When You Turn On the Light
Griffith Baptist Church – 3/8/09
A.M. Service
Text: John 8:1-12 (9:1-5)
Key verse: John 8:12 - Then spake Jesus again unto them, saying, I am the light of the world: he that followeth me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life.
Premise: Light reveals not only what we want to see but also what others don’t want us to see. Jesus, as the true light, does both, all for the purpose of offering freedom to a world trapped in darkness.
The Introduction
Making decisions in the dark can lead to some regrettable consequences. Back in the days before electricity, a tightfisted old farmer was taking his hired man to task for carrying a lighted lantern when he went to call on his best girl. “Why,” he exclaimed, “when I went a-courtin’ I never carried one of them things. I always went in the dark.” “Yes,” the hired man said wryly,” and look what you got!”
We need light to operate in our daily lives
• Imagine driving on a moonless night on a country road with no headlights
• Experience the joy of navigating your house when there is no light – you don’t know your house as well as you think you do.
• Read something such as a book without adequate light and you will ruin your eyes
Light was the element created on the first day and God called the light good (Gen. 1:4) (Darkness already existed in verse 2)
This is where God dwells - 1 Tim. 6:16
Light is where we are called to – 1 Pet. 2:9
We are also called upon to be lights in the world (Matt. 5:14-16):
• Noticeable (14)
• Beneficial (15)
• Influential (16)
Here in this text we have four (4) basic observations concerning the Light of the World, Jesus Christ and how he affected those around them:
Body
1. The View of the Pharisees – Intrusion
A. The farmer killed a pig and hung it up for the night, intending to butcher it in the morning, but the next day it was gone. He didn’t tell a soul about it, and nothing happened for more than two months. Then another farmer, who lived down the road, came by and said, “By the way, Josh, did you ever find out who stole your pig?” “Nope,” said Josh. “Not till just now.” Contributed by Mrs. H. Castle
i. Sometimes, evil reveals itself
ii. All the time, when exposed by the light, is evil revealed
iii. Evil doesn’t like it and those who hang on to their sin don’t like having it exposed either. It is an intrusion.
B. The Pharisees were trying to trap Jesus (6)
i. If he said “stone her” his followers would wonder what happened to his preaching of forgiveness.
ii. If he said “let her go” he would be breaking God’s law and arrested.
iii. The Pharisees hated Jesus for what they thought was a false teacher
iv. They looked at Him as an intruder into their power and control
v. They would not see their own hypocrisy and darkness – Matthew 23:25-28 - 25Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye make clean the outside of the cup and of the platter, but within they are full of extortion and excess. 26Thou blind Pharisee, cleanse first that which is within the cup and platter, that the outside of them may be clean also. 27Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye are like unto whited sepulchres, which indeed appear beautiful outward, but are within full of dead men’s bones, and of all uncleanness. 28Even so ye also outwardly appear righteous unto men, but within ye are full of hypocrisy and iniquity.
C. Those who love their sin hate the exposure:
i. John 3:20 - For every one that doeth evil hateth the light, neither cometh to the light, lest his deeds should be reproved.
ii. Light reveals imperfections
iii. Light unveils filth
iv. Light exposes dangers and traps
2. The View of the Woman – Relief
A. Not long before she died in 1988, in a moment of surprising candor in television, Marghanita Laski, one of our best-known secular humanists and novelists, said, “What I envy most about you Christians is your forgiveness; I have nobody to forgive me.” John Stott in The Contemporary Christian
B. The woman was caught in the act of adultery:
i. Whether this was a set-up or not, the fact is, that was the accusation
ii. This was punishable by death for both the man and woman (Lev. 20:10; Deut. 22:22)
iii. She remained speechless while her accusers surrounded her.
C. Those who are caught in and see their sin face guilt from the light of truth:
i. Rather than falling for a trap, Jesus simply asked who was perfect enough to judge her (7)
ii. As he wrote in the sand, the accusers left one by one
iii. Left alone, Jesus accomplished three answers to this situation (11):
a. He shamed the hypocrites (9)
b. He confronted the woman’s sin without judgment (Neither do I condemn you)
c. He forgave her
iv. We ought to live so that the light of God exposes and shames those in sin - Ephesians 5:11-13 - 11And have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather reprove them. 12For it is a shame even to speak of those things which are done of them in secret. 13But all things that are reproved are made manifest by the light: for whatsoever doth make manifest is light.
v. Guilt is a great motivator for change if responded to correctly
a. If guilt is rejected it will harden the heart toward God and correction
b. If guilt leads us to change it will help build a better relationship to God
c. If guilt continues after we have corrected the problem, it becomes a weight that Satan uses to keep us from moving forward.
3. The View of the Blind Man – Joy (9:1-5; see verse 2)
A. This man was blind from the day he was born:
i. The thinking of the culture in that day was that, if you had some physical deformity or handicap, than either you or your parents had committed a sin that somehow caused this judgment to come. Thus, the question in verse 2.
ii. Some teachable moments for us:
a. The disciples debated (2) – Often we find ourselves trying to find fault with why people are in the condition their in, rather than helping them out of their condition (mercy).
b. God has a bigger picture in mind (3) – When we often get down about the bad situations in our lives, we need to consider that maybe God has a greater purpose than just our own comfort; maybe it is for His glory.
c. Time is limited for the light (4) – We sometimes behave as if there is no hurry to share and be the light to a lost and dying world.
B. Those who are born in sin find joy when their spiritual blindness is removed:
i. Spiritual blindness is much more devastating than physical blindness - 2 Corinthians 4:4 - 4In whom the god of this world hath blinded the minds of them which believe not, lest the light of the glorious gospel of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine unto them.
ii. This is the purpose of Christ - Luke 4:18 – The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor; he hath sent me to heal the brokenhearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised,
iii. All things are become new:
a. A new hope never known before
b. A new understanding of spiritual things
c. A new family
d. A new relationship
4. The View of Jesus – Freedom
A. Look what took place when Jesus, the light, enters the scene:
i. For the accusers – shame (they would not see their sin and turn to the light of God)
ii. For the woman – forgiveness
iii. For the blind man – vision
B. Jesus brings freedom to all who trust in Him:
i. Freedom from sin
ii. Freedom to live in the power of the Holy Spirit
iii. Freedom to grow and learn more of God
iv. Freedom to be our best and live our best
v. Freedom to be used of God and blessed by Him
Conclusion:
Is your life guided by the light of the World, Jesus Christ?
If you are unsaved, have you ever trusted Christ to shed His light in your life and save you?
For the believer, are you living in the light, for the light and shining the light?
