John, in his Gospel, emphasizes the seven I AM statements of Jesus.
The first was, "I am the bread of life."
Jesus replied, “I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never be hungry again. Whoever believes in me will never be thirsty. (John 6:35 NLT)
The people Jesus was addressing wanted nothing more than to be secure and comfortable. Boy can I relate! But Jesus said, “I tell you the truth, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you cannot have eternal life within you." (vs.53)
What does that mean?
See my last post, I AM THE BREAD OF LIFE, on John 6:32-69,
Jesus, now speaking to a crowd of people in the temple courts who had gathered around Him, said,
“I am the Light of the world; the one who follows Me will not walk in the darkness, but will have the Light of life.” (John 8:12 NASB)
In one statement Jesus invites the one (anyone) who walks in darkness to follow the Light of life.
Of course He was challenged by the religious leaders of the day who thought they knew God fully. Just prior to this, they brought a woman in front of the crowd who had been caught in the act of adultery. The law of Moses said that she should be stoned to death, but they wanted to know what Jesus thought. Why? They wanted to trap Him into saying something they could use against Him. Sadly, they were more than willing to use her. Religious position was worth more to them than her life. Jesus exposed their sinfulness by asking the one who had never sinned to throw the first stone. One by one, they dropped their stones and slipped away. (See John 8:1-11)
Religion hardened their hearts and blinded them to recognizing Him as the Light of the world. Jesus went on to expose their wrong view of the Father by contrasting their sin nature with the true nature of God revealed in Him. He invited them to step into the light, but they chose instead to remain in the dark. It wasn't God they wanted, it was their own power and authority. (see John 8:12-20)
I can't help but be intrigued by what those who were gathered around Jesus were thinking as He continued to challenge the leaders. This time, He addressed the crowd as well. (see John 8:21-59)
“You are from below; I am from above. You belong to this world; I do not. That is why I said that you will die in your sins; for unless you believe that I am who I claim to be, you will die in your sins.” (John 8:23-24 NLT)
The response to Jesus hasn't changed much in the last 2000 years so I think you can probably imagine what happened next.
“Who are you?” they demanded. (vs.25a)
So Jesus said, "The one I always claimed to be. . . .When you lift up the Son of Man on the cross, then you will understand that I AM he. I do nothing on my own but say only what the Father taught me. (vs.25b,28)
Then many who heard him say these things believed in him. (vs.29)
But did they? Because He continued by setting the bar high—not just believing, but following—exactly where He began—remember back in verse 12, "the one who follows Me."
Jesus said to the people who believed in him, “You are truly my disciples if you remain faithful to my teachings. And you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.” (John 8:31-32)
There it is—the rub. This offended them (vs.33). They initially believed—but follow? Why would they need to follow Him or be set free? Free from what? How quickly they forgot. After all, they were just reminded a few minutes ago that no one is without sin as they watched the stones hit the ground. But here we see Jesus remind them again.
“Very truly I tell you, everyone who sins is a slave to sin. . . .So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed. (vs.34, 36)
They, like the religious leaders, had hard hearts. When Jesus pressed in, they pulled back. When He was finished speaking to them they picked up stones of their own, this time to throw at Him (vs.59). They didn't really want Him, they wanted what they thought He could offer them.
Now, let us now go back to the woman caught in adultery.She found herself in a situation that could have cost her her life. Why would she take such a risk? I don't know, maybe she was lonely or perhaps convinced that she wasn't worth loving. For whatever reason, she surely seemed desperate enough to fill a void by any means possible.
But Jesus—He saw her heart. She was now clearly broken and humble before Him. He didn't compromise the law, He extended grace to a surrendered heart.
Everyone has sinned and is far away from God's saving presence. But by the free gift of God's grace all are put right with him through Christ Jesus, who sets them free. God offered him, so that by his blood he should become the means by which people's sins are forgiven through their faith in him. (Romans 3:23-25a GNT)
Light or darkness depends on where you come out on the other side of this; "Do I need to be set free?" I personally don't want to ever get comfortable with darkness again. We crave the light of Jesus whether we know it or not. Coming from someone who lived much of her life in perpetual darkness without Him, the answer is worth seeking.
Each of us begin in the dark, therefore there will come a day that each of us will have to reckon with certain questions before God—
Will I stand in the dark with the Pharisee who relied on His position?
Am I in the dark with the crowd who relied on their own perception of truth?
Or will I step into the light with the woman who knew she fell short of the glory of God and was in need of a Savior?
"We can chase the wind all we want, we will never catch it. But chase God, and you'll find He's got everything you've been chasing after all along." (Pastor Kris Langham)
Christ follower, you will find yourself, at times, walking through the dark; David actually called it the valley of the shadow of death (Ps 23:4). But first of all, remember, it's just a shadow. And secondly, can you imagine a better way to navigate through a dark valley than to do it with the Light of the world by your side?
Be careful lest you find yourself comfortable in a man made belief system, be it religious or not. Remember, even the devil knows who Jesus is.
[Jesus, the Light of the world, said], "Whoever finds his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life for my sake will find it." (Matthew 10:39 NIV)
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