John 08 Round Two: Jesus is the Light that Heals and Burns

A woman stands in the temple, dragged into public shame. Stones are clenched. Laws are quoted. Then Jesus kneels, writes in dust, and turns a trap into a mirror. The crowd leaves quieter than they came, and one voice remains: neither do I condemn you; go and sin no more. From that moment, the chapter opens like a sunrise as Jesus declares, I am the light of the world—inviting those who follow him out of darkness and into life.

We explore how John frames Jesus’ identity with the covenant name echoed from Exodus. When Jesus says I am, he is not reaching for poetry; he is revealing divinity. That claim reorders everything: where we locate truth, how we measure freedom, and why belief is more than mental nods. We unpack the tension with the Pharisees over witness and authority, and why many stumble not for lack of evidence but for love of darkness. The turning point arrives with a promise that has set prisoners free for centuries: you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free. Freedom is not a slogan; it is a change of master, from sin’s grip to the Son’s grace.

From there, we dig into spiritual parentage, Abraham’s legacy, and the hard edge of Jesus’ words about the father of lies. The crescendo arrives with a sentence that shook the temple courts: before Abraham was born, I am. No middle ground remains. Some reach for stones; others reach for faith. Along the way, we talk about how mercy never excuses sin, how truth heals when received, and how the same light that grows a soul can burn a hardened heart. If you’ve been waiting for a nudge to step into the light—honesty, repentance, and a fresh start—this conversation points the way.

Listen, share with a friend who needs hope, and tell us what verse challenged you most. If this helped you, subscribe, leave a quick review, and join our community to keep digging into Scripture together.

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The More We Dig. The More We Find.

Scripture quotations taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation (NLT).
Copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation.
Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

Chapters

• 0:00 Welcome And Big Idea: Light That Heals And Burns
• 0:59 Community Updates And Listener Challenge
• 4:14 Why “I Am” Means God In John
• 8:16 Woman Caught In Adultery And Mercy
• 13:00 I Am The Light Of The World
• 17:16 You Will Die In Your Sins Without Belief
• 20:40 Discipleship, Truth, And Real Freedom

