[Read John 8:30-47]
I’ve always had a love and appreciation for apologetics. If you don’t know what apologetics is, it’s basically defending the faith. It’s giving reasons for why we believe what we believe. Often it’s giving reasons for why we believe things that are contrary to what the world around us believes. Apologetics often focuses on topics like the existence of God, the problem of evil, why do we believe the Bible, creation versus evolution, and things like that. Because I’ve always loved and appreciated these topics, I’ve spent a lot of time over the years listening to debates on these topics. And, when I’ve gotten a chance, I’ve traveled to attend some of these debates.
One debate stands out from about ten years ago. One of my close friends and I traveled down to the University of Minnesota to attend a debate that was scheduled by the atheist’s club on the university campus. That meant the attendees were primarily non-believers and we were definitely the minorities in the crowd. The debate wasn’t as good as I had hoped it to be. The Christian was unprepared and the Atheist, the moderator, and the crowd didn’t give him the time of day. They didn’t listen to anything he said. They basically mocked him the entire time. Then, when it came time to take questions from the floor, things got really out of hand. People just got up and started screaming at him from the floor and interrupting everything he said. They were calling him names and mocking him. At one point, someone got up and said something like, “Give me one example of how an atheistic worldview can be damaging to culture!” He was in a tough spot because of all the attacks he had been taking, so he didn’t say much, but held up a book about Hitler and Nazi Germany—because Hitler’s plans were all based on an atheistic worldview. When he did that, the crowd completely lost control. I’ve never seen anything like it in my life. Everyone stood up and was screaming at him. My friend and I immediately stood up and walked out the back door because everything was getting so out of control. As we were walking out, my friend looked at me wide-eyed and said, “Man, it really felt like we were surrounded by demons!” That feeling came because we were surrounded by people who HATED the truth. They didn’t really argue against the truth. They didn’t just disagree with him. They HATED the truth and they HATED the person speaking the truth, and they responded by shrieking and screaming and attacking. Ten years later, things have only gotten worse.
This is what Jesus is addressing in this morning’s passage. Yet, as we dive into the passage, I want to make sure we understand the tension of this passage because there’s a LOT of tension in this passage. You’ve probably felt it over the past few weeks, but the tension between Jesus and the Jewish leaders is increasing. Things are getting more intense every week, and this week things are no different. In this morning’s passage, Jesus is going to say things that most of us would never expect Jesus to say.
So, some of this tension is not only between Jesus and the Jewish leader, but there’s a tension in us as well. We have to notice how this passage starts. We read, “As he was saying these things, many believed in him. So Jesus said to the Jews who had believed him…” (John 8:30–31, ESV).
Notice a couple things about this statement. After I preached my last message, someone messaged me and said something like, “I have never heard original sin preached that strongly before.” Everyone was a little uncomfortable with the words that came out of Jesus’ mouth (remember they were Jesus’ words, not mine). Yet, even with Jesus preaching such strong words that make people uncomfortable and uneasy, even with Jesus preaching in ways that were aggressively attacking certain Jewish leaders, many believed in him.
Then Jesus has some words for those who believed in him. Everything that follows is said to “those who believe in him” and Jesus is going to say some things that we would never say—especially to people who claim to believe in Jesus. Notice what Jesus begins by saying. He says, “If you abide in my word, you are truly my disciples…” (John 8:31, ESV). Notice the word “truly” because that comes up a couple times in this passage. Right away at the beginning of this passage, Jesus is distinguishing between those who claim to be his disciples and those who are truly his disciples. Not all who say they are disciples are truly disciples. Not all who claim to believe, truly believe. We’ve seen this in other parts of John already, so it shouldn’t surprise us that it’s coming up again. A bunch of people claim to believe in Jesus and the first thing Jesus does is say, “If you really believe in me, you’ll abide in my word. If you are truly my disciple you will abide in my word.”
Later on in this passage things get really crazy because Jesus says, “You are of your father the devil, and your will is to do your father’s desires.” (John 8:44, ESV). Don’t forget who he is saying this to. He’s saying this to a group of people who claim to believe in him—people who claim to be his followers. If this were today, these could even be people who were members of church, people who went around and told people they were Christians. And to those people Jesus says, “You may think you are children of God—disciples of Jesus—but you are actually children of the devil.” Like I said at the beginning, things are getting tense and Jesus is saying things that make us uncomfortable, and he’s saying them to people who claim to believe in him.
