Full Transcript

Share the Word may be the best way to get a good overview of the whole New Testament, short of spending years in Bible college or seminary. Now, we won’t say that it is the best, but we’ll let you be the judge of that. Now, why are we spending the time and making the effort? Because we believe it’s the truth with a capital T. Listen in for a few podcasts, and you be the judge. I’m going to share with you on this podcast something that really captured my attention on a TV show some years ago, so much so that I ordered the full transcript of the program.

So today’s lesson is going to be a little different, but it’s very rooted in the dialogue in John chapter 8. I’m titling it, The Gospel According to Phil. Last time in chapter 7, I was describing for you how Jesus, after a long period of avoiding Jerusalem because of his enemies’ conspiracies, went up to the important religious festival of the Jews called the Feast of Tabernacles. Remember, that celebration commemorated Israel’s period spent in the wilderness centuries before, a time when God was providing and guiding his people in miraculous ways. During this festival in Jesus’ time, throngs of Jewish worshipers from all over Israel and even well beyond came to Jerusalem.

Where we left off, John was telling how Jesus suddenly and boldly appeared middle of that week during this festival, began publicly teaching right at the temple, which led to an escalating back and forth between him and some of the religious teachers. Throughout chapter 7 and then through chapter 8, John records a lot of this exchange, no doubt because it revolved around the biggest question John wants us to confront: just who was this person, Jesus? During the back and forth, we hear him make one astounding claim after another. It caused those in the crowd listening to this to be very divided about him. Some said he must be a fraud and deceiver, while others were convinced he was a prophet or even possibly the Messiah. Israel’s religious leaders, most of them anyway, had already closed their minds, though.

Jesus just didn’t fit their expectations. In fact, his claims of being the Messiah triggered them so much they wanted him silenced, permanently. At verse 12 in chapter 8, we are now at the final evening, the finale of the celebration of the Feast of Tabernacles. On previous nights, the huge courtyards of the temple were lit up with torches and menorah all around, large candle stands. Jewish writers describing this festival say that you could see the bright burning light coming from the temple on the horizon from miles away. This light show that happened every evening during the festival represented how, according to Exodus chapter 13, God had led the people of Israel toward their promised land with a pillar of fire in the sky.

But from what I’ve read, on the final night of this commemorative festival, the menorah were not lit up. Weren’t certain of all the symbolic meaning in the way the Jews celebrated this festival, but one informed suggestion is that they ended the Feast of Tabernacles on that last night in the darkness because they were now in bondage again, this time to the Romans. They were still awaiting their Messiah too, as Israel had centuries before waited for Moses to lead them to freedom. So imagine the scene that night as the high priest of Israel, or some other distinguished dignitary, was closing out this festival at the temple in the somber semi-darkness. Maybe he’s telling why the menorah are not lit, and maybe he’s leading the people in prayers for the coming of the Messiah, or in recitations from the Old Testament prophets describing his coming.

When Jesus once again stands up in the midst of this and declares loudly, I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life. Can you even imagine this? This once again set off fiery exchanges between some of these religious leaders and Jesus. He didn’t call out, I’m one of the lights of the world, and I have some important things to share, so if you don’t mind, could I have a few moments? John writes, and his construction here is emphatic.

Jesus called out, I myself am the light of the world. There had to be shock on faces, jaws dropping. The religious Jews often spoke of the world as being darkness, and by that they meant in sin, in ignorance of the true God. And of course, light is always a metaphor they used for God, for perfect goodness, for truth, for holiness, as we still do today. The prophets often used this imagery, as did Isaiah, for example, in chapter 50 when he said, Let him who walks in the darkness, who has no light, come trust in the name of the Lord. The crowd of worshipers at the temple that night who heard Jesus call this out, claiming that he himself was the light of the world, couldn’t have misunderstood him.

