Q: How many lawyers does it take to change a light bulb?
A: How many can you afford?
Q: How many evolutionists does it take to change a light bulb?
A: Just one but it will take a million years.
Q: How many Psychiatrists does it take to change a light bulb?
A: Only one, but the bulb has got to really WANT to change.
Q: How many ‘Real Men’ does it take to change a light bulb?
A: None: ‘Real Men’ aren’t afraid of the dark.
Q: How many ‘Real Women’ does it take to change a light bulb?
A: None: A ‘Real Woman’ would have plenty of real men around to do it.
Q: How many jugglers does it take to change a light bulb?
A: One, but it takes at least three light bulbs.
Q: How many Smogarians does it take to screw in a light bulb?
A: 10. One to hold the bulb and nine to rotate the ladder.
Q: How many strong Smogarians does it take to screw in a light bulb?
A: 115. One to hold the bulb and 114 to rotate the house.
Q: How many football players does it take to change a light bulb?
A: The entire team! And they all get a semester’s credit for it!
Q: How many frat guys does it take to screw in a light bulb?
A: Five: One to hold the bulb, and four to guzzle beer until the room spins.
Q: How many Harvard grads does it take to screw in a light bulb?
A: Just one. He grabs the bulb and waits for the world to revolve around him.
Q: How many bureaucrats does it take to screw in a light bulb?
A: 45. One to change the bulb, and 44 to do the paperwork.
Q: How many board meetings does it take to get a light bulb changed?
A: This topic was resumed from last week’s discussion, but is incomplete pending resolution of some action items. It will be continued next week.
Q: How many accountants does it take to screw in a light bulb?
A: What kind of answer did you have in mind?
Q: How many junkies does it take to screw in a light bulb?
A: “Oh wow, is it like dark, man?’‘
Q: How many mystery writers does it take to screw in a light bulb?
A: Two, one to screw it almost all the way in and the other to give it a surprising twist at the end.
Q: How many consultants does it take to change a light bulb?
A: We don’t know. They never get past the feasibility study.
Q: How many teamsters does it take to change a light bulb?
A: “Twelve. Ya got a problem with that?’‘
Q. How many Floridians does it take to change a lightbulb?
A. Don’t know for sure, they’re still counting.
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.
1. The Claim of Light, “I am the light of the world” (also John 1:4, 9)
2. The Contrast of Light, “shall not walk in darkness”
3. The Conditions of Light, “he that followeth me”
4. The Consequences of the Light, “shall have the light of life”
Illustration :
A child heard that Christians were saints. On one occasion she was taken to a cathedral. She sat watching the sunshine through the windows. She asked her mother, “What are these people on the window? They are saints,” was the answer. Then the child said, “Now I know what saints are. They are people who let the light shine through.
John 8:20 These words spake Jesus in the treasury, as he taught in the temple: and no man laid hands on him; for his hour was not yet come.
Only Jews were allowed in the Treasury, and both sexes were permitted to walk through this court. Placed around this courtyard were thirteen trumpet-shaped containers, small at the top and flanged at the bottom. Each of these receptacles had a label for a specific kind of offering. On the upper portion of the walls surrounding the Treasury, galleries had been built to accommodate the large crowds that sometimes gathered. During the feast of tabernacles, these galleries proved quite useful. One particular ritual of the feast was celebrated in this court with a “standing-room-only” crowd looking on. Four huge candelabras graced this court. On the first night of the feast of tabernacles, these were lit. Reports from the first century tell us that these lights could be seen throughout Jerusalem. This act commemorated the pillar of cloud by day and pillar of fire by night. In effect, the Jews were saying, “God is our Light. God is our Guide.” Following this lighting, the people would dance and sing all through the week. But on the last day of the feast, the priests would extinguish the lights. The reason for this was that God had not yet sent the “Deliverer,” the “Messiah.”
With that in mind, let’s approach verse twelve. Jesus is standing in the courtyard where these beautiful candelabras are. They had been lit for several days, but now they are darkened. God has been revered as the Light of the people. Perhaps they had remembered and recited Psalm 27:1
“The LORD is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear? the LORD is the strength of my life; of whom shall I be afraid?”
Messiah also was associated with light. One of the names which was given to the Messiah by the rabbis was “Light.” In the midst of all this symbolism, Jesus stands and says, “I am the light of the world” (8:12). What do you think that did to that crowd who had just finished the celebration of light?
13 The Pharisees therefore said unto him, Thou bearest record of thyself; thy record is not true.
14 Jesus answered and said unto them, Though I bear record of myself, yet my record is true: for I know whence I came, and whither I go; but ye cannot tell whence I come, and whither I go.
