I am the light of the world

Objection, Your Honor

Posted on by Betsy

This morning we are going to talk about two groups of people who historically did not get along. Think Hatfields and McCoys. Think Sharks and Jets. Think Penn State and Michigan football fans.

Think Jesus and the Pharisees. (If you’re thinking, “But wait! Jesus isn’t a group!” may I present the Holy Trinity for your consideration …)

A quick study of the New Testament reveals the constant conflict and tension between Jesus and the Pharisees. The Pharisees were laymen, not priests, who related to Jesus as a rabbi since they, too, were teachers. But their focus was on keeping the religious laws, including their interpretations of the religious laws, which led them farther and farther away from the purpose of the law, which was to keep the community safe in a covenant relationship with God. They had great influence with the people, and they spent a tremendous amount time arguing with Jesus and trying to discount his authority. They shepherded the crowds away from the true Good Shepherd with their bias and rejection of Jesus. Read this exchange from the Gospel according to John:

John 8 (Common English Bible)

12 Jesus spoke to the people again, saying, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me won’t walk in darkness but will have the light of life.”


13 Then the Pharisees said to him, “Because you are testifying about yourself, your testimony isn’t valid.”


14 Jesus replied, “Even if I testify about myself, my testimony is true, since I know where I came from and where I’m going. You don’t know where I come from or where I’m going. 15 You judge according to human standards, but I judge no one. 16 Even if I do judge, my judgment is truthful, because I’m not alone. My judgments come from me and from the Father who sent me. 17 In your Law it is written that the witness of two people is true. 18 I am one witness concerning myself, and the Father who sent me is the other.”

Of course the Pharisees objected! They defaulted to their faulty understanding of the law and claimed that Jesus’ testimony wasn’t valid. Jewish law stated that a man’s witness when he was testifying about himself was not legally valid if it was the only evidence. Two corroborating witness needed to speak on an issue for it to be admissible in court. Jesus responds to their invalidation of his proclamation by invalidating their perspective of the law. Indeed, his entire self-revelation was an invalidation of their misguided messianic expectations, and this is an important moment in that argument. God was the giver of the Law. God was the enforcer of the Law. And here was the Law, standing right in front of them, incarnated as Jesus. The truth of the matter was that Jesus stood in the witness box with his Father as co-defendant and the Holy Spirit as his advocate; thus there were three witnesses.

Jesus’ relationship with God provided all the validation he needed to speak. He is the only one who had seen God and could make God known to the world. But remember that the understanding of the Holy Trinity was an unknown concept at this time. We believe in a triune being of God, Son, and Holy Spirit. But the Pharisees only saw a man from Nazareth, Joseph’s son, and judged him accordingly.

The Pharisees’ love of order, law, and the minutia of little rules had led them far astray from the love and grace of the Father. Because they had lost touch with their creating and sustaining God, they could not recognize God’s redeeming son. They walked in spiritual darkness, blinded to their own blindness.

But before we judge them too harshly, we should stop and see if there is some pharisaical thinking lurking in our own hearts. Perhaps this can be a reminder to us when we are dealing with a perceived injustice or insult to look a little farther and see what lies beyond the situation. We would do well to remember that our accuser is a child of God, in need of redemption. Mercy, not judgement, is sometimes the better path.

Is there someone in your life with whom you experience constant conflict and tension? Look deeper. Go farther. Listen longer. And pray for guidance. May the Holy Spirit Advocate come and settle your heart.

Cold as Ice by Kathy Schumacher

Twinkling Light

Posted on by Betsy

Would you think me very strange if I confessed that we have left one small Christmas tree up in our family room, and every night I look forward to plugging it in? This tree is our only real attempt at decorating, as we now travel to be with family at our daughter’s homes for Christmas. This year we extended our stay for an extra week or so, and when we returned, we realized that we had just not had enough time to enjoy this festive assemblage of colorful twinkling lights and elaborate gold-laced White House ornaments, a gift that we have received every year from my in-laws. At some point we will move it back into storage, but not today.

In John 8:12, Jesus redefines the true nature of True Light:

John 8:12 (Common English Bible)

12 Jesus spoke to the people again, saying, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me won’t walk in darkness but will have the light of life.”

“Jesus spoke to the people again” alerts us to the fact that this is a continuation of his speech in the Temple in Jerusalem. To set this into context, Jesus made this speech in the Temple during the Festival of Tabernacles. This fall harvest festival was a time of commemorating God’s glory appearing in the wilderness after the exodus to guide the people, and it celebrated God’s residing in the Temple. Leviticus sets the stage for this festival of booths: “So that your future generations will know that I made the Israelites live in huts when I brought them out of the land of Egypt; I am the Lord your God” (Leviticus 23:43). The people erected booths and stayed for a week to celebrate God’s provision of harvest every year. Light played an important part in the celebration.