He goes on to explain why he says this: “You are of your father the devil, and your will is to do your father’s desires. He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks out of his own character, for he is a liar and the father of lies.” (John 8:44, ESV). Jesus takes the opportunity to describe the devil—or Satan. He says that he was a murderer and a liar from the beginning. When Satan tempted Adam & Eve, he lied to them and led them astray to the point that they would eventually die. He’s a liar and murdered. It’s not just something he does—it’s who he is. It’s his character. When he murders, it’s who he is. When he lies, it’s who he is. He is the father of lies. So, whenever you encounter situations that are filled with murder and lies, Satan and his armies are involved. It’s who they are and what they do.
From this, Jesus makes the connection: Who are they acting like? Are they acting like Abraham/God or are they acting like Satan? Well, earlier in the passage Jesus says, “If you were Abraham’s children, you would be doing the works Abraham did, but now you seek to kill me, a man who has told you the truth that I heard from God. This is not what Abraham did.” (John 8:39–40, ESV). Notice the two things connected with their behavior: 1) they are seeking to kill/murder Jesus, and 2) they are rejecting the truth for a lie. They are not acting like Abraham and they definitely aren’t acting like God. They are acting like Satan by seeking to murder and embrace lies. That’s why Jesus says that Satan has become their father and they are not truly children of God.
And to put things more starkly, Jesus says, “You cannot bear to hear my word…But because I tell the truth, you do not believe me.” (John 8:43, 45, ESV). Notice what Jesus says. They cannot bear to hear what he says—they can’t stand it—AND they don’t believe him BECAUSE he speaks the truth. They hear him speaking the truth and hate it, they can’t stand it, and refuse to believe it because he speaks the truth. If he spoke lies to them, they would love him and believe him, but BECAUSE he speaks the truth, they hate him, refuse to believe him, and seek to murder him. Because of this, they show by their words and actions that they are not truly Jesus’ disciples—they do not actually believe in him, they are not children of God, but children of the Father of Lies and Murder—Satan.
This is a stark picture, but it’s an important reminder for all of us a Christians, especially as we try to be witness in the world. We will go out into the world that does not believe in Jesus and we will speak the truth and people will not always believe what we say. And sometimes, when we speak the truth to people and they don’t believe, we blame ourselves. We beat ourselves up and say, “Oh, I should have said this better. I should have been clearer. I should have been more winsome. They probably didn’t believe because I wasn’t clear or effective” Yet, this teaches us that some people will not believe BECAUSE we have effectively spoken the truth. That’s a real thing. They will see the truth clearly and they will hate it and reject it BECAUSE it is the truth, not because of our incompetence. That’s why Jesus also says, “The reason why you do not hear [the words of God] is that you are not of God.” (John 8:47, ESV). They will never believe or accept the truth until God does something powerful in them and opens their eyes to see it. Until then, they will continue to follow the Father of Lies and Murder, and they will continue to reject the truth and embrace lies.
Yet, Jesus says, “Whoever is of God hears the words of God.” (John 8:47, ESV) and earlier says “If you abide in my word, you are truly my disciples, and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.” (John 8:31–32, ESV). Those who are “of God” hear the word of God and embrace it as truth. And because they have embraced it as truth, they abide in that truthful word of God.
The word Abide is a powerful word. It has a ton of different connotations. I can mean, “to stay, to remain, to wait for, to live, to keep on.” It’s a word with staying power. It’s not a word that talks about something fleeting or occasional. It’s a word that talks about a long-lasting connection. And Jesus says that those who are truly disciples of his, they have that kind of relationship with his word and his truth. They abide in it. They grab hold of it. They embrace it. They remain with it. They live in it. They keep on following it. They keep on living it out.
This is a very different picture than what we’ve seen. Throughout the Gospel of John, we’ve seen various people try to take a little of Jesus’ teaching here and there, and reject other parts of it. Jesus teaches us here that those people are not truly his disciples. True disciples of Jesus abide in word—all of it—and they love all of it and embrace all of it and live in all of it and seek to conform their lives to all of it. Picking and choosing is not an option. It’s an all-or-nothing scenario.
And we’re told that those who abide in God’s Word in this way, they are set free—truly set free. Jesus says, “You will know the truth, and the truth will set you free…So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed.” (John 8:32–36, ESV). Another way this could be translated is, “If the son sets you free, you will be TRULY free.” That’s important for the same reason that it’s important to know if you are truly a disciple of Jesus. It’s also important to know if you are truly free.
