The Truth

John 8:31–59 ESV

So Jesus said to the Jews who had believed him, “If you abide in my word, you are truly my disciples, and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.” They answered him, “We are offspring of Abraham and have never been enslaved to anyone. How is it that you say, ‘You will become free’?” Jesus answered them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, everyone who practices sin is a slave to sin. The slave does not remain in the house forever; the son remains forever. So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed. I know that you are offspring of Abraham; yet you seek to kill me because my word finds no place in you. I speak of what I have seen with my Father, and you do what you have heard from your father.” They answered him, “Abraham is our father.” Jesus said to them, “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. You are doing the works your father did.” They said to him, “We were not born of sexual immorality. We have one Father—even God.” Jesus said to them, “If God were your Father, you would love me, for I came from God and I am here. I came not of my own accord, but he sent me. Why do you not understand what I say? It is because you cannot bear to hear my word. 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. But because I tell the truth, you do not believe me. Which one of you convicts me of sin? If I tell the truth, why do you not believe me? Whoever is of God hears the words of God. The reason why you do not hear them is that you are not of God.” The Jews answered him, “Are we not right in saying that you are a Samaritan and have a demon?” Jesus answered, “I do not have a demon, but I honor my Father, and you dishonor me. Yet I do not seek my own glory; there is One who seeks it, and he is the judge. Truly, truly, I say to you, if anyone keeps my word, he will never see death.” The Jews said to him, “Now we know that you have a demon! Abraham died, as did the prophets, yet you say, ‘If anyone keeps my word, he will never taste death.’ Are you greater than our father Abraham, who died? And the prophets died! Who do you make yourself out to be?” Jesus answered, “If I glorify myself, my glory is nothing. It is my Father who glorifies me, of whom you say, ‘He is our God.’ But you have not known him. I know him. If I were to say that I do not know him, I would be a liar like you, but I do know him and I keep his word. Your father Abraham rejoiced that he would see my day. He saw it and was glad.” So the Jews said to him, “You are not yet fifty years old, and have you seen Abraham?” Jesus said to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, before Abraham was, I am.” So they picked up stones to throw at him, but Jesus hid himself and went out of the temple.

What an unusual response to the key of this text: The truth will make you free.

Illustrations for Biblical Preaching Truth

Truth does not need updating. There is a story of a man who came to his old friend, a music teacher, and said to him, “What’s the good news today?” The old teacher was silent as he stood up and walked across the room, picked up a hammer, and struck a tuning fork. As the note sounded out through the room, he said, “That is A. It is A today; it was A five thousand years ago, and it will be A ten thousand years from now. The soprano upstairs sings off-key, the tenor across the hall flats on his high notes, and the piano downstairs is out of tune.” He struck the note again and said, “That is A, my friend, and that’s the good news for today.”

Abraham’s descendants

Never been in bondage to anyone

How is it you say: you will be made free?

Conditional statement in v31 “If you truly are my disciples...”

Those that had believed, either in Him or just believed Him, had a changed view of Jesus, without a changed view of themselves.

When my view of Jesus changes, my view of me must change.

I am either a slave or a son. The slave is cast out at some point (Ishmael). The son inherits the promise (Isaac).

1 John 2:19 ESV

They went out from us, but they were not of us; for if they had been of us, they would have continued with us. But they went out, that it might become plain that they all are not of us.

As their father, Abraham welcomed the Lord and faithfully obeyed His words. As Abraham’s descendants, they were on the verge of putting out the light of the world!

If we are not a child of God, we are a child of the devil. There are no other choices.

They could not receive the words of Jesus because the enemy cant stand to hear them. They were proving who their ‘father’ was by their unwillingness to accept Jesus and His words.

The tendencies of heredity are as consistent in the spiritual realm as they are in the physical. We see ourselves in our kids. Like father like son! Too true!

There may be no other choice except child of God or child of the devil, but there is the choice. Those not believing were not doomed to never believe. They were choosing the negative response. Their bondage was voluntary.

The issue with man is not who he is. Often it is who he is of. Jesus recognized men could be victimized by forces outside their lives: The environment of these Jews bound them in religious tradition, national pride and racial prejudice.

Jesus knew His adversary was the devil, not this mis-guided group of men.

The danger in man thinking he alone is the cause of his problems is that he usually also thinks he alone can (or must) overcome them.

I must admit I am not the answer. He is. That I dont have the answer. He does.

From who are you in verse 25 to who do you think you are in verse 53

Greater than Abraham. He died! They knew he had transcended death. That he was with God in heaven. They even called some part of that Abraham’s bosom!

You’re not even 50 years old! I’m 40! I’m a man!

Before Abraham was, I AM

The object of faith, not the act of faith, makes the difference in our life.

The object of our faith is Jesus. He is the light of the world and the truth. Light and truth are so similar and vital.

Illustrations for Biblical Preaching Truth

The relationship between truth and holiness is similar to that between light and vision. Light cannot create an eye or give a blind eye vision, but it is essential to seeing. Wherever light penetrates, it dissipates darkness and brings everything into view.

In a similar manner, truth cannot regenerate or impart spiritual life, but it is essential to the practice of holiness. Wherever truth penetrates, it dissipates error and reveals everything for what it really is.

Green, M. P. (Ed.). (1989). Illustrations for Biblical Preaching: Over 1500 sermon illustrations arranged by topic and indexed exhaustively (Revised edition of: The expositor’s illustration file). Grand Rapids: Baker Book House.

After two weeks of tent meetings in a Bavarian town in Germany farmer testimony

Holman New Testament Commentary: John III. Conclusion: Testimony in a Tent

a quiet farmer, waited in a long line of local people whose testimonies for Christ lasted well over three hours that Sunday afternoon. When he approached the microphone he said quite simply, “You people know me. I have lived in this town all my life. You know that I have been a faithful member of our church and I’ve always believed that would take me to heaven and grant me favor with God. But last week I understood the gospel for the first time and I know that I can only go to heaven because Jesus died for me, and I trust his death to give me eternal life. So today I stand before you as a real Christian for the first time in my life.”