Tag: disciples indeed
Believe or die in your sins!
Scripture reading for May 15th: John 8:21-31
Jesus had plainly told the crowd at the temple that He was the light of the world and that anyone who would follow Him would never walk in darkness but would have the light of life. (John 8:12) He also told them that He was going away and that where He was going, they could not follow. He was speaking of returning to His Father and the glory of heaven and they were unable to understand. Some Jews in the crowd even speculated that Jesus was going to kill himself. (John 8:22)
Jesus is the Light of this dark world and faith in Him comes from hearing and believing His word. (Romans 10:17) The greatest darkness does not come from a lack of natural light, but from sin’s darkness in our soul. The light of life shines in this darkness in the person of Jesus Christ and we must settle the question of who this Man is!
“But He (Jesus) continued, “You are from below; I am from above. You are of this world; I am not of this world. I told you that you would die in your sins; if you do not believe that I am [the one I claim to be], you will indeed die in your sins.” (John 8:23-24) Jesus plainly stated that He was from above and all other men were from below. He told them that sin would bring death unless they believed that He was who He claimed to be. In the Greek, Jesus had told them He was “I AM”, claiming to be God!
This brought another questioning of Jesus. Who was He? Jesus told them that He was just what He had claimed to be all along. He was the Son of the Father who had sent Him. He was their true judge, who was trustworthy and reliable because He was the Son of God. He was the Light of the world that was available for men in the darkness of sin to follow.
They did not understand or would not understand. “So Jesus said, “When you have lifted up the Son of Man, then you will know that I am [the one I claim to be], and that I do nothing on My own but speak just what the Father has taught me.” (John 8:28-30) The crucifixion and resurrection would bring revelation! Have you received the Light?