John 8:21-25 - Lesson #86

After making the bold claim that He was the light of the world, Jesus began a discussion with the Pharisees about why they did not understand who He was; "If you had known Me, you would have known My Father also" (John 8:19). But the Pharisees did not know God, and they refused to know Him through His Son.

John 8:21-25
"Then Jesus said to them again, 'I am going away, and you will seek Me, and will die in your sin. Where I go you cannot come.' So the Jews said, 'Will He kill Himself, because He says, "Where I go you cannot come"?' And He said to them, 'You are from beneath; I am from above. You are of this world; I am not of this world. Therefore I said to you that you will die in your sins; for if you do not believe that I am He, you will die in your sins.' Then they said to Him, 'Who are You?' And Jesus said to them, 'Just what I have been saying to you from the beginning.'"

In the last chapter, Jesus used similar words to those who would seek but not find Him (John 7:34), but here He adds both the reason for and the result of not finding Him; "you will die in your sins." Last time they thought Jesus was talking about going to a different region to teach the Greeks, here they thought He was planning to kill Himself. But the truth Jesus was teaching was that their (and our) eternal destiny is determined by the belief which resides in the heart.

Though Jesus was making a judgmental accusation, He was also patient with His explanation. Being from "beneath" corresponds with being "of the world," and both are directly related to not believing Jesus was who He claimed, therefore they would die in their sins. The Pharisees could not follow Jesus because of their failure to believe, but they failed to believe because they remained "of the world." Their values, self worth, and system of righteousness were all established by the world system - a system of worldly wisdom deeply influenced by evil; "the whole world lies under the sway of the wicked one" (1 John 5:19).

The wisdom of the world attempts to invade every area of our life. It tries to define success and happiness. It rearranges values and priorities. And it is relentless in its pursuit of consuming every thought. But this wisdom can only lead to destruction; "Has not God made foolish the wisdom of the world?" (1 Corinthians 1:20). And through we are to live and minister in the world by loving and pointing others to the truth, we must reject what the world calls wise; "Do not love the world or the things in the world" (1 John 2:15).

Jesus had been consistent about His identity "from the beginning." He did not mislead or confuse the truth, but came to show He was the only way; "there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved" (Acts 4:12). The world will always try to pull us away and we must diligently remain on our guard. But we can also take comfort in knowing; "He who is in you is greater than he who is in the world" (1 John 4:4). Let's continue to live as a reflection of the true light and refuse to ever be of the world.