"Jesus the Light of the World" (John 8): High and Lifted Up

We have all seen it. The scene is simple- a basketball game. The home team is down by two points, but their best 3-point shooter is in play. They pass the ball right to the shooter, who has one-tenth of a second to pivot and fire the best shot possible. And while the ball is in the air, the crowd is already on their feet. Nothing but net, the home team wins by one point. I had the privilege of watching my brother-in-law be the shooter who saved the game. And I can tell you that he was lifted up. Carried by his team and scores of loyal Holland High fans, his feet literally didn't hit the ground for minutes. He was lifted. Being lifted up by your team is a sign of victory, and it's an amazing one. It's a rush that goes beyond the thrill of winning- it's the thrill of being the hero.

In John 8:28, Jesus makes the claim that He will be lifted up. For the original crowd, they would have thought that Jesus was waiting to be lifted like a hero. But the readers of John, who lived 35-40 years (at least) after the crucifixion, would have known that Jesus being lifted up was not about being a celebrated hero. Jesus was lifted up as a despised criminal.

So what does being lifted up have to do with being the light of the world?

I look to a lighthouse or an air traffic control tower for inspiration here. Those towers are high so that people can see the light from an incredible distance. A lighthouse can guide a ship in from miles away, and an air traffic control tower guides airplanes that we can hardly see into safety. In the same way, Jesus being lifted on the cross allowed the world to see what God was willing to go through for us. Jesus picks up on this theme in John 12:32, "When I am lifted up from the earth, [I] will draw all men to myself." John explains that this is a prediction of Christ's death and the manner of His death.

The crucifixion is not the dirty little scandal of Christianity, it is rightly the center of our faith. Our faith comes to us in cross form. The death and resurrection of Jesus, far from being the shameful experience the Romans intended, is the shining achievement of God. It is how our hero was heroic.