Read John 8:12-59.

Introduction⤒🔗

A Christian lady named Ruth, testifies: Commitment was always something of an abstract term to me, until I saw it demonstrated one day at an airport in Colombia, South America.

It was 9 a.m., but already the steam was rising from the parched red clay. As Ruth and her family drove through the gate that led to the terminal, they knew that this was no ordinary day at the Cucuta airport. Lines of green school buses clogged the parking area, and the entire town seemed to be moving en mass towards the terminal.

Ruth and her family threaded their way through the human barricade of green army fatigues, pushed past bayonets and billy clubs at rest, and asked, “Is there a plane for Miami?”

“El Presidente is coming,” was the response. “No planes.”

Bands played. People yelled. Banners fluttered. Everyone seemed caught up in the excitement, but not everyone was cordial.

Among the dissidents was a woman who gave a living demonstration of commitment: She held the restless crowd in her power by waving a red flag. Her dark eyes blazed and her long hair switched wildly as she oscillated back and forth like a fan on high speed.

By noon, the sun poured down its 104-degree rays, and the air was motionless. Inside the terminal Ruth and her family drank ice-cold cokes. Outside, in the broiling noon day heat, stood the woman of commitment: no lunch break, no shade tree, sweat running down her face as she pounded the air with her fist, and her audience cheered. Seven hours of intensely animated demonstration in the broiling sun; seven hours of commitment.

As Ruth’s plane lifted off the steaming runway at 4 p.m. that afternoon, she thought about her own commitment to Christ: did it even begin to compare with the commitment she had seen demonstrated that day?¹

Commitment is defined as devotion, dedication to a cause; for the Christian, it is devotion and dedication to Christ, and for the Christian, the power and ability comes from the Holy Spirit.

In the passage of Scripture presently before us, the Lord Jesus Christ makes three great promises; three promises that require commitment to Him if their blessings are to be experienced in our lives:

Whoever follows me...shall have the light of life vs. 12

If you abide in my word...you will know the truth, and the truth will make you free vs. 31-32)

If anyone keeps my word, he shall never see death vs. 51

If we commit ourselves to the Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of God, we will experience the blessing of the promises He makes.

Commit Yourself to the Lord Jesus, and You Shall Have the Light of Life←⤒🔗

Jesus declares, “I am the light of the world; whoever follows me shall not walk in the darkness, but shall have the light of life” (vs. 12).

Consider the life of Jesus as He Himself defines it, and you shall see what “the Light of the world” reveals:

The one who sent me is with me, he has not forsaken me; because I always do the things that are pleasing to him Jn. 8:29

Here is a life of fellowship and communion with God, based upon submission to God and obedience to His commandments. This is the way God intended for life to be lived.

Contrast the life of the Lord Jesus Christ with the life lived by the men of this world as their life is described in Ephesians 4:17-18,

The Apostle Paul exhorts Christians,

no longer walk like the Gentiles...[who] walk in the futility of their mind, ¹⁸being darkened in their understanding, alienated from the life of God, because of the ignorance that is in them, because of the hardening of their heart.

The Gentiles, (i.e. the unbelieving world), are described as walking (or, living) in the “futility of their mind.” As the nineteenth century N.T. commentator, John Eadie, explains it: The Gentiles’ mind was characterized by “vanity,” [i.e., the plans, the purposes, the answers to the questions of life that were conceived by their minds proved to be worthless, empty, and of no lasting value]. Eadie goes on to write, “[the] ideas and impulses [produced by their mind] were perverse and fruitless...all the efforts and operations of their spiritual [and mental] nature ended in dreams and disappointment.”² A prime contemporary example of this is the communistic endeavor to create an utopia on earth apart from God. W.G.M. Martin sums it up well when he writes: The expression, “vanity [or, futility] of their mind,” points to the fact that human reason, without the illumination of God’s Spirit, inevitably leads to delusion and failure.³

The reason the Gentiles are walking “in the futility of their mind” is due to the fact that they have become “darkened in their understanding.” The “understanding” is that part of the mind that governs sound thinking and reasoning; the Greek word, διανοια, literally means, “to think through.” The men of this world have a mind that is functioning in the dark, they are unable to “think through” the predicament of discovering the meaning of their existence, the true purpose of life. By way of illustration: They are trying to put a jigsaw puzzle together in the dark, a puzzle that would reveal to them the answers to the great questions of life. Consequently, with a mind functioning in the dark, the Gentile thinkers of the world are especially prone to being led in their thinking by the prince of darkness, the devil himself.

