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Scripture Reading: John 8:1-12, 24, 31-32, 34, 36, 39-41, 44, 46, 51, 56, 58
John 8:1-12 says, “Jesus...early in the morning...came again into the temple, and all the people came to Him...The scribes and Pharisees brought a woman caught in adultery, and having set her in the midst, they said to Him, Teacher, this woman has been caught committing adultery, in the very act. Now in the law, Moses commanded us to stone such women. What then do You say? But they said this to tempt Him, so that they might have reason to accuse Him. But Jesus stooped down and wrote with His finger on the ground. But when they persisted in questioning Him, He stood up and said to them, He who is without sin among you, let him be the first to throw a stone at her. And again He stooped down and wrote on the ground. And when they heard that, they went out one by one, beginning with the older ones. And Jesus was left alone, and the woman stood where she was, in the midst. And Jesus stood up and said to her, Woman, where are they? Has no one condemned you? And she said, No one, Lord. And Jesus said, Neither do I condemn you; go, and from now on sin no more. Again therefore Jesus spoke to them, saying, I am the light of the world; he who follows Me shall by no means walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life.”
Chapter 8 continues, “I said to you that you will die in your sins; for unless you believe that I am, you will die in your sins...Then Jesus said to those Jews who believed Him, If you abide in My word, you are truly My disciples; and you shall know the truth, and the truth shall set you free...Jesus answered them, Truly, truly, I say to you, Everyone who commits sin is a slave of sin...If therefore the Son sets you free, you shall be free indeed...They answered and said to Him, Our father is Abraham. Jesus said to them, If you were Abraham’s children, you would do the works of Abraham. But now you are seeking to kill Me, a man who has told you the truth which I heard from God; Abraham did not do this. You do the works of your father...You are of your father the devil, and you want to do the desires of your father. He was a murderer from the beginning and does not stand in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaks the lie, he speaks it out of his own possessions; for he is a liar and the father of it...Which of you convicts Me of sin? Since I speak truth, why do you not believe Me?...Truly, truly, I say to you, If anyone keeps My word, he shall by no means see death forever...Your father Abraham exulted that he would see My day, and he saw it and rejoiced...Jesus said to them, Truly, truly, I say to you, Before Abraham came into being, I am” (vv. 24, 31-32, 34, 36, 39-41, 44, 46, 51, 56, 58).
John 8 presents the sixth kind of people whom the Lord Jesus contacted — the sinful. The Gospel of John presents various kinds of people to show that the Lord Jesus is the God of heaven who has come to be man’s life in order to supply the needs of every kind of person. Chapter 8 shows the Lord Jesus coming to be man’s life in order to solve the great problem of sin. In the Gospel of John only chapter 8 shows that the Lord Jesus’ coming to be man’s life solves man’s problem of sin. Not many chapters in the Bible are as thorough as John 8 regarding the problem of sin. We will consider twelve points in this chapter in order to see how the Lord Jesus meets the need of the sinful.
All the people in the world are sinful. John 8 proves in two ways that all people are sinful. The first way to show us this is symbolic. This chapter is a record of a woman who committed adultery. If we read this record carefully, we will see that the Spirit uses this case to symbolize the sinful condition of all the people in the world. In the Bible the woman represents man’s standing before God. The people of the world have the standing of a woman before God. Therefore, this woman represents all humanity, and her adultery signifies that all humanity commits the sin of adultery.
The spiritual significance of adultery is that a person has other loves, other pursuits, apart from God. In principle, we commit sins because we have another love, another pursuit besides God. Our sins can be compared to a woman loving someone other than her husband. Every person in the world has a love, a pursuit of something that is not God. Therefore, every person has committed the sin of spiritual fornication before God.
When the self-righteous scribes and Pharisees questioned the Lord Jesus about the woman who had committed adultery, their thought was that only she had committed adultery, not that they too had sinned before God. The Lord Jesus, however, countered their question by saying, “He who is without sin among you, let him be the first to throw a stone at her” (v. 7). The Lord seemed to be asking, “Who is without sin among you? You say that this woman is adulterous, but before God you are no different than this woman.” The Lord Jesus put these self-righteous people on the same standing as the convicted woman.
