John 8:12-30
Challenge to What Jesus Says About Himself
Jesus spoke to the people again. He said, “I am the light of the world. Anyone who follows me will never walk in darkness. They will have that light. They will have life.”
The Pharisees argued with him. “Here you are,” they said, “appearing as your own witness. But your witness does not count.”
Jesus answered, “Even if I am a witness about myself, what I say does count. I know where I came from. And I know where I am going. But you have no idea where I come from or where I am going. You judge by human standards. I don’t judge anyone. But if I do judge, what I decide is true. This is because I am not alone. I stand with the Father, who sent me. Your own Law says that the witness of two people proves the truth about something. I am a witness about myself. The other witness about me is the Father, who sent me.”
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.” He spoke these words while he was teaching in the temple courtyard. He was near the place where the offerings were put. But no one arrested him. That’s because the time for him to die had not yet come.
Challenge to Who Jesus Claims to Be
Once more Jesus said to them, “I am going away. You will look for me, and you will die in your sin. You can’t come where I am going.”
This made the Jews ask, “Will he kill himself? Is that why he says, ‘You can’t come where I am going’?”
But Jesus said, “You are from below. I am from heaven. You are from this world. I am not from this world. I told you that you would die in your sins. This will happen if you don’t believe that I am he. If you don’t believe, you will certainly die in your sins.”
“Who are you?” they asked.
“Just what I have been telling you from the beginning,” Jesus replied. “I have a lot to say that will judge you. But the one who sent me can be trusted. And I tell the world what I have heard from him.”
They did not understand that Jesus was telling them about his Father. So Jesus said, “You will lift up the Son of Man. Then you will know that I am he. You will also know that I do nothing on my own. I speak just what the Father has taught me. The one who sent me is with me. He has not left me alone, because I always do what pleases him.” Even while Jesus was speaking, many people believed in him.
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