The Light of Life

So the crowd answered Him, “We have heard from the Law that the Christ remains forever. How can You say that the Son of Man must be lifted up? Who is this Son of Man?” So Jesus said to them, “The light is among you for a little while longer. Walk while you have the light, lest darkness overtake you. The one who walks in the darkness does not know where he is going. While you have the light, believe in the light, that you may become sons of light.” When Jesus had said these things, He departed and hid Himself from them. Though He had done so many signs before them, they still did not believe in Him, so that the word spoken by the prophet Isaiah might be fulfilled:

“Lord, who has believed what he heard from us, and to whom has the arm of the Lord been revealed?”

Therefore they could not believe. For again Isaiah said,

“He has blinded their eyes and hardened their heart, lest they see with their eyes, and understand with their heart, and turn, and I would heal them.”

Isaiah said these things because he saw His glory and spoke of Him.

Nevertheless, many even of the authorities believed in Him, but for fear of the Pharisees they did not confess it, so that they would not be put out of the synagogue; for they loved the glory that comes from man more than the glory that comes from God.

And Jesus cried out and said, “Whoever believes in Me, believes not in Me but in Him who sent Me. And whoever sees Me sees Him who sent Me. I have come into the world as light, so that whoever believes in Me may not remain in darkness. If anyone hears My words and does not keep them, I do not judge him; for I did not come to judge the world but to save the world. The one who rejects Me and does not receive My words has a judge; the word that I have spoken will judge him on the last day. For I have not spoken on My own authority, but the Father who sent Me has Himself given Me a commandment—what to say and what to speak. And I know that His commandment is eternal life. What I say, therefore, I say as the Father has told Me.”
 

John 12:34-50

We have an interesting relationship with light in our modern world. Thanks to the wonders of electricity and the convenience of streetlamps and flashlights, there are few places where we are actually forced to walk in darkness. Especially in the big city, we are surrounded by an abundance of light, and the lack of stars at night is evidence of this. Darkness still exists, yes, but it can be banished any moment by simply pulling out our phones. And so, in a way, we grow blind to the gift of illumination.

In the ancient world, however, light was far more elusive. Every sunset, darkness descended upon humanity. Save for candles, torchlight, and the glow of the moon, night was lived in relative darkness. “Not knowing where you are going” was a real problem when walking at night. There was no option to flip a switch and turn on the light. Thus, it is important to consider this ancient context when we hear Jesus say things like, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows Me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life” (John 8:12).

In John 12, Jesus says, “Walk while you have the light, lest darkness overtake you. The one who walks in the darkness does not know where he is going. While you have the light, believe in the light, that you may become sons of light,” and later in that same chapter, “I have come into the world as light, so that whoever believes in Me may not remain in darkness.” Remember, this was spoken to a people who spent nearly half their lives in darkness. It was a radical idea that Jesus was bringing light into the world and that by following Him, His followers could become lights themselves. This was not simply a streetlight flickering on. This was saying that their relationship to darkness would never be the same.

In the 21st century, we’ve tried hard to chase away the darkness, but it persists all the same. One need not look long to see darkness still present in our own hearts. Despite the brightness of our world, much of humanity still wanders in spiritual darkness. And so, Jesus’ encouragement remains ever poignant. Walking in darkness, spiritual or otherwise, will have us aimless and at a loss. We need to cling to the light of life, so that we might, in turn, be light to others walking in darkness.

When we look to Jesus, we see the true light. When we look to Jesus, we see the One who sent Him. When we look to Jesus, the darkness starts to fade.