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Sermon #5462

The Need of Man Revealed

A Sermon on John 8:12

Originally preached May 22, 1960

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Scripture

John 8:12 ESV KJV
Again Jesus spoke to them, saying, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will not walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.” (ESV)

Sermon Description

In this sermon on John 8:12 titled “The Need of Man Revealed,” Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones addresses the greatest need of humankind, namely, how anyone can be forgiven. How can humankind be reconciled to God? God is a righteous and just God who will not allow sin to reign forever. He will punish sin. Dr. Lloyd-Jones illustrates that the sole hope for anyone is entirely in Christ alone. Jesus is the Lamb of God. He is a spotless sacrifice, and He offered Himself up to satisfy God’s divine justice. Dr. Lloyd-Jones makes a sharp distinction here: Jesus did not come, primarily, to give an example. Rather He came to sacrifice Himself, to make atonement free to all who would believe. Just as a sacrificial lamb’s purpose is to cover sin, the Lamb of God purposed to save sinners from wrath. Dr. Lloyd-Jones jubilantly portrays the beauty of the gospel and the refrain of Scripture is that without blood there is no remission of sin.

Sermon Breakdown

  1. The passage under consideration is John 8:12 - "Then spake Jesus again unto them, saying, I am the light of the world: he that followeth me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life."

  2. This verse summarizes the Christian gospel and message. There is much confusion in the world, even within the church, about what it means to be a Christian. We must return to foundational truths.

  3. Jesus calls attention to himself, saying "I am the light of the world." Christianity is about the person of Christ, not just teachings or doctrines.

  4. Jesus' claim is exclusive - he alone is the light, there is no other. Christianity is intolerant of other claims.

  5. The light Jesus provides shows the truth about the world and its future (it is doomed), but there is hope for individuals who follow him.

  6. Man's greatest need is to be reconciled to God. The world's problems stem from not knowing God. We cannot know God apart from Jesus.

  7. Jesus shows us the truth about ourselves - we are in darkness and sin. Man is not essentially good, as some claim.

  8. Man's troubles come from being estranged from God. We need God's blessing and fellowship.

  9. God demands perfection - we must love him with all our being. If we fail in one part of the law, we are guilty of breaking all of it.

  10. Our relationship with God is personal. God is holy and cannot abide sin. Sin cannot exist in his presence.

  11. It is not enough to simply say we are sorry and will do better. That view does not understand the depth of the problem. Forgiveness is the greatest problem ever confronted.

  12. Jesus came into the world specifically to die. His death was necessary to solve the problem of forgiveness. He was the "lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world."

  13. Jesus' agony in Gethsemane shows he was facing bearing the punishment for our sins, which meant separation from the Father.

  14. The message of the gospel is that Jesus died for our sins so we could be reconciled to God. There is no other way to be forgiven.

  15. We must see our need for forgiveness, that only Jesus' death could solve the problem of our sin, and trust in him alone.

The Book of John

Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones

Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones (1899-1981) was a Welsh evangelical minister who preached and taught in the Reformed tradition. His principal ministry was at Westminster Chapel, in central London, from 1939-1968, where he delivered multi-year expositions on books of the bible such as Romans, Ephesians and the Gospel of John. In addition to the MLJ Trust’s collection of 1,600 of these sermons in audio format, most of these great sermon series are available in book form (including a 14 volume collection of the Romans sermons), as are other series such as "Spiritual Depression", "Studies in the Sermon on the Mount" and "Great Biblical Doctrines". He is considered by many evangelical leaders today to be an authority on biblical truth and the sufficiency of Scripture.