Ep. 38 John 8: 12-30 “Unless You Believe That I AM”

Jeff is joined by his daughter Ellie (her first time on the show) as they study Jesus’ powerful declaration: “I am the Light of the World.”

They unpack Jesus’ challenge to the Pharisees — “Unless you believe that I AM, you will die in your sins” — the double meaning of being “lifted up” on the cross, and why truly knowing Jesus means knowing God the Father.

A warm, insightful episode about stepping out of darkness and into the light of life

Transcript

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We are excited to be with you today as we engage the scripture together. To learn more, visit our website at engagedscripture.com. Welcome to Engage to Scripture. Thanks for joining me today. I don't think you're here by accident. God knew you would be listening, and I believe he has something he wants to speak to your heart today. Last week in episode 37, we walked through the powerful story of the woman caught in adultery in John 8, 1 through 11. We spoke about how this story was not in the original manuscript, but added later. If you missed that episode, I encourage you to go back and listen to it before you move on. It was in that story where we saw the religious leaders trying to lay a trap for Jesus. We saw the woman standing alone in her shame, and we saw Jesus respond with both mercy and truth. Those famous words, Neither do I condemn you, go and sin no more. What a beautiful reminder that his mercy wipes our past clean and his command opens up a new future. Today in episode 38, we return to the natural flow of John's gospel. If we pick up right where we left off two weeks ago in episode 36, at John chapter 7, verse 52, the narrative continues directly into John 8 and 12. So let me refresh your memory from a couple weeks back and set the scene for you. It's still the last day of the Feast of Tabernacles. Jesus has just finished crying out, if anyone thirsts, let him come to me and drink. The crowd is deeply divided about who Jesus is. The Pharisees send officers to arrest him, but the officers return empty-handed. Moved by his teaching, they say, Never a man spoke like this man. And we saw how the very respected Nicodemus from chapter 3 even speaks up in defense of Jesus, but the leaders won't have it and brush him aside. Then, probably that same evening, Jesus resumes teaching in the temple treasury, the Pharisees are listening, and it's here that he declares, I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life. And that is where we are camping out today on this powerful moment. Okay, and today I'm joined by another special guest. Last week, if you were with me, I had my oldest daughter Kelsey back on the podcast. She was helping me out while Brent was taking a few days off with his family. And this week I'm joined by my middle daughter, Ellie. Now, she and her wonderful husband recently made me a proud grandfather. Ellie is a wonderful Christian mom, and I couldn't be more proud of her. Now, she's new to the podcast. She's very well versed in scripture, and I'm really excited for you all to get to hear from her today. So with that, Ellie, go ahead and greet our listeners, and then if you will, just go ahead and read verse 12 and we'll get started there. Hi everyone. It's really good to be here today. It's my first time on the podcast, and I'm really excited and honestly a little humbled to jump in. And I'm grateful for the chance to get to sharing this study with y'all today. So thanks for having me in. And I'll go ahead and read verse 12 to get us started. ESV is my version I read too, so that works. So for y'all that are listening, I'm reading from the ESV, verse 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. Very good, Ellie. Thank you. This is the second major I am statement we've seen in John's Gospel. The first one came in John 6, when Jesus said, I am the bread of life. Now in chapter 8, he is declaring, I am the light of the world. This is a powerful image. The Greek word for light here is phos, the same word that Scripture often uses to describe God's holiness, his truth, and his saving presence. During the Feast of Tabernacles, the temple courts in Jerusalem were filled with these massive blazing lamps. They stood approximately 75 feet tall and could be seen from all over the city. It's against that backdrop that Jesus stands up and says, I am the true light. Not just one lamp among many, but the light for the whole world. This directly fulfills what Isaiah had prophesied that God's servant would be a light to the nations. Jesus is stepping into that role. John introduces this theme right at the very beginning of his gospel. In chapter one, he wrote, The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it. If you want to go deeper on that, you can go back to episode two, where we unpack the light in the prologue. But here in chapter 8, Jesus is claiming to be God's life-giving light, breaking into our