Lighteth Every Man
STATEMENT
Hello false prophet. Twist not the scriptures lest you be the devil. Read John 1:9 "God gives every man true light that cometh into the world." Therefore if we turn to Christ through the work of the Holy Spirit, then God deserves all the glory and honor and power, Amen. So, on Judgements Day, not one human from Adam to the end will have an excuse for not turning to God. So again, please read John chapter 1. Then your eyes will be open, if you truly seek God.
RESPONSE
Hello and good morning. Let’s start by looking at that text:
“That was the true Light, which lighteth every man that cometh into the world.” (John 1:9)
This passage teaches a number of truths and the correct interpretation must make sense in the immediate context and also harmonize with numerous precepts laid down elsewhere in scripture. The phrase, “That was the true Light” has reference to the Lord Jesus Christ himself, who is the creator and source of all light whether natural or spiritual (Genesis 1:3, Hebrews 1:3). On this point there is little controversy.
The phrase, “which lighteth every man that cometh into the world” is the portion of this verse where knee-jerk, plain-meaningism often results in an interpretation that is at odds with numerous other statements in the scriptures. There are many possible ways that we might interpret this “lighting of every man.” For the sake of brevity I will focus on two of them:
“Lighting every man” attributes the capacity of spiritual conviction of truth to all of humanity.
“Lighting every man” attributes the natural capacity of life to all of humanity.
The first interpretation is problematic because spiritual conviction of spiritual truth requires faith. Indeed, who affirms the truth of something they do not believe? Who is convicted of something they regard as foolishness? (I Corinthians 2:14) Moreover, Paul explicitly teaches that, “all men have NOT faith” (II Thessalonians 3:2) and that apart from the spiritual capacity of faith (Galatians 5:22) it is impossible to have any spiritual conviction with respect to the truth. (I Corinthians 2:11-14). Since this interpretation contradicts Paul’s description of man in his natural (unregenerate) state, it is therefore incorrect. It follows that any downstream theological assertions based on this interpretation are bound to be incorrect. More on that in a moment…
The second position, the belief that this “lighting of every man” refers to natural life rather than spiritual capacity is undeniably true. But is this what is intended by the use of this phrase in this context? I believe this concept is affirmed by the immediate context when John says, “In him was life, and the life was the light of men.” (John 1:4) What’s more, the fact that God is the source of all life is affirmed in numerous other passages of scripture. (Genesis 2:7, Acts 17:25, Hebrews 1:2-3)
Having made the case for why the “lighting of everyman” is in reference to natural life and not spiritual capacity, we can move on to your next statement:
“therefore if we turn to Christ through the work of the Holy Spirit, then God deserves all the glory.”
This statement insists that the “work of the Holy Spirit” is one and the same as the “lighting of every man” found in John 1:9. But this cannot be the case. Consider this: whatever you design by “turning to Christ,” it must be an act that is pleasing to God. (Luke 15:7) Indeed, how could it be displeasing to God when he has commanded it? (Acts 17:30) Since without faith it is impossible to please God (Hebrews 11:6), it follows that all such “turning to Christ” must be done in faith. Since faith is a fruit of the indwelling Holy Spirit (Gal 5:22), which not all men possess (II Thessalonians 3:2), and faith is required to perform this pleasing “turn,” it follows that “turning to Christ” is not a capacity possessed by all men. But there’s more. Since your statement regards this “turning” as taking place “through the work of the Holy Spirit” it likewise follows that whatever you design by this “work” cannot be a work that is common to all of humanity, and thus it cannot be synonymous with the “light that lighteth every man.”
In summary, the correct interpretation of John 1:9 is that the phrase “lighteth every man” is in reference to the fact that Christ is source of the natural life possessed by every man. It is NOT in reference to spiritual capacity to receive and believe truth, because this is explicitly NOT possessed by every man. Still, there is some truth in your statement. It is true that those men who “turn to Christ” only do so through the work of the Holy Spirit. That prerequisite work is regeneration. It is referred to in the scriptures as being “born again” (John 3:3), being “quickened” (Ephesians 2:1), and being “translated” (Colossians 1:3). It is the result of divine election in eternity past (Ephesians 1:4-5), and is a covenant blessing extended to all of God’s chosen people at some point between conception and death (John 17:2, Galatians 4:6). This quickening imparts the spiritual capacity of faith to men whereby they may perform spiritual actions such as believing truth, repenting from sins, and serving the Lord. It is for this reason that God receives all the glory because fallen man, untouched by the life-giving mercy of God is utterly incapable of sincerely desiring anything spiritual, let alone doing something spiritual.
May God bless our studies and understanding of his word.
- Elder Daniel Samons