham.

There’s nothing greater than to have the Holy Spirit of God come upon you and reside in you.

There’s no sweeter thing than the assurance that your relationship with the True Light, the Word...Is real.

John wants us to know these truths...

To experience them.

To know the Christ.

And to have assurance of it.

Closing Prayer