URC Daily Devotion Monday 9 June 2025

Again Jesus spoke to them, saying, ‘I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness but will have the light of life.’  Then the Pharisees said to him, ‘You are testifying on your own behalf; your testimony is not valid.’  Jesus answered, ‘Even if I testify on my own behalf, my testimony is valid because I know where I have come from and where I am going, but you do not know where I come from or where I am going.  You judge by human standards; I judge no one.  Yet even if I do judge, my judgement is valid; for it is not I alone who judge, but I and the Father who sent me.  In your law it is written that the testimony of two witnesses is valid.  I testify on my own behalf, and the Father who sent me testifies on my behalf.’  Then they said to him, ‘Where is your Father?’ Jesus answered, ‘You know neither me nor my Father. If you knew me, you would know my Father also.’  He spoke these words while he was teaching in the treasury of the temple, but no one arrested him, because his hour had not yet come.

Reflection

The late Revd John Slow used to tell me: ‘The Gospel according to John – a child can paddle in it and an elephant can swim in it’. When we find ourselves faced with such texts as we have today, we can take what we can from the surface meaning of it or we can delve deeper and discover more than we can ever imagine, about the text and about ourselves.

I encounter this text from a privileged place. I am white, straight, have had a good education, have shelter, food and freedom, have never really been oppressed and, whilst I have faced some sexual discrimination, it has not severely limited my opportunities.

The image of light has been used by many to demonstrate good or right. However, we need to take care that the implication is not that darkness or lack of light is bad or wrong. Questioning our use of words and metaphors is important in order to not exclude or ‘other’.

We also have Jesus responding to the words of the Pharisees who are trying to condemn him, and it is easy to make a sweeping generalisation here that ‘all Pharisees are bad’ or label a group of people as wrong. Coming from a place of privilege it is easy to judge or deride others.

The issue I have as a member of a privileged majority, is that there are times when I am not even aware that I am behaving in a way that is prejudicial or judgmental, such is my social conditioning. What is required of me is to educate myself and hopefully people feel able to call me out, to gently nudge me or challenge my words or actions. I appreciate that it is not easy to do, but without such interactions I will never change.

Reading, reflecting, listening and discerning, these things help us to see life at different levels and to change and grow. 

Prayer

Gracious God,
we give you thanks for Scripture which inspires, challenges and confronts us; 
for words which comfort and encourage us 
and which help us to think, reason, and grow in faith. 
Your word helps us to be more faithful disciples, 
to face hard things and to make sense of who we are 
in relation to You, your world and others. 
Give us humility, peace, grace, and love as we journey on. Amen.