Witness Statement
Opening Prayer
Lord, help me to always walk in the light (1 John 1:7).
Read John 8:12–20
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.”
13 The Pharisees challenged him, “Here you are, appearing as your own witness; your testimony is not valid.”
14 Jesus answered, “Even if I testify on my own behalf, my testimony is valid, for I know where I came from and where I am going. But you have no idea where I come from or where I am going. 15 You judge by human standards; I pass judgment on no one. 16 But if I do judge, my decisions are true, because I am not alone. I stand with the Father, who sent me. 17 In your own Law it is written that the testimony of two witnesses is true. 18 I am one who testifies for myself; my other witness is the Father, who sent me.”
19 Then they asked him, “Where is your father?”
“You do not know me or my Father,” Jesus replied. “If you knew me, you would know my Father also.” 20 He spoke these words while teaching in the temple courts near the place where the offerings were put. Yet no one seized him, because his hour had not yet come.
New International Version (NIV)
Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
Meditate
“The Lord is my light and my salvation—whom shall I fear? The Lord is the stronghold of my life—of whom shall I be afraid?” (Psa. 27:1).
Think Further
After the “interlude” of the scene with the woman caught in adultery, John’s narrative picks up where it left off in 7:52 with
the argument between Nicodemus and his angry colleagues during the
festival. This festival was a celebration of God’s goodness to his people, including harvest; water and light were prominent themes. The context gives powerful resonance to Jesus’ claims as the source of “rivers of living water” (John 7:38) and the “light of the world” (12): claims that were as divisive then as they are now.
In claiming to be the “light of the world,” Jesus is tapping into the language of Old Testament prophecy (especially that of Isaiah) to identify himself as Israel’s promised Messiah. Jesus is the agent of God who is able to convey the secrets of heaven to earth. As such, he displays a degree of knowledge superior to that of his accusers (14), who resume their “trial” of him here (13). For that reason alone, his claims should be trusted. More than that, such is his unique standing with God the Father that he can cite the Father as a second witness to the truth of his testimony and as such satisfy the demands of his accusers concerned for the letter of Jewish Law (17,18).
Relentless in their quest to arraign, indict, try and convict Jesus through a series of “kangaroo courtroom scenes,” the Jewish leaders are apparently unable to perceive that it is they who stand condemned as a result of these proceedings. Here, they are again exposed; this time as blind leaders unable to recognize God’s agent among them and thereby betraying their abysmal
ignorance of God himself (19,20). As the light of the world, Jesus did not come to condemn (John 3:17); but light cannot help but expose darkness for what it is.
Apply
Jesus’ claims continue to attract controversy today. Pray that God
will give you the necessary courage to stand by your conviction that Christ is Lord.
Closing prayer
Lord, the darkness of this world is great, but Your truth lights the
path of Your people. Keep me in the circle of Your truth.
Click here to sign up to receive the EXTRAs via email each quarter.
© 2024 Scripture Union U.S.A. All rights reserved. Reproduction of the whole or any part of the contents without written permission is prohibited.
Encounter with God is published in the USA under license from Scripture Union England and Wales, Trinity House, Opal Court, Opal Drive, Fox Milne, Milton Keynes, MK15 0DF.