Untitled Sermon (6)

INTRODUCTION

Let’s open our Bibles tonight to the Gospel of John, chapter 8, verses 37 through 47. The Lord Jesus is still in the Temple area, speaking to a group of Jews who claimed to believe on Him — at least outwardly. But as the conversation unfolds, their profession of faith is exposed as shallow and false.

These men were religious. They were proud of their heritage. They were Abraham’s descendants, circumcised, zealous for the law. If anyone thought they were right with God, it was them. But Jesus looks past their words and sees their hearts — and what He finds there shocks them. He tells them plainly that though they are Abraham’s seed physically, they are not Abraham’s children spiritually. Worse, He says they are of their “father the devil.”

It is one of the most direct, confrontational passages in all of Scripture. And yet, it’s also one of the most revealing. It shows that our spiritual condition is not determined by where we came from, or what we claim, but by who we resemble.

The question before us tonight is the same one Jesus forced upon His listeners: Who’s your father?

Now, that might sound offensive — but it’s the most important question any of us can answer. Spiritually speaking, there are only two families in this world: the family of God and the family of the devil. Every human being belongs to one or the other. And Jesus tells us that our spiritual father is revealed not by our words, but by our character, our loves, and our response to His truth.

So tonight we’re going to walk through this passage verse by verse and let Jesus Himself draw the dividing line.

I. FALSE CONFIDENCE IN HERITAGE (vv. 37–40)

“I know that ye are Abraham’s seed; but ye seek to kill me, because my word hath no place in you.” (v. 37)

Jesus begins by acknowledging a fact — “I know that ye are Abraham’s seed.” He doesn’t deny their genealogy. They were indeed descendants of Abraham according to the flesh. But He goes on to make a crucial distinction: though they were Abraham’s seed, they were not Abraham’s children.

There’s a difference between being related to someone and resembling them.

If you’re a parent, you know this. You might say to your child, “You have your mother’s eyes,” or “You act just like your father.” That’s resemblance. It’s more than DNA — it’s character, attitude, and nature. Jesus says, “If you were Abraham’s children, you would do the works of Abraham.” (v. 39)

What were Abraham’s works? Faith, obedience, humility, and love for God. Abraham believed God and it was counted unto him for righteousness. Abraham welcomed God’s messengers. Abraham longed for the coming of the Messiah — Jesus later says in verse 56, “Abraham rejoiced to see my day: and he saw it, and was glad.”

But these men, rather than rejoicing to see the Messiah, wanted to murder Him. They didn’t reflect Abraham’s heart at all.

Warren Wiersbe draws a beautiful parallel here. He reminds us of the story of Isaac and Ishmael. Ishmael was the son of the bondwoman — the servant — while Isaac was the son of promise, the true heir. Ishmael had a place in the household for a time, but not permanently. Wiersbe says, “Servants may live in the house, but they have no guarantee of inheritance. Sons do.”

Likewise, these Jews were religious “servants,” not spiritual sons. They were still in bondage to sin, and Jesus tells them, “My word hath no place in you.” That phrase means, “It finds no room, no lodging.” The Word of God had knocked at the door of their hearts, but they refused to open.

My friend, that’s still true today. There are many who sit in church, nod their heads, and quote the Bible — but the Word of God has no room in them. It doesn’t dwell in them richly because pride has already filled the space.

Matthew Poole calls this “judicial blindness.” When men harden their hearts against truth, God eventually gives them over to their own delusions. Isaiah 6:9–10 warns of this blindness — “Hearing ye shall hear, and shall not understand.”

There’s nothing more dangerous than unrecognized bondage. Wiersbe said, “The worst kind of slavery is the kind that doesn’t know it’s enslaved.” That describes these Pharisees perfectly. They thought themselves free because of heritage and law-keeping, yet Jesus had already said back in verse 34, “Whosoever committeth sin is the servant of sin.”

Application: Church membership, baptism, family heritage — these are all good things, but they cannot make you a child of God. You can be the descendant of a preacher, raised in Sunday school, and still be lost without Christ. True sonship comes not from lineage but from likeness — not from Abraham’s blood but from Abraham’s faith.

If the Word of Christ has no place in your life — if it doesn’t govern your thinking, your home, your priorities — then Jesus would say the same thing to you: “My word hath no place in you.”

