If you're following along with me in your own Bibles, in the gospel of John, you'll notice that this week we come to the story of the adulterous woman. This story may or may not be an authentic tradition about Jesus-- my guess, which is probably worth nothing, is that it is. It "feels" like Jesus' words.
But it's basically a sure thing that it's not originally part of the gospel of John. It interrupts the narrative plot; it uses language that sounds more like Luke than John ("scribes," for one thing); it isn't present in any of the early manuscripts we have of the gospel. So I'm just going to ignore it today.
So where we want to pick up the gospel of John today, at first, is in John 8:12-20. I want to start by reading John 7:2; 8:12, and then 8:20. These verses provide a frame for the passage:
(7:2) Now, it was near-- the Festival of the Judeans-- the one of Tabernacles/Booths/Tents.
(8:12) Then, again to them he spoke-- Jesus--, saying,
"I am the light of the world.
The one following me will absolutely not walk in the darkness,
but will have the light of life."
(8:20) These words he spoke by the treasury,
teaching in the temple,
and no one seized/arrested him,
because not yet it had come-- his hour.
AJ is writing to people who were "Judeans" by birth. They understood the different festivals, in a way that we do not. And proof of that comes in John 8:20. AJ assumes that when you hear Jesus taught "by the treasury," that you will sit up in your pew, and immediately understand the significance of this.
But you don't, right? We read this, and it does nothing for us. We understand that these are not wasted words on AJ's part. It matters, that Jesus taught here, specifically. But we don't get it.
What is it that we have to know? What is AJ telling us, without really (explicitly) saying?
[For what follows, I'm hugely indebted to Charles Talbert, Reading John, pg. 152-53. Every scholar talks about this, but he does it better than everyone else. I'm basically paraphrasing him.].
Every night, as part of the feast of the Tabernacles, there was a candlestick ceremony. There were four huge golden candlesticks, that reached above the heights of the temple walls, crowned with four golden lamps. Each of these lights had a ladder, and a son of one of the priests was responsible for adding oil to keep his own light burning. The wicks of the lamps were worn-out undergarments of the priests.
"According to the Mishnah (m. Sukkah 5:3), there was not a courtyard in Jerusalem that did not reflect the light. At a festival that looked backward to the time of the wandering in the wilderness, the light ceremony could not have avoided associations with the pillar of fire (Exod. 13:21; 14:24; 40:38) that went before the people" (Talbert, Reading John, 153).
So picture Jesus teaching in the temple, in the evening, against this backdrop. [The treasury was right next to the Court of Women.] And let's reread John 8:12:
(12) Then, again to them he spoke-- Jesus--, saying,
"I am the light of the world.
The one following me will absolutely not walk in the darkness,
but will have the light of life."
Jesus begins this section by revealing the truth about himself to the Judeans. He says, "I am the light of the world." Jesus is a light that never goes out. He's not a one-night wonder. And his light, is a light for the world, and not just Jerusalem.
What I'd like, at this point, is for Jesus to say more about this. I want to know what this means, concretely, practically. But this is what we read next, instead. Verse 13:
(13) Then, they said to him-- the Pharisees--
"You about yourself are testifying.
Your witness isn't true."
The Pharisees respond by simply rejecting Jesus' words. They have reached the point where if Jesus says anything, they immediately disagree with him. If Jesus was on Twitter, and tweeted that he is the light of the world, you'd see a little disclaimer below his words saying, "This claim is disputed." Everything Jesus says is disputed, at this point. They have rejected Jesus. They've rejected the light that Jesus offers.
And when they reject Jesus' words, they derail the conversation that follows. The rest of this section-- John 8:12-20-- is going to be a dispute about whether Jesus' witness is true/valid or not. We don't hear anything else about Jesus as light. Instead, we only hear the words of people who "walk in the darkness." [John 8:12-20 is basically a picture of how hopeless/blind/darkened people are, when they don't follow Jesus, and walk in the darkness.]
Which means two things. First, we get ripped off-- at least at first. I'd really like to hear Jesus explain how he is the light of the world. But the Judeans messed that up for us.
And, second, if we are going to try to figure this out, we are going to have to look elsewhere for help. A more patient person would wait and see if AJ explains this himself, somehow, if we kept reading. Honestly, that's probably a better approach. But I've been itching to get back to the OT, and I decided today I'm going to scratch that itch. The OT is full of imagery and language about light, and some of that language helps us appreciate Jesus' words more. So, understand that what I'm teaching today, isn't actually the most helpful thing I could do. Instead, it's more like filling in the background-- creating a flannel board-- that will help you understand Jesus and his words better later.
