John 12:35-36 NIV
35 Then Jesus told them, “You are going to have the light just a little while longer. Walk while you have the light, before darkness overtakes you. Whoever walks in the dark does not know where they are going. 36 Believe in the light while you have the light, so that you may become children of light.” When he had finished speaking, Jesus left and hid himself from them.
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Yesterday, I wanted to cover these two verses, plus the preceding verse, 34 The crowd spoke up, “We have heard from the Law that the Messiah will remain forever, so how can you say, ‘The Son of Man must be lifted up’? Who is this ‘Son of Man’?” But the background on ‘Son of Man’ led me to only address verse 34 then (you may find that discussion here). Today we will look at the next two verses and a few others that follow.
Their question in v34 concerned the idea that Jesus, self-identified as the Son of Man, would die when they had been taught the Messiah would live forever. What they had been taught do not take into account what was in Psalm 22 and Isaiah 53. So in our verses for today, Jesus answers their questions while providing a warning.
Consider v35, 35 Then Jesus told them, “You are going to have the light just a little while longer. Walk while you have the light, before darkness overtakes you. Whoever walks in the dark does not know where they are going. Jesus again makes clear He is not going to remain long on this earth. In only two more days, His cross would be on Calvary with Him on it, yet there was still time to turn to the light. And that was His message in the next verse, 36 Believe in the light while you have the light, so that you may become children of light.” When he had finished speaking, Jesus left and hid himself from them. Jesus is pleading with them to make the decision to believe in Him and follow Him so they might become ‘Sons of the Light’ instead of continuing to reject Him. There is time, but time is running out for them. He is calling upon the to believe
This is what we see all too often in our own day and time. People are so caught up in the world they seemingly cannot take the time to consider eternity. Even those who understand somewhat, want to wait until the last minute like the thief on the cross. Sadly, all too often their time runs out before they can take advantage of the mercy and grace offered through Jesus.
Also, note that Jesus refers to Himself as the Light four times in these two verses which harkens back to John’s introduction to Jesus in chapter one with verses 4-5, 4 In him was life, and that life was the light of all mankind. 5 The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it. Choose Jesus and choose the light that cannot be overcome by the darkness of this world. MacLaren wrote, Rejected light is the parent of the densest darkness,
Bottom Line: We have the knowledge of the truth, and we know the truth about Jesus. To reject Him would be to choose the permanent darkness of hell.
Prayer: Merciful God, Our Father, Thank You so much for Your Son who came and lived among us to know us intimately and to still love us. It is a wonderous and incredible thing that You would love us so much. – In Jesus’ Name. Amen.
RileyD, nwJ
Riley D. Driver – Pastor
Calvary Chapel of Dayton
in Beavercreek
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