world. And to follow Him means to trust Him, obey Him, and step out of darkness into His salvation. Verse 13 and 14, the Pharisees said to him, You are bearing witness about yourself, your testimony is not true. Jesus answered, Even if I do bear witness about myself, my testimony is true, for I know where I came from and where I'm going, but you do not know where I come from or where I'm going. Okay, here they are citing the law of Moses. Deuteronomy required two or three witnesses in capital cases. Jesus had already said in chapter five that self-testimony alone doesn't carry legal weight. But here he insists his testimony is true because he knows his origin and his destiny. He came from the Father, and he is returning to the Father. No earthly witness can testify to that, only the Father can. That really makes sense of what's happening here. The Pharisees are judging Jesus by surface level standards, by what they can see with their eyes. But Jesus is speaking from a completely different place. He is speaking from his relationship with Yahweh, his father, from his eternal origin. So it's almost like they're trying to evaluate him with categories that don't even apply to him. Okay, now verse 15 and 16. You judge according to the flesh, I judge no one. 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. The Pharisees judge by appearances, by human standards. They see only his humanity. But Jesus judges in union with the Father, according to truth. His witness is divine, not human. This is another moment where Jesus identifies himself with the divine authority of Yahweh. He speaks as one inseparable, united with the Father. Then in verses 17 and 18, Jesus says, In your law it is written that the testimony of two people is true. I am the one who bears witness about myself, and the Father who sent me bears witness about me. Yeah, in verse 17 and 18, Jesus fulfills the requirements of two witnesses. The Pharisees wanted legal proof, but Jesus gives them something greater. The Father himself testifies to him. This is an argument from the lesser to the greater. If two human witnesses are valid, how much more the Son and the Father together? Dad, it sounds like Jesus is taking their own legal standard and lifting it higher. If the law of Moses says two ordinary human witnesses are enough to establish truth, then how much more trustworthy is it when the two witnesses are Jesus, the Son, and God the Father Himself? Then next, verse 19, they said to him, Where is your father? Jesus answered, You know neither me nor my father. If you knew me, you would know my father also. That's a classic example of the misunderstanding we see so often in John's Gospel. The Pharisees think Jesus is talking about his earthly father, Joseph, but he's actually speaking about God the Father. So Jesus says to them very directly, You know neither me nor my father. That's a devastating statement. These were the top religious leaders, men who prided themselves on knowing the scripture inside and out, yet they completely missed the very one the scriptures pointed to. And this is a good place to point out, to reject Jesus is to show that you don't truly know God. Because as we have said many times on the podcast, in John's gospel, knowing the Son and knowing the Father are inseparably linked. To know Jesus is to know the Father. That's what we were talking about last Sunday. Because it's like, it's just straight, because you're talking about two people at once, so it's hard to if you knew me, you would know my father also. Then verse 20 and 21, these words he spoke in the treasury, as he taught in the temple, but no one arrested him because his hour had not yet come. Then said Jesus again unto them, I go my way, and ye shall seek me, and shall die in your sins. Whether I go, ye cannot come. Yes, and that's significant. The treasury was a very public place. It was near the court of the women, where offerings were collected in a chest. During the festival, this court was filled with celebration and light. And here we have Jesus standing there and declaring himself the light of the world. It's remarkable that in such a public setting, no one laid a hand on him. Just as earlier the officers failed to arrest him, and now the Pharisees themselves are baffled. And as we have already covered in the previous episodes in chapter 2 and chapter 7, the gospel explains why no one laid a hand on him. It's because his hour had not yet come. God's timing governs everything. Alright, picking up in verse 22, so the Jews said, Will he kill himself? Since he says, Where I am going, you cannot come. He said to them, You are from below, I am from above, you are of this world, and I am not of this world. Once again, John is showing us this pattern of misunderstanding. They hear Jesus talk about going away, and instead of just asking him honestly what he means, they start talking among themselves. Will he kill himself? That question is both wrong and