The Light of the World

Our text is taken from John 1:6-18.  John presents Jesus as the Light of the World, God who came in flesh to light our path and bring us to God.

Intro to the Book of John:

Last week we began a series in the Gospel of John that we are calling “50 Days With Jesus”.   Why is the Gospel of John so important?  John himself tells us his purpose for writing:

“But these things have been written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; and that believing you may have life in His name.” (John 20:31) 

John’s purpose for writing is two-fold:

• His purpose for writing was apologetic – “that you may believe.”
• His purpose for writing was evangelistic – that “by believing you may have life through His name.”

The key word used over 100x in the the Gospel of John: Believe!

John is going to make his case throughout the book that Jesus Christ is God and therefore we must believe in Him.

Three words we need to understand:

1.  Faith = Confidence that someone or something is reliable

2.  Believe = Believe means to have complete trust and reliance on someone or something.  The acceptance of facts, but it also involves deciding for or against.  (Faith is required to believe.)  ILL: Austin jumping to dad

3.  Trust = Moves us to action!  NOTE:  What we believe determines what we do!

“The quality of any relationship is determined by faith or trust.  The one who has faith believes in something.  The one who believes also trusts, or he doesn’t truly believe.”  ILL:  Blondin – Tightrope walker across Niagara Falls pushing wheelbarrow.

Faith is the basis for all life:  Banks operate by faith. Paper money.Post office operates by faith.  Purchase of commodities – Coca Cola.

Importance of faith:  Heb. 11:6, Without faith it is impossible to please God!

1. Saved by faith: Eph. 2:8-9 For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: 9 Not of works, lest any man should boast. 

2.  Walk by faith:  2Cor. 5:7 For we walk by faith, not by sight

Why should you run to the Light and put your complete trust and reliance in Jesus for this life and the one to come?

CONSIDER THE CREDIBILITY OF THE WITNESS (6-9)

Where he come from (6)

1.  God sent him.  That is a huge claim!

• Vision of father Zacharias in the temple (Luke 1:1-22)
• Miraculous birth – mother was past the age of giving birth
• Consecrated to the Lord as a Nazarite (Luke 1:16-17)

2.  He is a credible witness – John the Baptist.

• He did not claim something for Himself. He was not that light, but sent to bear witness to the light. (8)
• He pointed people to Jesus saying, “He must increase, but I must decrease.” (Jn 3:30)

Why he was sent (7-8)

1. He was sent to prepare the way for the Messiah.  “Voice of one crying in the Wilderness – make straight the paths of our God.” (23)
2. To give witness to the Light – to point men to the Messiah, Jesus Christ (7a,8).  Witness was necessary because spiritually blind people could not see the light (2 Cor 4:3-4)
3. So that all might believe. What is faith? – More than mental assent.

What he testified (9)

1. Jesus is the true light – many claim to have the “light”
2. Jesus gives light to every person coming into the world – regardless of period of time, ethnicity, cultural or family heritage – Jesus is the Light!

CONSIDER THAT NOBODY REMAINS NEUTRAL (10-13)

Some will reject (10-11)

1. Because they didn’t recognize the Creator when He came. Why? (Rom 1:18-32).
2. Because they refused to believe Him.  His own people.

ILL:  There was a poor farmer and wife who sacrificed for their only son to go away to University.  Toward the end of their first semester they scraped together some extra money to travel and visit their son on campus. As they approached, with outstretched arms, their son acted as if he had never seen them before and turned away saying, “I don’t know those people, I think they might be crazy!”

• They loved darkness rather than light (3:19-21)
• They did not like hypocrisy being exposed. (Mt. 23 – Woe to you Scribes, Pharisees, Hypocrites)
• They had their own “form of godliness” that they were quite comfortable with. (2Ti 3:5)

Ultimately both the world at large (Rome) and His own people (Jewish people) crucified Him!

Others will receive (12-13)

1. Those who receive have the right to become children of God. (12a)
   • The rights and privilege of being a child.
   • The protection that comes with being a child
   • The care that comes with being a child
2. All who believe on His Name – not mere mental assent, rather all all out embracing of all that He is: His person, His character, His nature!  This is what it means to “believe on His name.” (12b)
3. This birth does not come through lineage or family lines, it does not come through human impulse, it does not come through human reasoning.  It is a spiritual birth – “of God.” (13)

CONSIDER THE BLESSINGS FOR THOSE WHO RECEIVE HIM (14-18)

We can know Him personally (14)

1. He is glorious!

• Glory – only begotten = one of a kind, unique.  The beauty and glorious majesty of Jesus!  He welcomed the broken, he forgives the worst of sinners, he restores what was lost.  He is glorious, he is beautiful beyond comprehension!
• He is full of grace and truth! (Jn 14:6).

2.  He declares God to us (18b, Rev. 1:4-8)

We can know truth (14b, 17b)

The law was given by Moses:  Purpose of the Law:

1. To reveal the righteousness of God.

Rom. 10:1 Brethren, my heart’s desire and prayer to God for Israel is that they may be saved. 2 For I bear them witness that they have a zeal for God, but not according to knowledge. 3 For they being ignorant of God’s righteousness, and seeking to establish their own righteousness, have not submitted to the righteousness of God. 4 For Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to everyone who believes. 5 For Moses writes about the righteousness which is of the law, “The man who does those things shall live by them.” 

2.  The law was a tutor to bring us to Christ.

Gal 3:24 Therefore the law was our tutor to bring us to Christ, that we might be justified by faith. 

3.  The law can only condemn you – because you are guilty

Rom 3:19 Now we know that whatever the law says, it says to those who are under the law, that every mouth may be stopped, and all the world may become guilty before God. 20 Therefore by the deeds of the law no flesh will be justified in His sight, for by the law is the knowledge of sin.

We can receive grace (16-17)

1. Grace – God giving us what we do not deserve, we cannot earn, it is freely and lovingly lavished upon us because we are His children.
2. He is full of grace – the grace he offers to you is from the overflow of His grace!  “Grace upon grace.” (16)

Eph. 2:8 For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, 9 not of works, lest anyone should boast. 

3.  He pours out sustaining grace upon His children – “my grace is sufficient for you.” (2 Cor. 12:9)

ILL: Victoria Falls – 3000 cu.mtrs. per second.  Imagine a little mouse  on the edge of the falls worried that there might not be enough water to keep him alive.  VicFalls says: “Drink all you want little mouse, my water is sufficient for you!”

• His presence with you in every circumstance and situation
• His provision for every need
• His promise to deliver you safely to the Father in Heaven

CONCLUSION:

Some of you have been here for several weeks or longer.  You are seeing and hearing the claims of Scripture.

Perhaps you are wresting in your mind and heart: Are these things true?

John 7:17 If anyone wills to do His will, he shall know concerning the doctrine, whether it is from God or whether I speak on My own authority. 

Here is what John is saying to us:

1. You cannot know grace or truth apart from Jesus Christ
2. You cannot know God if you don’t believe in Jesus Christ
3. You cannot know the favor of being God’s child unless you are born of God through faith in Jesus Christ.

Will you receive Him – the Light of God – by faith today?

If you would like to download a .docx copy of this Bible study, click on this link The Light of the World.