When Jesus said, If you don’t want to be in darkness, come follow me, that was an astounding thing to say. It’s hard for us to even grasp how such a claim would have struck that crowd. John wants us to confront this astounding claim too. To bring us to decide this big question: just who was this person Jesus? Throughout chapters 7 and 8, we hear one incredible claim coming out of Jesus’ mouth after another. Listen to a few of them.

Tell me how they strike you. We’ve already heard him say, I am the light of the world. That claim could only mean that just as the divine pillar of light led the people in Moses’ day, just as it gave them hope and direction because it was God’s way of guiding them through the darkness, so Jesus is claiming now he’s the beacon. He is the one to follow out of spiritual darkness toward God. Then he said, in this passage, I am from above. I am not from this world.

I was sent here by the heavenly Father. That’s chapter 8, verses 23 and verses 42. Those claims could only mean the man Jesus they saw and heard was saying he preexisted his incarnation, that he was from heaven and had come down to our world on a divine mission. Then he said, If you treasure my teachings, then you are truly my disciples, and you will know the truth. That claim means the reality, the truth, can only be discovered through accepting and conforming to Christ’s teachings, that he came here to explain reality to us. Then he said, If you don’t believe that I am, you will die in your sins.

I’ll explain in a moment about why Jesus used that I am formula so many times in the Gospel of John. But at the least, here in these words, Jesus claimed that deliverance from sin’s consequences can hinge on faith in him. He said it plainly: If you don’t believe in me, you will die in your sins. And finally, at the end of this chapter, when the religious authorities said, So you think you’re greater than our father Abraham? Just who do you think you are? Abraham, realize, was the father of the Jewish nation, a very revered figure.

Jesus, I’m sure by now equally bristling with frustration and anger at these men, shot back, Abraham rejoiced at the thought of seeing my day. Before Abraham existed, I am. That was more than a claim to be greater than the revered father Abraham, more than even the claim of pre-existing him. Jesus is flat out identifying as I am, identifying as deity, as God. I am is how the voice from the burning bush in Exodus identified itself to Moses. Read about it in Exodus chapter 3.

In Deuteronomy, which reiterates Israel’s first commandment, it says, See now that I, I am, and there is no other God besides me. Claiming to be God is exactly how Jesus’ opponents heard this, because at the end of chapter 8, when he made this jaw-dropping statement, John says that the temple leaders started looking for stones to stone him to death for uttering blasphemy. But as they were trying to get their hands on some, Jesus slipped through the crowd and disappeared. This got pretty intense, didn’t it? It’s virtually impossible to read this section as John recalls these heated exchanges between Jesus and the religious leaders and miss his point. It’s a big question was, just who was this man Jesus?

We each have to decide. We each have to make up our own minds. But who did he claim to be? He left us in absolutely no doubt about who he claimed to be. He claimed to be someone who lived before he arrived here, pre-existent deity come to our world on a mission. He claimed to have come because we are in darkness, dying in our sins.

He said we are disconnected from God and without intervention heading for judgment. He claimed to be the light and the truth and promised that if we believed in him, we would be reconciled to God and one day experience eternal life, ultimate salvation. These were unmistakably Jesus’ claims, which brings us to the Gospel according to Phil. Some years back, I was flipping through the channels one night hoping to find something interesting to watch while I eat dinner. I came across a show that was then on MSNBC, hosted by Phil Donahue, and I landed on it very near the beginning, just in time to hear Phil say, But first up, Newsweek is talking about it, so is the Boston Globe. Heaven, hell, who’s going and who’s not?

Last week, according to a statement issued by the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, Jews no longer have to be saved, he said, in quotation marks, to get into heaven. So now, all we have to do is convince those darn Southern Baptists. Needless to say, this caught my attention. For the next hour, I listened to a fascinating back and forth between four men on this question: Do Jews have to be saved through Jesus Christ to be fit for heaven? Which expanded to, Does anyone have to be saved through Jesus Christ in order to be accepted by God and made fit for heaven?