Transcript

SPEAKER_00: 0:00

Welcome to the Bible Breakdown Podcast. Every day, we take one chapter of the Bible, dig deeper, and discover that the more we dig, the more we find. You can find out more at the BibleBreakdown.com. Now let's grow in God's Word together. Well, hello, everybody. Welcome back to the Bible Breakdown Podcast with your host, Pastor Brandon. Today, John chapter 8. And if I were to give today a title, it would be Jesus is the light that heals and burns. Jesus is amazing and he's awesome, but you got to figure out what you're going to do with Jesus. And so if you let him, he is a light that will heal and restore and do all the good things. He is a vitamin D shot like you ain't never seen. But if you don't, he's going to burn you. And it's just because it's just the truth, right? And so we're going to jump into that. It's going to be one of the most uh powerful, impactful uh stories in the entire New Testament, but also some challenging words. And something that you may not have noticed, Jesus just straight up becomes super controversial. We'll get into that in just a moment. But as always, if you like what we're doing here, make sure that you are, if you're watching on YouTube, you like this video, you share this video, it really does help us get the word out. And if you were listening to the podcast, it really does help us if you will give us a five-star review and then let us know how things are going. It helps with the whole algorithm thing because we're slowly trying to develop a community of people. The man we are rallying around simply reading God's word together. Because we truly believe the more we read, the more we dig, the more we will find and the more God will do in our life. And I also want to know from you, how is God's word transforming your life? You can go to our Facebook group at Bible Breakdown Discussion, and you can just let us know what's going on. And I have this question for you today. What is the most challenging scripture for you in the Bible? Because Jesus is going to confront some people today multiple times. And I would like to know in your life, how is how has that worked out in your life? What are some challenging places in God's word and what has God done for you? So that's what we're going to do today. In John chapter 8, we have, you know, we've been saying that the overall idea, the context of this is John was written by the Apostle John, and he was like the best friend of Jesus on the earth. And so he walked with Jesus and he talked with Jesus. And now he is not trying to give us a blow-by-blow account of the entire biography of Jesus. He's more interested in helping us understand the message of Jesus. And John chapter 8 is another one of those because seven different places in the Gospel of John, Jesus declares, I am, and then he tells you what he is. And then he also will do a great miracle in order to get people's attention so they will understand who he is. He's like, This is who I am, and I'm going to prove it. And we also realize that every time he says I am, it's kind of lost on us reading it in English. But if you understand Old Testament culture and everything else, back in the book of Exodus, when God told Moses who he was, he said, I am that I am. And what he was saying is, is it was the covenant name of God. The Hebrew letters are Yud, He, Vav, He. And the best transliteration we have for that is Yahweh, or if you want to put the ha in there, you know, the Hebrew uh pronunciation, it would be Yahweh. And it was the covenant name of God, which basically says, I always was, I always am in the present, and I always will be. I am the unique divine one, Yahweh. And so every time Jesus says, I am this, he is actually calling back to that moment, saying, I am God, and I am the God who is the light of the world. I am the God who is the way, the truth, and the life. And so that's why it's kind of silly when people will say, Oh, you read through the entire New Testament and Jesus never claims to be God. You go, Well, have you read the book of John? Because seven different times he says, I am God, and this is an aspect of who I am. And so that's why it's so important to do some of this digging so we can fully understand or more fully understand God's word. So we're gonna see that today. It's gonna be awesome. As always, if you've got your NLT Bible open with me to John chapter 8, we're gonna dive into this together and stop along the way and just gush. Just talk about the amazingness that is God's word. Learn some principles of God's word along the way. Okay, so let's jump into this, reading it together. Here we go. John chapter 8, verse 1 says this. Jesus returned to the Mount of Olives, but early the next morning he went back again at the temple. A crowd soon gathered, and he sat down and he taught them. While he was speaking, the teachers of religious law and the Pharisees brought a woman who had been caught in the act of adultery, and they put her in front of the crowd. Teacher, they said to Jesus, this woman has been caught in the act of adultery. The law of Moses says to stone her. What do you say? They were trying to trap him into saying something they could use against him, but Jesus stooped down and wrote in the dust with his finger. They kept demanding an answer. So he stood up again and said, All right, but let the one who has never sinned throw the first stone. Then he stooped down again and wrote in the dust. When the accusers heard this, they slipped away one by one, beginning with the oldest, until only Jesus was left in the middle of the crowd with the woman. Then Jesus stood up again and said to the woman, Where are your accusers? Didn't even one of them condemn you? No, Lord, she said. And Jesus said, Neither do I, go and sin no more. Now there's so many great things in this text. One of the things that's great about this is you realize that this woman was guilty. Now, we could have a whole nother conversation about how it takes two to Tango. You know what I'm saying? So where's the broski in this whole situation? That's a whole nother conversation. We have no idea where Brosif was. All we know is they brought this lady. But what's also amazing is that we just got through reading the book of Numbers together. And do you remember that weird chapter where the Bible said that if a husband suspects his wife of committing adultery, then what they would do is don't just take his word for it, don't just take her word for it. But they would say, Bring her to the tabernacle and take some of the dust from the tabernacle floor, mix it with water, and then have her drink it. And there would be this thing that would happen that if she was innocent, nothing would happen. Just taste bad. But if she was guilty, then there would be some kind of reaction in her body that would let you know she was guilty. That way you didn't have to worry about he said, she said, other words, let God take care of it. And so it makes you wonder, they were bringing her to the tabernacle. So they were probably bringing her to mix up some of that water so they could prove it, even though they said they