Know the Son, Know the Father

Know the Son, Know the Father

John 8:12-20

January 14, 2024

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Our passage today is a continued discussion leading to a murder. According to the FBI (Federal Bureau of Investigation) in a journal article titled “Seven Stage Hate Model” published in 2003, there are 7 stages for hate. I found it interesting, and it applies to our passage today. In the article, the authors identify the seven stages of hate as:

(1) the Haters Gather; (2) the Hate Group Defines Itself; (3) the Hate Group Disparages the Target; (4) the Hate Group Taunts the Target; (5) the Hate Group Attacks the Target Without Weapons; (6) the Hate Group Attacks the Target With Weapons; and (7) the Hate Group Destroys the Target.

Vodie Bauchman says that when “they do not have and argument, they resort to violence.

The FBI misses something, however. In my opinion, hatred can’t happen until the “hater” first rejects the person or people that they want to hate. That is the real starting point. I have said this over and over that people do not change. The only difference between the people of Christ’s day and ours is the wardrobe. According to Charles Swindoll, the progression of rejection to hatred in the hearts of religious leaders is on full display here in our passage.

Their progression of hate goes like this. 1. Contradiction 2. Cynicism 3. Denial, 4. Insult 5. Sarcasm and finally 6. Violence.

In both the FBI's progression to hatred and Swindoll’s are grounded on an assumption of the identity of the person or people they want to hate. But, what if they get it wrong? What if what they want to hate is actually what they need the most? What if you or I hate or demonstrate some level of rejection when we don’t fully understand what we are rejecting? Think about the hurt caused by mistaken identity and assumed ideals. Think about the damage and even wars caused this way.

Today we will look at a mistaken identity and the progression of rejection that the religious leaders show us. Then we will look at how to protect ourselves from this mistake and the sweet reward of getting this right.

Before we do this, let’s look at the transition from John 7 to John 8:12-20. Notice that we left Jesus in the Feast of Booths. This was the festival where all Jewish males came to Jerusalem and celebrated what God did for the Israelites through their journey in the wilderness. Jesus takes this opportunity to continue to preach and teach. This passage is filled with applications and analogies that we can cling to today.

Our setting is critically important to understand what Jesus is saying and His message. He is in the temple, specifically the treasury of the temple. SEE Pictures:

Key Points:

· The location of the discussion was in the court of women and it held a massive and important lighting system (see the lights)

· Money collections (13 horns to collect money each with its own purpose)

· Unfortunately, the greatest offering to the temple was actually being rejected.

· This is where Jesus gives the 2nd of 7 “I am” statements (ego eimi)

· The “ego Eimi” is a direct reference to the discussion between Moses and God when Moses asked who should I say sent me to the Israelites? God’s response was “Ego Eimi” or I AM sent you.

With this setting as a backdrop, we now can jump into what God is teaching us through this text. We have so much to concentrate on and see what our Lord is teaching us.

1. The Light is exclusive.

Let’s look back at the picture with the candle lobbers. With the giant candle lobbers in as a back drop, we can assume and assume even the time of day. As the sun sets, the candles are lit to cast lighting into this huge courtyard. This process was captured in the Mishnah (a history of Jewish tradition states that:

There were golden candlesticks there with four golden bowls on the top of them and four ladders to each candlestick, and four youths of the priestly stock and in their hands jars of oil holding a hundred and twenty logs which they poured into all the bowls.[1]

As He masterly does as usual, Jesus uses His surroundings to preach principles that endure throughout eternity. Jesus has already used “I AM the bread of life” in chapter 6 and now in chapter 8 we now see that He is THE Light of the world. If I go back to my intro, with Jesus’s “I AM” the Light it is like taking gasoline and dumping on the fire for Pharisees because they would know this reference.

Psalm 36:9

9 For with you is the fountain of life;

in your light do we see light. [2]

And most directly:

Isaiah 42:6 &7

6 “I am the Lord; I have called you in righteousness;

I will take you by the hand and keep you;

I will give you as a covenant for the people,

a light for the nations,

7 to open the eyes that are blind,

to bring out the prisoners from the dungeon,

from the prison those who sit in darkness. [3]

These passages are not the only direct reference to “THE Light”. It is again referenced in Isaiah 49:6 and Malachi 4:2. The Isaiah scrolls were a major part of the religious leader’s scriptural diet and is still a stumbling block for the Jews who do not believe that Christ is the Messiah. Interestingly enough, in the debate with Ben Shapiro (who is Jewish and does not believe that Christ was the Messiah) John MacArthur exclusively used the book of Isaiah as the proof text that Jesus was exactly THE LIGHT.

