John 8:31-36

“So Jesus was now saying to the Judeans who had (previously) believed in him, ‘If you make your home in my Word, then you are really my disciples. And so you will come to know the truth, and this truth will set you free.’ They replied to him, ‘Hey, we are seed of Abraham himself, and we have never been enslaved to anyone ever. So why are you telling us, “You will be free”? Jesus replied to them, ‘Amen, amen, I want to tell you something very important: Every single human being who is doing something sinful is, in fact, a slave of that sin. The slave, as you know, does not live in the home forever. But the son lives there forever. So then, if the Son sets you free, you will be really free.’ 

SLAVERY SIN AND FREEDOM

Context - the teaching in the temple. There is a back and forth about Jesus and his authority. He is declaring that his is the life. He is living water. He is the light. He is sent from the Father. He and his father make a valid testimony - admittedly i can be sympathetic to the religious leaders who are frustrated. I’m a religious leader. I trust the authority of scripture like they did and here is the new guy with no credentials talking big, doing signs and wonders and saying he is the authority and God gives him that authority.

As he is saying these things many believe in him. Now he gives a word to the Jews who believe in him.

READ IT.

Jesus understanding - religious jews in the temple. Anyone who commits sin is a slave to sin. (make sense - anyone who can make you do what you don’t want to do is a master over you. Sin is a master which makes you a slave.

the ones who had believed in him are trying to kill him? or other folks in the crowd?

NOTES

SERMON/BT

During my teenage years - one of my favorites song was a song entitle Martyrs and Thieves by Jennifer Knapp. The lryics stayed with me. I think they painted a vibrant picture of what goes on in so many human hearts, or soul or mind. -however you understand what’s going on inside you (in the bible there are some differences between heart and soul and mind, but we will leave that big discussion for another time) the song gets at what is going on in many human souls - certainly my soul at times.

‘ There are ghosts from my past who have owned more of my soul. Than I thought I had given away. They linger in closets and under my bed.And in pictures less proudly dis-played. A great fool in my Life I have been.Have squandered til pallid and thin. Hung my head in shame and refused to take blame.From darkness I know I've let win”

I like that lyric - i think it holds up. She is seeing her soul like a house and ghosts - not good spirits have come to live in her house. They’ve taken over more of her soul house than the thought. They are hiding in closet. They are under her bad.

That resonates with me. have you ever though - oh boy, what’s going on inside me? What am i angry about this. Why am i responding this way?I thought I was over that but my memory replays that failure, that foolish thing I did or said over and over and over again.

or perhaps you look into your soul house and just see a lot of sin. The scriptures and Jesus talk a lot about sin. Sin is ways of living that miss the mark. They are anti-creation ways of living. Distructive ways. Sin rejects God’s way and order. It is to not do the good that he made us for.

Sin gets in our soul house. WE have patterns of sin in our lives - the bible is super clear about them - proverbs is super clear about them. jesus and the early christians - we get patterns of anger, patterns of pride, greed, lust, selfishness, envy, that’s sin - getting in the closets, hiding under the bed - that’s sin getting into the wood and wall paper like a house where people have smoked for 30-40 years.

There is also sin and evil that to us from others - that takes more a hold of us than we want it to - some of you have harmful words of people who are supposed to love trapped inside you - those word and those actions live in your soul house - they taken more of your soul house than you wanted to give away.

this season of quarantine. there is less noise. Noise and busyness help us run from what’s going on inside us. So maybe this is a season where we are wrestling with what’s going on inside us.

we also have way less control and in more vulnerable states right now so the ghosts inside might take this season to make a tighter grip.

If you have ghosts inside you. If you have pain inside you - more than you want. If you have sin hiding in closets, and underneath the bed Jesus has something good for you.

We are going to look at some words from Jesus in the gospel. They are good words. They are words that can change lives if we obey them and let them get into our soul and heart. This is a good word. I’m thankful for it. And it is a good word for followers of Jesus. it is a good word for people who used to or sort of believe in Jesus. its a good word for the person that kind of wants Jesus but also wants to keep doing their thing. Its a good word for people that used to be really excited about Jesus but now - not so much. He addresses those types of folks. its a good word for people who don’t believe in Jesus. Its a good word. An as is the case so often with jesus is a gracious word and a word of challenge.

