The Gospel of John Step Into The Light John 1:9-18 M ichael Card sees one of the major themes of John s Gospel as the ongoing misunderstanding of who Jesus is. He notes: The motif of misunderstanding presents Jesus not as the great Teacher but as the misunderstood Messiah. As the Gospel progresses, Jesus will become increasingly lonely until finally, on the cross, he is all alone. His luminous answers were all misunderstood. (They will finally be comprehended only at the coming of the Holy Spirit [Jn 12:16; 14:25].) 1 But some of this isn t misunderstanding; it is a choice of those in darkness to hide from the light. Dr. McGee gave this illustration: I used to go down to the jail in Cleburne, Texas, and speak to the men. It was not a large jail and I could talk to them in a conversational tone. I would start off talking about football (because in Texas football is a religion!), and those hardened men would get enthusiastic about it. I talked also of other things and they were interested. Then I would turn the conversation to something spiritual, and I could see the darkness come over their faces. I might just as well have been talking to corpses. And that is what they were men dead in trespasses and sins. This world today is in spiritual darkness, and the Lord Jesus Christ has brought the only light there is in the world. He is the light. In him was life; and the life was the light of men. 2 IV Introducing Christ A. Introduction; B. Christ as the Light Verses 9-13 C. Christ in the Incarnation Verses 14-18 D. Conclusion A. Introduction: This time I am going to follow Butler s outline and jump around a bit in the introductory section to maintain some flow. This means I want to continue John s introduction of Jesus, begun in the prologue. Next time we ll move on to meet John the Immerser. Card identifies these verses as a Song to the Incarnation. He sees within them the motif of misunderstanding. John s sermon resumes with a discord, an open fifth that is neither major nor minor. It will become a principle theme, one of the primary lenses through which he will understand Jesus life. It is based on misunderstanding. For a person who had given so much of his life to understanding Jesus and helping others to do so, a nagging mystery remains: Though the light shines, it was not comprehended. The world was created by him, but it did not recognize him. 1 Card, Michael, John: The Gospel of Wisdom, InterVarsity Press, Downers Grove, IL, 2014 2 McGee, J. Vernon, John I: The Gospels, Thomas Nelson Publishers, Nashville, TN, 1991
Though he came to his own, his own did not receive him. 3 As we move thorough the passage, I ll point out these misunderstandings as well as any parenthetical comments from John. This morning I want to focus on John s introduction of Christ as God s light because it is a theme he will return to again and again. We will also consider some other words and phrases occurring frequently throughout the book. But for now let s step into the light. B. Christ as the Light: I want to start by noticing the difference between physical light and spiritual light. Dr. McGee reminds us that while physical light and darkness cannot exist simultaneously, spiritual light and darkness do. In the physical realm we can argue that in one sense darkness doesn t exist. It is simply a state of the absence of light. But spiritually both light and darkness are used to describe the spiritual nature, righteous or unrighteous. Tan, in his article on light relates its usage directly to John s Gospel when he notes: The identification of light with the divine presence of the Shekinah glory above sheds light on the meaning of light in the Gospel of John and 1 John. In the person of Jesus, the true light, who gives light to everyone, was coming into the world (John 1:9 HCSB). The only begotten God, who is in the bosom of the Father, has made the Father known (1:18) because he became flesh and took up residence among us. We observed His glory, the glory as the One and Only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth (1:14; cp. Exod. 34:6). In other words, in Jesus God was made manifest because in Him the Shekinah glory had returned to reside among us and this glory consisted of fullness of grace and truth (cp. John 1:16-17). Light thus signifies Jesus glory, which is fullness of grace and truth. Jesus is the light of the world and His followers will have the light of life (i.e., the truth that brings life; John 8:12). Jesus, who is the light, the embodiment of grace and truth, also brings salvation (John 12:35-36,46-47) and the doing of God s works (John 9:4-5). This salvation and doing of God s works comes from guidance and instruction from the light (John 12:35,47). Notions of illumination, both positive manifestation of God s prior work of grace (John 1:13; 3:21) and negative reproof of human evil (John 3:20), are present as well. Human beings who reject the light are thus rejecting Jesus, the embodiment of grace and truth (John 3:14-21; cp. John 18:37-38, where Pilate apparently exemplifies one who rejects Jesus as the embodiment of truth). 4 Here John expands on this connection of light to Christ as we saw in the previous verse. In him was life, and the life was the light of men (John 1:4 ESV). We live in a world filled with light. Every time we are told that someone knows what is best for us, we are being told they have more light than we do. As humanity left the dark ages we find the rise of enlightenment. Light finally entered western civilization. But if the dark ages were dark, the enlightenment was even darker. Consider the following from the website, Church History for the Masses A shift occurred in the realm of authority. Prior to the Enlightenment, two traditional authority sources existed: the Bible and the classics. The Renaissance scholars did not reject Scripture but synthesized it with the classics. You can see this, for example, in the fact that the church actually canon- 3 Card 4 Tan. Randall K. J., Holman Illustrated Bible Dictionary, Light, Holman Bible Publishers, Nashville, TN, 2003 ) 22 (
