3. I AM THE LIGHT OF THE WORLD. (Continued from page 252.)

In two different connections Christ declares this title. First it is linked with the woman taken in adultery, and second with the man born blind who receives his sight.

In the first instance (John 8:12) we have a blessed promise joined to this title. "He that followeth Me shall have the light of life." In this we find the true relation of Christ as the Light to the life He communicates.

"In Him was life; and the life was the light of men." The life in Him as manifested was the light which coming into the world "lighteth (or sheds its light upon) every man " (John 1:9, J. N. D.). Since men loved darkness rather than light, the characteristic condition of the world was darkness, and the glorious light that shone from the Word come into the world appeared in darkness and was not apprehended. Darkness spread over the world by the spiritual rulers of it (Eph. 6:12), to whom men had willingly subjected themselves. Thus "He was in the world, and the world had its being through Him, and the world knew Him not." Light shone alone from Him. His life was so fully the manifestation of the person, no hidden part unrevealed, that He could say, I am the light of the world." But men shrank back from the light unable to abide in it, and the darkness that brooded every where animated them with one object-that of extinguishing the light.

It is an example of this that introduces to the first statement of Christ being the Light. The question is, Will He reverse the sentence of the law against the guilty? The Pharisees hoped to obtain that by which to accuse Him. He who was the Friend of sinners, and who claimed the prerogative to forgive sins, what will He do in a case of this kind? In the answer we find the outbreaking of glory which was His as the Light of the world. The sentence He acknowledged and declared was written in the ground, -the curse of sin. The ground is cursed for man's sake, who being part of it, (for he was formed from it) the sentence passes to him also. " Dust thou art and unto dust shalt thou return." Death was man's penalty. But to whom does it apply? to the gross transgressor only, or to the moralist as well? The questioners see no meaning in the significant act of Christ, and continue to ask Him. His answer measures the breadth of the sentence written. "He that is without sin among you, let him cast the first stone at her." Light in the character of holiness and righteousness is shining in this, manifesting the darkness which everywhere abounds. Convicted, they turn from the light, unwilling to bow humbly before those luminous rays of truth that pierced them, for they came from Him to whose sight every creature is manifest and to whom all things are naked and open (Heb. 4:12, 13).

The light has brought all to a common level. But now as to the sinner; she, clearly, is in the presence of One in whom there is no sin. Will He cast the first stone of judgment? "Neither do I condemn thee; go thy way, henceforth sin no more." Here we have the out-shining of divine grace. Light as truth manifests man in darkness and sin, therefore in opposition to God. Light, as grace, manifests God in loving-kindness and tender mercy toward man. Both came by Jesus Christ, and the life that was manifested in Him made both known, and was the Light.

He who had spoken the word that pressed home conviction to every heart had declared freedom to her, and here was the way open into God's presence of divine holiness and truth. Therefore the man who follows Him will be delivered from darkness and the condemnation which accompanies it and have instead the "light of life." The life is, of course, the eternal, and the light which emanates from it and belongs to it,-the sunshine in which the life is lived,-is Christ. The life that was in Him and which He has given to them that follow Him, can in its manifestation only partake of the same characters as were seen in Him. Thus His life manifested was the Light and we who follow Him, having the life, have the light of it also which in a practical sense is Christ shining from us. The development and results of this are given in connection with the second incident,-the blind man.

Christ is interrupted by the challenge of the Pharisees (John 8:13) as to the truth of His witness which He goes on to defend and explain. He leaves them with the emphatic declaration of being the I AM of the Old Testament revelation. Jesus hides Himself. They are left in the darkness of their unbelief, abashed and confounded-an incident prophetic of a then nearing moment when He would leave them to die in their sin, the consequence of rejecting Him-the Light. This then is the end announced for the Light rejecters who prefer to walk in darkness. Let us turn to the picture of one who receives the Light and follows where it leads.

