Please stand with me for the reading of God's word. We'll turn to Genesis chapter one for our Old Covenant reading, Old Testament reading, and then over to John chapter eight. Let's give our attention to God's holy word. In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth. The earth was without form and void, and darkness was on the face of the deep, and the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters. Then God said, let there be light, and there was light. And God saw the light, that it was good, and God divided the light from the darkness. God called the light day, and the darkness he called night. So the evening and the morning were the first day. We'll also read down in verse 14 concerning the fourth day of creation. Then God made two great lights, the greater light to rule the day and the lesser light to rule the night. He made the stars also. God set them in the firmament of the heavens to give light on the earth and to rule over the day and over the night and to divide the light from the darkness. And God saw that it was good. And the evening and the morning were the fourth day. And now to John, chapter eight, John's gospel, chapter eight, beginning with verse one. But Jesus went to the Mount of Olives. Now early in the morning, he came again into the temple and all the people came to him and he sat down and taught them. Then the scribes and Pharisees brought to him a woman caught in adultery. And when they had set her in the midst, they said to him, teacher, this woman was caught in adultery in the very act. Now Moses in the law commanded us that such should be stoned. But what do you say? This they said, testing him that they might have something of which to accuse him. But Jesus stooped down and wrote on the ground with his finger as though he did not hear. So when they continued asking him, he raised himself up and said to them, he who is without sin among you, let him throw a stone at her first. And he again stooped down and wrote on the ground. Then those who heard it being convicted by their conscience went out one by one, beginning with the oldest, even to the last. And Jesus was left alone and the woman standing in the midst. When Jesus had raised himself up and saw no one but the woman, he said to her, Woman, where are those that those accusers of yours? Has no one condemned you? She said, No one, Lord. And Jesus said to her, neither do I condemn you. Go and sin no more. Then Jesus spoke to them again, saying, I am the light of the world. He who follows me shall not walk in darkness. but have the light of life. The Pharisees therefore said to him, you bear witness of yourself, your witness is not true. Then Jesus answered and said to them, even if I bear witness of myself, my witness is true, for I know where I came from and where I am going, but you do not know where I come from and where I am going. You judge according to the flesh. I judge no one. And yet if I do judge, my judgment is true for I am not alone, but I am with the father who sent me. It is also written in your law that the testimony of two men is true. I am one who bears witness of myself and the father who sent me bears witness of me. Then they said to him, where is your father? Jesus answered, you know, neither me nor my father. If you had known me, you would have known my father also. These words, Jesus spoke in the treasury as he taught in the temple and no one laid hands on him for his hour had not yet come. This is the living word of God. If you'll take your Scriptures, if you're not already there, and turn to John's Gospel, chapter 8. In recent weeks, we've studied together some of the I Am statements of our Savior in the Gospel of John. There are seven such statements which punctuate this Gospel. Remember a few weeks ago. We studied our Savior's statement. I am the bread of life. Thus declaring His authority, His sufficiency, the fullness of all that He is, His person, the God-man, the one sent of the Father, the one who is the Word, eternally with the Father. One with the Father and made flesh dwelling among us. Sent as our Redeemer. Sent to deliver us, to save us from our sin and our misery. These I Am statements again punctuate the Gospel and all reflect in various ways this total sufficiency, the absolute grace of our Savior. That for those who are hungry, and I don't merely mean physically hungry, but spiritually hungry and empty, our Savior is the bread of life. In recent weeks, we've also considered the statement of our Savior in John 14, verse 6. I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father but by me. Our Savior there declares that he is the one, the only one, the exclusive way to the Father, that for those who are doubting, and wandering, and confused in sin and in darkness, our Savior is the way, the truth, and the life. And we could go on through the Gospel. Today we come to chapter 8. This glorious statement of our Savior. I am the light of the worlds. He who follows me shall not walk in darkness, but have the light of life. A simple picture. a simple statement that our Savior makes here, that He is the light of the world. But yet one that cuts through our darkness, the darkness of our sin and misery, that reveals to us both our darkness, our rebellion, our