Notice back at verse 12. Jesus says He is “THE LIGHT”

Imagine, the sun is coming down, the light from the candles are casting their cover onto the courtyard, and with a sweeping hand, He references the exclusivity of the claim. “I AM (ego eimi) exclusively the exact light that the OT prophet Isaiah was talking about. There is not another nor will there be another. It is no wonder that that one statement kicks off the cycle for hate that eventually led to physical murder.

The cycle of hatred, like I made reference to earlier, can be boiled down to a common cause in our text. The most used words in our passage has to do with judging who He is. The entire discussion has to do with identity and proving that one point. With that as our setting, let’s look at how this exchange escalates.

2. Whose witness counts?

I have to ask, what would it take for you and I to believe that someone was specifically impotent? Maybe their family? Maybe their zip code? Maybe if they are rich, poor, or have done great things in their career. I’ll tell you the truth, if the president of the US walked into MBC, I would think that he is another sinner who needs Jesus. He is just another guy who puts his pants on the same way as me. His title and who he is does very little for me.

But, now kids, name one person you would like to meet face to face. NOT a superhero.

To me, the most important attribute of an important person is how close they are to God. To me, other than Jesus Himself, I would like to meet Wytcliff, Tyndale, Augustine, CH Spurgeon. Why? It is because of the witness that their lives produced. Their lives, actions, and impact on the human race were a direct reflection of what God has done in their lives. So, you could say what made these men special was the witness of the Father. Each man was a reflection of THE Light of the world.

After Jesus said that He was THE light of the world, the Pharisees jumped into the main point of this discussion. The main point is the validity of Christ’s identity. They were obsessed with figuring out who He was. When He said that HE was THE Light the Pharisees jumped at the claim to contradict what that claim implied.

Vs 13: 13 So the Pharisees said to him, “You are bearing witness about yourself; your testimony is not true.”[4]

We see the Pharisees remembering an earlier conversation with Jesus. He (Jesus said back in 5:31 “31 If I alone bear witness about myself, my testimony is not true.[5]” They think they have Him trapped in His own words but our Lord continues.

Vs 14: “Jesus answered, Even if I do bear witness about myself, my testimony is true, for I know where I came from and where I am going, but you do not know where I come from or where I am going.

I learned a very alarming and heartbreaking truth about this passage this week. Do you know the Greek word for “witness” here is marturiaand that is where we get our word martyr. RC Sproul writes of this passage:

“This word, which indicates one who loses his life for a cause, comes from the Greek word for “witness” because there was such a close relationship between the martyrs of the early church and their witness to the truth claims of Jesus. They bore witness to Christ by giving their lives; their testimony was emphatic because it involved their own blood.”

The ironic thing is that the very first martyr was none other than Jesus Himself. Why the Pharisees were demanding “marturia” or a witness, it was like Jesus echoes them and said, no you will do it for me when you pin me on the cross, you will see the greatest witness of all.

Jesus’s comment here should remind us exactly who His “witness” is. When He claims to be THE LIGHT of the world, it should take us right back to John 1:1-5

1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 He was in the beginning with God. 3 All things were made through him, and without him was not any thing made that was made. 4 In him was life, and the life was the light of men. 5 The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.[6]

It must never surprise us how God’s Word is woven together like a giant tapestry. You pull one cord, and one thread, and the rest are attached. John 1, Isaiah, Psalm, Malachi, and many others all come together behind the greatest witness of who Jesus is. When Jesus directs our attention to the THE LIGHT, he is calling the greatest witness possible, God the Father. He calls His Father in Heaven to be the witness of all witnesses.

Vs 16 16 Yet even if I do judge, my judgment is true, for it is not I alone who judge, but I and the Father who sent me.[7] 17 In your Law it is written that the testimony of two people is true. 18 I am the one who bears witness about myself, and the Father who sent me bears witness about me.”[8]

There is no more powerful witness that He could possibly invoke. The TWO are ONE. Could Jesus have called the witness of the OT? Sure! And to tell you the truth, He would have had a great standing. Could He have called John the Baptist as a witness? Sure! And, again, He would have had a great standing. Keep in mind that He had already called these witnesses. Now, as the tension is building and hatred for Him is at an all-time high, He drops the greatest witness of all, the Father.