GOD

Context - the teaching in the temple. There is a back and forth about Jesus and his authority. He is declaring that his is the life. He is living water. He is the light. He is sent from the Father. He and his father make a valid testimony - admittedly i can be sympathetic to the religious leaders who are frustrated. I’m a religious leader. I trust the authority of scripture like they did and here is the new guy with no credentials talking big, doing signs and wonders and saying he is the authority and God gives him that authority.

As he is saying these things many believe in him. Now he gives a word to the Jews who believe in him and those who had believed in him. Many had stopped believing because it Got hard and they only wanted the signs and wonders.

“So Jesus was now saying to the Judeans who had (previously) believed in him, ‘If you make your home in my Word, then you are really my disciples. And so you will come to know the truth, and this truth will set you free.’ They replied to him, ‘Hey, we are seed of Abraham himself, and we have never been enslaved to anyone ever. So why are you telling us, “You will be free”?

(1- that statement is just not accurate - they were slaves in egypt and when got set them free they wanted to go be slaves again. they were also put in exile -that’s a degree of slavery - taken from theirh homes to foreign lands. They were slaves in exile. Their prophets said they were sent into this exile slavery because of their sin, evil and opporession of the vulnerble.

Jesus replied to them, ‘Amen, amen, I want to tell you something very important: Every single human being who is doing something sinful is, in fact, a slave of that sin. The slave, as you know, does not live in the home forever. But the son lives there forever. So then, if the Son sets you free, you will be really free.’ 

so he offers them something - to be his true disciples. This comes from continuing, abiding making their home with Jesus. this leads to truth, and freedom.

33-35 - the Problem Sin (ghosts own more of our soul house than we realize.

33 we are descendents of abraham.

they think they are free because of their religion and nation. That’s a word for everyon. I am proud to be an american where at least i know I’m free. Or I’m a committed religious person I am free. Or i am en enlightened well educated westerner - what do you mean I’m not free.

Listen Jesus said this the crowd, the would be believers, the leavers and the true believes - he said this to people proud of their freedom - national freedom, religious freedom -

SIN - Everyone who commits sin is a slave to sin. Bold word - But he is right. Anyone or anything that makes you do something that you do not want to do has power over you. One way to put that is that they are your master and you are their slave. The greater control the stronger the master, the more of a slave you are.

We do what do not want to do. Look around it obvious - people are doing evil, and injustice. But look inside - We do what is not good. Jesus believes that jealousy, pride, lust, worshipping things other than God, failing to do the good we could do. Neglecting the poor, the naked those in prison, failing to keep God’s way for you - Jesus says that si sin. And that sin owns you. We don’t have sin as a big word in our society -it comes of as religious, its puritanical and conjurs demons and devils - but that’s a good description - to sin is to miss being your true human self.

Sin is like theif that gets in your house and reek havoc - you are at the will of that dangerous introdure. Sin can master you. What has taken tons of your life that you are ashamed to admit - I bet sin is behind whatever that addiction is, that habit you knew was no good.

Jesus says listen there is a problem - Sin is living with you and its the master of the house.

35 - some good news - The slave does not have a permanent home. If you are a slave to sin you will find yourself homeless. Tha master will kick you to the curb one day. BUT There is a better home - a better place to dwell - A son has a place forever. 36 So if the Son sets you free you are free indideed. -

The good news Jesus brings to them and to us - there is a son that can really set you free! there is a son who can really set us free!

For God so love the world (A world trapped in sin- look around that sin is real) that he sent his Son! That son has the pwoer to set free from sin and death - that son pays the penalty for sin and death. Taht son redeems slaves from sin and death and sets them free and makes thems sons and daughters. That some rises from the grave to free the world from an old way of slavery to sin and decay and into the new way of a new creation home where those connected to the son becomes sons and daughters and find a place in the home of the father - and the sin is cast out. The ghosts are cast away.

What is that is true - what if there is one who can set us free!

How do wee get this freedom! How? this is important - because Jesus doesnt’ trust man. We see that over and over again in john. there are a lot of sort of followers - they aren’t set free. They like Jesus, the like the miracles but they don’t find the freedom - they go back to the slavery.