ized Aristotle. The Renaissance taught that man could reason; that reason itself had no flaws. Because of this, man could discover truth and express it in both past philosophies and God's Word. During the Enlightenment, both authority sources came under attack. Scientific and naturalistic discoveries raised important questions not immediately dismissed by the appeal to Scripture or the philosophers. Copernican heliocentrism and Galileo's discoveries caused men of science to take another look at the universe. To these investigators, the earth became a rather insignificant speck of dust floating in the cosmos. Geological discoveries suggested a much greater age for the earth than the 5,704 years Bishop Ussher suggested. Observers failed to realize that Ussher's uninspired dates really had no authority, so they began questioning the entire Bible. Soon scholars rejected Scripture completely. Thomas Jefferson provides a good example. He said: The religion-builders have so distorted and deformed the doctrine of Jesus, so muffled them in mysticism, fancies and falsehoods, have caricatured them into forms so monstrous and inconceivable, as to shock reasonable thinkers, to revolt them against the whole, and drive them rashly to pronounce its Founder an imposter. Jefferson excised from his New Testament every reference to things miraculous. Once cut adrift from Scriptural absolutes, men looked elsewhere for authority. Ultimately only one other source existed. Man's ability to reason, to think and evaluate became the only source of authority. 5 And what is John s response to the light? He states that the true light, the source of light for everyone, was coming into the world. The fact is, Christ is the true light for all people. This is in spite of the fact most desire to live in their own light, which in reality is darkness. But others were willing to step out of the darkness and into the true light. Christ Himself noted this when He stated: I have come into the world as light, so that whoever believes in me may not remain in darkness (John 12:46 ESV). Both Jesus and John are reiterating what God had said through the prophet Isaiah I will make you as a light for the nations, that my salvation may reach to the end of the earth (Isaiah 49:6 ESV). Christ is presented in all of scripture generally, and in the Gospels specifically, as the light of the world. He is the fulfillment of the Old Testament. But this light is only accepted by those who want to live in it. because of the tender mercy of our God, whereby the sunrise shall visit us from on high to give light to those who sit in darkness and in the shadow of death, to guide our feet into the way of peace (Luke 1:78 79 ESV). Verse 10: And so the coming of the light is a double edged sword, exposing darkness and finally bringing it an end. John states the sad truth of Jesus reception by beginning to present His rejection, or as Card describes it, the misunderstanding of who Christ was/is. Though He came into the world, the world rejected Him. Now I don t know if John s intent is to be ironic, but it is, in that the world rejects Jesus, who is its Creator. 5 http://www.christianchronicler.com/history1/enlightenment.html ) 23 (
Within these few verses we find three concepts tied to the word world. The first is the planet, creation. The second refers to people in general. It is this usage that explains why Christ s coming is a testament to God s love of the world (John 3:16). The third concept, also find here, refers to the world as an evil system. The world cannot hate you, but it hates me because I testify about it that its works are evil (John 7:7 ESV). Verse 11: And this, while sad, isn t a surprise. What is even more sad is, Jesus wasn t recognized, that is accepted, by His own, the Jewish people. We see this throughout the gospels. These were the people He initially came to reach. I was sent only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel (Matthew 15:24 ESV). As one goes through Jesus ministry we see that while many Jews follow Him, and a few Gentiles, the powers that be, the leadership of the nation, reject Him. Or as Stephen put it: You stiff-necked people, uncircumcised in heart and ears, you always resist the Holy Spirit. As your fathers did, so do you. Which of the prophets did your fathers not persecute? And they killed those who announced beforehand the coming of the Righteous One, whom you have now betrayed and murdered (Acts 7:51 52 ESV). Verse 12-13: But from darkness John moves into the light. He makes it clear right from the start that while Jesus would be generally rejected there were people who did accept and follow Him. These would be blessed because they would become children of God. Now I ll note parenthetically that while Jesus did have followers, including the disciples, they didn t full understand who He was until after the ascension. But they did not understand this saying, and it was concealed from