I find it interesting that the word “judgment” comes back up. We spoke about judging right last week. But notice how Jesus slips this in. There is a very important statement that Jesus says, “I judge no one.” Is that a contradiction? Because, 2 Tim:

4 I charge you in the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who is to judge the living and the dead, and by his appearing and his kingdom[9]

Is there a contradiction? NO! Jesus is saying, You, Pharisees, (and to be clear us as well), judge by what we see, the outward appearance. But Jesus is saying I judge no one that way. He not only does not judge outwardly, but at this time, He did not come as a Judge. Rather, He came to save. But, the Word of God is clear, He will come back to judge the living and the dead.

Now, look closely now at the next phrase:

“In your Law it is written that the testimony of two people is true.”

Allow me to be very clear, Jesus was not distancing Himself from the Law. After all, He was the one who was there when it was penned. He continually affirms the Law, lives by the Law, and directs people back to the Law. But, why say, “Your Law?”

Parents, have you ever said to your spouse who you love dearly, “He is your son now.” Or go take care of “your daughter?” Look we laugh but our heavenly Father has done it to. Aaron, Moses’s brother did, in my opinion, the worst sin imaginable and built the golden calf for the people of Israel to worship INSTEAD of God. Never mind God had just performed countless acts. And while Moses was meeting with God, it was like God interrupted the conversation and said:

7 And the Lord said to Moses, “Go down, for your people, whom you brought up out of the land of Egypt, have corrupted themselves.[10]

God’s chosen people, God’s children was subject to His justified anger. In their sin, God said, “Moses, Go down to YOUR people, whom YOU brought up.” God was not abandoning the covenant originally made, rather a form of speech. Jesus did not separate Himself from the Law, rather said “the Law that you hold to”. He was directing them back to what they were attempting to find their salvation in. That Law that they clung to was begin fulfilled in Him.

The Pharisees were using this conversation along with many others to build the case for the ultimate endgame of rejection. They wanted Him dead for their own gains and to make sure that their system of religion remained in power. But, in so doing, they were missing the real identity of Him who was sent to save. The entire point of this message and the entire point of this passage is found in the final point.

3. KNOW THE SON to KNOW THE FATHER (HP). (John 8:19)

RC Ryle wrote of THE Light of the world:

Let this saying sink down into our hearts. It is weighty and full of meaning. False lights on every side invite man’s attention in the present day. Reason, philosophy, earnestness, liberalism, conscience, and the voice of the Church, are all, in their various ways, crying loudly that they have got “the light” to show us. Their advocates know not what they say. Wretched are those who believe their high professions! He only is the true light who came into the world to save sinners, who died as our substitute on the cross, and sits at God’s right hand to be our Friend. “In His light we shall see light[11]

Church, Christ, THE Light of the world is showing us something that no human heart or eye can comprehend. We can say that we know Jesus, but knowing Jesus also means you know Him whom sent Him because the one shines the light on The Other. We have to know them both! You can’t be comfortable with only one and dismiss the other.

Allow me to prove my point. If you close your eyes and picture Jesus it should be what Isaiah 53 describes. “For He grew up before HIm like a young plant, and like a root out of dry ground; He had no form or majesty that we should look at Him and no beauty that we should desire Him.” In short, an average looking jewish man.

Is that easy? It should be pretty easy to do. Now, close your eyes and picture The Father. The very sad truth is that many of us struggle to picture the Father. Maybe it’s because your earthly father has tainted that view. IT’s true, those who struggle most about the Father would report that they too struggle because they have a poor example in their earthly father or even husband.

But dear brothers and sisters, do you no know that:

Psalm 68:

5 Father of the fatherless and protector of widows

is God in his holy habitation.

6 God settles the solitary in a home;

he leads out the prisoners to prosperity, [12]

Or

John 14:18 “I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you.”

Or, maybe you have an earthly father who is kind, and loving, and yet you struggle to know your heavenly Father. If that is the case, I would challenge you, how would you define and identify with Jesus. I am finding as of late a great many of us who have a mechanical view of Jesus and thus a misunderstanding of who God the Father is. Do you not see that God is NOT mechanical? We get bogged down in the mechanics of salvation, redemption, and sanctification while missing the oceans of love, grace, and mercy that those words SHOULD be pointing to.