blindness, but also that opens our eyes to His glory, the glory of our Savior and His fullness. Children, perhaps you have been scared of the dark in the past. Maybe even now, maybe it's hard when mom and dad turn out the lights at night and everyone goes to bed, perhaps you've been frightened because of the darkness and perhaps your parents have put on a nightlight in one of the rooms and there's just a little bit of light to help comfort you. and help assure you that things are going to be okay, that your parents are close by. And you know, even naturally speaking, the simplicity of the image that our Savior uses here, light and darkness, something that we so often likely take for granted, don't we? the fact that in the morning we see the the beauty of the sunrise as the earth rotates on its axis and in the evening you see the the Sun go down in the West and there's darkness yet again and we know something of the importance of of light don't we the the floodlights that we install on our garage and on our front porches, the little flashlights that we might use and going outside at night or early in the morning. We take these things for granted that the light that is so vital in the darkness pales into insignificance. You can't notice it during the day. Our Savior picks up this simple picture. To cut through our sin and misery, our darkness and our blindness, and to show us his glory. to teach us of Himself and to press upon us, to press upon our minds and our consciences that we must come by faith to the light, to not be enshrouded in darkness and to faint back into the darkness of sin and misery. but to embrace the one who is the light of the world, the light sent from the Father to bring the glory of the gospel, the glory of sins forgiven and life everlasting, of righteousness to a sinful and cursed and dark world. We're going to consider this simple statement of our Savior along with its general context this morning. We're going to consider a few questions, a few simple questions together. What is the nature of this statement that our Savior makes? We'll dig into it a little bit more and seek to unpack it. What does our Savior mean when he says, I am the light of the world? Secondly, we'll look at the backdrop of darkness, the reason why this light is necessary. Then we'll consider thirdly, how you and I are to be delivered from the darkness. And then lastly, some lessons for the church, how we respond to these glorious truths. So first, something of our Savior's statement, I am the light of the world. Easy to gloss over these words in our English translation, but yet there's a remarkable statement that our Savior is making here in the text. In the Greek, ego eimi, or I am the light of the world. And in the minds of the Jews with whom he conversed here, these words would have echoed in their minds the truth of Exodus 3.14, when Moses, The prophet of old encountered Jehovah in the burning bush and heard the statement from Jehovah, I am that I am. I am the self-sufficient, self-existing God. I need no one and nothing. I created all things. I'm sufficient. I exist in and of myself. All things are dependent on me. I am that I am. And as our Savior here, and throughout the Gospel, again punctuated chapter by chapter with these I am statements, in every case, He's making a claim to His own authority, to His own identity. Who He is. I am equal with the Father. I'm not the highest of all created beings. I'm not merely a good teacher or a helpful rabbi. I'm not an advice giver. I am the Word from the Father." Echoing the language, and particularly here with the light of the world, echoing language from the first chapter of John's Gospel. That in the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. Down in verse four, in him was life, and the life was the light of men. And the light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not comprehend it. Otherwise the dark could be translated, the darkness did not overcome it, did not overcome this light. And then we read a little bit later on, this man, John came for a witness to bear witness of the light of our Lord Jesus Christ that all through him might believe. John the Baptist, he was not that light, but was sent to bear witness of that light. That was the true light, which gives light to every man coming into the world. So here in chapter eight, we ought to think of our Savior's previous statements of what we've already read in the gospel about this one who is the light sent from heaven. A clear statement of our Savior's identity, who he is, the word of the Father, equal with the Father in every way. The I am that I am. He's here. I am the light of the world. I am sufficient. I am the one sent. I'm the only one sent to deliver you from sin, blindness and darkness. The statement speaks to not only the identity of our Savior, but to his mission, what he was sent to do. And here again, as our Savior is speaking to the Jews, God's chosen people of old, This is a profound and remarkable statement that our Savior is presenting. I am the light of the world. He's saying, I am the true Israel. I am the one who will bring light to the nations, to quote the words of Isaiah chapter 49. Remember that Israel of old was to be the light to the Gentiles, as