 We recall that in Exodus 13:21, God went before the nation of Israel into the wilderness as a pillar of fire at night. This theophany was celebrated each year in the hope and expectation that God would return to the Temple as a bright, shining, fiery light. We share this eschatological hope with our Jewish forebearers: We, too, have a hope and expectation that Jesus will return in a blaze of glory to reclaim his Temple and us, his people.

 Light is an important image in the Old Testament. God’s first creation was light (Genesis 1:3-4). God appeared to Moses from a burning bush (Exodus 3:1-3). Psalm 119 speaks of God’s word being a “light unto our paths.” Light is equated to wisdom in Ecclesiastes 2:13, and Isaiah 60 proclaims that the nation should arise and shine, for “our light has come”, a prophecy which Christians believe was completed at the Lord’s birth (Isaiah 60:1). 

 During the festival, four large lampstands in the Temple Court of the Women were lit at the end of the first day. These lamp stands produced a tremendous amount of light, so much so that it was said that there was not a courtyard in Jerusalem that didn’t reflect it. Festival goers danced around the lamp stands with burning torches, which must have made the Temple seem as though it went from night to day in that moment. It must have been beautiful! It was in the midst of this very Jewish celebration that Jesus stood up and declared himself to be the Light of the World.

It was bold. It was truth! And it was audacious. 

Have you ever felt compelled to speak the truth into a setting or situation where it was not wanted? Have you ever been confronted with a truth you did not want to hear? How did it go?

Jesus’ startling proclamation that he was the Light of the World invites us to our own startling reality: if he is the Light, we need to reflect that light in our lives. How can we live so that others see his light in us? What changes would we have to make in our behavior to stay true to that light?

We are called to be the light that illuminates the path to Jesus. Shine on, my friends!

Lent begins in less than a month! Order your copy of ReLENTless Devotion here.

Pathway to Light by Michelle Robertson

Sole Soul Vision

Posted on by Betsy

A recent sermon series had me studying the history of the beautiful Irish hymn, Be Thou My Vision. Do you know the story?It begins in ancient Ireland with St. Patrick. When he was just sixteen years old, pirates kidnapped Patrick and sold him into slavery in Ireland. Thus he entered adulthood knowing the Gaelic language and Irish customs. He also became a Christian during this time. Years later, he managed to escape and return home to his family in England. While most would have stayed home forever, Patrick chose to go back to Ireland and become a missionary  It was during this second trip, around 433, that the inspiration for Be Thou My Vision began.

The king of Ireland was King Laoghaire. He was a great Celtic High King, renowned for his ferocity and brute strength. He resided on a hill called Tara. Every year at the time of the Beltaine Festival, which occurred at the spring equinox, King Laoghaire a fire ceremony for the druids and his subjects called the Feast of Tara. The highlight of the feast was when he lit a sacred fire at the top of the hill to honor the pagan sun god, and it was left burning for a number of days.

The Hill of Tara was a cultic center where people worshiped the Celtic god of the sun, Lugh. In pagan society, the sun was given exalted importance because it is the main source of light and warmth, and it makes the plants grow, providing sustenance. Consequently, pagan sun worship was deeply embedded in the fabric of the Celtic people.

The king strictly prohibited any other fires that could be seen from Tara during the entire duration of the festival.

But there was another hill in the same region about ten miles away called the Hill of Slane. When visibility was good, it was possible to see from one hill to the other. 

St. Patrick was not intimidated by the king’s pagan festival, and defiantly disregarded the king’s order. St. Patrick lit a Paschal (meaning Easter) fire and an Easter Candle during the Vigil Service on the night before Easter. The fire was left burning and could be seen clearly from the Hill of Tara. King Laoghaire was either impressed or intimidated by Patrick’s devotion and, despite his defiance, Patrick was permitted to continue his work as Ireland’s first Christian missionary.

St. Patrick made an emphatic statement: Jesus is the light of the world, and none other, not even a pagan sun god, could hold a candle to him.

John 8 (New International Version)

12 When Jesus spoke again to the people, he said, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.”

We are called to have the same vision that Patrick had. To be a beacon of light on a hill, proclaiming the Lordship of Jesus Christ. That is the vision for the church: to act with love, justice, and righteousness as we shine the light of Christ into a dark and hurting world (Jeremiah 9:23-24). 

I am thankful that my denomination has sought to be a headlight in some of the major social issues of our time rather than a brake-light. Evangelism and social action are the two sides of a whole Gospel. Without vision, we will lose both. The church has a vision to make disciples of Jesus Christ for the transformation of the world and to bring God’s steadfast love, justice, and righteousness to all of God’s children. This is a huge task. But a church that has a vision does not ask for tasks equal to its power. A church that has a vision asks for power equal to its tasks. And this is the task we have been assigned.

Vision in this context is not just about seeing God’s vision for our church and our own lives, but also being the vision that others can see, like Patrick’s Pascal fire on that hill. When we make God our sole vision…i.e. when we say, “Naught be all else to me, save that Thou art” … we reflect his light into a world that desperately needs him.

See the vision? Be the vision.

Be a Beacon of Light