So let's start by reading Leviticus 23:33-44. I think this passage would make a great sermon-- it's hard to go wrong anywhere in Leviticus, right? But I'm going to restrain myself, a little at least. At any rate, this passage is where God gives his instructions about how He wants the "Festival of Booths/Tabernacles" to be celebrated:
(33) And Yahweh spoke to Moses, saying,
(34) "Speak to the sons of Israel, saying,
"On the 15th day of the seventh month, this [shall be] a festival of booths for seven days to/for Yahweh.
(35) On the first day, [it shall be] a holy/dedicated assembly.
Any/All the work of labor you shall not do.
(36) Seven days you shall bring/present an offering made by fire to Yahweh.
On the eighth day, a holy/dedicated assembly it shall be for you,
and you shall bring/present an offering made by fire to Yahweh.
An assembly , it [shall be].
All the work of labor you shall not do.
(37) These are the appointed times of Yahweh,
which you shall call them holy assemblies to bring/present offerings made by fire to Yahweh, a
burnt offering, a grain offering, a sacrifice, a drink offering, each on its proper day,
(38) besides the Sabbaths of Yahweh,
and besides your gifts,
and besides all your vows,
and besides all your free will offerings
that you give to Yahweh.
(39) Surely, on the 15th day of the seventh month, when you gather the produce of the land, you shall
celebrate the festival of Yahweh seven days.
On the first day, a complete rest, and on the eighth day, a complete rest,
(40) and you shall take for yourselves on the first day, the fruit of the land, majestic branches of palm
trees, and boughs of leafy trees, and poplar trees, and you shall rejoice before Yahweh your God/Elohim
seven days,
(41) and you shall celebrate it [as] a festival to Yahweh seven days each year.
A statute forever, for [all]your generations, in the seventh month, you shall celebrate it.
(42) In booths/tents you shall dwell seven days.
All the native-born in Israel shall dwell in booths/tents
because in booths I made to dwell the sons of Israel when I brought them out from the land of
Egypt.
I am Yahweh your God/Elohim,"
(44) and Moses spoke the appointed times of Yahweh to the sons of Israel.
The best time of year, for every farmer, is at the end of harvest. Your crops have been gathered; your bins are full. You've worked like a dog, and you have this sense of satisfaction about how it all played out. [At my place of employment, this would usually be December 26th. For engineers, this would be more like at the end of a big project. We can apply and understand this, even if we aren't farmers].
And, if you're a farmer, what you will find yourself wanting to do is go out and celebrate. In every small town in ND, at the end of the corn harvest, you will find that the bars are packed. Farmers have gathered together to celebrate their year, and talk about how it went for them. You'll hear stories about how tractors broke down, and they worried during that hot spell in July when it didn't rain, and when crop prices were so low. But, they overcame adversity, and by the end of the year, everything came together. In a good year, the bar is a place of celebration.
And that's a good thing. It's natural.
The Festival of Booths is a "Judean" holiday that's designated for this time of year. It's a harvest celebration. But it's designed to shape how, and why, farmers celebrate. In the OT, God claims this entire week after harvest for himself. This is his time-- it's time that's dedicated/holy to Him. And what God wants, is for you to understand what exactly you are celebrating. When you raise your bottles, you are celebrating God's faithfulness to you over this past year. He sent the rain, and the sun. He caused the crops to grow. He's been good to you, yet again. You are maybe tempted to pat yourself on the back at the end of harvest, and think that this year is one more proof that you are the world's greatest farmer. But by beginning, and ending, the Festival of Booths with an assembly/gathering for God, you are reminded that God is the one who gets the glory. And, maybe, remembering this will help you remember that life, and prosperity, ultimately come from Yahweh-- not you. And not any other god/elohim.
Now, none of this has anything to do with the gospel of John. Which is okay. But there is a clue here for us, that helps us in John. Let's reread Leviticus 23:42-44:
(42) In booths/tents you shall dwell seven days.
All the native-born in Israel shall dwell in booths/tents
because in booths I made to dwell the sons of Israel when I brought them out from the land of
Egypt.