The mechanics of God are important but that does NOT make God mechanical. He is a personal God, a saving God, a kind and gentle Father, a savior, and a shepherd. Remember the loving-kindness of God:

My favorite Psalm 91:

4 He will cover you with his pinions,

and under his wings, you will find refuge;

his faithfulness is a shield and buckler[13]

Or

Titus 3:4-6

“But when the kindness of God our Savior and His love for mankind appeared, He saved us, not on the basis of deeds which we have done in righteousness, but according to His mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewing by the Holy Spirit, whom He poured out upon us richly through Jesus Christ our Savior,”

Church, to know God is to know the Savior. That wing of protection is the Savior He provides. If we truly know Jesus and more importantly He knows us, we will come to a better understanding of the Father. The THREE are interwoven (Father, Son and Holy Spirit. THE Light of the world casts light and points to the Father. The Father saves by THE Light of the world while all this is activated and governed by the Spirit. The three are inseparable and working in the heart and life of the believer.

The Son is the fullness of the Father in Col 2:9

9 For in him the whole fullness of deity dwells bodily, 10 and you have been filled in him, who is the head of all rule and authority.[14]

Knowing the Father and the Son is not a new frustration for many. It started here in our passage today. It has been a constant and consistent challenge for many. This is why our early church fathers took the time to make sure that we knew the close relationship between the Father and the Son. This is why, from the Apostle’s Creed and the Nicene Creed we hear the beautiful words:

“We believe in one God, the Father almighty, Maker of heaven and earth, and of all things visible and invisible. And in one Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of God, the only-begotton, begotten of the Father before all ages. Light of Light, true God of true God, begotten not made, of one essence with the Father by whom all things were made; who for us men and for our salvation, came down from heaven, and was incarnate of the Holy Spirit and the Virgin Mary and became man. And He was crucified for us under Pontius Pilate and suffered, and was buried. And the third day He rose again, according to the Scriptures; and ascended into heaven, and sits at the right hand of the Father; and He shall come again with glory to judge the living and the dead; whose Kingdom shall have no end. “

Written in the fourth century to address heresies that were creeping into the church sought to clarify the person of and deity of Christ. When they used the word “world” in the first

Church to understand the Father right means a grasp and understanding of the Son. To understand the Son means to rightly understand the NON-mechanical but loving Father who saw our need for a savior from eternity past. God saves people throughout time the same way. By Grace alone, through faith alone in Christ alone to the glory of God alone. This is why, when Philip asked Jesus to show them the Father, Jesus responded:

““Have I been with you so long, and you still do not know me, Philip? Whoever has seen me has seen the Father. How can you say, ‘Show us the Father’? 10 Do you not believe that I am in the Father and the Father is in me? The words that I say to you I do not speak on my own authority, but the Father who dwells in me does his works. 11 Believe me that I am in the Father and the Father is in me, or else believe on account of the works themselves. [15]”

I wonder if there was hurt in those words. I know this does not surprise our Lord to hear that question. But, I wonder, did it hurt Jesus to hear the question? I wonder, are you asking the same question? I am asking you, my brothers and sisters in Christ, are you comfortable with His identity, if so, are you comfortable with the Father’s identity? If so, is THE Light in the world leaving it’s brilliance in you?

If the LIGHT of the World is in you, there should be a response in your life. I say this all the time, if you know Christ, and He knows you, there will be an effect. You can’t get hit by a truck and it does not leave a mark. When you come to know Christ, you will have a mark. May it be the LIGHT IN YOU!

Unbeliever:

I am concerned that maybe there are some who do not know THE light of the world. If you would say that you don’t have that kind of knowledge or awareness of Jesus, I’ll let you know that the Father/God sent the Light of the world, born of a virgin, completely holy and righteous to a world that hated and wanted Him dead to save sinners like you and me. He (God) knew that our sin could not be paid for unless HE being rich in mercy did something. That something was to send His perfect son to pay that cost, the cost of your sin.

He took that penalty of your sin and covered it. Now, believe in the Lord Jesus Christ and you will not incurs the justified wrath that your sin actually calls for.

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