caught her in the act, so they knew she was guilty. But I love how God's word says, Don't take all these other ones, bring it to me, let me deal with it. But what I love is is the Bible said they brought her, and then they wanted to go ahead and test Jesus. And so Jesus gets down into on the ground, he starts to ride in the dirt. Well, now we know one of the reasons why he was probably riding in the dirt was because in his without saying it, he's saying, I know that the law says you're supposed to take some of this dirt, but I'm curious. And people have have guessed for you know 2,000 years what he wrote in that dirt. But think about the setting. This woman has been caught in the act of adultery. Lord knows. She's probably half-dressed, terrified. She knows she's on her way to die. These men are ready to judge her, and even more so, they think they're gonna kill two birds with one stone. They're gonna judge this lady. They're also gonna get Jesus, bring her to the temple, and they'd say, Jesus, this lady has been caught in the act of adultery. So basically, we're just gonna go through the formalities of having her drink the dirty water, but we already know she's guilty. But before we do that, what do you say? So Jesus gets down in the dirt that they're about to make her drink, and he starts to write. Now, I don't know what he wrote. I've heard people say, well, maybe he wrote the names of all their mistresses down. I said, Sally, yo, Michelle, you know, and we don't know what they wrote, but whatever it was, that in that moment they caught on to the idea. When he said, Great, you're right, she deserves to be condemned. But how about we do this? Whoever one of you, whichever one of you is without sin, you go first. And he got down. Maybe he was writing down the sins, whatever it was. But whatever it was, whenever they thought about it, they decided to walk away. And isn't that amazing that the Jesus stands up and he tells this lady, I don't condemn you, go and sin no more. In other words, he didn't excuse her sin. He didn't say that she had never sinned. He said, Even though you have sinned, I forgive you. Now go and sin no more. Isn't that amazing? That Jesus loves us enough to be honest. He loves us enough to hold us accountable. But then on the other side of that, he says, I'll pay for it. Now you go and you be free. I love that so very much. All right, let's keep going. John chapter 8, verse 12. The Bible says, Jesus spoke to the people once more and said, I am. Remember what I am means? I am the light of the world. If you follow me, you won't have to walk in darkness because you have the light that leads to life. But the Pharisees replied, You are making those claims about yourself. Such testimony is not valid. Jesus told them, These claims are valid, even though I make them about myself, for I know where I came from and where I'm going. But you don't know this about me. You judge me by human standards, but I do not judge anyone. And if I did, my judgment would be correct in every respect because I am not alone. The Father who sent me is with me. Your own law says that if two people agree about something, their witness is accepted as fact. I am one witness, but my father is the one who sent me, is the other. Where is your father? They asked. Jesus answered, Since you don't know who I am, you don't know who my father is. If you knew me, you would also know my father. Jesus made these statements while he was teaching in the section of the temple known as the treasury, but he was not arrested because his time had not yet come. Pause real quick. So what Jesus is saying is, is he saying, I'm the light of the world, but you don't get it because your your eyes have been veiled. You don't want to get it. And I love how the Bible continually says they wanted to arrest him, they wanted to kill him, but they simply couldn't. Because his hour had not yet come. In other words, they were never in control. They were never in charge. It wasn't until the time was right that these bad things were able to happen. All right, verse 21. Later, Jesus said to them again, I am going away. You will search for me, but will die in your sin. You cannot come where I am going. The people asked, Is he planning to commit suicide? Where, what does it mean? You cannot come where I am going. He continued, You are from below, I am from above. You belong to this world, and I do not. That is why I say that you will die in your sins, for unless you believe that I am who I claim to be, you will die in your sins. Once again, every time you hear him say, I am, he's not he is claiming the right of being God. He is claiming his divinity. Remember, the whole idea of the Gospel of John is John is saying the message of Jesus was and is, I am God. So he said, unless you believe that I am God, that I that who I claim to be, you're gonna die in your sin. And so they said, Who are you? They demanded. Jesus replied, The one I have always claimed to be. I have much to say to you about this and much to condemn, but I won't. For I say only what I have heard from the one who sent me, and he is completely truthful. But they still didn't understand what he was talking, that he was talking about his father. So Jesus said, When you have lifted up the Son of Man on the cross, then you will understand that I am he. I do not, I do nothing of my own, but I say only what the Father taught me. And the one who sent me is with me. He has not deserted me, for I always do what pleases him. Then many who heard him say these things believed in him. So other words, they finally got it that he is God. He and the Father are same in essence, different in person. And they begin to understand how the Trinity is working. Verse 31 Jesus said to the people who believed in him, You are truly my disciples if you remain faithful to my teaching. Pause. What so he's saying, You are my disciple if you believe me and follow me. So in other words, remember that word belief isn't just a factual knowledge, but it is a followership. We just made up that word, okay? So it's believing enough to trust and to then do the things that God has said. Now, you are not forgiven, you're not justified by your actions, you're justified by placing your trust in the Lord. The Lord does the miracle of salvation, but then we have the opportunity to walk in that truth and find life and freedom in it. Verse 32 says, and you will know the truth because it is the truth that will set you free. That's one of the things I love about God's word. I've had people ask me all the time, well, can you prove God's word is true? Absolutely, I can prove God's word is true. There's lots of different things I can do to prove to you and facts and evidence and all that kind of stuff. But I love to tell people the number one way I can prove to you guys' word is true is by looking at my life. I'm by no means perfect. I got a long way to go. But if you knew who I was when God found me and you know where I am now, you'd be amazed. And there's about a billion other people I can share the exact same story that none of us have arrived, none of us are where we want to be, but