I make no apology for the pun in the title of this sermon, for the author of the Fourth gospel delights in just such puns.  Many of the words which he uses have double meanings, meanings which can only be understood fully against the background in which the words were originally spoken.  That is what makes this Gospel so exciting.  There are hidden depths of meaning which can be found beneath the surface

John says specifically that Jesus spoke the words during the Jewish “Feast of Tabernacles” (7:2) in Jerusalem.  On the evening of the first day of the festival there took place a ceremony called “The Illumination of the Temple.” There were four great candelabra in the Temple Court, and as darkness descended upon the Holy City, these candles were lighted, giving off such a blaze of light s…