Why is their understanding darkened? It is darkened because they are “alienated from the life of God.” The Greek verb, αiTαλλοτριοω, means, “to have no connection with;” in this case meaning that the men of this world have no true communion and fellowship with the living God. In Ephesians 2:12 the Apostle Paul reminds the Ephesian Christians of their spiritual condition prior to their conversion to Christ: “at that time [you were] separated from Christ...having no hope and without God in the world.”

Why are they alienated from the life of God? The answer is, “because of the ignorance (αγνοια) that exists in them.” When it comes to knowing God, men are “agnostics,” literally, they are “without knowledge.” But it is a willful ignorance, it is an ignorance that must be attributed to “the hardening (iTωρωσιs) of their heart;” men have “paralysis” of the heart. Fallen mankind has a deep-seated enmity against God, (“the sinful mind is hostile to God; it does not submit to God’s law, nor can it do so” [Rom. 8:7]), and a rejection of the true and living God:

²⁵They exchanged the truth of God for a lie, and worshiped and served created things rather than the Creator, who is forever praised... ²⁸Furthermore, since they did not think it worthwhile to retain the knowledge of God, he gave them over to a depraved mind. Rom. 1:25,28a

Jesus promises that those who follow Him “shall have the light of life.” “The light of life” radiating from Jesus Christ, the incarnate Son of God, is the life of God; it is the light that not only reveals that holy and blessed life, but directs us into it. It is that for which the Psalmist prays: “Oh send out your light and your truth; let them lead me. Let them bring me to your holy hill, and to your tabernacles” (Psl. 43:3).

If we commit ourselves to the Lord Jesus, we shall have the light of life: we shall be delivered out of the state of spiritual darkness and increasingly brought into an ever-deepening experience of the life and truth of God. In the Book of Proverbs this blessed truth is expressed in the following terms:

...the path of the righteous is like the first gleam of dawn, shining brighter and brighter until the full light of day. ¹⁹The way of the wicked is like darkness; they cannot see the things over which they stumble. Prov. 4:18-19

 “The path of the righteous,” (i.e. the path that the righteous travel, namely, a life of commitment to Christ, the Light of life), “is like the first gleam of dawn,” (i.e. it is like starting out on a journey at sunrise and traveling into noon day brightness). The further you follow the Lord along the path of righteousness, the brighter the way becomes; the experience of God’s life and truth becomes deeper, more certain, and ever more glorious. But, conversely, “The way of the wicked is like darkness.” If you travel the path of the wicked, (the way of the world, resisting and rejecting God’s lordship over your life), it is like journeying into the setting sun and into the ever-deepening darkness of spiritual midnight, which eventually terminates in eternal condemnation.

Commit Yourself to the Lord Jesus, and You Shall Know the Truth that Makes You Free←⤒🔗

The Lord Jesus speaks of the necessity of abiding in His Word. That is to say, the necessity of constantly and consistently making the Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments to be our spiritual compass whereby we are directed in the ways of God; our moral rudder whereby our life is steered by the law of God and guided ever-more into the life of righteousness.

Jesus declares that as we remain in His Word we shall “know the truth.” As we remain in Christ’s Word we shall become ever-more deeply acquainted with the truth of God. We will with ever-greater conviction affirm the testimony of Peter, when he declared, “Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life. ⁶⁹We have believed and know that you are the Holy One of God” (Jn. 6:68-69).

Furthermore, we shall become united to the truth of God and transformed by it. This is what Jesus is teaching when He declares, “While you have the light, believe in the Light so that you may become sons of light” (Jn. 12:36a). To become a “son of the light” means to become a member or partaker of the light, to become a part of the light. As the Apostle Paul expresses it 2 Corinthians 3:18, “beholding, as in a mirror, the glory of the Lord, we are being transformed into the same image, from [one degree of] glory to [a greater degree of] glory.” Paul goes on to indicate that this spiritual transformation is “from the Lord;” it is carried on in our lives by the Holy Spirit, as we yield ourselves to Him and as He accomplishes His gracious work in us.