II. TRUE SONSHIP REVEALED BY CHARACTER (vv. 41–44)

“Ye do the deeds of your father.” (v. 41)

The conversation grows more tense. Jesus has already hinted that they have another father — not Abraham, not God. The Jews respond, “We be not born of fornication; we have one Father, even God.”

Commentators differ slightly in how they understand that phrase.

Eaton suggests that it was a cruel personal insult — a reference to the rumors surrounding Jesus’ birth. They were implying, “We know who our father is — can you say the same?”

Poole, however, sees it as a boast of religious purity — “We are not idolaters; we have one God.” In the Old Testament, idolatry was often called spiritual fornication.

Either way, they are puffed up with self-righteousness. Jesus exposes the hypocrisy in verse 42:

“If God were your Father, ye would love me: for I proceeded forth and came from God.”

Love for Christ is the infallible mark of true sonship. You cannot love the Father and hate the Son.

J. C. Ryle speaks strongly here. He says, “To talk of God as Father while rejecting His Son is to speak a lie. There is no universal fatherhood that includes the enemies of Christ.”

We live in a day when many speak of “the brotherhood of man and the fatherhood of God,” but that’s not what Scripture teaches. Only those who receive the Son by faith are given the power to become the sons of God (John 1:12).

Now Jesus tells them plainly who their true father is.

“Ye are of your father the devil, and the lusts of your father ye will do.” (v. 44)

That’s strong language. Imagine saying that to the most religious men in Jerusalem! But Jesus isn’t being cruel — He’s being truthful. He loves them enough to confront them with their spiritual reality.

A. The Devil’s Nature: Murder and Lies

Jesus describes the devil as “a murderer from the beginning.” Brown, Fausset, and Jamieson note that this doesn’t refer merely to Cain, but to Satan’s role in the fall of man. By deceiving Eve, he brought death — spiritual and physical — into the human race. He has been a destroyer of life ever since.

Then Jesus adds, “He abode not in the truth.” Those words suggest that Satan once stood in truth — a holy being who fell through pride and rebellion (cf. Jude 6). He left the truth and became the father of lies. Everything about him is false. His lies come from within him; they are “self-begotten,” as Brown says — they flow from his very nature.

What does that mean for us? It means that every time a person chooses deceit over honesty, or hatred over love, they are acting out the devil’s nature. They are imitating their spiritual father.

B. The Devil’s Children: Those Who Imitate His Works

Milne gives a chilling observation here. He says the twentieth century alone — with Auschwitz, Cambodia’s killing fields, Stalin’s Gulag — is proof of Jesus’ words. Humanity is capable of unspeakable evil while claiming to be moral, civilized, even religious. It’s the devil’s nature at work in human hearts.

Wiersbe adds that Satan is not only a liar but an imitator. He offers a false righteousness (Rom. 10:1–4), a counterfeit religion, a faith without repentance. He’ll let you keep your morality and your religion, as long as you reject Christ.

Friend, the devil doesn’t care if you go to church, as long as you never come to Christ. He’ll let you hold the Bible, sing the hymns, and feel spiritual — as long as you stay lost.

That’s why Jesus told Nicodemus, a religious ruler, “Ye must be born again.” Religion can make you respectable; only regeneration can make you a child of God.

Application: This is a sobering truth: every heart reflects one of two fathers. If your life is characterized by pride, deceit, and resistance to truth, you’re showing the family resemblance of the wrong father. But if you love Christ, love truth, and desire holiness, that’s the mark of God’s family.

There is no neutral ground. You’re either of the Father or of the father of lies.

III. TRUE CHILDREN OF GOD HEAR AND OBEY HIS WORD (vv. 45–47)

“And because I tell you the truth, ye believe me not. Which of you convinceth me of sin?” (vv. 45–46)

The rejection of truth reveals the heart’s condition. Jesus says, “You don’t believe Me precisely because I tell you the truth.” Isn’t that remarkable? We might think people reject lies and embrace truth, but in a fallen world, it’s often the opposite. The truth exposes sin, and sinners hate being exposed.

Then comes a challenge that no mere man could make:

“Which of you convinceth me of sin?”

Brown, Fausset, and Jamieson call this a “glorious dilemma.” If Jesus were a sinner, His teaching could be dismissed. But if He is sinless, then His words must be believed. His enemies had watched Him, tested Him, questioned Him — and yet they could find no fault. Even Pilate would later say, “I find no fault in Him.”

