Then Jesus spoke to them again, saying, “I am the light of the world. He who follows Me shall not walk in darkness, but have the light of life.”  John 8:12 NKJV

Jesus is the Light of the world. If we follow Him, we will walk in the light of life. The place Jesus preached this was in the Temple – specifically He was in the treasury. People brought their offerings there, but there were also some burning candles there that represented the Pillar of Fire that went before the children of Israel when God led them out of Egypt, kept them while they were in the desert and led them into the Promised Land. The Pillar of Fire represents God’s presence, protection, and guidance – which we also have in the person of Jesus Christ – if we follow, and continue to follow, Him.

For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.  17 For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved. 18 “He who believes in Him is not condemned; but he who does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.  19 And this is the condemnation, that the light has come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil.  20 For everyone practicing evil hates the light and does not come to the light, lest his deeds should be exposed.  21 But he who does the truth comes to the light, that his deeds may be clearly seen, that they have been done in God.” John 3:16-21 NKJV

God sent Jesus – the Light of the world – to save the world. We are not waiting for the light – light is already here – however, many people won’t come to know this wonderful light of freedom, because they love the darkness more than the light. Their deeds are evil and they refuse to come to the light because they want to sin and keep sinning. To come to experience God’s light, through Jesus, one must be prepared to come to the light, have sin exposed and cleansed and then to walk free from the power of sin.

People, who don’t have Jesus, like to talk about “enlightenment”. The dictionary says this about the word “enlightenment”: 1. The act or means of enlightening or the state of being enlightened. 2. Buddhism: the awakening to ultimate truth by which man is freed from the endless cycle of personal reincarnations to which all men are otherwise subject. 3. Hinduism: a state of transcendent divine experience represented by Vishnu: regarded as a goal of all religion. 4. The Enlightenment, a philosophical movement of the 18th century, characterized by belief in the power of human reason and by innovations in political, religious, and educational doctrine.

People seek “enlightenment” by human means and human knowledge and understanding, but if you don’t want Jesus’ light, then you will continue to walk in the darkness, striving in vain to attain some light of understanding with your natural mind that will ultimately get you nowhere. People are trying to BE gods, when they could have Him come live on the inside of them if they would only receive Jesus! It’s the devil, up to his old tricks, trying to usurp the throne of God; deceiving people into thinking they can be like God and know what He knows. On earth, even if it is night time, you have the moon and the stars, but if you die without Jesus, you will end up in a place of darkness where there is NO light at all, no matter how much “enlightenment you think you have attained.

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 He was in the beginning with God. 3 All things were made through Him, and without Him nothing was made that was made. 4 In Him was life, and the life was the light of men. 5 And the light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not comprehend it.  6 There was a man sent from God, whose name was John. 7 This man came for a witness, to bear witness of the Light, that all through him might believe. 8 He was not that Light, but was sent to bear witness of that Light. 9 That was the true Light which gives light to every man coming into the world.  John 1:1-9 NKJV

John the Baptist was not the Light of the world, only the one who went before Jesus to bear witness that He was the true Light, who lights every man! Even as the sun shines upon every man – Jew or Gentile – so, every man was to be blessed by the Messiah (see also Isaiah 49:6). “The darkness did not comprehend the light” – this actually means that the darkness of evil could not extinguish the light – it never has and never will overcome God’s light! Darkness could not: “seize upon; keep down or under; stop; to catch up with in the sense of to discover or detect” the light. It means that the satanic powers of darkness did not overcome the Word/the Light, but that the Word/ the Light overcame and spoiled them on the cross!

In the light of God’s presence, we see ourselves as we really are – sinners in need of a Savior. When we follow Jesus, the true Light, He removes the darkness of sin from our lives; we can avoid walking blindly and falling into sin; He lights the path ahead of us so we can see how to live. We are not the source of God’s light, but, just like John the Baptist, we are reflections of it – pointing people always toward the Lord Jesus Christ!

Simeon dedicated the baby Jesus with these words from Luke 2:29-32 NKJV: “Lord, now You are letting Your servant depart in peace, According to Your word; For my eyes have seen Your salvation Which You have prepared before the face of all peoples, A light to bring revelation to the Gentiles, And the glory of Your people Israel.”  Then in Matthew 4:16 NKJV, Jesus quoted Isaiah 9:2, saying, “The people who sat in darkness have seen a great light, And upon those who sat in the region and shadow of death Light has dawned.”

As long as I am in the world, I am the light of the world.”  John 9:5 NKJV

Then Jesus said to them, “A little while longer the light is with you. Walk while you have the light, lest darkness overtake you; he who walks in darkness does not know where he is going.  36 While you have the light, believe in the light, that you may become sons of light.”  John 12:35-36a NKJV

For it is the God who commanded light to shine out of darkness, who has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.  2 Corinthians 4:6 NKJV