it were a lampstand to put the glory of Jehovah on display, to call All nations to worship the One living and true God. To display in their worship and their piety and in their life the glories of God. To say to the nations, come, our Lord reigns. He is God and He is God alone. But how did Israel do with this mission to bring light to the Gentile nations? They failed. And they failed as God's son, as the servant of Jehovah in this task, this divinely appointed task of bringing glory to God. They rebelled over and over and over again. Their prophets, their priests, and their kings all led them, some better than others, yet all flawed. sinful, the nation descended further and further into darkness. And you read even of that tangible darkness in Isaiah chapter eight, the gloom and the darkness that fell over the people because of their sorcery, their rebellion and their idolatry. So our Savior here is declaring, I am the light of the world. I am the true light. I'm the true Israel. I'm the second Adam. I'm the better mediator. I'm the true mediator between God and men. I'm the one who brings the light. of Jehovah into the world and who will display that light to the nations to do what Israel had failed to do. And this is accented even more by getting a sense of the context here in John's Gospel. You'll note back in chapter 7, verse 2, this entire scene of this, several chapters, 7 through 10, come to us at the time of the Feast of Tabernacles. Chapter 7, verse 2. Now, the Jews' Feast of Tabernacles was at hand And in that feast, throughout that eight-day feast, every evening, lamps were lit in the temple courtyard. And it said that the brilliance of that light flooded all Jerusalem. A testimony to the light. of Jehovah dwelling with his people. Echoes here aren't there of the Exodus and the glory cloud that accompanied the people of God through their wilderness wanderings, the pillar of fire by day and the pillar or the pillar of fire by night, the pillar of cloud by day. God's visible, glorious presence with his people. But in the light of all of this, Jesus says, I am the light of the world. I display the glory of Jehovah among the people, and I'm the light not only of Israel, but of the world, the one sent from the Father to bring glory in His gospel to the nations. I am the true light. Against the backdrop of those types and shadows and pictures of the Old Testament, the glory cloud, the pillar of fire, the lamps lit at the Feast of Tabernacles, against all of this backdrop, Jesus says, I am the light of the world. And then we asked a second question against the what's the backdrop here against which our Savior is the light of the world is set. Well, very plainly, he said against the backdrop of our darkness and our sin and misery. Look at the text. He who I'm the light of the world, John 8, 12. He who follows me shall not walk in darkness, but have the light of life. As the light of the world, Our Savior exposes our darkness. I mentioned this a few moments ago, but it's so easy, isn't it, to not really pay attention when you use your floodlights or your flashlights or other lights that you have on at various times. During the day, the light is insignificant, unnoticeable, isn't it? But then in the evening, as the sun goes down and darkness descends, that light is so necessary. You think of the headlamps on a car or a flashlight by which you might navigate outside. And that light becomes necessary against the backdrop of darkness. And it is against the backdrop of our sin and our misery and our brokenness that our Savior shines forth the full light and glory of himself. This is brought out by the context, isn't it? On one hand, you have the encounter of our Savior with the woman caught in adultery and those who accused her. Here our Savior exposes all of their sin, both of the woman who's been caught, and it's apparent on the surface that her sin has been exposed, has come to light, if you will, but also of her accusers. What does our Savior say as this woman has been condemned earlier in the chapter? Verse 7, He who is without sin among you, let him throw a stone at her first. Verse 9, Our Savior makes this declaration, exposing sin. Verse 9, then those who heard it, being convicted by their conscience, went out one by one, beginning with the oldest, even to the last. And Jesus was left alone and the woman standing in the midst. What's apparent on the surface is this woman's sin, caught in adultery. But do you see what our Savior, the light of the world, does? He exposes all of their sin and shows them who they are. Nothing left in the hidden cobwebs of their hearts. Not one thought, one desire, one intention left uncovered. All exposed to their sin and their misery. And in fact, none of them, none of them were without sin. As the light of the world against the backdrop of human darkness and sin, our Savior exposes the same. He exposes our guilt, our sin, and our misery. Continuing on in the chapter, later on, verse 13 and following, Our Savior is the light of the world, continues this great work of exposure, exposing sin and unbelief. The Pharisees think they have an argument against our Savior in verse 13. You bear witness of yourself. Your witness is not true. In other words, your