ironically close to the truth. They assume he's talking about suicide, one of the darkest sins in their minds. But Jesus is not talking about taking his own life in that sense. Later in chapter 10, he'll say, No one takes my life from me, but I lay it down of my own accord. His death will be voluntary, but it will be in obedience to the Father, not an act of despair. So they think, is he going somewhere we can't follow? Like some unreachable place of death? But the real tragedy is this the separation Jesus is talking about isn't that they cannot reach him, it's that they will die in their sins if they continue to reject him. The distance isn't geographical, it's spiritual. So in a way, they flip the whole thing around. They're worried he might go somewhere they can't reach, but really they're the ones in danger of ending up somewhere he won't be, cut off from the life he's offering. Yes, exactly, Ellie, and that is what Jesus presses into in verse 23. You are from below, I am from above. You are of this world, I am not of this world. This is classic John, that sharp contrast between above and below, this world and the realm of God. From below doesn't mean from hell or some underworld. It means from this fallen world order, the world that resists God and rejects his light. From above means from the Father, from heaven, from the realm of God's presence and purpose. John has already set this up earlier in the gospel. In chapter 3, he says, the one who comes from above is above all. The one who is from the earth speaks as one from the earth. Here, Jesus is saying, you're locked into the world's way of seeing things, its values, its blindness. I'm speaking from the Father's reality. That's why they can't understand him. They're trying to evaluate the Son of God with categories that don't belong to a world in rebellion against God. Until someone is taught by God, born from above, their instincts will keep pulling them back to the wrong conclusions. And that really isn't just about them, is it? It's a warning for us too. If we only think in from below categories, what seems reasonable, what fits our comfort, what the world says around us, then we'll keep missing what Jesus is actually saying. We need his light to even see straight. Great point, Allie. That's right. Then in verse 24, Jesus says, I told you that you would die in your sins, for unless you believe that I am, you will die in your sins. Jesus repeats the warning from verse 21, but this time he makes it even stronger. Before he said, you will die in your sins, singular. Now he says, you will die in your sins, plural. Scholars point out that the singular refers to the root sin, unbelief. The plural refers to all the other sins that grow out of that unbelief. If they reject the one who came to take away sin, they remain trapped in the whole realm of sin. So it's like Jesus is saying, if you refuse the cure, the whole disease stays with you. Unbelief isn't just one mistake, it's the thing that keeps every other sin alive. And without him, nothing changes. You got it. And exactly. Jesus then gives the only way of escape unless you believe that I am. That phrase, I am, is incredibly significant. It's the absolute I am, the same divine language God used in Isaiah 40 and 55, especially Isaiah 43, 10, where Yahweh reveals himself as the eternal, unchanging God. Jesus is using that same powerful language here. He's not fully unpacking it yet. That comes in verse 58. But the seeds are planted. He's saying, Unless you believe that I am the one sent from the Father, the revelation of God, you will die in your sins. And Jesus is not being harsh. He's being honest. He's the light of the world. Follow him and you walk in light and life. Reject him and you remain in darkness. Dad, that's what makes this so compassionate. Jesus is not trying to scare them. He's trying to wake them up. He's saying, See who I really am, and you will live. It's both a warning and an invitation. Ellie, you got it. Jesus is not threatening them. As Lawrence Farley says, he is diagnosing them. He's telling them the truth about their condition and offering the only cure. His Jewish listeners would have heard strong echoes of Isaiah's I am he. That's why they immediately respond, Who are you? They knew something was up. They sensed something profound, but didn't fully understand it. Throughout John's gospel, Jesus reveals his identity in layers. This is one of those moments. He's not claiming to be just a teacher or a prophet. He's claiming to be the decisive revelation of God, the one in whom Israel's God is present and acting. In the end, Jesus is telling them, Your future depends on what you do with me. Not because he's arrogant, but because he's the only one that can rescue them from their darkness. Alright, verses 25 through 27. So they say to him, Who are you? Jesus said to them, Just what I have been telling you from the beginning. I have much to say about you and much to