John 8 is very explicit in proving that all people are sinful. When the Lord Jesus said that the person who was without sin should be the first to throw a stone, He was saying that the scribes and the Pharisees were sinful. The Jews regarded the scribes and Pharisees as the noblest and most moral people. They were also self-righteous. If they could not escape the Lord Jesus’ convicting words, who can escape being convicted by Him? Who would dare to say that he is without sin? The scribes and Pharisees brought a sinful woman to the Lord Jesus with the intention of ensnaring Him, but instead, the Lord Jesus confounded them. They brought the woman to the Lord Jesus in order to condemn her, but instead they were convicted by the Lord Jesus. The scribes and Pharisees saw only that the woman had sinned; they did not see that they were just like the woman. Because they did not know themselves, they brought the woman to the Lord Jesus and questioned Him. When they brought the woman to the Lord, they did not realize that they were bringing themselves to the Lord for judgment, because their condition before God was the same as the woman’s condition.
The scribes and Pharisees had a high reputation and standing among the Jews; they were very powerful people. They brought the woman caught in adultery in order to threaten the Lord Jesus. That day they were in the temple, and they set the woman in the midst and questioned the Lord Jesus, saying, “Teacher, this woman has been caught committing adultery, in the very act. Now in the law, Moses commanded us to stone such women. What then do You say?” (vv. 4-5). Verse 6 says that “they said this to tempt Him, so that they might have reason to accuse Him.” The scribes and Pharisees thought that they could ensnare the Lord Jesus and have a reason to accuse Him. If the Lord Jesus said that they should not stone the woman, He would be acting contrary to the law of Moses and could not have been from God. If He had said that they should stone her, He would have been acting contrary to His being the Savior who came to save sinners. Therefore, the scribes and Pharisees must have been haughty and insolent when they questioned the Lord Jesus.
The Lord Jesus, however, was fine and wise. He was not quick to answer the scribes and Pharisees; instead, He stooped down and wrote with His finger on the ground. They continued to question Him, and He continued to write. We can imagine the scene. On the one hand, the scribes and Pharisees were haughty and insolent. On the other hand, the sinful woman was in fear and trembling. Under these circumstances the Lord Jesus stooped down and wrote with His finger on the ground. His stooping down must have given the impression of humility and lowliness. This was in stark contrast to the accusing scribes and Pharisees. When the Lord stooped down, He calmed the arrogant scribes and Pharisees, and He also comforted the woman. Then He gave the self-righteous scribes and Pharisees the opportunity to think about themselves.
Because the scribes and Pharisees persisted in questioning the Lord, He stood up and said, “He who is without sin among you, let him be the first to throw a stone at her” (v. 7). They questioned the Lord Jesus in order to trap Him. In His reply the Lord Jesus judged and convicted them. He seemed to say, “Look at this sinful woman. You have also sinned before God. Whoever among you is without sin should be the first to throw a stone at her.” These words touched their conscience. When the scribes and Pharisees heard this, they were judged. Their morality and ethics were a hypocrisy. The Lord Jesus pricked their conscience slightly, and they could not do anything. “When they heard that, they went out one by one, beginning with the older ones” (v. 9). Their leaving was their confessing that none of them was without sin. The older ones were the first to leave, followed by the younger ones. The conscience of an older person is often more sensitive. An older person has more sins, and his conscience has more holes. Therefore, the older ones were the first to flee. The younger ones saw that the older ones had fled, and they too fled. They fled because their conscience convicted them of their sins; they could not stand the Lord Jesus’ word. The sinful woman was not condemned by the Lord Jesus, but the self-righteous scribes and Pharisees, who condemned others, were condemned by the Lord Jesus. The scribes and Pharisees were judged by Him. The Lord Jesus did not plan this, but their self-righteousness forced Him to speak so that they might judge and condemn themselves. The Lord Jesus wanted the scribes and Pharisees to know that the woman whom they condemned was sinful and that they were sinful as well. Even though she had sinned outwardly, they were sinful as well. Both the dishonorable and the honorable were sinful.
When we are about to condemn others for sinning, we should realize that we have the same illness. When we see a thief, we should ask ourselves whether we are “civilized” thieves. We are still thieves if we use different tactics and tricks to get others’ riches. Some thieves hold a gun, but other thieves hold a pen. I am afraid that there are more pen-holding thieves than there are gun-holding thieves.