witness is not valid. You're only one witness. Don't you remember the law in Deuteronomy? You have to have at least two witnesses. that in the words of of multiple witnesses, every word might be established. But our savior quickly does away with their objection, their argument against him and exposes their darkness, he says, and. Verse 17, it is also written in your law that the testimony of two men is true. Verse 18, I am one who bears witness of myself and the Father who sent me bears witness of me. Jesus says you have it all wrong. I am a true witness of myself, of who I am and what I came to do, and the Father bears witness of me. an additional witness called to the truth of all that Jesus claimed for himself. And then Jesus exposes their true motive, exposes their sin. He says, verse 19, you know neither me nor my father. If you had known me, you would have known my father also. Verse 21, I am going away and you will seek me and you will die in your sin. It is the mission of our Savior as the light of the world to expose our darkness, to expose our sin. Isn't this really the heart of of the law in its first use as a schoolmaster, something that opens our eyes to our sin and our misery. Our Savior exposes first our sin and our desperate unbelief, a heart against him, even down to our very thoughts and motives. Not only the woman caught in adultery here, not only her accusers, not only the the Pharisees who think they have an argument against him, but you and me as well. It is our our savior is the light of the world. It is his mission to first expose our sinfulness and then to bring us into the light of his salvation. Remember what Paul said in Romans chapter one, that those who knew God and yet did not glorify him as God, neither were thankful, their foolish mind was darkened. Ephesians, Paul in Ephesians, picks up the same theme, that your minds are darkness, you are not enlightened, you're alienated from the life of God. Colossians chapter one, we must be transferred from the power of darkness into the kingdom of God's dear son. Again, not only the Jews that we read of here, but you and I, caught in the darkness of sin. and misery. When your sin comes to light, when perhaps others discover it, or God in His kindness prods your conscience and you confess your sin, give thanks for that mercy. It is the mission of our Savior Jesus as the light of the world to expose the deep recesses of your heart and mind. To bring our sin to light. To enable us by His Spirit to full confession of our sins. To own our sin and rebellion for what it is. To own the darkness. that has so violated His law, that is against the glory of Jehovah, and that leaves us in the misery of darkness and judgment. Our Savior delights first to show us our sin and our misery, and then, not to leave us there, but then to open our eyes to His beauty and glory. And perhaps you're here today not Not a believer in Jesus Christ. You've never confessed and repented of your sins and run to our Savior Jesus Christ in true faith. And I call you, even today under the preaching of the Word, as your sin and unbelief is exposed, that you would run to our Savior, the light of the world. that you would pray and cry out to him for the light of the gospel to dawn in your heart, that your eyes would be opened, that you would run full stop, making confession of your sin and clinging to the light of the world for his grace and his forgiving mercy. Cry out to him. Yes, against the great backdrop of our sin and misery, our Savior declares, I am the light of the world, first exposing our sin and darkness, and then opening our eyes to his gracious light. And there's another question that we need to ask, and that is how precisely, how precisely could our darkness and our sin and misery be overcome? How might you and I particularly be delivered from this darkness. You hear the promise of the text, he who follows me shall not walk in darkness, but have the light of life. How is it that you and I, recognizing that our Savior is indeed the I Am, the one who is the light of the world, and at the same time owning our sin and our darkness and our misery for what it is, how is it that this darkness is overcome? How is it that our sins can be forgiven and we brought into the light of fellowship with God? I think it's useful for us to think of our Savior here conversing with the Jews and declaring to them that light has come, that He is the light of the world. Perhaps as they heard Him make this statement, their minds immediately ran to Isaiah 9, the context of trouble and darkness, of gloom and anguish upon God's covenant people of old. Yet, as we come into chapter 9, the reality of coming light. Nevertheless, the gloom will not be upon her who is distressed, as when at first he lightly esteemed the land of Zebulun and the land of Naphtali, and afterward more heavily oppressed her by the way of the sea beyond the Jordan and the Galilee of the Gentiles. The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light. Those who dwelt in the land of the shadow of death, upon them a light has shined. What the prophet is saying here. pointing us ahead beyond the shadows and the darkness of the Old Testament and even God's judgment upon his people for their wicked idolatry