They rejected Him, supposing there was no supporting testimony. Since He testified concerning Himself, they thought His testimony need not be believed. This was because they viewed all individuals as liars. No person’s word was to be accepted unless substantiated by other witnesses. They had rules against people witnessing for themselves. The problem was with their rules and not with the nature of His testimony. Jesus reminded them that their rule was wholly inapplicable to His case.
∙ It was necessary that He testify concerning Himself, because He, alone, was conscious of His origin and destiny.
∙ Though His testimony to Himself might not be considered competent, judged by their traditional rules, nevertheless, it was true, because light testifies to itself. None need argue that the sun is the sun or that light is light.
∙ He had before acknowledged, himself, the technical need of supplementary evidence and furnished it in the form of the testimony of John the Baptist, His Father, His words, and the Scriptures so now He refers not only to His conscious knowledge of the fellowship with the Father in the preexistent state, His consciousness of His mission in the world, and His destined return to the Father, but presents the testimony of the Father also.
∙ Perhaps that needs an explanation—or better yet, an illustration. Suppose you were in a crowd and a D.D.S. (Doctor of dental surgery) was asked to relate how he performed oral surgery. In describing a particular operation, he might relate the surgical preparation, the anesthesia required, the process of incision and correction of the problem, and finally the completion of the procedure. After he had related the details, suppose someone who was totally ignorant of oral surgery or surgery of any kind stood up and said, “Wait a minute, Doc. I can’t buy that. I don’t accept what you’re saying.” The doctor would be within his rights to answer, “What I am saying is true because I know the procedure. I’ve been there. I’ve done the operation. You don’t understand because you are not an oral surgeon.” That is parallel to what Jesus was saying in verse fourteen. The line argument is the same. We could paraphrase Jesus’ words this way: “Look, I know what I’m talking about. I know where I came from and I know where I’m going. I was there. But you don’t know because you weren’t with me; so why are you questioning my testimony?” The problem of these Pharisees is mentioned in the next verse: “Ye judge after the flesh” (8:15). These Jews employed a human standard, a fallible process of thinking, to arrive at their judgment.
15 Ye judge after the flesh; I judge no man.
Superficial judgment, judging by appearances. You think that as Messiah I am supposed to lead a revolt against Rome, now.
Ancient astrology is a system of belief which is based solely on what the unaided human eye can see. The ancient astrologers assumed that “appearance” always corresponds to reality. Therefore its foundational concepts and starting principles were in error.
Ptolemy assumed that the earth was the center of the universe, that the sun, moon, planets and stars revolved around the earth.
Ptolemy’s geo-centered universe was not just a physical phenomenon. It had its roots in a mystical or religious world view which saw man as the center of the intelligence, will, and emotion of the universe. The universe existed for man and focused all its cosmic energies on man.
These ideas formed the basis of Ptolemy’s astrology.
When Copernicus, the Polish astronomer, started to study the heavens, he gradually came to the conclusion that the earth was not the static center around which the universe revolved but, rather, was a moving planet which itself revolved around the sun. He was, however, strangely reluctant to publish his findings, because he knew what a battle he would have trying to convince his contemporaries that man and his world are not the center of all existence. To insist that the core of truth is in “Him” rather than “us” and that we find our significance revolving around Him rather than the converse, poses a problem similar to that of Copernicus, because man, frankly, doesn’t want to know this kind of thing. This is part of the truth that he suppresses.
The astrology-riddled medieval church condemned his view as heresy.
Though Copernicus’ helio-centered universe overthrew the foundational principle by which horoscopes were drawn.
Copernicus’ teaching did not destroy astrology in his day. Neither are modern astrologers affected by Copernicus’ helio-centered universe, because astrology is ultimately based on Ptolemy’s religious convictions and not on science or reality. This is why the modern claim that astrology is a science is so absurd. Without its religious foundation, astrology cannot exist.
ILLUS: Copernicus, Polish scholar, in the mid 1500’s studied the Sun, Moon and planets. He studied showed the earth was round and that it revolved around the Sun. March 5, 1616, the Pope decreed that his book, “On the Revolutions of the Heavenly Spheres” was to be banded and forbidden reading and this band was not lifted until the 19th Century. For almost 400 years the truth Copernicus discovered was banded in unbelief. Galileo understood his claims and because he defended the truth was in danger of losing his life in the Catholic Inquisition. The fact was he studied the evidence and came to the truth....which was true whether the whole world rejected his statements or not. In the end, time proved him to be right. In time all truth will be proved as true.
The Goddard Space Center is named for Dr. Robert Goddard, the pioneer of rocket research. In 1919, he published an article describing a multistage rocket that could carry a payload to the moon. The New York Times laughed at the article and said Goddard lacked even “the knowledge ladled out daily in high schools.” Forty-nine years later, with Apollo 11 circling the moon, the Times ran a correction. “It is now definitely established that a rocket can function in a vacuum. The Times regrets the error.” If you live long enough, you will find that truth always triumphs eventually. —Robert C. Shannon, 1000 Windows, (Cincinnati, Ohio: Standard Publishing Company, 1997).
