Then Jesus again spoke to them, saying, “I am the Light of the world; he who follows Me will not walk in the darkness, but will have the Light of life.” John 8:12
INTRO: Last week we began exploring the question, What entered world at Christmas?
I said that we would look at four Christmas gifts related to “I am” statements made by Jesus and recorded in John’s gospel
– Last week our meditation was on his claim, “I am the Bread of Life”
– today we will consider his announcement, “I am the Light of the world”
We want to look at this carefully, because the passage is outrageous!
– in the Hebrew Scriptures, God has a name – Yahweh
In time, the people of Israel considered it to be so sacred that they stopped pronouncing it
– translated, Yahweh means: “I am who I am” or simply “I am” – What does this mean?
- God is the One who exists – absolute being (He. 11:6)
- the One whose existence transcends time! Eternal
– never, “I was” or “I will be” or become - therefore, the one who is always present
– whatever exists, exists in him (Jn. 1:3; Acts 17:28) read more…
Draw near to God and He will draw near to youThe critics of Jesus made no effort to restrain their anger and contempt. On different occasions they accused him of blasphemy, violating God’s law, and being in partnership with demons. Jesus knew what it was to be the target of others who turned their malice on him. They vented their misery on the Lord as if he were the cause of it rather than the cure.
Righteous people–religious people–and professional clergy “became indignant” when they “saw the wonderful things He had done.” Some of us find it difficult to connect with these people. We feel more like the dying thief who said, “We are receiving what we deserve . . ., but this man has done nothing wrong” (Lk. 23:41). Sadly, there are too many believers who are very like the chief priests and scribes–easily angered and quick to express it.
Jesus was not affected by their anger nor did he throw it back at them. He let himself become their target. When he spoke, it was in defense of others–people in need who came to God’s house of prayer and were being exploited, the blind and lame who came to him to be healed, and the children, who once again enter the story to show adults the way to live and behave before God.
It is the beauty of Your life, O Lord, that makes us love You and long to know You more and more. We are fascinated by the restraint You showed with those who abused You, Your willingness to put up with their cruelty, and, at the same time, Your unrelenting compassion for the sinners, the disabled, the outcasts, the children, and for us.
Jesus said to them, “I am the bread of life; he who comes to Me will not hunger, and he who believes in Me will never thirst. John 6:35
INTRO: I’m going to set Luke aside for now and come back to it the first of the year
What we’ll do for the next for weeks is think about Christmas
– specifically, we’ll ask, “What entered the world on Christmas?”
– as we unwrap the answer, we’ll find a bunch of Christmas gifts
So what (or Who) entered the world?
– the gospels tell us that it was Jesus
In Matthew, Jesus is not only named, but he receives a title (Isa. 7:14)
– Emmanuel, “which translated means ‘God with us’” (Mt. 1:23)
– specifically, the God who revealed himself as Yahweh – I am
There are several instances in John’s gospel when Jesus makes an “I am” statement
– we will be looking at four of them
– today, “I am the bread of life” read more…
Draw near to God and He will draw near to youThere was no committee to plan Jesus’ grand entrance into Jerusalem, organize advance rallies, or hang “Jesus is the Messiah” banners. Jesus had to make the preparations himself. No trumpets greeted his arrival, but as soon as he began his descent, the crowds that knew him and his ministry announced him with their voices and provided their coats to give him a red carpet welcome.
When Jesus sent two disciples to fetch his ride, all he gave them was a simple set of instructions. No money, no appointments with important people, and no miracle. However, his instructions called for bold daring on their part. When they began untying the colt that was tethered near the entrance to the village, someone might challenge them and ask, “What do you think you’re doing?”
If that should happen, they were to say, “The Lord has need of them.” That would be their cover. How could bystanders know that by “Lord” the disciples meant Jesus and not the owner?
It is far too easy to get distracted when we are supposed to be doing the Lord’s work. We think we need organizations, funds, months of planning, and hopefully a miracle or two if our efforts are going to amount to anything significant. But there are more resources available to us than we realize. There are plenty of cost-free ways to pursue God’s will that only require faith, courage and daring. Jesus would have it this way, so that he can at all times remain the center of our total attention and devotion.
And He came out and proceeded as was His custom to the Mount of Olives; and the disciples also followed Him. When He arrived at the place, He said to them, “Pray that you may not enter into temptation.” Luke 22:39-40 (read vv. 39-71)
INTRO: If you have been to Israel, remember what it looked like and felt like when you were on the Mount of Olives
That is where we catch up with Jesus in this story
– what do we learn from being here and witnessing these events?
– but before we make that discovery . . .