We may say that someone who commits adultery does not have good conduct, but we also should ask whether we have good conduct. Are we inwardly clean? We may pretend before others, but we cannot pretend before the Lord Jesus. From the human perspective, there are good people and bad people, but from the Lord’s perspective, everyone is the same. People differ only in degrees. Even if others are big sinners, we can be small sinners. Others may be barbaric sinners, but we can be civilized sinners. This chapter of the Bible proves that all people in the world sin.
All the sins committed by people in the world are spiritual fornication. The standing of people in the world before God is that of a woman. The greatest sin that a woman can commit is fornication. Fornication is unchastity. Therefore, man’s greatest sin before God is his infidelity to God, that is, his having other loves besides God. Without exception all the sins that man commits before God are in this principle. From God’s perspective, all of man’s sins are spiritual fornication. No matter what sins we have committed, they were loves and pursuits apart from God. If we loved only God, we could not sin. We are women, and God is our Husband. Could we sin if we were chaste toward God? We all sin because we pursue other things, not God. From God’s perspective, all the sins that we commit are spiritual fornication. The adulterous woman in John 8 is our representative, because before God we are each an adulterous woman who has committed fornication.
John 8 shows that sin is of the devil. People sin because they have a sinning life. This sinning life comes from the devil. The Jews said that Abraham was their father (v. 39). However, the Lord Jesus said that Abraham was not their father, because they did not have Abraham’s God-loving life. Rather, their life was a hating, murderous, and lying life. Such a life is of the devil. Therefore, the Lord Jesus said that they were of their father the devil (v. 44). They were children of the devil. The Lord Jesus said that the devil was a murderer from the beginning and a liar, and he is the father of lies. Hence, everyone who sins has the life of the devil, is of the devil, and is a child of the devil. As a result, everyone lives the devil’s sinning life.
We might not accept or admit that we are children of the devil with the life of the devil. The Lord Jesus said that the devil is a murderer and that the devil is a liar and the father of liars (v. 44). Whether we have the life of the devil can be seen in whether we murder or lie. We may say that we have never killed anyone. Murder, however, comes from hatred. Murder is an outward behavior, but hatred is an inward thought. Hatred is the seed of murder, and murder is the fruit of hatred. Without thoughts of hatred there would not be the behavior of murder. We may not have murdered anyone, because the law or other reasons have prevented us, but do we murder people in our mind? Do we hate people? Can we say that we have never hated anyone? We do not hate people when they flatter us or are good to us. But as soon as they do us some injustice, ill-treat us, or make things difficult for us, we hate them. Some people hold a grudge against their supervisors and look for opportunities to retaliate, because their job was made more difficult. Other people hate those whom they formerly loved because they are no longer affectionate. When hatred is manifested uncouthly and recklessly, it assaults, uses force, disfigures, or murders. When hatred is manifested cleverly and insidiously, it secretly plots, incriminates, supplants, or ostracizes. Many things in the heart are not manifested. Are we free of these things? Those who know themselves admit that it is so easy to have thoughts of hatred toward people. If a rickshaw hits us on the road, we have so much hatred that we want to beat up the driver. If a produce vendor cheats us with old produce, we are so angry that we want to curse him. It is also easy for us to loathe or hate our parents and siblings. These examples prove that our human life is of the devil. God is love; only the devil is hate. The feeling of hatred and the desire to murder prove that our human life is of the devil.
Furthermore, we are liars. We are of the devil because we lie, for the devil is the father of liars. Therefore, whether we are children of the devil is seen in whether we lie. We must admit that we are liars. We all have the ability to lie. We can use any part of our body to lie. Some people wink to tell a lie. Others can lie by shaking their head or waving their hand. We lie, and we also ask others to lie. For example, someone may ask us a question, and our spouse may want to answer yes, but with a discreet wave of our hand, she quickly says no. In this situation we have told a lie, and we have asked our spouse to lie for us. It is very convenient to lie. Such lying proves that our human life of sinning comes from the devil.
John 8 not only says that all people sin but also that all sinners are begotten of the devil and have the devil’s sinning life within them.