16 And yet if I judge, my judgment is true: for I am not alone, but I and the Father that sent me.
17 It is also written in your law, that the testimony of two men is true.
18 I am one that bear witness of myself, and the Father that sent me beareth witness of me.
19 Then said they unto him, Where is thy Father? Jesus answered, Ye neither know me, nor my Father: if ye had known me, ye should have known my Father also.
19a. They intimated that an absent witness was worthless.
19b. If they had been spiritually minded, having a just conception of Jesus, they would have been able spiritually to perceive the Father also. God is only known spiritually. Their failing to perceive Him reveals their lack of spirituality.
When questioned by the Pharisees about His Father, Christ explained that this question revealed their ignorance. They were ignorant of the Father because they were ignorant of Him. Pharisaic tradition had not led them to a knowledge of the Father. Christ was the only One who could introduce the Father to them. You can’t know God unless you know Christ!!!
One of the amazing things about this story is that, although these men were claiming to know God, they really did not know him. I find this is the problem with many people today. They say they know God, but the god they are talking about is a god of their own imagination. They are merely projecting an idea about God that is not real; consequently they do not know God at all. Neither do they worship God; they are worshiping a figment of their imagination. I ran across a quote from Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones that speaks to this:
Their god is something which they created themselves, a being who is always prepared to oblige and excuse them. They do not worship him with awe and respect, indeed they do not worship him at all. They reveal that their so-called god is no god at all in their talk. For they are forever saying that “they simply cannot believe that God will punish the unrepentant sinner to all eternity, and this and that.” They cannot believe that God will do so, therefore, they draw the conclusion that God does not and will not. In other words, God does what they believe he ought to do or not do. What a false and blasphemous conception of God! How utterly untrue and unworthy! Such is the new paganism of today.
That is why many people do not come to the light: Their willful ignorance blinds their hearts. They do not know Jesus, and they do not know God.
20 These words spake Jesus in the treasury, as he taught in the temple: and no man laid hands on him; for his hour was not yet come.
21 ¶ Then said Jesus again unto them, I go my way, and ye shall seek me, and shall die in your sins: whither I go, ye cannot come.
22 Then said the Jews, Will he kill himself? because he saith, Whither I go, ye cannot come.
The Pharisees believed that suicides went to the deepest place in hell, where there was a special torment reserved for them. Thus their grim and sarcastic response is, “Of course we’ll never go there. We could never follow him there. If that is what he is going to do, he is right; we can’t follow him.” That is rejection because of pride. These men did not consider themselves worthy of death. On the contrary, they regarded themselves as good and decent people whom God could never send to hell or shut out from heaven.
23 And he said unto them, Ye are from beneath; I am from above: ye are of this world; I am not of this world.
In other words, “All of your thinking is limited by the narrow confines of this life. You do not understand what is going on in the invisible realms of life. You do not see what is bringing to pass all the historical occurrences of earth. You do not see the hand of God or the hand of the devil. You do not understand anything beyond the limited, narrow range of facts which you can see with your eyes and hear with your ears. But I am from beyond that. I am from above, from out of this world.”
24 I said therefore unto you, that ye shall die in your sins: for if ye believe not that I am he, ye shall die in your sins.
The Pharisees professed ignorance of who Jesus Christ claimed to be and asked Him to state who He was. This was designed to elicit from Jesus a public statement that He was the Son of God. Such a statement made in the presence of many witnesses could be used against Him to accuse Him of blasphemy. Christ replied that He was who He had been claiming to be all along.
25 Then said they unto him, Who art thou? And Jesus saith unto them, Even the same that I said unto you from the beginning.
26 I have many things to say and to judge of you: but he that sent me is true; and I speak to the world those things which I have heard of him.
27 They understood not that he spake to them of the Father.
28 Then said Jesus unto them, When ye have lifted up the Son of man, then shall ye know that I am he, and that I do nothing of myself; but as my Father hath taught me, I speak these things.
29 And he that sent me is with me: the Father hath not left me alone; for I do always those things that please him.
30 As he spake these words, many believed on him.
What made the difference? The cross. What does Jesus mean, “When you have lifted up the Son of man”? When you see Jesus on the cross then you begin to understand the facts about life. That is what he is saying.
31 ¶ Then said Jesus to those Jews which believed on him, If ye continue in my word, then are ye my disciples indeed;
You heard about the man who asked a mail-order company to send plans for a birdhouse. Instead of sending him the plans for a birdhouse, they sent him plans for a sailboat. He tried to put it together, but it just wouldn’t work. He couldn’t figure what kind of bird was going to live in this dumb birdhouse. So he wrote a letter and sent the parts back to the people. They wrote a letter of apology and added this post script: “If you think it was difficult for you, you should have seen the man who got your plans trying to sail a birdhouse.”
