Light allows us to see what is really there. It shows us where we are, exposes what is hidden, and helps us know where to go. Jesus uses this familiar picture to make an extraordinary claim about himself.
1. Connect
People look to many different sources for guidance about what is true, what is right, and how life should be lived.
Where do you think people today look for guidance in life?
2. Read
Read together.
As you read, notice what Jesus claims about himself and how the people respond to him.
(NET2)
12 Then Jesus spoke out again, “I am the light of the world! The one who follows me will never walk in darkness but will have the light of life.” 13 So the Pharisees objected, “You testify about yourself; your testimony is not true!” 14 Jesus answered, “Even if I testify about myself, my testimony is true because I know where I came from and where I am going. But you people do not know where I came from or where I am going. 15 You people judge by outward appearances; I do not judge anyone. 16 But if I judge, my evaluation is accurate because I am not alone when I judge, but I and the Father who sent me do so together. 17 It is written in your law that the testimony of two men is true. 18 I testify about myself and the Father who sent me testifies about me.”
19 Then they began asking him, “Who is your father?” Jesus answered, “You do not know either me or my Father. If you knew me you would know my Father too.” 20 (Jesus spoke these words near the offering box while he was teaching in the temple courts. No one seized him because his time had not yet come.)
21 Then Jesus said to them again, “I am going away, and you will look for me but will die in your sin. Where I am going you cannot come.” 22 So the Jewish leaders began to say, “Perhaps he is going to kill himself because he says, ‘Where I am going you cannot come.’” 23 Jesus replied, “You people are from below; I am from above. You people are from this world; I am not from this world. 24 Thus I told you that you will die in your sins. For unless you believe that I am he, you will die in your sins.”
25 So they said to him, “Who are you?” Jesus replied, “What I have told you from the beginning. 26 I have many things to say and to judge about you, but the Father who sent me is truthful, and the things I have heard from him I speak to the world.” 27 (They did not understand that he was telling them about his Father.)
28 Then Jesus said, “When you lift up the Son of Man, then you will know that I am he, and I do nothing on my own initiative, but I speak just what the Father taught me. 29 And the one who sent me is with me. He has not left me alone because I always do those things that please him.” 30 While he was saying these things, many people believed in him.
NET Bible, Second Edition. © 2017 Biblical Studies Press. Used by permission.
What caught your attention?
3. Explore
Look back at the passage as you discuss these questions.
- In verse 12, what two things does Jesus say about himself and about the person who follows him?
- Why do the religious leaders challenge Jesus' claim in verse 13? How does Jesus respond?
- What does Jesus say about his relationship with the Father who sent him?
- In verses 21–24, Jesus warns his listeners about dying “in your sins.” According to verse 24, what does he say they need to believe?
- According to verses 28–30, what does Jesus say will eventually reveal something important about who he is?
4. Consider
Jesus doesn't merely claim to show people the light. He says:
“I am the light of the world. The one who follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.”
- What do you think Jesus means by “darkness” and “the light of life”?
- What does this passage suggest about who Jesus believes himself to be?
- What do you find attractive, surprising, difficult, or hard to believe about his claims?
- Why do you think believing or not believing who Jesus is matters so much in this passage?
5. Respond
Jesus connects having “the light of life” with following him.
If Jesus really is the Light of the World, what might it mean for you to follow him rather than simply learn about him?
As we continue investigating Jesus, consider our central question:
Who is this Jesus who claims to be the Light of the World?
Explore More
If you would like to keep reading, read . Jesus' claim to be the Light of the World becomes dramatically visible when he encounters a man who has been blind from birth.
Next Conversation: The Only Door — “I Am the Door for the Sheep.”