John 8 says that all people are slaves of sin. On the one hand, people in the world are children of the devil with the life of the devil, and on the other hand, they are slaves of sin under the bondage of sin, having no freedom. When the Lord Jesus spoke of freedom, the scribes and Pharisees impatiently said, “We are Abraham’s seed and have never yet been enslaved to anyone. How is it that You say, You shall become free?” (v. 33). The Lord Jesus answered, “Truly, truly, I say to you, Everyone who commits sin is a slave of sin” (v. 34). If we sin, we are under the bondage of sin and have no freedom. What does it mean to be under the bondage of sin and to be without freedom? Man does not want to commit sins, but he cannot withstand the power of sin. This proves that those who are under the bondage of sin are not free.
The Bible reveals that sin is not only outward actions; sin is also a power dwelling in man. Sin is living and powerful, sin has authority over people, and sin can bind people. No one intentionally wants to sin, but there is a power within man that forces him to sin, to take the way of the fall. For example, the addiction to smoking or to drinking is related to power. A person may try to hide these habits, but the history of a bitter struggle remains in his heart. People repeatedly repent and reproach themselves and determine to quit, but they are subdued by the power of these addictions; they are powerless. This is what it means to be a slave of sin. No one in the world is free; everyone is a slave of sin under the power and authority of sin; everyone struggles and moans, having no way to escape.
All the people in the world are under the condemnation of the law of God. Because people sin, they are condemned by the law of God. According to the law, the woman who committed adultery should have been condemned and stoned to death. In the eyes of God we too should have been condemned and put to death. The Bible says, “The soul who sins, he shall die” (Ezek. 18:4). God is righteous; hence, His law condemns sinners. Sin always results in death. This is our standing before God. What a fearful matter this is! How can we overlook this?
People in the world die in their sins. The Lord Jesus seemed to be saying, “Because you sin, you will die in your sins. Unless you believe that I am, you will die in your sins. You were born in sin, you grew up in sin, and you are living in sin; therefore, you will die in your sins.” If you do not repent and receive the Lord Jesus as your Savior who saves you from the result of sin, you will die in your sins and perish.
Religion and religious ordinances cannot solve the problem of sin; instead, they resist the Lord Jesus’ salvation for sinners. The Gospel of John shows that the Lord Jesus came as life in order to save every kind of person. The Gospel of John also describes the strong resistance that the Lord Jesus encountered from Judaism. In chapter 5 He met the impotent man on a Sabbath day and a feast day of the Jews. It should have been a day of rest and joy. But this man had been sick for thirty-eight years and had neither rest nor joy. He had no rest or joy until he was saved by the Lord Jesus. After he was saved, the Jewish religionists said, “It is the Sabbath, and it is not lawful for you to do this” (cf. v. 10). The Lord Jesus came to heal and save man, but Judaism opposed Him. The Lord Jesus came to be man’s life in order to supply man’s needs and to deliver man from his problems, but the strongest opposition that He encountered was from religion and its ordinances.
Religion and its ordinances resist the life of the Lord Jesus. Wherever there is religion or religious regulations and ordinances, the life of the Lord Jesus is resisted and restricted. If you join a religion and accept its ordinances, you will see that its ordinances will resist your receiving the life of the Lord Jesus.
In John 8 the Lord Jesus was in the temple. At that time the temple represented Judaism. The temple in John 8 does not have a good connotation, because the people in the temple did not want God; they rejected Him. Hence, the temple represents God-rejecting Judaism. There was also the Judaic law; the scribes and Pharisees said that the Judaic law commanded them to stone the adulterous woman. This picture shows that Judaism and the law could not save the adulterous woman. Only the Savior could save this woman, but Judaism and its laws became a resistance to the Savior. Religion and religious ordinances cannot solve the problem of sin for man; rather, they resist the Lord Jesus’ salvation.
Sinners are dead in sin. Religion and religious ordinances are also dead. Dead religion and dead religious ordinances cannot save or heal dead sinners. Dead religion and dead religious ordinances are of no help to dead sinners. Dead sinners need a living Savior, a Savior of life. Only the living Savior can save dead sinners and give them a sin-delivering life by enlivening them. The living Savior is the Lord Jesus. He is the living God, the Lord of life, who comes to the people in the world with His divine life so that He might heal and save sinners who are dead in sin. However, His healing and saving life encounters strong opposition and resistance from religion and religious ordinances. Religion and religious ordinances are dead and impotent, and they are incapable of saving people who are dead in sin. The only thing that they are capable of doing is to resist the salvation of the Lord Jesus, the living Savior.