and even their sorcery in the context, pointing them to a day when a light will shine, the light that brings life and forgiveness and mercy. The prophet Malachi picks up the same theme in chapter four of his prophecy. The son of righteousness will rise with healing in his wings. And our Savior is declaring, I am that light, the light of the world. And how is it that He would overcome the darkness, a darkness of sin and rebellion? The terminating point of this great cosmic conflict between light and darkness is the cross, the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ. And there was darkness as our Savior hung naked and bleeding, bearing the wrath and the curse that we ought to have borne. There was darkness over the whole land from the sixth hour to the ninth. Three hours, the land shrouded in darkness as the light of the world apparently is snuffed out by the darkness of sin and rebellion. I think of what Ian Hamilton recently encouraged us with and reminded us of, that you and I have lights and forgiveness and grace because for our Savior, as He hung on the tree abandoned, by the Father, bearing our wrath and curse, made a curse for us, made sin for us, that for our Savior there all the lights went out. That He entered into the experience of the psalmist in Psalm 88, perhaps, if you will, the darkest of all the psalms that ends in this way. Loved one and friend, you have put far from me and my acquaintances into darkness. that our Savior has entered the darkness of sin and misery, and apparently, to the naked eye on the cross, the light of the world was snuffed out. One who bore our sin and misery and darkness on the tree, who put Our darkness took our darkness on himself and put it away. That's not the end of the gospel, is it? Because on the first day of the week, our Savior rose triumphant over the darkness, raised again to life everlasting. At dawn on the first day of the week, at morning light, the light of the world raised, bringing to us light and life, even as he promises here. that we might have the light of life, that our Savior experienced the darkness of our sin and misery, that we might have in Him light, knowledge, understanding of who He is, of our own sin and rebellion, but also the assurance that our sins are put away. fully forgiven, adopted as sons and daughters into the family of God, given all the rights and privileges of the same, and having the hope of heaven laid out for us. But think more. regarding this darkness as it's overcome in our own hearts and lives. Certainly our Savior, the light of the world, bearing the darkness in his own body on the tree, bearing our sins and rising again the first day of the week, he then has sent his Spirit. Think of the role of the Holy Spirit in shedding abroad the light of the gospel in our hearts. I think this is what Paul is getting at over in 2 Corinthians 4, that as our Savior, Crucified. Risen. Ascended. Pours out the Spirit who brings us light and life. 2 Corinthians 4, verse 4. Paul discusses this darkness. Speaking of those who are perishing under the darkness of sin, whose minds the God of this age has blinded, who do not believe, lest the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine on them. For we do not preach ourselves, but Christ Jesus, the Lord, and ourselves, your bondservants for Jesus' sake. For it is the God who commanded light to shine out of darkness, who has shown in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ. The Holy Spirit shines the light of God's word, the light of the gospel, into our sin-stricken, blinded eyes, opening our eyes to, again, our sin and misery and the utter darkness of sin, but also opening our eyes to the glory and beauty of Christ. Think of our shorter catechism. As the Spirit effectually calls, Through the means of grace, through the word preached, he first convinces us of our sin and our misery. He then enlightens our minds in the knowledge of Christ, and then renews our wills, enabling us to embrace Jesus Christ as he is freely offered to us in the gospel. Our Savior has overcome the darkness, and he sends his spirit to overcome the darkness in your heart, to bring you to saving faith. To expose your sin, yes, but then to enable you to lay hold of Jesus as he's offered to you in the gospel. How should you respond to these glorious realities? How should you respond to this truth that our Savior is the light of the world and that those who follow him shall not walk in darkness, but have the light of life? First, take hold of the promise of the Gospel. And recognize that for all those who follow Christ, who lay hold of Him in faith, believe His promises, repent of their sin, He promises the light of life. If you're outside of Christ, Your sin and misery perhaps has been exposed, but you're busy trying to cover it up, to perhaps blame shift, perhaps look at someone else's sin, or even deny your sin. Do none of those things. Own your sin for what it is. Rebellion against God. own the fact that in you there is no good thing, that even in the dark recesses of your heart, that you cannot know the desperate nature, the desperate wickedness of your heart apart from the grace of the gospel. But then hear our Savior's promise, that he who follows me, who lays