Jesus’ sinlessness proves His divine origin. He truly “proceeded forth and came from God.” No prophet, priest, or rabbi could ever make that claim.

Now look at verse 47:

“He that is of God heareth God’s words: ye therefore hear them not, because ye are not of God.”

Hearing in Scripture is not just auditory — it’s spiritual reception. To “hear” God’s Word means to receive it with faith and obedience.

J. C. Ryle says, “A disposition to hear and love truth is a hopeful sign of grace; obstinate rejection of truth is a sure sign of an unregenerate heart.”

Poole adds, “All reasonable souls are debtors to truth.” In other words, when we hate truth-tellers, it proves we are acting out the devil’s nature.

Application: The ultimate test of your relationship with God is how you respond to His Word.

When Scripture convicts you, do you humble yourself, or do you harden yourself?

When God’s Word confronts your habits, your marriage, your pride — do you submit or resist?

The child of God may struggle, but he cannot live in rebellion against the Word he loves. The unregenerate man, however, finds every excuse to avoid it.

As James says, “Be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only.” (James 1:22)

CONCLUSION: THE FAMILY RESEMBLANCE TEST

Jesus draws the line sharply. There are two families, two fathers, two sets of characteristics. And every person fits into one or the other.

Mark of the Devil’s Children

Mark of God’s Children

Reject truth

Receive truth

Hate Christ

Love Christ

Live in deception

Walk in obedience

Self-righteous pride

Humble faith

You can tell a child by the resemblance.

If you love Christ, if His Word abides in you, if your heart is drawn to truth and righteousness — rejoice, you bear your Father’s image! But if your life is marked by deception, pride, and resistance to Christ’s authority, Jesus says you are not of God.

This isn’t meant to condemn for condemnation’s sake — it’s meant to awaken us. The Son of God stands ready to free you from the wrong family and bring you into His Father’s household.

Remember His earlier promise:

“If the Son therefore shall make you free, ye shall be free indeed.” (v. 36)

Through faith in Christ, you can be adopted into God’s family. You can move from darkness to light, from bondage to freedom, from the devil’s grip to the Father’s embrace.

SECONDARY APPLICATION — THE CHRISTIAN FAMILY

Before we close, let me draw a brief application for our homes and families as we prepare for Family Camp this weekend.

The principle of resemblance applies not only spiritually but domestically. Our families inevitably reflect the character of the father who leads them — whether that’s our Heavenly Father or the father of lies.

When a home is ruled by truth, love, humility, and grace, it shows the Father’s image.

When a home is marked by deceit, anger, and selfishness, it reveals another influence.

Parents, the greatest inheritance you can give your children is not your last name, your savings, or your education — it’s your example of loving and obeying Jesus Christ.

Let your children see that God’s Word has “a place” in you — that it rules your conversations, your decisions, your reactions. When they watch you respond to correction with humility, they’ll learn what true sonship looks like.

If we want our children to walk in truth, we must first walk in truth ourselves.

As we gather for Family Camp, let’s recommit our homes to reflect our true Father. Let the love of Christ, the Word of God, and the power of the Spirit govern our households. May our children be able to say, “I see the Father’s likeness in my parents.”

INVITATION

So let me ask again tonight — who’s your father?

You may have religion, but do you have a relationship? You may know about God, but do you love His Son? You may hear the Word, but has it found a home in your heart?

Jesus said, “He that is of God heareth God’s words.”

If tonight you feel convicted, that’s the Holy Spirit drawing you. Don’t resist Him. Come to Christ in faith. Let Him make you free indeed.

And believer, if you’ve drifted — if you’ve been living like the prodigal in another country — come home. Remember your Father’s character. Let your life once again reflect His truth and love.

When God is truly your Father, the world can tell. You’ll love Christ. You’ll love truth. You’ll love holiness. And when you fail, you’ll run back to the Father who always receives His children.

CLOSING PRAYER

“Father, thank You for speaking truth even when it wounds. Thank You that through Christ, sinners can be made sons, and rebels can become children. Help us tonight to examine ourselves, to love Your Word, and to reflect Your character in our homes and in this church. In Jesus’ name we pray, Amen.”

How can we distinguish between being religiously active and genuinely reflecting the character of Abraham?

Why is it important to evaluate who we truly reflect in our lives, beyond just our heritage or religious activities?