This shows us that there is a fake freedom out in the world. A “freedom” that is not freedom at all. A “freedom” that is actually slavery. In this case, these Jews thought they were living in freedom, but Jesus points out that they are actually living in slavery. They’re trapped. It’s kind of a scary reality, isn’t it. That you can be in a situation where you think you’re free, but you’re really enslaved.
Jesus goes on to explain himself here, saying, “Truly, truly, I say to you, everyone who practices sin is a slave to sin.” (John 8:34, ESV). This is what he’s talking about. Everyone who practices sin is a slave to sin. Yet, when Satan—the Father of Lies and Murder—tempts us with sin, what does he tell us? He tells us that we’ll have freedom when we sin. He promises freedom. We even experience a level of “freedom” for a little while, just enough to trap and enslave us.
Think about the parable of the Prodigal Son. He thought he had freedom, didn’t he? He thought that running off with a bunch of money, doing whatever he wanted, whenever he wanted, was freedom. He found out it wasn’t freedom, but was actually slavery. Think about the promises being told to people on a regular basis. I hear people talking about the “freedom” they have to sleep with whoever they want whenever they want. Yet, it’s not freedom. It’s slavery. They’re trapped and stuck and can’t get out. There are people who think they are experiencing freedom when they are drunk or high. It’s not a real freedom. It’s slavery. There are people who think they are experiencing freedom by focusing solely on themselves—doing whatever they want whenever they want, not caring at all about anyone but themselves. That’s not freedom either. It’s a slavery that will eventually destroy you. Every sin promises freedom, but always leads into slavery.
But Jesus says, “If you abide in my word, you are truly my disciples, and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free…So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed.” (John 8:31–36, ESV). This is REAL freedom, not that fake stuff Satan is pedaling. This is actual freedom to live the way you’ve been created to live and loving every minute of it.
Over the years, I’ve heard numerous ways of explaining this freedom. An analogy I’ve come up with comes from some of my experience hunting in the mountains of Montana. When we hunted in Montana, we hiked all over the place. We hiked high enough to break the timberline, and into some very difficult gullies. There were some gullies/valleys that were full of blowdown (blowdown is when storms cause trees to be blown down all over the place and have landed on each other randomly—like a game of pick-up sticks). We didn’t go in those gullies because there were so many obstacles you couldn’t even move and trying to go through there would most likely get you and other people hurt. It was always better to stay on the game trials—on the paths—because you could move safer and easier.
That’s what freedom is. That’s why the Bible talks about paths of righteousness. Freedom is being able to move freely and without hindrance in the world God has created. Freedom is not going wherever you want and doing whatever you please. Freedom is not stumbling and bumbling your way through a valley of knocked down trees and getting hurt along the way. Freedom is walking—or even running—down a path that God has laid out for you in this world.
And the only way you can get this kind of freedom is through Jesus Christ. He’s the one who truly sets you free and gets you back on the path. He’s the only one who can clean you up and bring you back. He’s the only one who can heal the wounds you’ve received by trying to walk in places you shouldn’t have been walking. He’s the one who can forgive you and cleanse you for seeking freedom in all the wrong places. He’s the only one who can actually free you from the slavery you’ve got yourself in.
All you have to do is truly believe in him—put your faith in him—and abide in his word. Then you will know the truth. Then you will be set free to live by truth in this world. Then you will slowly be taken out of the slavery you’ve gotten yourself into and into the freedom of Jesus Christ. Sometimes, there are moments when someone is instantly removed from their state of slavery to a particular sin, but often it’s a long, slow process. It’s a long slow process of rejecting the lies you’ve believed and embracing the truth of Jesus Christ. It’s a process of abiding in God’s Word daily, knowing that the truth of his word will set us free.
Again, this is why it is crucial to be in God’s Word DAILY. I mean that—DAILY. Not just on Sunday mornings. Not occasionally. Not every once-in-a-while. DAILY. We need it daily because we’re constantly being tempted to wander off into slavery. We are constantly being tempted to believe lies. We need to know the truth and to be set free. So, we need to be daily reading the truth, daily fighting the lies, daily trusting in Jesus Christ to set us free and to set our feet on paths of righteousness for his name’s sake. That’s what it means to TRULY believe in Jesus Christ and to TRULY be his disciple. So, read your Bible every day, reject the lies of Satan and the world, embrace and seek to find the truth of God’s Word, and trust in Jesus Christ to lead you and truly set you free. Then, do it again the next day and the next. This is what it means to Abide in Christ and His Word.