judge, but he who sent me is true, and I declare to the world what I have heard from him. They did not understand that he had been speaking to them about the Father. When they ask Jesus, Who are you? That's not a sincere question. It's a challenge. It's basically who do you think you are? They're reacting to his I am statement in the previous verse. Jesus' reply is notoriously difficult to translate. But the clearest meaning is I am exactly who I have been telling you that I am from the very beginning. In other words, you don't need new information. You need ears to hear what I've already said. Jesus could have unloaded on them. He says, I have much to say about you and much to judge. But he doesn't speak on his own. He only speaks what he has heard from the one who sent him. That's the Father. And because the Father is true, Jesus' message is true. Then his warning, you will die in your sins. That is not his personal opinion. It's the Father's verdict. He's just delivering the mail, the message the Father gave him for the world. And that really shows his patience. They're challenging him, but it keeps pointing them back to the Father. He's saying, I'm not making this up. This is the truth, God sent me to speak. It's like he's giving them another chance to actually listen. Exactly. And then John adds that little narrative comment in verse 27. They did not understand that he was speaking to them about the Father. They should have known. Jesus' relationship with the Father has been front and center since chapter 5, but spiritual blindness keeps them from seeing it. And this sets up the next major moment, verse 28, where Jesus says, When you lift up the Son of Man, then you will know that I am. They don't understand it now, but they will. Alright, verses 28 through 30. So Jesus said to them, When you have lifted up the Son of Man, then you will know that I am, and that I do nothing on my own authority, but speak just as the Father taught me. And he who sent me is with me. He has not left me alone, for I always do the things that are pleasing to him. As he was saying these things, many believed in him. Those words lift up have two meanings at the same time. It means they will lift him up on the cross, crucify him, but it also means he will be lifted up in glory, returning to the Father's honor and greatness. In other words, the cross is not just the way to Jesus' glory. The cross itself is his glory. And Jesus says, When you lift up the Son of Man, then you will know that I am. The cross will reveal his identity more clearly than anything else. Now, not everyone will believe, but the cross will make that truth undeniable. Even his enemies who lift him up will one day be forced to acknowledge who he is. Then Jesus adds, I do nothing on my own. I speak just as the Father taught me. And this is the heartbeat of John's gospel. Jesus is perfectly aligned with the Father, in his words, his mission, his obedience. And then this beautiful line. Even as he moves toward the cross, Jesus knows the Father is with him. His unity with the Father is unbroken, rooted in perfect obedience and perfect love. And that's what makes the cross so powerful. It's not just suffering, it's revelation. It's where Jesus shows the world exactly who he is and exactly who the Father is. The cross is the moment where his identity shines the brightest. Exactly. And then John ends this section by saying, as Jesus was saying these things, many believed in him. Some of that belief will prove to be shallow. We'll see that the next time. But even in the middle of conflict, rejection, and misunderstanding, the words of Jesus still draw people in. Think about this: the light shines in darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it. As we wrap up today, here's what stands out most to me. Jesus spoke with such a clear, patient authority. Even when people misunderstood him or pushed back, he never stopped pointing them to the Father and calling them into his light. And the big thing for me is this what we believe about Jesus matters more than anything else in life. When he said, unless you believe that I am, he wasn't just making some religious point. He was giving us a real personal invitation to trust him. And that invitation still stands for us today. In a world full of so many opinions and pressures to make Jesus into whatever we want, he's already told us who he really is. The light of the world, the one sent from the Father, and the great I am. When we believe him and follow him, that's where the real freedom in life begins. So I guess what I'm saying is this. And I know our listeners are blessed by what you have shared. And for you guys out there listening, next week, we will be jumping into one of the most powerful parts of John X, where Jesus talks about good topic, real freedom, and what it means to belong to the father. Or to the world. I can't wait to be back with you guys. Uh thanks for listening. Your first podcast.