Jesus further declares that the truth shall make us free: As we grow in the likeness of Christ, by means of His Word and our believing, obedient response to His Word, we will, at the same time, be growing out of the bondage and corruption of sin. In verses 34-35 Jesus speaks of a terrible spiritual bondage: the bondage of sin. The sinner is a slave to sin (vs. 34). The Apostle Paul elaborates on this condition when he writes to the Romans,

^16aDo you not realize that when you offer yourselves to someone to obey him as servants, you are servants to the one whom you obey? ^19b...you [formerly] offered the parts of your body as servants to uncleanness and to ever greater depths of iniquity. Rom. 6:16a, 19b

“The slave does not remain in the household forever” (vs. 35). As a spiritual slave, the sinner has no status: he has no claim upon God and no abiding place in God’s household. The sinner has no security: he may be dismissed and consigned to the judgment of hell at any time. If you are outside of Christ, still in your natural state of sin, you can be cast into hell at any time; you are in a very precarious position. But “the son remains [in the household] forever. ³⁶If the Son shall make you free, you shall be free indeed” (vs. 35b-36).

The situation is different with regard to the Son, He is a permanent member of the Father’s household. Furthermore, the Son has the authority to confer upon the sinner the new status of adoption and sonship (vs. 36). At Calvary, Jesus paid the price to purchase our deliverance from the bondage and consequence of sin and to secure for us a place in the household of God as sons. The moment you turn your life over to Jesus you undergo that change of status from slave to son, and then begins that spiritual “reclamation project” of the Holy Spirit whereby He causes us to grow out of our former bondage to sin and into the likeness of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

If this spiritual “reclamation” process is not taking place in your life, there is little or no indication that there has been any transfer of your life to Christ. According to Romans 8:29, the purpose of redemption is that we might “become conformed to the likeness of [God’s] Son, so that he may be the firstborn among many brothers.”

If we commit ourselves to the Lord Jesus, we shall know the truth that makes us free. We will increasingly enter into the life and truth of God, and become increasingly delivered from the bondage and corruption of sin.

Commit Yourself to the Lord Jesus, and You Shall Never See Death←⤒🔗

In verse 51 the Lord Jesus makes the amazing promise: “If anyone keeps my word, he shall never see death.”

The one who keeps Christ’s Word is the one who continues to live in a saving relationship with Christ. This relationship has been created by the grace of God: “It is because of him [i.e. God the Father] that you are in Christ Jesus” (1 Cor. 1:30). This relationship is also sustained by the grace of God: “he who began a good work in you will carry it out to completion until the day of Jesus Christ” (Phil. 1:6). But it is also a relationship that is cultivated by Christ’s Word, for it is through His Word, the holy Scriptures, that Christ reveals Himself and His will to us.

The person who keeps Christ’s Word shall never see death. In biblical terms, in the fullest sense of the word, death means being removed from a state of fellowship with God, a state in which one enjoys God’s communion and blessing, and being consigned to a permanent state of separation from God, a state in which one experiences the righteous judgment of God. On the cross of Calvary, the Lord Jesus experienced the ultimate form of death when He cried out in agony of body and soul, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” (Mk. 15:34)

The ultimate expression of death is being denied entrance into heaven and being consigned to eternity in hell; it means hearing those awful words the Lord Jesus will pronounce against the unrepentant sinner on the day of judgment: "Depart from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels” (Matt. 25:41). But the Lord Jesus assures us, “If anyone keeps my word, he shall never see death.”

If we commit ourselves to the Lord Jesus, we will never see death; on the contrary, we shall forever live in Jesus and He will eventually bring us into the fullness of life in His Father’s kingdom.

Conclusion←⤒🔗

Commitment to Christ; what are the benefits to be derived from it? If you commit yourself to the Lord Jesus, you shall have the light of life; you shall know the truth that will make you free; and you shall never see death (spiritual death, separation from the blessed fellowship of God).

Commitment to Christ; what exactly is it? By the grace of God, it is holding on to Jesus even in the rough times of life; it is seeking to daily live by His commandments in the everyday living of life; and it is putting your trust in Him day by day, and in the hour of trial.

Discussion Questions←⤒🔗

1. What claim does Jesus make in Jn. 8:12a. When we look at the Lord Jesus Christ, the “the Light of the world,” what do we learn about the meaning and purpose of life? Note Jn. 8:29; note, also, Eccl. 12:13,

Again Jesus spoke to them, saying, I am the light of the world... Jn. 8:12a

“The light of life” means the revelation of the meaning and purpose of life.