The panelists that day were a Jewish radio talk show host, Rabbi Shmuley Boteach, a Dr. Michael Brown, who was a Jew that had accepted Jesus as his Messiah. A Dr. Albert Mohler Jr., who is president of the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in Louisville, Kentucky, and of course Phil Donahue, who’s a nominal Roman Catholic, and he’s the host of the program and, as you’ll see, was hardly neutral on this question. The discussion began like this with Phil. Thank you for being here, Dr.

Mohler. So do the 16 million Southern Baptists believe Jews can go to heaven? Dr. Mohler. Southern Baptists, with all Christians, believe that everyone can go to heaven who comes to faith in Jesus Christ. There’s no discrimination on the basis of ethnicity or race or nationality.

The defining issue is faith in Christ. Phil. So a good Jew is not going to heaven. Dr. Mohler. Well, all persons are sinners in need of a Savior, and the gospel, we’re told by the Apostle Paul, came first to the Jewish people and then to the Gentiles.

But salvation is found in Jesus’ name and in his name alone and through faith in him. Dr. Mohler was simply paraphrasing exactly what John records as Jesus claims. Phil. So if a Nazi kills a Jew, a good Jew, a practicing Jew, the Jew goes to hell. But that Nazi has a chance to go to heaven?

That would be the consequence of your position? Dr. Mohler. Well, the gospel is not just for the worst of us. The gospel is for all of us. And the Scripture tells us the hard truth that we have all sinned and fallen short of God’s glory.

That Nazi guard is heading toward punishment for his sin. His only hope would be the grace of God through Jesus Christ. The profound truth of the gospel is that salvation can come to anyone who sincerely comes to faith in Christ, can come to that Jew who was killed, and even could come to the guard who did the killing. That’s the radical nature and power of the gospel. At this point, the rabbi jumps in. You know, Reverend Moeller, yours is a vast organization.

You have so many wonderful members, but I am sorry, I can’t possibly look a person in the eye and say, If you don’t come to Jesus, if you don’t change your faith, you’re not going to heaven. That reeks of prejudice, Dr. Moeller. Well, if the church had just come up with this in the 20th century, it was a novel idea. Perhaps it should be subjected to that critique, but this is the gospel that’s been received from the Lord Jesus Himself. He Himself declared, I am the way, the truth, and the life, and no one can come to the Father but through me.

Phil then interjected, Well, three cheers for the Catholics then. Rabbi, it took us a long time, but we’re no longer calling upon our faithful, the Catholic faithful, to evangelize and convert Jews. Praise the Lord for that, whichever Lord may be your favorite. Then Phil brings the Jewish Christian into the discussion. Dr. Brown, sir, you were born a Jew, raised by, I understand, liberal Jewish parents.

Do they survive, your parents? Dr. Brown, my dad actually died in 1977. My mom is turning 80. Phil, she’s got to be heartbroken. Dr.

Brown, No, she’s sitting right now watching this, and I’m sure rooting for me. Phil, she is? You’ve converted her to Christianity? Dr. Brown, My goal isn’t to convert Jews to Christianity. My goal is to get Jews, Gentiles, whoever, to recognize who Jesus really is.

There’s something that the rabbi said a moment ago that I find preposterous. Jesus came as a Jew to fulfill what was written by Moses and the prophets. If he did that, Jews should believe in him. If he didn’t, throw the whole thing out. If Jesus is not for Jews, I’m saying, then he’s not for anybody. I found that to be an excellent point, by the way.

But then Phil reasserts himself in the conversation. So I think you’re suggesting that the rabbi here should be grateful that somebody is trying to bring him to Jesus. Do I understand your position? You’re telling Jews they’re not going to heaven? Dr. Brown.

I’m telling that to Hindus. I’m telling that to Gentiles. I’m telling that to Catholics. I’m telling that to Protestants. I’m telling that to everybody, that without Jesus— Here he was interrupted by the rabbi, who got very agitated. He’s an equal opportunity offender, Phil.