This we have in the blind man who receives his sight, and here Christ announces for the second time, "I am the light of the world." The physical is the picture of the spiritual. The man is a type of one who has heard the sentence announced as in the case of the woman and bowed to its truth. With him there is no self-righteousness which claims to see, while the real condition is that of complete blindness. Such an one is ready for the activity of divine grace which could say,'' Neither do I condemn thee." And now comes in the practical example of one who follows Christ, receiving as a result "the light of life." The true following of Christ is simply obedience to His word. The blind man obeys without question or expressed unbelief of the word of Christ. This is the requirement laid upon all who would follow Him. The result is he receives his sight. And so with all who follow his example; they will be delivered from spiritual blindness by receiving true spiritual sight. They will then have "the light of life " and darkness will be no longer their abode. Of this we have an example in the revelation made to the man after being cast out by the Light rejecters. He is introduced into communion with the Son of God, his heart is full and he pours it out in grateful worship. Thus he has life and he sits in the full glory of its light. How blessed the results of following Christ. To enjoy the practical blessing of it we must be followers.

We may briefly consider the natural figure the Lord uses of Himself. We know light is a trinity of power composed of the light-rays, heat-rays, and chemical-rays, the last being the agency used to effect change in life and matter. We may say that we have distinct illustrations of these three elements of light in what has been before us. We see the light-rays which make manifest the darkness shining when Christ says, "He that is without sin among you, let him first cast a stone at her." Convicted, the covert of darkness is sought by those that would not bow to the light. The heat-giving rays are those which promote circumstances suitable for the existence of life. Cold is destructive in this way. Thus they speak to us of the warmth of divine grace and love, the activity of which, through Christ and His work, alone make possible the life that God counts real. They have alone made possible those circumstances which are conducive to the existence of such life. The example of this is given us in what Christ says to the woman. The chemical-rays, which take up and use the light- and heat-rays, produce change in that which is submitted to their activity-changes which occur in life and matter in the organic and inorganic. Thus they are the agency used to work out transformation in various aspects. And it is such a transformation or change in life which the blind man speaks about. The light and heat, as we may say, have broken in upon him in a spiritual way, and we see the change being wrought in him in the progress of a simple faith which expands from "the man called Jesus" to the believing on Him as the Son of God and the worship of his glad heart poured out at His feet.

We may add to these thoughts the fact that light is a trinity of color, the blue, red, and yellow rays uniting to give the white one. In the blue we read of Christ as the Man out of heaven in fullest communion with God His Father, heavenly in all His ways. And does this not accord well with the light-rays? Did not His heavenly character shine as the light that exposed all in this world to be in discord with heaven? But the red speaks of something very different. As a color, in Scripture it suggests life given up, the blood which is the life poured out. Thus the ram's skins dyed red of the tabernacle typify the consecration even unto death of Christ. And was not this the supreme manifestation of the grace and love of God, the warmth of which is alone conducive to the production of spiritual life? By this is dispelled the cold of that darkness in which the sinner, exposed by the revealing light, finds himself. In that death broods over him, in the other life is found. The yellow rays, the color of gold, doubtless prefigure glory. This speaks to us of what Christ announces in connection with the light. He was going away to a place inaccessible to those who did not believe on Him, as a result of which they would die in their sins (chap. 8:21). He was going back to the Father from whom He came forth. So He was to be raised up in fullest glory to the throne in the heavens,-crowned with glory and honor. Of this these yellow rays speak. And this connects with those chemical rays which, in their invisible working out of transformation, present to us the workings of the Spirit of God in the hearts of men, transforming the sinner into the saint and then conforming the life of such an one to the life of Christ. But the accomplishment of this awaited the time of Christ being glorified. Then the Spirit would come. Thus we see how they are linked together. These color rays united give the one perfect white ray,-God displayed in all the holiness and righteousness of His character.

What a light, beloved, for us to live in. Truly "the Light of life." Who and what else could be this, but Christ and Him manifested? May we remember that the relation on which depends our not walking in darkness is that we follow Him. Then we shall have in all its practical blessing "the Light of life." We then will be in the Light and the Light in us. We are "to shine as lights in the world," may it be so with us to the praise of the glory of His grace. J. B. Jr.