And he who sent me is with me. The Father has not left me alone, for I always do those things that please him.Jn. 8:29

Let us hear the conclusion of the whole matter: Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the whole duty of man. Eccl. 12:13

2. What promise does the Lord Jesus make to those who put their faith in Him and become His disciples? See Jn. 8:12b. How is His promise poetically depicted in Prov. 4:18? As a Christian, are you walking with Christ along “the path of righteousness,” and by so doing are you gaining greater understanding and assurance in the things of God? What is the tragic consequence of refusing to walk with Christ? See Prov. 4:19,

Again Jesus spoke to them, saying, I am the light of the world; whoever follows me shall not walk in the darkness, but shall have the light of life. Jn. 8:12

...the path of the righteous is like the first gleam of dawn, shining brighter and brighter until the full light of day.Prov. 4:18

The way of the wicked is like darkness; they cannot see the things over which they stumble. Prov. 4:19

3. What does Jesus tell us is the characteristic of a true disciple? See Jn. 8:31. As a Christian, how much time do you spend reading the Scriptures? Do you apply to your life the promises and the commandments of Scripture? Do you accept the Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments as Christ’s word to you, His authoritative word for your life; or do you ignore His word and listen to “other voices”? What word of caution does the Apostle John give us? See 2 Jn. 9,

Jesus therefore said to those Jews who had believed him, If you abide in my word you will truly be my disciples... Jn. 8:31

Whoever goes beyond, and does not abide in the teaching of Christ, does not have God: he that abides in the teaching, that one has both the Father and the Son.2 Jn. 9

4. What amazing claim/promise does Jesus make in John 8:51? Of what death is He speaking? Note Rev. 21:8. What claim did He make on an earlier occasion? See Jn. 5:24. Of what kind of death was He speaking on that occasion? Note Eph. 2:1. How do these two claims/promises relate to each other? Has this been your personal experience?

I tell you the truth, If anyone keeps my word, he shall never see death. Jn. 8:51

But the cowardly and the unfaithful and the detestable and murderers and the sexually immoral and sorcerers and idolaters and all liars, their place shall be in the lake that burns with fire and brimstone, which is the second death. Rev. 21:8

I tell you the truth, Whoever listens to my word and believes him who sent me, has eternal life and will not be condemned; on the contrary, he has crossed over from death into life. Jn. 5:24

And [God raised] you [also], when you were dead in your transgressions and sins... Eph. 2:1

The person who puts their faith in the Lord Jesus Christ is resurrected out of the state of spiritual death, (resulting from sin and resulting in condemnation), and joins with the risen Savior in His resurrection life, which He lives unto God (cf. Rom. 6:9a, 10b.)

5. Shocked by Jesus’ amazing claim, how do the Jews respond? See Jn. 8:52b-53. How does Jesus reply to them? See Jn. 8:56. To what was Jesus referring? See Gen. 22:1-2, 9-14. The Savior whom Abraham saw in the distant future, the perfect substitute for his son, Isaac, that very Savior is now personally offered to us in the gospel. Note Jn. 3:16,

The Jews said to him, Now we know that you are demon-possessed. Abraham died and [so did] the prophets. But you say, If anyone keeps my word, he shall never experience death. ⁵³Are you greater than our father Abraham, who died? And the prophets died. Who do you claim to be? Jn. 8:52-53

Your father Abraham rejoiced to see my day; and he saw it, and was glad. Jn. 8:56

¹After these things God tested Abraham. He said to him, Abraham. And Abraham replied, Here I am. ²And God said, Now take your son, your only son, the son whom you love, Isaac, and go to the land of Moriah. Offer him there as a burnt offering upon one of the mountains of which I will tell you... ⁹Then they came to the place of which God had told him. There Abraham built the altar, and arranged the wood upon it. Then he bound Isaac his son and laid him on the altar on top of the wood. ¹⁰Then Abraham reached out his hand and took the knife to slay his son. ¹¹But the angel of the LORD called to him out of heaven and said, Abraham, Abraham. And Abraham said, Here I am. ¹²Then he said, Do not lay your hand upon the boy, neither do any harm to him; for now I know that you fear God, seeing that you have not held back your son, your only son, from me. ¹³And Abraham looked up and saw that behind him there was a ram caught by his horns in the underbrush. Abraham went over and took the ram, and offered him up as a burnt offering instead of his son. ¹⁴Abraham named that place 'Jehovah Jireh.' To this day it is said, On the mountain of Jehovah [i.e.; the LORD] it shall be provided. Gen. 22:1-2, 9-14

...for God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, so that whoever believes in him should not perish, but have eternal life. Jn. 3:16