We must bear in mind that religion and religious ordinances can only resist the Lord’s salvation in man; they cannot solve man’s problem of sin. A person who accepts a religion or keeps a religious ordinance has something in him that resists the life of the Lord Jesus. If his believing in the Lord Jesus is merely a matter of accepting Christian ordinances, then Christianity with its ordinances will become an element of resistance to the life of the Lord Jesus. Religion and its ordinances are dead and cannot save man. Instead, they become a great hindrance to the practical salvation that the Lord Jesus wants to carry out in man. Therefore, a person should accept only the living Savior, not dead religion or dead religious ordinances.
Only the Lord Jesus is sinless and qualified to condemn man, yet He did not condemn the woman. The Lord Jesus asked the crowd who opposed Him, “Which of you convicts Me of sin?” (v. 46). Here we see a stark contrast. A large crowd surrounded the Lord Jesus to ensnare Him. When He countered their question by asking who is without sin, they could not stand. They sensed their sinfulness and fled. Eventually, the Lord Jesus stood before the crowd and asked, “Which of you convicts Me of sin?” Dare we ask such a question? If we would ask such a question, I believe that all our acquaintances would testify against us. However, when the Lord Jesus confronted His opposers and faultfinders, no one could testify of any sin in Him. This proves that in the universe He alone is sinless.
Since the Lord Jesus is the only sinless One, only He is qualified to condemn others. The self-righteous scribes and Pharisees condemned others, but they too were sinful before God; they were not qualified to condemn others. In the universe only the Lord Jesus is without sin; therefore, only He is qualified to condemn us. Even though the Lord is qualified to condemn us, He said to the woman, “Neither do I condemn you” (v. 11). God did not send Him into the world to condemn the world but “that the world might be saved through Him” (3:17).
The scribes and Pharisees left one by one because their conscience was convicted. Only the sinful woman and the Lord Jesus were left. She probably thought, “I escaped the condemnation of one group of people, but I may not escape the condemnation of Jesus.” She might still have been in fear and trembling, waiting for judgment. In that quiet and tense atmosphere the Lord Jesus stood up and asked, “Woman, where are they? Has no one condemned you?” (8:10). The Lord Jesus seemed to say, “These people caught you in order to condemn you, but where are they now? Have they all gone away because of my question to them? No one remains to condemn you.” In response to the Lord’s question, “Has no one condemned you?” the woman answered, “No one, Lord” (v. 11). Her reply was short, but it is very meaningful. She did not call the Lord Jesus “Teacher,” like the scribes and the Pharisees (v. 4). She called the Lord Jesus “Lord.” She must have called Him Lord because she had observed that He was extraordinary. She saw that the scribes and the Pharisees, who were respected by all, could not stand up to just one question from Jesus. She saw how they came with a haughty and imposing air to question the Lord Jesus and sentence her to death. But they all left when He questioned them. She saw that the crowd wanted to deal with Him, but instead, they were dealt with by Him and lost their footing. Therefore, she must have thought that Jesus was an extraordinary man with authority over people. Hence, she called Him “Lord.” When she called Him “Lord,” she acknowledged that He is the Lord.
She might have thought that although those people did not condemn her, the Lord would. She must have been quite fearful, waiting for the Lord’s condemnation. To her surprise, however, the Lord Jesus said to her, “Neither do I condemn you.” Please pay attention to the word neither. The Lord Jesus seemed to be saying, “None of them condemned you, and neither do I condemn you. They did not condemn you, because they are sinful. They sinned and are sinful; therefore, they cannot condemn you. I am without sin, and I have never sinned. I could condemn you, but neither will I condemn you.” This must have given such comfort and release to that sinful woman who was in fear and trembling. It was the gospel, a tiding of great joy, to her.