them, so that they might not perceive it. And they were afraid to ask him about this saying (Luke 9:45 ESV). That very day two of them were going to a village named Emmaus, about seven miles from Jerusalem, and they were talking with each other about all these things that had happened. While they were talking and discussing together, Jesus himself drew near and went with them. But their eyes were kept from recognizing him. And beginning with Moses and all the Prophets, he interpreted to them in all the Scriptures the things concerning himself (Luke 24:13 16, 27 ESV). While Israel had, and will have again, a national relationship to Israel, salvation comes to the individual and it was individuals who followed after Him. And here we find a parenthetical statement. Receiving Jesus means believing on His name. What is also clear is that people can only believe to the degree that God gives them light. Just as scripture presents progressive revelation, the more God provides the clearer the understanding, we find the same with the life of Christ. The disciples understanding of Jesus pro- ) 24 (
gressed through their time with Him. And our relationship to God deepens over time as we know Him better. Remember: Jesus name stands for Him and all He is. This is why those who redefine Christ do not know Him, because He is the only one who can define Himself. To fill His name with other meaning means those who do are teaching another Christ and are teaching in the spirit of antichrists. Who is the liar but he who denies that Jesus is the Christ? This is the antichrist, he who denies the Father and the Son. No one who denies the Son has the Father. Whoever confesses the Son has the Father also (1 John 2:22 23 ESV). Next, note the basis under which these believers became children of God. They had the right to the position. God promised this relationship and so when they followed Christ, they could claim this relationship. Finally we see the basis of this relationship. This would have been a special message to John s Jewish readers. Who one was, what family you are born into, being decedents of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob doesn t matter. Salvation comes as a gift. It is in light of this truth John presents the life of Christ. Or as Paul put it For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast (Eph 2:8 9 ESV). Conclusion: Our only problem isn t just the people in darkness. A concern for the church is the false teachers within it. In Jesus day, as we already noted, it was the Jewish leadership. We have to deal with all kind of craziness from people who call themselves Christians. Remember the Jesus Seminar? This isn t a new problem and it won t end until Christ shuts it down. Consider this example of craziness from Dr. McGee. A great many people do not seem to recognize that unbelief and atheism go naturally with the natural man. Somebody says to me, Oh, did you read in the paper what Dr. So and So of a certain seminary wrote? Yes, I read it. Well, isn t it awful? No, I do not think so. He would upset my apple cart if he said that he believed the Bible because he is an unbeliever by his own statement. He says that he does not believe in being born again, that he does not believe he has to receive Christ in order to be saved. Now I do not expect that man to say he believes the Bible. That would be absolutely contrary to his statements. The so called theologians and theological professors who espouse the God is dead movement present us with the preposterous, untenable claim that they are Christian atheists! Obviously atheism precludes the possibility of being Christian, yet unbelief has moved into our seminaries and pulpits across the land. The world does not know Him. 6 So, we have to deal with those who were with us, but not of us. But we also have to deal with the same world that did not and still does not accept Christ. We see this increasing almost exponentially. We are not to be surprised Blessed are you when people hate you and when they exclude you and revile you and spurn your name as evil, on account of the Son of Man! Rejoice in that day, 6 McGee, J. Vernon, John I: The Gospels, Thomas Nelson Publishers, Nashville, TN, 1991 ) 25 (
and leap for joy, for behold, your reward is great in heaven; for so their fathers did to the prophets (Luke 6:22 23 ESV). So let us be grateful that we can find ourselves in these verses living in the light and we know this because The Spirit himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, and if children, then heirs heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, provided we suffer with him in order that we may also be glorified with him. For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory that is to be revealed to us (Romans 8:16 18 ESV). ) 26 (
The Gospel of John Step Into The Light John 1:9-18 IV Introducing Christ A. Introduction; B. Christ as the Light Verses 9-13 C. Christ in the Incarnation Verses 14-18 D. Conclusion A. Introduction: B. Christ as the Light: (John 1:4, 12:46; Isaiah 49:6; Luke 1:78 79) Verse 10: (John 7:7)
Verse 11: (Matthew 15:24; Acts 7:51 52) Verse 12-13: (Luke 9:45, 24:13 16, 27; 1 John 2:22 23; Ephesians 2:8 9) Conclusion: (Luke 6:22 23; Romans 8:16 18) Personal Application: Our response to being a child of God should be focus on and praise of God s loving mercy. How should this impact our walk this week? Prayer for the Week: Father, fill us with Your Spirit so that our walk will bring You glory and us blessing. In Jesus name, amen.