the proof is that the truth works. And if you put the truth of God's word into your life, watch it work. Verse 33. But we are descendants of Abraham, they said. We have never been slaves to anyone. What do you mean you will be set free? Jesus replied, I tell you the truth. Everyone who sins is a slave to sin. A slave is not a permanent member of the family, but the son is part of the family forever. So if the son sets you free, you will be truly free, or you are truly free. Yes, I realize that you are descendants of Abraham, and yet some of you are trying to kill me because there's no room in your heart for my message. I am telling you what I saw when I was with my father, but you are following the advice of your father. Our father is Abraham, they declared. No, Jesus replied, For if you were really the children of Abraham, you would follow his example. Instead, you were trying to kill me because I told you the truth, which I heard from God. Abraham never did such a thing. No, you are imitating your real father. So Jesus is about to sunburn these jokers. Oh, here we go. They replied, We aren't illegitimate children. God himself is our true father. Pause. Real quick. Remember that Jesus was born of a virgin, Virgin Mary, and later, you know, before he was born, Mary and Joseph were married, but he did not have sexual relations with her until after Mary uh Jesus was born. Well, many scholars believe it was probably widely whispered that Jesus was an illegitimate son. Because it would have been obvious by the time Mary and Joseph got married, she was likely showing, and they weren't able to go through. There was a whole thing about the Jewish wedding they weren't able to do because of all of this. And so this is a slight jab at Jesus. We aren't illegitimate children. God himself is our true father. And so it is very possible that this is a slight jab at Jesus, going, you know, it's been whispered for years, Jesus, that you might be illegitimate, but you know what? We're not. And so just a quick little thing there. Okay, verse 42. Jesus told them, If God were your father, you would love me, because I have come to you from God. I am not here on my own, but he sent me. Why can't you understand what I am saying? It's because you can't even hear me. For you are the children of your father, the devil, and you love and and you love to do the evil things that he does. He was a murderer from the beginning, and he has always hated the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he lies, it is consistent with his character, for he is a liar and the father of lies. So when I tell the truth, you naturally don't believe me. Which of you can truthfully accuse me of sin? And since I am telling you the truth, why don't you believe me? Anyone who does belong, anyone who belongs to God listens gladly to the words of God, but you don't listen because you don't belong to God. The people retorted, You Samaritan devil, didn't we say all along that you were possessed by a demon? No, Jesus said, I have no demon in me, for I honor my father and you dishonor me. And though I have no wish to glorify myself, God is going to glorify me. He is the true judge. I tell you the truth, anyone who obeys my teachings will never die. The people said, Now we know you're possessed by a demon. Even Abraham and the prophets died, but you say, anyone who obeys my teachings will never die. Are you greater than our father Abraham? He died, and so did the prophets. Who do you think you are? Finally, a good question. Jesus says, verse 54, finish it up. If I want glory for myself, doesn't count. But it is my father who will glorify me. You say he is our God, but you don't even know who I am. Or you don't even know him. I know him. If I said otherwise, I would be as great a liar as you. Jesus, don't mess around, man. But I do know him and obey him. Your father Abraham rejoiced as he looked forward to my coming. He saw it and was glad. The people said, You aren't even 50 years old. How can you say you have seen Abraham? Here it is. Jesus answered, I tell you the truth. Before Abraham was even born, I am. Remember, he's calling himself God when he says this. I am Hebrew letters, Yud He, Vav, He, I am Yahweh. That point, they picked up stones to throw at him, but Jesus was hidden from them and he left the temple. Oh man. Jesus is the light that heals and burns. The difference is what you do with it. You know what I love about this is I love if I were to take one thing out of this, it would be Jesus says, you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free. One of the things I love about sunlight is you put a you put a plant in the sun and it causes it to grow. You put a plant in the sun for too long, and you don't add water to it, it'll cause it to die. It all depends on how you use it. What do you do with the light that is given? Do you use it properly or do you use it improperly, right? One of the things I love about God's word is God's word is powerful. But that's what it is. God's word is powerful. It can create life or it can cause death, depending on what you do with it. And that's what I love about this is that to the people that received the message, the Bible says they believed in him. The adulterous woman was set free, but then on the other side, you have the Pharisees who are not willing to believe. And so the same light that is bringing life to others is burning them. And so the honest truth for us is that we have the same choice. We can take the truth of God's word and to realize that it is the truth that sets us free. Or we can take it, and on one end, we can make it legalistic and it can bring death instead of life. Or we can choose to reject it and will also bring death instead of life. And so instead, within the context, we take the scripture as it is, apply it to our lives, and let it set us free. And I hope that brings some hope to you today. So that's what I want to do is I want us to, God's been talking to us so much, so many good things from God's Word. I want you to go to the Bible breakdown discussion and let me know what you know really stood out to you today. But I want to pray for us, and then we're gonna read our scripture and we'll be done for today. Father, thank you so much. Thank you so much. Then in the fullness of time, you did such an amazing thing. Jesus, thank you for coming to this earth, splitting time in half, entering into our time and our space, walking with us and setting us free. And Lord, you know what I love about you the most is you love us enough to tell us the truth. And so, Lord, sometimes that truth it burns, and sometimes that truth it it slices, but only to heal. You only reveal what you intend to heal. And when we come to trust you, we come to trust your word. And wherever you convict us is an area you're ready to heal us. And we receive that today. In Jesus' name we pray. Amen. Never forget, God's Word says the reason why this was written is that you may continue to believe that Jesus is God and that by believing in Him you may have life by the power of His name. I love you so much. I'll see you tomorrow for John chapter nine.