What sweet words: “Neither do I condemn you”! What a loving voice! This is truly the gospel. The I in neither do I condemn you is the God of heaven. He became a man, came to the earth, stood in front of a great sinner, and said to her, “Neither do I condemn you.” No one in the human race is qualified to condemn man but the Lord Jesus. However, neither does He condemn us. This is the gospel! Although He is able to condemn, He does not condemn. Do you sense that you are sinful? Are you grieved and sorrowful over your sins? Does your conscience convict you? Please listen to the words of the Lord Jesus: “Neither do I condemn you.”
Only the Lord Jesus can forgive sins and save man from sin and death. The Lord Jesus’ not condemning man’s sins is His forgiving of man’s sins. He is the righteous God, who can condemn man’s sins according to His righteousness, but He bore man’s sins on the cross, suffered the penalty of death on man’s behalf, and satisfied the requirement of God’s righteousness. Therefore, He, and He alone, can forgive man’s sins.
John 8 also reveals that only the Lord Jesus can deliver man from sin. The Lord Jesus could have condemned the adulterous woman, but He did not condemn her. This was His forgiving her of her sins. The Lord not only forgave her sins, but He also said, “From now on sin no more” (v. 11). The Lord’s word meant that He would deliver her from sin so that she would sin no more. The Lord Jesus can set man free so that man is free indeed. He can save, release, and deliver man from sin so that he is no longer a slave of sin under the authority of sin and no longer bound by sin.
The Lord Jesus also said, “If anyone keeps My word, he shall by no means see death forever” (v. 51). This is to never taste death. This means that only the Lord Jesus can save man from death. He can forgive us our sins and save us from the power of sin so that we are no longer in sin and therefore will not die in sin. The taste of death will leave us. Therefore, the Lord can save us from sin, and He can also save us from death. His salvation is perfect.
The Lord Jesus is the I Am. How can the Lord Jesus deliver man from sin? How can He deliver man from death? This is a great mystery. In John 8 the Lord Jesus said, “Unless you believe that I am, you will die in your sins.” In the following verse the Jews asked, “Who are You?” (vv. 24-25). The Lord Jesus can deliver man from sin and from death because He is the I Am.
What does I Am mean? In order to understand this, we must look at the Old Testament. In the Old Testament, God is often called by two names, God and Jehovah. God emphasizes His being the mighty Creator. Jehovah means “I Am,” and it speaks of God’s relationship with man. When God reveals this name to man, He tells man that He is everything to man; He can meet all man’s needs. Whatever man needs, He is. Therefore, in the Old Testament the name Jehovah is often followed by a secondary name to form a compound name, such as Jehovah-shalom (meaning “I am peace”) (Judg. 6:24), Jehovah-jireh (meaning “I will provide”) (Gen. 22:14), and Jehovah-nissi (meaning “I am your banner”) (Exo. 17:15). In other words, if man needs peace, God is peace; if man needs a supply, God is the provision; and if man needs victory, God is the banner that gives man victory. God has a relationship with man because He is everything to man in such a way.
This is what Jehovah means by I Am (3:14). The Lord Jesus is Jehovah who has a relationship with man. Therefore, Abraham exulted to see Him, and before Abraham came into being, He was. Jesus is the God, the I Am, who became flesh to become man’s everything. He is the great I Am, the all-inclusive I Am, who can meet all of man’s needs. By His name He tells us that He is everything to us; He is all that we need. If we are thirsty and need living water, He is the living water. If we are hungry and need spiritual food, He is the spiritual food. If we are in darkness and need light, He is light. If we are sick and need healing, He is healing. If we are under the bondage of sin and need a Savior, He is the Savior. If we are afraid of death and need life, He is life. Whatever we need, He is. His name is I Am. He has given us His name. There is a blank after the I Am for us to fill in. This is like a blank check for us to write any amount according to our need. By faith we can write what we need after the I Am. Whatever we fill out by faith, He is. As much as our faith can fill out is what He will be to us. Only such a Savior, the I Am, is the need of the sinful. Only such a Savior, the I Am, can solve the problem of man’s sin. Only such a Savior, the I Am, can save man from sin and death.
The Lord Jesus is the light of the world. Before the Lord Jesus said that He is the I Am, He said, “I am the light of the world” (John 8:12). His being the light of the world is related to man’s sin. John 8 is concerning the need of the sinful and how the Lord Jesus meets this need to save man from sin. The Lord Jesus saves man from sin by being light, because all who are in sin are in darkness. Darkness has blinded man so that he cannot see the defilement and dreadfulness of sin. Hence, man cannot and will not come out of sin.
