John 12:35 Jesus replied, “The light is with you for a little while longer. Walk~~ while you have the light, so that the darkness may not overtake you. The one who walks in the darkness does not know where he is going.”
Jesus had just described the “death he was going to die” (Jn 12:32–-33), as being “lifted up from the earth,” but the crowd thought the Old Testament had said the “Christ remains forever” (12:34), so if He was going to die, they began to doubt He was the promised One.
Rather than directly answer their question, He gave them a principle to follow even when they do not experience what they were expecting. He told them to keep on continually walking in the “light,” or the truths of Jesus’ teachings, no matter what happens.
When He was gone, the darkness from the lack of His personal guidance and His teachings would overtake them, leaving them with a sense of being lost as one who “does not know where he is going.”
Doubt, frustration, and disillusionment are the results of having been deceived by evil powers or simply by selfish expectations, leading one to believe he deserves better in life. The crowd wanted a Messiah who was important, powerful, and permanent, but Jesus was poor, unknown, not politically connected, and, by His own declaration, temporary. Why should they put their trust in Him and risk their lives for someone who appeared to be a weak failure?
When doubts arise, keep on walking in the light that you know in the word. James said that “the testing of your faith produces patience” (James 1:3), which is the sign of being made “perfect and complete, lacking nothing” (1:4); thus one becomes the character of Christ. Our testings are part of His plan to bring us to maturity.
The command was needed because, in spite of the miracles He did, “they still did not believe in him” (Jn 12:37). Many might be following Jesus to see what happens but they have not stepped into the light with all their hearts to trust Him fully for everything in life. Can anything discourage you from trusting Christ in today’s problems?
“Lord, I want to be committed to all the principles and commands that You have given to us as an expression of my trust in You. ”