Gospel of John [16:28-31]. Implications of the glorification of Christ [part 6]. Joh 8.

Title: Gospel of John [16:28-31]. Implications of the glorification of Christ [part 6]. Joh 8.

 

JOH 8:12 Again therefore Jesus spoke to them, saying, "I am the light of the world; he who follows Me shall not walk in the darkness, but shall have the light of life." 

 

Implications of glorification of Christ: rivers of living water within; an illumined heart that guides the believer's path.

 

We saw through a survey of OT scriptures:

 

In the OT God is His people's light; by His light they enjoy grace and peace; the Messiah is a light to the end of the earth; the word of God is a light to guide the path.

 

We also saw:

 

Jesus became the word of God incarnate and His life, which He eternally possessed was the light of men and has enlightened every man, JOH 1:1-9.

 

Because of His presence the sons of darkness and the sons of light become clearly distinguished, JOH 3:19-21.

 

JOH 8:13 The Pharisees therefore said to Him, "You are bearing witness of Yourself; Your witness is not true."

 

Their objection goes back to Jesus' own words, but the context of what He says is in the previous sentence where He states that He does nothing on His own initiative.

 

JOH 5:31 "If I alone [not in original] bear witness of Myself, My testimony is not true.

 

JOH 5:30 "I can do nothing on My own initiative. As I hear, I judge; and My judgment is just, because I do not seek My own will, but the will of Him who sent Me.

 

JOH 8:14 Jesus answered and said to them, "Even if I bear witness of Myself, My witness 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.

 

If this is the Son of God and not just a teacher sent by God then His testimony is admissible as from two witnesses, the Father and the Son. If He is just a man or prophet sent by God then His testimony alone is not admissible. So He states the reason why their objection is false, He is from the Father and He is returning to the Father.

 

The origin of Jesus from heaven gives Him the authority to speak from the Father the only truth. His return in glory leads the way for men to have this same truth.

 

The revealed truth of the NT is the truth of victory in Christ. This did not occur historically before Him and His glorification. So then, how could the revelation of the full truth of God's purpose be given without the glorification of Christ in victory? He must ascend and the Spirit must be given so that the full truth of His success can be given to the new creatures that are thus changed to a life with Him at the right hand of God.

 

HEB 9:11 But when Christ appeared as a high priest of the good things to come, He entered through the greater and more perfect tabernacle, not made with hands, that is to say, not of this creation;

 

HEB 9:12 and not through the blood of goats and calves, but through His own blood, He entered the holy place once for all, having obtained eternal redemption.

 

HEB 9:24 For Christ did not enter a holy place made with hands, a mere copy of the true one, but into heaven itself, now to appear in the presence of God for us;

 

HEB 10:19 Since therefore, brethren, we have confidence to enter the holy place by the blood of Jesus,

 

HEB 10:20 by a new and living way which He inaugurated for us through the veil, that is, His flesh,

 

HEB 10:21 and since we have a great priest over the house of God,

 

HEB 10:22 let us draw near with a sincere [alethinos - genuine or true] heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water.

 

"Sincere" heart is one that is genuine in the truth. People can be sincere in falsehood, or sincerely wrong.

 

With the truth of the origin of God in heaven there is true power and true life, for the word of God is alive and powerful.

 

2CO 3:18

But we all, with unveiled face beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as from the Lord, the Spirit.

 

JOH 8:15 "You people judge according to the flesh; I am not judging anyone.

 

JOH 8:16 "But even if I do judge, My judgment is true; for I am not alone in it, but I and He who sent Me.

 

They did not know His true origin or destiny; they could judge only according to the flesh or by outward appearance.

 

ISA 53:2

For He grew up before Him like a tender shoot,

And like a root out of parched ground;

He has no stately form or majesty

That we should look upon Him,

Nor appearance that we should be attracted to Him.

 

People are enmeshed in outward appearance. The people of Israel thought Saul would be a great king since he was the tallest and most handsome man in Israel.  

 

Their judgment of Christ is incorrect because they are fully enveloped in earthly things while He is from the heavenly things. Even with His teachings, His statements that He is from heaven, His fulfillment of prophecy, and His miracles they still look at Him as just a man. On the other hand the judgment of our Lord is true since His source is heaven, however, His judgment of the world system will be stayed until His second coming and of all unbelievers, ultimately, at the end of human history.  

 

JOH 8:17 "Even in your law it has been written, that the testimony of two men is true [DEU 17:6].