You know, if Jesus were alive today, I think he would take Reverend Mohler and Dr. Brown here to court for character assassination. They’ve made the Prince of Peace into a torturer-in-chief. They’ve taken someone who said he was there to redeem, you know, the world and made him into someone who demeans mankind. The rabbi then went on for a few more minutes like that, mischaracterizing what Bible-believing Christians teach and believe. Just after the commercial break, we got it: the gospel, according to Phil.

We’re talking about heaven and hell, Phil says. Who’s going and who’s not? I have to say, gentlemen, that statement by the Catholic bishops that they will no longer try to evangelize Jewish people is a huge story that I thought should get more attention. It really embodies the brotherhood and sisterhood that we should be looking for all around the globe. I respect your opinion. You respect mine.

I’ll respect your religion. You respect mine. But please don’t tell me that you know what’s good for me. There’s an arrogance to that, and if you suggest that you’re going to heaven and I’m not, you’re up here, I’m down there, that is the beginning of the Crusades, which reaped more havoc in the name of the Prince of Peace than anybody on earth ever. Clap, clap, clap, clap from the audience. Did you get the gospel according to Phil?

It’s, you believe what you want, I’ll believe what I want. In his words, whichever Lord may be your favorite. It’s about the brotherhood and sisterhood of mankind. There’s no actual truth. We moderns can ignore what John records of Jesus’ claims. In fact, it’s arrogant to say that he was true and others false.

It’s worse than arrogant. It’s the same spirit that caused the tragic Crusades. Then Dr. Mohler, through Phil’s eye-rolling, tried to clarify the issue this way. He said, All I know is that God’s Word tells us the authoritative message about who He is and what He affirms about salvation. If it’s the truth, then it would be hateful.

It would actually be intolerant of me not to tell you what He says. I can’t compel anyone to believe in Jesus, but I do have the responsibility to share the good news of the gospel. All who are in heaven one day will be there only by grace and mercy alone. There’s nothing in any of us to merit it. When he said that, the rabbi went off into another tirade, not unlike the reaction Jesus got from the religious leaders who said he was demon-possessed and insane. In part, the rabbi said, Reverend Mohler, you’re guilty of nailing Jesus to a cross of intolerance, of racism, of spiritual Nazism.

You are disgracing your church through your condemnation of perfectly moral and ethical people. The Jewish community is righteous and charitable. Stop telling us we’re going to hell. You know nothing about Jesus. He was a Jew. Stop making him an anti-Semite.

You’re tarring him as one who hates his own people. If Jesus were alive today, what would he think when he sees the suffering of Jews at the hands of intolerant Christians like you? You should be ashamed of yourself, and it’s time that you change because this is an embarrassment. Wow. After the commercial break, Dr. Mueller said, Well, Mr.

Donahue, I want to say, first of all, thanks for giving us the time to discuss such an important question. And what I want to say to the rabbi, in all humility, is you need to know that I am fully aware that neither the Roman Catholic bishops nor the leaders of my denomination nor any other men have the power to send any soul to heaven or to hell. The final question comes down to who Jesus really is and what the gospel really is. Of course, Phil, as always, got the last word in. It was his show, after all, and he used it to underscore the gospel according to Phil. You can tell me about it, but you can’t stand there righteously and tell me you know what’s good for me.

And you sure as hell can’t tell me that there’s only one way for me to get to heaven. Nobody’s that smart. Nobody. Isn’t it fascinating that this modern exchange on an American TV program was essentially the same debate we read in John chapter 7 and John chapter 8, which happened 2,000 years ago? We’re out of time for this podcast, but let me just add that had I been on that panel, I would have answered Phil’s final remark, Mr. Donahue, respectfully, I beg to differ.

Someone is that smart, the one who came down out of heaven to tell us the truth. Thanks for listening. See you next time on Share the Word. If you’re enjoying these commentaries on the Gospel of John, please help us share the word by passing along the podcast to your friends and family. There’s no better way to learn the content of the New Testament than chapter by chapter. For more information, visit us at sharetheword.org.

From all of us at Share the Word. Our blessings and prayers go out to all of you.