hold on me in faith, shall not walk in darkness, but have the light of life. And for all of you, All of you who are endeavoring to press on in holiness and serve in Christ, I call you to walk in the light, to recognize that our Savior and the precious truth of the gospel enables us to confess our sin, to own it for what it is, to repent of it, and then to walk in the light. Remember the words of John in his first epistle, picks up the same theme of light and darkness. If we walk in the light, As our God is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus Christ, his son, cleanses us from all sin. Paul as well in Ephesians tells us that we were once darkness, but now we are light in the Lord. Walk as children of light. What does this look like? It means exposing your heart and your life day by day to the life-giving and light flooding Word of God. To have your eyes open again and again and again to the glory of Jesus Christ, the light of the world, to whom all the Scriptures point. It means that when your sin comes to light and it's exposed, that you confess it, that you don't blame shift or deny or sweep it under the rug or point to someone else's sin, but you own it and you beg for gospel mercy to call it what it is and then to forsake it, to cling more closely to Jesus Christ, the light of the world. As well, are there implications here for how we speak to others who are yet in the sin and misery and blackness of unbelief? That apart from quickening grace, the grace of the Holy Spirit bringing their blind eyes, opening their eyes and giving them the light of the Gospel, we cannot save them. So remember this as you interact with those who do not know our Lord Jesus Christ, the light of the world, and pray, pray that God by His Word and Spirit would open blind eyes to the glory of His Son. There's a warning here too, isn't there? For any of you who hide your sin, to any of you who deny it, or who do not embrace Jesus Christ, the light of the world, One description of eternal judgment is that outer darkness into which our Savior at the last day will cast all those who do not know Him. Outer darkness. Heaven, on one hand, is the place where there is light, everlasting light and glory. Hell is the place of outer darkness and judgment. I warn you, flee from the wrath to come and lay hold of Jesus Christ as he's offered in the gospel and recognize and quote John Calvin here, outside of Christ, there is not even a spark of true light. Outside of Christ, there is not even a spark of true light. The one savior, the one light of the world, the only one who can bring us darkened, ruined sinners to the light and the glory of the Father. And I encourage you, all those who have laid hold of Jesus Christ as the light of the world and seek to walk in his light by his spirit, that we press toward a day in which we will no longer need the sun or the moon or the stars that we read of in our scripture reading from Genesis chapter one. We press for new heavens and a new earth, a new city, Jerusalem. Revelation 21, verse 22, John speaks of that city. I saw no temple in it, for the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are its temple. The city had no need of the sun or of the moon to shine in it, for the glory of God illuminated it. The Lamb is its light, or its lamp. That we press toward a day New heavens and new earth, all tears wiped away, all sin and darkness done away with. and we will be forever with the Lord, delighting in the worship of God triune, falling down at the feet of the Lamb, our Lord Jesus Christ, who has washed us in his blood, has brought us to the Father, and who himself is the very light of God, opening our eyes to the full glory of God triune and enabling us to worship. world without end. We press toward that hope, toward that place, that life-giving light, immortality, life with God. Rejoice, delight, sing God's praise, recognizing that our Savior is the light of the world, and that he who follows that light shall not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life. Let's pray. Gracious God and Eternal Heavenly Father, how thankful we are for the precious light of the Gospel. The light of Your Word and the way that it exposes our sin and our darkness, but yet also opens our blinded eyes to the glory of Your Son. Lord, we ask for those who have never repented of their sin, come to Christ in faith, that you by your Spirit would enable them to forsake the darkness of sin and embrace Jesus Christ, the light of the world. For all of us, Lord, we pray that You would enable us to walk in the light, to live as the children of the light who have the full truth of Your glory and Your grace, that we would embrace it, that we would know these realities experientially in our lives, that we would press toward that day. When we dwell in the new city, Jerusalem, the place in which the lamp is the light thereof, and we sing your praise world without end, forgive our many sins and enable us to worship you and to live in the light of the gospel. We pray these things in Jesus name. Amen. And go with the blessing of our trying God. And now may the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ and the love of God and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all. Amen.