Ultimate Choice

John 12:44-50. KJ2000

(44)  Jesus cried and said, He that believes on me, believes not on me, but on him that sent me.

(45)  And he that sees me sees him that sent me.

(46)  I am come a light into the world, that whosoever believes on me should not abide in darkness.

(47)  And if any man hear my words, and believe not, I judge him not: for I came not to judge the world, but to save the world.

(48)  He that rejects me, and receives not my words, has one that judges him: the word that I have spoken, the same shall judge him in the last day.

(49)  For I have not spoken of myself; but the Father who sent me, he gave me a commandment, what I should say, and what I should speak.

(50)  And I know that his commandment is life everlasting: 

whatsoever I speak therefore, even as the Father said unto me, so I speak.



Have you ever watched a construction site barricade being assembled?  

Workers come out and place those brightly colored sawhorses about.  On the top you will usually find a blinking light.  That light is designed to blink for a very long time.  I know, because I had a college roommate who stole one.  Did you know there is no switch to turn them off?  It's hard to sleep in a room with a light like that.

That light is designed that way for a purpose:  to warn you of danger.  It flashes to get your attention so that you will not come to disaster.  Note too that we trust these lights because they are put in place by those who know what's going on.

Jesus Christ is telling us the same thing about himself here.  

He, personally, is the flashing light warning of danger.  By listening to him, you can avoid it.

He is flashing to warn you of the dangers of hell and judgment.

He was put in place by the one who knows best:  God.  He is in fact God in the flesh. 

Even though we might not clearly see what is behind the barricades, we know that those flashing lights are to be taken seriously.  It is the same with Christ.  We do not really know how things will be when the Lord returns;  it is likely enough that the glory and terror of that day are beyond our mortal comprehension.  But we know enough to trust the Light set out for our warning.

The Light warns us of judgment to come.  Of that judgment we know a few things:

It is a judgment by God—the righteous one, who knows all things (including our thoughts) and who judges justly.

It is a judgment brought through Christ—who now warns us about it.

For those who believe, it is a judgment at which our Lord will intervene for the true believers, on the basis of his Atonement.

For those who believe, we know that our good works on earth will be rewarded then.

For those who do not believe, it will be a day of terror.

A flashing light is a small thing pointing out a big danger.  Jesus is the ultimate "flashing light" for the ultimate danger.