Jesus claims Authority

John 8:12

What has been a common description that John has described Jesus in his Gospel?

The light. John describes Jesus this way 22 times in this Gospel. Can you think of any we have already covered? Here in 8:12, 1:4, 1:9, and 3:19-21

Read John 8:12 “Again Jesus spoke to them, saying, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.””

The “light of the world is a clear messianic title (messianic meaning relating to the Messiah). When the people heard Jesus make this statement (“I m the light of the world.”), they should have remembered their Torah and what other Prophets wrote about “the light.”

Can anyone think of anywhere in the Bible that Jesus or God was described as light?

Isaiah describes the Messiah as “a light for the nations" who would bring God's salvation to the ends of the earth (Isa 49:6)

The glory of the very presence of God in the cloud led the people to the promised land (Ex 13:21-22) and protected them from those who would destroy them (Ex 14:19-25)

They even sang about “the light" (Ps 27:1)

The Word of God (Jesus) is a light to guide the path of those who cherish instructions (Ps 119:105; Pr 6:23)

The Light is God in action (Ps 44:3)

Even the end of time will be a time when the Lord himself would be the light for his people (Is 60-19-22; Rev 21:23-24)

Also possible verses (Ezk 1:4, 13, 26-28; Hab 3:3-4; Zech 14:5b-7)

So, when Jesus stands up and calls out to the crowd, “I am the light of the world,” he's identifying himself as the Christ, the Messiah, the one who fulfills God's promise to make the world right again.

However, the title “light of the world" does more than identify Jesus as the Messiah. What else does it identify him as? It also Identifies him as God! Most of the verses we just read was God. God is also called light. For instance, Psalm 27:1, “The LORD [Yahweh] is my light and my salvation.” So add that to Jesus's claim. He's not just a messenger from God. He is God!

When Jesus calls himself the “light of the world" he is not just identifying himself as God; he's commanding them to follow him. Jesus is telling them, the only way for them to leave slavery is to submit to him. His claim of authority is no different today. The only way to escape slavery to sin is to follow Jesus. They only way to know where to walk and also make it to heave is to follow Jesus.

C.S. Lewis wrote, “I believe in Christianity as I believe that the Sun has risen: not only because I see it, but because by it I see everything else.” By claiming to be the light of the world, Jesus is saying , “Only by me can you see and understand everything else. There is an immediate consequence to “whoever follows me [Jesus]”. You “will never walk in darkness but will have the light of life [salvation]”

By claiming to be the light of the world, Jesus is saying, “Only by me can you see and understand everything else. Only by me can you see and understand this world.” Apart from Jesus, this world is simply unknowable. Your life will only make sense as you submit to Jesus. Until the light of the world illuminates your world, you'll never make sense of the world.

So imagine this. If our world didn’t have the sun, not only would we not know the sun, but we wouldn’t see to understand our world. Jesus is like the sun. We can't make sense of a world that has so much evil and so much good without Jesus. Jesus helps us see it. He helps us understand it. In Jesus's light we can embrace the reality that this world is broken because of sin, but we can do so with hope, for Jesus has promised to fix it. Jesus already defeated death, so we have confidence he will one day banish death forever. Jesus is the light of the world, and only by following him can we see.

So far in the Gospel of John, Jesus has identified himself as living water (Ch.4), bread of life (Ch.5) and now light of the world (Ch.8). Are you catching a pattern? Jesus is everything we need! What else do we need to survive? Refuge? Fine, read Psalm 46: (Also available Ps 9:9, 37:39, 61:3, 73:26, 91:2, 142:5; Isa 33:16, Jer 16:19, 17:17; Joel 3:16; Na 1:7) With Jesus, we have everything. He is everything.

So can you see?