 

JOH 8:18 "I am He who bears witness of Myself, and the Father who sent Me bears witness of Me."

 

JOH 8:19 And so they were saying 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."

 

JOH 8:20 These words He spoke in the treasury, as He taught in the temple; and no one seized Him, because His hour had not yet come.

 

JOH 8:21 He said therefore again to them, "I go away, and you shall seek Me, and shall die in your sin; where I am going, you cannot come." 

 

Sin here is singular and refers to their sin of rejecting the Savior, the sin that the HS would soon convict the world of. For them there is a window of opportunity. They have seen Him, heard Him, witnessed His power, and if they accept Him they will become God's children and eternal life will be theirs and they will follow Him to heaven. If the reject Him they will die with the sin of unbelief still upon them and they will not be able to follow and will be judged. Some men love the darkness rather than the light, JOH 3:19.

 

JOH 8:22 Therefore the Jews were saying, "Surely He will not kill Himself, will He, since He says, 'Where I am going, you cannot come'?" 

 

The last time they concluded that He might be going north or east to the lands of the Gentiles and now they wonder if He is going to commit suicide. Earthly men can only think earthly things and come to earthly conclusions. No one can change himself into a heavenly creature. There is the three dimensional realm and the fourth dimension of heaven and no one on the lower realm can by themselves make the journey to the upper realm. Only the Son can do that and it must be appropriated by faith only.

 

JOH 8:23 And He was saying to them, "You are from below, I am from above; you are of this world, I am not of this world.

 

This is pretty clear. I wonder what the disciples thought of this statement. Remember, they live with Him, so after His messages to the Jews they did ask Him and He taught them. Yet, by their behavior in the upper room it would seem that they still struggled with the truth, though they were convinced He was the Messiah, the Holy One of God.

 

He descended in such a manner that others may ascend with Him. All who believe in Him are given the light of life which is from heaven.

 

He brought that life to the world and ascended in order to lead the way to that life through His victory. Those who go on living on the lower plain, in due time, die there.

 

JOH 8:24 "I said therefore to you, that you shall die in your sins; for unless you believe that I am He, you shall die in your sins." 

 

Here sins is plural as the sins that accompany unbelief are in view. Those who reject Christ have to accept something else and in this there is a whole battery of sins in the realm of self-reliance, self-deliverance, creature centered philosophy.

 

He has said repeatedly that He is returning to the Father. How does He sit over an earthly kingdom if He is returning to the Father?

 

Could not the passage of ISA 55:11 be also interpreted in light of Jesus being the word incarnate?

ISA 55:11

So shall My word be which goes forth from My mouth;

It shall not return to Me empty,

Without accomplishing what I desire,

And without succeeding in the matter for which I sent it.   

 

"If you don't believe that I AM [ego eimi], you will die in your sins."

 

This name was told to Moses at the burning bush. The I AM is Jehovah. Here it is obvious from our vantage point that Jesus is saying something important about His person.

 

The disciples here this. Remember Philip's statement, "show us the Father and it will be enough for us."

 

The Lord uses this phrase for Himself in several instances in the gospel of John.

 

JOH 6:35

"I am [ego eimi] the bread of life

 

JOH 8:12

"I am [ego eimi] the light of the world

 

JOH 8:24

unless you believe that I am [ego eimi] He, you shall die in your sins."

 

JOH 8:28

"When you lift up the Son of Man, then you will know that I am [ego eimi] He,

 

JOH 8:58

"Truly, truly, I say to you, before Abraham was born, I am [ego eimi.]"

 

JOH 10:7

"Truly, truly, I say to you, I am [ego eimi] the door of the sheep.

 

JOH 10:11

"I am [ego eimi] the good shepherd

 

JOH 11:25

"I am [ego eimi] the resurrection and the life

 

When God commissioned Moses to go back to Egypt and tell His people that the God of their fathers was about to deliver them, Moses asked what name to give God.

 

 

EXO 3:13 Then Moses said to God, "Behold, I am going to the sons of Israel, and I shall say to them, 'The God of your fathers has sent me to you.' Now they may say to me, 'What is His name?' What shall I say to them?"

 

EXO 3:14 And God said to Moses, "I AM WHO I AM"; and He said, "Thus you shall say to the sons of Israel, 'I AM has sent me to you.'"

 

In the Septuagint God's reply to Moses is: "Ego eimi ho on (I am the One who is) … tell them that ho on (the One who is) has sent you."  

 

One might therefore expect Christ to call Himself "ho on" just as much as "ego eimi."