The scribes and the Pharisees saw only the sins of others, and they were determined to condemn others. They did not know their own deceit, malice, and hypocrisy. They were in darkness and could not receive the Lord Jesus as the Savior to save them from sin.
This is the situation today. Man’s heart is becoming increasingly evil and morally depraved. People argue that they live by their conscience but refuse to believe in the Lord Jesus. People sin, commit evil, live in debauchery, and are utterly corrupt, but they do not feel a need for a Savior to deliver them. Even if they are exhorted to turn to the Savior, they are unwilling to take Him, because darkness has blinded them in sin. The Bible says, “The god of this age [the devil] has blinded the thoughts of the unbelievers that the illumination of the gospel of the glory of Christ...might not shine on them” (2 Cor. 4:4).
Therefore, in order to be delivered from sin, a person needs to be delivered from darkness. Only light can deliver people from darkness. People of the world cannot be delivered from darkness, because they do not have light. Without light, a person walks and lives in darkness. The Lord Jesus declared, “I am the light of the world; he who follows Me shall by no means walk in darkness” (John 8:12). The only way to no longer walk in darkness or no longer live in sin is by following Him and receiving Him as the light of the world. This is the way to be delivered from darkness and sin.
The Lord Jesus is the light of the world, and those who follow Him shall have the light of life (v. 12). Therefore, He is the light of life. This light is not the light of the sun, the moon, or a lamp shining on us. This light is His life entering into us and shining, inwardly illuminating us.
Concerning the Lord Jesus, John 1:4 says, “In Him was life, and the life was the light of men.” The eternal life of God was hidden in the Lord Jesus. When this life enters into us, it manifests a shining function. This shining function is light. This light is of life and is an operation of life; thus, it is called the light of life. When the light of life shines in us, we are brought out of darkness and hence out of sin.
The Lord Jesus does not save us outwardly by religious regulations or ordinances; He saves us by the light of life. The Lord does not save us by teachings, by the restriction of religion, or by religious regulations and ordinances; He saves us by the illumination of the light of life. He is life, and when He enters into us, He becomes our light of life. The illumination of this light causes us to no longer sin and to no longer want to sin. The illumination of the light of life delivers us from sin.
Before we were saved, we were in darkness. At that time the more we sinned, the more we enjoyed sinning. For example, the more we quarreled with people, the more energetic we became and the more we thought that we were right. That was to live in darkness and to not see our own mistakes. However, after we believe in the Lord Jesus and receive Him as the light of life, this light illuminates us from within when we want to quarrel with people. In this way our anger is subdued, and we can no longer quarrel with people. We are delivered from other sins in this same way. Christianity cannot deliver us from sins, and neither can Christian teachings, regulations, or ordinances deliver us from sins. Only the illumination of Christ’s life can deliver us from sins. If we believe in the Lord Jesus, He as light will save us from every sin and enable us to live a life in the light. The salvation of the Lord Jesus is not from without but from within; it is not objective but subjective. It is the light of life that saves us inwardly from darkness and sin.
How can you be saved by the Lord Jesus? It is very simple. There are only three steps.
You must confess that you are sinful. You are a sinful person who should be condemned to perish.
You must believe in the Lord Jesus as the I Am. He is Jehovah who has a relationship with man and who wants to be man’s everything. He is God, and He is the Savior who has come to be your life. He shed His blood and died on the cross on your behalf so that your sins might be forgiven. Now He wants to enter into you to be your life, your light of life, in order to inwardly illuminate you. When you believe in Him and receive Him, you will be saved by Him from sin.
From the moment that you believe in the Lord Jesus, you should follow Him. He said, “He who follows Me shall by no means walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life” (8:12). Therefore, after you believe in the Lord Jesus, you still must follow Him. The succeeding verses explain that to follow Him is to keep His word, to accept His truth. This means that you should hear and obey His inward speaking and that you should receive the direction and leading that the light of life gives you in all things. In this way your sins will be forgiven, and the light of life will illuminate your life, dispel your darkness, and rescue you from sin. Then you will live in His life, and you will be saved from sin and death. Let us sing a hymn:
