The Light Of The World

THE LIGHT OF THE WORLD Trinity John 8:12-20 22.1.23 If I owe you money I might give you an IOU. “I, John, owe Jack $50.” It’s a worthless piece of paper, but it is a token or symbol that represents the $50. National flags are symbols. Emojis are symbols. Symbols are everywhere in John 7 and 8. It is one of the three big annual national parties in Jerusalem. There is water – brought from the river and sloshed all around the altar. Ah – that is a symbol of the time God satisfied the thirst of 2 million Israelites for 40 long years in the desert, bringing water even out of a rock more than once. Each night at the party four lamps are lit, which were so bright it is said that they lit up the whole city of Jerusalem … Ah, that is a symbol of the huge column of fire which led the people, all the way through to the land of promise. The water and the light are only symbols of what happened in the desert. But the water and the light in the desert were symbols. Of what? Of Jesus. Now, in the middle of the party we hear Jesus call out in a loud voice “Is anyone thirsty? Let come to me and drink.” (Jn 7:37) And “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will not walk in darkness but will have the light of life.” (8:12). But won’t the Jews say “Jesus the thirst quencher? Jesus, the light giver? No – it was Yahweh who fed us. It was Yahweh in the fiery column.” Jesus is saying - “That’s right. It was. That was me.” Once again, Jesus is unmistakably saying that he is the Living God. That was enough to upset the Jewish religious leaders. But at the same time Jesus is putting a bullet in the symbols. Once I pay Jack the $50, I owe him, the IOU can go in the bin. Once the real water is here and the true light is shining, the party symbols can go in the bin. More than that – if the water and the light in the desert were Jesus in disguise … now that he is here, even they grow smaller. What is left that makes the nation of Israel such a big deal any longer? Nothing. That is clear when we read the words of Jesus. He says that he will satisfy “anyone who thirsts” (7:37) and that he is light for “the world” (8:12) and for “whoever will follow”. Even if I’m not a Jew? Or respectable? Or rich? Or well-educated? Religious people like to let the respectable people in and keep the riff raff out. But the real God of Israel stands here as light for the whole world offering life and protection for anyone, anyone at all. By his simple and powerful words, Jesus is saying that he is One God with the Father. Religion is finished. Along with Jewish nationalism. His words are loaded and bigger than big.  You will be as thirsty as I am – longing for the kind of water that satisfies deep in the soul.  You will long for light in a dark world as much as I do.  You will be hoping someone gets you safely through the desert of this world, home safe and healthy, as I do. How do I get to drink? Jesus said in chapter 7 I much come to him and believe in him. It’s the same here: “Whoever follows me will not walk in darkness but will have the light of life.” (v12) “Whoever follows me …” What does that mean exactly? 1. FOLLOWING JESUS IS CREDAL (relating to a statement of Christian or other religious belief.) Amy Grant was a popular gospel singer some years back. In November she announced that she and her husband were to host a same-sex wedding at their ranch for her niece. How could she give approval to that and stay loyal to Jesus? She said that Jesus reduced everything to loving God and loving your neighbour. No, he didn’t. Front and centre, and basic to everything else is the fact that he is God … he has come from heaven (v14a), sent with the authority of the Father (v16), so much one with the Father than to know Jesus is to know the Father (v19). At the heart of Christianity and the message of Jesus is the creed that says Jesus is God. When he speaks here about his Father, the religious leaders ask in verse 19 “Where is your Father?”. They mean Joseph. If they can wheel him out as Exhibit A, game set and match. Any claim to God being his Father would be ridiculous. They want to reduce Jesus. They want to judge him by what they see. They want to judge him “according to the flesh” (v15). They don’t want a creed that makes Jesus anything more than man. But you can’t do that and still have the real Jesus. Is being credal like this being too fussy? Too bookish? Too impersonal? Too exclusive in a world of many religions? Wouldn’t it be better to talk just about “God”, and “love” and “being sincere” and feeling better about things. That’s not on. A feeling, a concept, an opinion isn’t going to get water for thirsty souls and light for a dark world. We need the real Jesus. If we are serious about following the real Jesus it starts with who he really is – and not just the one who fits what we might think or want. Following is firstly credal. 2. FOLLOWING JESUS IS PRACTICAL When I say ‘practical’ I mean that it works out in practice. Real credal belief never just stays in your head or your words. Real following means real change in the way you live. Once people saw who Jesus really is, once they got the creed right, he called them to do as he asked. He asked some to walk after him as disciples. He asked some to go home to their families. He asked all to live for him, loving what he loves and hating what he hates. You can’t say Jesus is God, but I’m going to think and do what I like. I’ll pick and choose which of Jesus’ attitudes to sin will be my attitude, and which of his delights will be my delights. There is a story back in Numbers chapter 9 about that column of fire in the desert. Sometimes the fire didn’t move for days on end. So, 2 million Israelites didn’t move. When it took off, they took off. They followed the light. Like sheep follow the shepherd, hikers follow the guide and soldiers follow the general. No private agendas. No plans that trumped God’s plans. No matter how reasonable or attractive the alternatives might have seemed. The people of God were called to follow the light, no matter the cost or the inconvenience. It was the only safe thing to do. What if he leads you into a costly place? Or a hard place? Or somewhere you feel uncomfortable. What then? Has he promised you will have “the light of life”, that you will be in a safe and a good place if you follow him? Sure, he has. There may be some rough ground between here and the end, but the good end is where he is taking you, so of course you can follow where he leads. Does someone who is God make any mistakes? Ever? Does he do anything that isn’t the very best possible? Ever? Does he ever deal with his children except with a hand full of mercy and grace? Then we follow. Today, tomorrow, and next week. When the route makes sense or seems confusing. Whether it is popular or unpopular, convenient, or not. We don’t cherry pick the parts we like and leave the rest. At the heart of following Jesus is practical – it works here, there, and everywhere. When I follow Jesus – it is credal and it is practical. 3. FOLLOWING JESUS IS RELATIONAL Plenty of people talk about following the light. They may mean following an ideal, an insight, an intuition, a philosophy. But Jesus talks about following him, a person. He speaks in verse 19 of KNOWING him. That’s the word God uses when he wants to talk about relationship and intimacy and love. I know who the prime minister is, but he doesn’t share things with me that he shares with his son Nathan. I don’t know him like Nathan does, and he is not in my corner like he is in Nathan’s. Anthony Albanese and I do not have a personal relationship. Following Jesus means I confess him as Lord and God … that’s credal. It means I take seriously what he wants and asks in what I believe and the way I live … that’s practical. But I follow him as the one who is my lover and close companion. He doesn’t call me to follow “the light”, whatever I might make that to be. He calls me to follow HIM. In personal relationship. It can be dark in the desert. This world can be a sad and difficult place in which to live. But I am not alone. Ideals and principles don’t put their arms around me. But I love a person. Best of all, he loves me and is my corner with me, no matter how dark it is. You haven’t reduced following Jesus to having the right doctrine, have you? Or to living his way? Jesus calls us to follow HIM. And love and enjoy and rest in him, with all our hearts. Is this the year you need to stop and look at him in a fresh way, and ask God to re-kindle deep relational love for him? What a great prayer that would be. Following Jesus is credal / practical / relational. 4. FOLLOWING JESUS IS PERSONAL When Jesus said “WHOEVER” believes in him will no longer be thirsty, and “WHOEVER” follows him will have the light of life, he was using a large, broad powerfully inclusive word. Can YOU come – no matter your background, no matter your ignorance, no matter your sin? Yes, ANYONE may come. But the word “whoever” is also a very particular word. If I say, “Whoever wants a cup of coffee at morning tea can be served from the kitchen”, you know that I am saying if that is what you want, that is where you will need to go. The word “whoever” is a personal word. If I want my thirst satisfied, I need to drink. Grandma or my best friend can’t do it for me. The church to which I belong can’t do it for me. If I want to have the light of life in a dark and deadly world, then I need to come and believe … I need to follow Jesus. Though Grandma and my best friend and my church might help me, ultimately, I must drink and I must follow. This is one of the themes which comes up every time we open this gospel of John, isn’t it? We end up being personally confronted by Jesus, no matter which chapter we are reading. And God means us to be confronted – and maybe even affronted. Why? Because Jesus is such a striking and life-altering person. And what he has on offer is just so wonderful. The column of cloud and fire in the desert, usually went in front of the Israelites so they knew where to go. But sometimes, when they were camped, it went behind them, between them and their enemies who wanted to wipe them out. On the side facing the Israelites, it was a fire that gave light. On the side facing their haters, it was a dark, dark cloud which meant they couldn’t see the Israelites, or anything but black. So, you would need to ask whether you are still in the dark, or whether only in Jesus, you have the light of life. After an evening session at one of our Philippines pastors’ conferences, I was walking back to Joebel’s home where I was staying. I took a short cut through what they called ‘the forest’. There was no moon, and it was so dark, I couldn’t see the track. Treading on the cane toads was bad enough, but walking into spider webs and then falling into the church rubbish hole was the pits, so to speak. What a relief when someone came by with a torch. It’s no fun in the black dark. Having light for life puts you in another world which is so much more wonderful. You may feel like you’re caught up in the spider webs or down with the rubbish. It may have been a struggle even to get here this morning because of something going on for you. The answer to the dark is not to turn your back on Jesus and walk away from the light. But to follow where he goes, no matter what that takes. When the fiery cloud moved in the desert, the people moved. They may not have known where to next. But did that matter? The safest place was where the light was. Jesus is moving and he calls us to follow him, wherever he takes us. Will you follow him no matter where that is? That’s where you get to enjoy the light of life. SONG: YOU NEVER CHANGE … that safe God is our God … constant in care and love, satisfying power and unfailing protection.