A lot of people are trying to operate on the plans of Christ when they aren’t even Christians. So a word of caution: make sure you know him before you apply the principles. —Steve Brown, “Forgiven and Forgotten,” Preaching Today, Tape No. 139.
32 And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.
Emancipation from ignorance, superstition, false doctrines, and especially sin.
I knew an old Glasgow professor named MacDonald who, along with a Scottish chaplain, had bailed out of an airplane behind German lines. They were put in a prison camp. A high wire fence separated the Americans from the British, and the Germans made it next to impossible for the two sides to communicate. MacDonald was put in the American barracks and the chaplain was housed with the Brits.
Every day the two men would meet at the fence and exchange a greeting. Unknown to the guards, the Americans had a little homemade radio and were able to get news from the outside, something more precious than food in a prison camp. Every day, MacDonald would take a headline or two to the fence and share it with the chaplain in the ancient Gaelic language, indecipherable to the Germans.
One day, news came over the little radio that the German High Command had surrendered and the war was over. MacDonald took the news to his friend, then stood and watched him disappear into the British barracks. A moment later, a roar of celebration came from the barracks.
Life in that camp was transformed. Men walked around singing and shouting, waving at the guards, even laughing at the dogs. When the German guards finally heard the news three nights later, they fled into the dark, leaving the gates unlocked. The next morning, Brits and Americans walked out as free men. Yet they had truly been set free three days earlier by the news that the war was over.
While Christ’s Kingdom is not fully achieved, we know the outcome of the battle. We too have been set free. —Ray Bakke, Chicago, Illinois. Leadership, Vol. 19, no. 2.
33 They answered him, We be Abraham’s seed, and were never in bondage to any man: how sayest thou, Ye shall be made free?
34 Jesus answered them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Whosoever committeth sin is the servant of sin.
35 And the servant abideth not in the house for ever: but the Son abideth ever.
36 If the Son therefore shall make you free, ye shall be free indeed.
By the way, have you ever wondered where Christ gained His strength to face life’s daily battles? Throughout Jesus’ ministry He was continually forced into confrontations with those who criticized, undermined, and sought to hinder His work. How was our Lord able to “stay on top?’ What was the source of His strength? I find here three things that helped Jesus Christ stand strong in the face of opposition.
∙ A Clear Sense of His Calling (8:14, 16, 26, 42).
In verse fourteen we read, “I know whence I came, and whither I go.” Jesus was saying, “I know my purposes in life. I know where I come from, and I know where I’m going.”
∙ Another indication of His clear sense of calling is found in verse sixteen: “I am not alone, but, I and the Father that sent me.” The Father was “with” him and had “sent” Him with a divine purpose.
∙ Again in verse twenty-six He refers to the Father as having “sent” Him. He knows God’s hand is upon Him. He knows He is doing God’s work. That’s why He can stand against the opposition.
∙ Finally, He makes this strong assertion, “I proceeded forth and came from God; neither came I of myself, but He sent me” (8:42). There is nothing that brings more confidence to a life than to know that God is in control of your life and that you are following God’s goals for your life. Do you want strength and success in life? Then get a firm grip on what God wants from you and pursue it with all your heart. But how can you know those things? The second and third points will make this clearer.
∙ A Deep Commitment to the Truth (8:26, 28, 40, 45).
Jesus Christ obviously had a deep commitment to the truth. John 8:26 “. . . I speak to the world those things which I have heard of him.” The Lord spoke only those things which He had received as truth from God. God spoke truth. Jesus listened and then taught the world God’s truth. Again he said, “I do nothing of myself; but as my Father hath taught me, I speak these things” (8:28). The basis of Christ’s “preaching” was “the Word of God.” “But now ye seek to kill me, a man that hath told you the truth, which I have heard of God” (8:40).
∙ The opposition to Jesus was based not simply on who He was, but on the truth He spoke.
∙ The opposition was against God and was not just a personal attack.
∙ A Consistent Life of Obedience (8:29, 55).
First of all, look at verse fifty-five. “Yet ye have not known him; but I know him” and if I should say, I know him not, I shall be a liar like unto you: but I know him and keep his saying.” It was not enough for Jesus Christ to know the truth; He determined to put it into practice. He was not committed to speaking the truth only; He wanted to live it.
∙ Come back now to verse twenty-nine for the real eye-opener. “And he that sent me is with me: the Father hath not left me alone; for I do always those things that please him.” Here then is a fantastic truth. Would you like to enjoy God’s presence in your life? Do you want the secret? “I do always those things that please him” (8:29). Because Christ was committed to a life of consistent obedience, God honored Him with His presence and power.
