"I am the light of the world"

Imagine trying to find something in a pitch-black room. You shuffle, bump into things and get nowhere. Then someone switches on a torch, and suddenly you can see what's really there and where to go.

That's the picture Jesus uses in John 8. He says he is to the whole world what that torch is to a dark room. Then, in John 9, he proves it by giving sight to a man who was born blind. But the story has a twist: the people who are sure they can see end up the most in the dark.

What you'll learn

What Jesus means when he says "I am the light of the world"
How a man born blind came to see who Jesus is, step by step
Why John says the real blindness is refusing to look

A festival of lights

Think about what light does. It shows what's really there, shows the way, shows up the mess, keeps you safe and gives life (plants can't grow without it).

John 7–8 takes place at the Festival of Tabernacles. Every year Israel remembered living in tents in the wilderness, when God led them at night with a pillar of fire. Jewish tradition says huge lampstands were lit in the temple courts during the festival, so bright they lit up the city. Right there, Jesus stands up and says:

"Once again, Jesus spoke to the people and said, ‘I am the light of the world. Whoever follows Me will never walk in the darkness, but will have the light of life.’" (John 8:12)

Notice who the light is for: the whole world, not just one nation. And notice the promise: people who follow him won't be left stumbling in the dark.

In John 9, Jesus and his disciples meet a man who has been blind from birth. The disciples ask whose sin caused it:

"And His disciples asked Him, ‘Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?’ Jesus answered, ‘Neither this man nor his parents sinned, but this happened so that the works of God would be displayed in him.’" (John 9:2–3)

The disciples assumed suffering is always a punishment for something someone did. Jesus says no. This man's blindness isn't his fault or his parents' fault. Then Jesus repeats that he is the light of the world, puts mud on the man's eyes and sends him to wash. The man comes back seeing.

You'd expect a party. Instead there's an investigation. Some Pharisees are furious because Jesus healed on the Sabbath, the day of rest. They question the man, then his parents (who are too scared to say much), then the man again.

Two journeys

John 9 has two journeys going in opposite directions.

The man sees more and more. His eyes open all at once, but his understanding of Jesus grows step by step. At first, Jesus is just a man with a name. Then he decides Jesus must be a prophet. As the pressure builds, he defends Jesus, even though it costs him. By the end, he worships him. He doesn't have every answer, but he holds on to what he knows:

"He answered, ‘Whether He is a sinner I do not know. There is one thing I do know: I was blind, but now I see!’" (John 9:25)

The Pharisees see less and less. They start out certain that Jesus is a sinner. They won't look at the evidence in front of them, and finally they throw the man out. Then Jesus goes looking for the man and finds him. He says:

"Then Jesus declared, ‘For judgment I have come into this world, so that the blind may see and those who see may become blind.’" (John 9:39)

That's the twist. The man born blind ends up seeing in every sense. The people who were sure they could see end up blind, because they refused to look.

What stops people "seeing" Jesus today? Pride, fear of what others will think, being too busy, or having already made up our minds. And light shows up the mess, which is why some people would rather stay in the dark.

Key words

Pharisees: a group of strict religious teachers in Jesus' day.
Sabbath: the weekly day of rest.
Prophet: someone who speaks God's message.
Sign: a miracle that points to who Jesus is.

How this points to Jesus

God led Israel through the wilderness with a pillar of fire, a light that showed them the way home. At the festival that remembered it, Jesus said, in effect, "I'm the light you've been celebrating." The light that once guided Israel through the dark now stands in front of them as a person, offering to guide anyone who follows him.

Think about it

The man says there's a lot he doesn't know, but one thing he does. Why is that such a strong answer?Show answer

He doesn't pretend to have all the answers, but no one can argue him out of what happened to him. Honest experience is hard to argue with.

Why do you think the man's view of Jesus keeps growing while the Pharisees' view shrinks?Show answer

The man is open to the evidence, even when it costs him. The Pharisees have already made up their minds, so every new fact just makes them angrier.

What does Jesus say in John 9:3 about why the man was born blind?Show answer

It wasn't a punishment for his sin or his parents' sin. Jesus rejects the idea that disability is someone's fault.

Take it further

Try what the healed man did. Write down one thing you think you know about Jesus so far, and one thing you're still not sure about. Honest questions are a good place to start. Your worksheet helps you trace both journeys in John 9.

If you'd like to, you could pray:

Jesus, light of the world, thank you that you came to show us the truth. Open my eyes to see who you really are, even when it's uncomfortable. Help me follow you and not stay in the dark. Amen.