Do you have a secret — a secret fear? longing? sorrow? experience? pain?
– the reason we keep secrets is because we don’t trust others:
- that they can deal with it
- that they can help with it
- that they will be able to understand it
Some secrets we keep from ourselves (the Greek word for secret also means hidden)
– so then we remain blind to what drives us – we never figure out why we act as we do read more…
When the hour had come, He reclined at the table, and the apostles with Him. And He said to them, “I have earnestly desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer” Luke 22:15 (read vv. 1-38)
INTRO: Why are we here this morning?
We want God – we want to belong to Him
– to develop a constant awareness of him and contact with him
– to be inspired, directed, and empowered by him
– to be agents of his love in the world
God has helped men and women who’ve walked this path
– guided them to freedom from other preoccupations
– nurtured their spirits to greater sensitivity read more…
And He said, “See to it that you are not misled; for many will come in My name, saying, ‘I am He,’ and, ‘The time is near.’ Do not go after them. Luke 21:8 (read vv. 5-38)
INTRO: What’s your gut reaction when you hear, someone say, “We’re coming close to the end”?
Or, “These are the last days”?
– it seems that there is always someone announcing the end of the world
– of course, not all of the the doomsday people are Christians
- Do we see more stability, less violence, or improved international ties in the Arab countries where dictatorships have recently been toppled?
- Do the current financial crises in Greece and Italy improve our outlook on the world economy?
- Does the fact that Iran has nuclear weapons capability help us sleep better at night?
We can agree with the “End Times” enthusiasts at least on one point: we face an uncertain future
In Luke 21, Jesus predicted the fall of Jerusalem and his coming “with power and great glory”
– as we enter the text, we immediately come to two challenges that need to be resolved:
- To clearly understand as precisely as possible what Jesus is saying
- To fit the teaching of this chapter into the rest of his teaching and ministry
– in other words, into the context of the whole story
Draw near to God and He will draw near to youOnly a few moments prior to this scene, the mother of two disciples bowed before Jesus and requested that in his kingdom her two sons would have the honor of sitting one at his right and the other at his left (vv. 20-21). Now two beggars shout at Jesus and they, too, want something from him.
Jesus asked them, “What do you want Me to do for you?” knowing that there was nothing they could ask that he could not give them. When they asked him to open their eyes, his kind heart was moved with compassion, he touched them, and “immediately they regained their sight” (v. 34).
How many people passed the beggars every day without offering them a single coin, a piece of bread, or a cup of water? But Jesus could not pass them by without asking, “What do you want?” Then he satisfied their want, and having received their sight, they were able to follow him.
When people request to meet with me, I could ask, “What do you want?” but there is precious little I can give them. A slice of time, a bit of wisdom, a prayer is about all I have to offer. In fact, there were times when the first thing a counselee said to me was, “I know you can’t do anything for me.” They were right. But when Jesus asks . . . well, that’s a different story.
O Jesus, Son of God, You are all that we need. What do we want, Lord? We may say, “Money to pay bills,” when what we really want is a peace and that cannot be purchased for any amount of money. Not knowing our own hearts, we ask for the best gift, “Lord, we want our eyes to be opened.”
And they were unable to catch Him in a saying in the presence of the people; and being amazed at His answer, they became silent. Luke 20:26 (read 20:20-21:4)
INTRO: We are down to the final days of Jesus’ public ministry and they are filled with conflict – one confrontation after another
Luke makes it clear what Jesus’ opponents are trying to do: “in order to catch Him in some statement”
– their intention is either to accuse him to the (Roman) governor (20) or shame him in public (26)
We are used to reading about the skirmishes in this chapter and being amazed at Jesus’ wisdom
– but I think we usually miss something truly profound in his responses read more…
. . . and they spoke, saying to Him, “Tell us by what authority You are doing these things, or who is the one who gave You this authority?” Jesus answered and said to them, “I will also ask you a question, and you tell Me: Was the baptism of John from heaven or from men?” Luke 20:1-3 (read vv. 1-19)
INTRO: Perhaps the most critical question regarding Christianity is, “Why Jesus?”
Why not another teacher? Or simply God?
Luke uses a confrontation between religious leaders and Jesus to raise this question
– the rest of the story is built around the answer
Chapters 20 – 21 form a single unit, which we could title, “Jesus Teaching In the Temple”
– this unit was introduced by the word “approach” (three times in chapter 19)
– Luke indicates the beginning and end of the unit by making references to Jesus teaching in the temple (20:1 & 21:37-38)
– then the next unit begins in 22:1, where once again the word “approach” signals the new section (this time, the approach of Passover) read more…
Daily Meditations From the Scriptures