I am Yahweh your God/Elohim,"
You, as Israelites, were supposed to live this entire week in tents. And this "booth," or "tent," is supposed to remind you of how much God has done for you. Some of you probably think it's fun to spend a week in a tent on vacation. But it's no way to live, forever. And this entire week, when you (as Israelites) lie down at night, you'll find yourself falling asleep thinking about how God has blessed you. You'll compare your lives, with that of your ancestors, who were brought out of the land of Egypt, and lived in tents.
And, it's at this point, that we inch closer to the gospel of John. What did it look like, when God led his people out of Egypt? Now, we "get to" turn to Exodus 13:17-22:
(17) And then, when Pharaoh let the people go, God didn't lead them on the road of the land of the Philistines because God said,
"Lest the people repent/turn when they see war,
and they return to Egypt,"
(18) and God led [them] around the people on the wilderness road-- the Red Sea--
and being lined up for battle, the sons of Israel went up from the land of Egypt,
(19) and Moses took the bones of Joseph with him
because he surely/actually made the sons of Israel swear an oath, saying,
"Surely He will come to your aid-- God--,
and you must/shall bring up my bones from this [place] with you,"
(20) and they set out from Sukkoth,
and they camped in Etham at the edge of the wilderness,
(21) while Yahweh was walking before them by day in a pillar of clouds to lead them on the road,
while at night, in a pillar of fire to give light to them to walk by day and by night.
(22) It didn't depart -- the pillar of the cloud-- by day and the pillar of fire by night before the people.
God's people, the entire time in the wilderness, were never without God's presence, and God's light. They never walked in darkness, because God walked before them (so also Exodus 14:24; 40:38).
The Judeans, at every Festival, were supposed to be thinking about these things. About how God used to walk before them, and used to be their Light, in the wilderness. But it's even cooler than this. One last OT passage-- Isaiah 4:2-5:
(2) On that day, the branch of Yahweh shall be beautiful and glorious,
while the fruit of the land [shall be] magnificence and splendor for the survivors of Israel,
(3) and then, the remnant in Zion and the leftovers in Jerusalem, holy/dedicated, they shall be called for him--
all the ones being written for life in Jerusalem,
(4) when the Lord has washed away the filth of the daughters of Zion,
while the blood of Jerusalem he cleanses from her midst,
in a spirit of judgment and in a spirit of burning,
(5) and Yahweh will create over the place/foundation of Mount Zion and over her assembly, a cloud by day and smoke and the brightness of fire, a flame, by night,
because over all the glory, [there shall be] a canopy/bridal chamber.
This is not the easiest passage (the ESV/NIV clean it up), but Isaiah prophesies of a coming day, when the pillar of cloud, and the brightness of fire, will come back to Jerusalem. And every time Judeans celebrate the Festival of Booths, they'd find themselves thinking about how God used to shine as a light in the darkness for them, and how, someday, He would do so again. The Festival was a time of thankfulness, for what God had done, and a time of hope, for what God would do, someday.
Now, let's reread John 8:12:
(12) Then, again to them he spoke-- Jesus--, saying,
"I am the light of the world.
The one following me will absolutely not walk in the darkness,
but will have the light of life."
Jesus is the fulfillment of Isaiah's prophecy. Only, he's even better than promised. Jesus' light shines brighter, farther. It reaches to the very ends of the world.
But Jesus' light only shines for some people. It's only those who follow Jesus, who walk in his light. Everyone else, goes through life blindly, in the dark.
Now, I've been very careful, I think, to not be very specific/concrete, in what all of this actually means. Everything that's going to follow in the next two chapters is going to build off this idea that Jesus is a light.
What I want to leave you with, today, is two thoughts:
The first, is that Jesus' light is superior to that of the Judeans. No one who has come to Jesus, and follows him, should miss the old light of the Judeans. Jesus' light shines brighter, and lasts for as long as you follow him. There are no batteries to wear out. There is no life expectancy, where it slowly goes dim, and then burns out.
Jesus' light is a greater grace (John 1:16), because there is a fullness to his grace (John 1:15). And because of this, there's really no reason to miss celebrating the Festival of Booths. That's the Festival "of the Judeans." We have something better.
The second, is this: If you follow Jesus, then his words are a promise to you. Jesus is like a pillar of fire, leading us through the wilderness. And that fire will never go out. You'll never find yourself in the dark, wandering the world, not knowing where you're going, or how the world actually looks. You will see everything, forever.
So celebrate Jesus. Celebrate the grace-- the light-- that he offers his people. And know that you are following the right light.