Jesus wants to live together

‘If you make your home in my Word, then you are really my disciples. And so you will come to know the truth, and this truth will set you free.’

verse 31 and 32 - here is where we find the freedom.

If you come to make your home in my word. Or if you continue. The word there for make home or continue - it means to dwell, to abide - christ will say this later in john abide, abide, abide, live together ilke a vine and branches.

He says in my word. he is the Word - and we are to dwell in his word. we are to listen to him in prayer. We are to do this together - if we do that then we are trully his disciples.

If we do that Jesus says you will know the truth and the truth will set you free.

I see a lot crumbling before my eyes. institutions that are meant to give us the truth - politicians, industries, media, education, these are places taht are to give us the truth. We are in the age of information. But words have been humiliated and truth is hard to find. We don’t feel like we are getting the truth.

I’m hungry for something true that can feed me. I’m thirsty for something true that can satisfy. Jesus says live with me - feed on my word.

I’m telling you we are going through the gospel of John daily, Some of meet in smallg roups for prayer. I have a small group on zoom where we discuss the words of Jesus. it is a slow steady race, but it is feeding me. IAnd I come away from looking to Jesus and his words and I think - boy this is something real. In a world where i don’t know what is true - this jesus he dropping more truth than anything else. IN a world where I don’t know which way to go - and that is right now right - whcih way do we go - should we be having this meeting or not? when I come to him - this guy is the way - lord I don’t understand you ways, but you know the way for me. Lrod I dont know what to do but my eyes are on you - Lord you are they way.

In a world where so many things come at me - and you- proudly offering life - I grab those things and they give little life for the moment adn then more despair. A promise of freedom that makes you feel more like a slave - in that space I come to Jesus and his world - I think Yes, there is life here.

Jesus calls us to his listerners. he calls us to us - if you want to find life. If you want to find freedom from sin, from habits, from this pain you can’t shake, from the ghosts that own more of you than you wanted to give away. if you want to find a way when you are all spun around, if you want to find something true in a world where truth has become conquered by lies, and image and power - then jesus says live with me - live in my word. Find your life in my life. Live with me - all around chaos but live with me - lets buy a house together and live together and we will have calm in the story - freedom, life, trust, in dwelling with Jesus. That’s the way of the true disciples to choose another path is to fall back into slavery and never finding life in the Jesus house. And that path leads to destruction.

I want to close with a few words about where we are at as a church - and what steps we can take to dwell with jesus in this season, i believe this is the season to dwell with Jesus.

Weekly Rhythm & Structure

8:31-32 -Jesus want to live together.

-He want to bring truth

-He wants to bring freedom.

Here is the offer (go to the notes) above - If you believe in me I will make my home with you. To abide, to dwell, to remain to stay.

This is

-continuing issue about real belief.

-who had believed in him - contains the new folks believing in him, but probably also those who had believed but had turned (maybe from John 6 when folks walk away.

-Some believe only in name or show. They do not dwell or abide - they do not live in the Jesus home or in the father’s house.

-to make Jesus family is to live with him. I live with my wife, my kids.

-8:30 if you remain, continue

If you really remain with me - if you dwell with me.

We decided to move in together.

-Can make a sermon with vision casting at the end

(go to the abiding passages)

-in 8:30 hear it for you - we might be people who are really believing right now. We might also be people that said we believed a while ago but are not so sure anymore. (many famous former christians tend to make news when that happens ) this is a good place to enter the story. We can believe

Jesus’ Word here is, in fact and first of all, both a remarkable challenge and a thrilling promise to believers. First the challenge: “If you will make your home in my Word, then you are really my disciples.”

(maybe this is a short enough passage that we can walk through each verse.) A challenge and an amazing promise - you really are with Jesus.

-to dwell in. To abide. This is not hard work. This is not some arduous challenge - this is dwell with me. Christ wants to live with us.

(john 15 will give this same message) its an invitation to all!

to make our home in jesus word means 2 things - 1-to stick with jesus word. - to live under it. To be loyal to it. - to live by the teaching of jesus in church, in your home and in the world.

2-to give the word space in your life - to hear the word together in community. To hear the word in your home. And to give time to his words in small community (maybe keep this at the end - and transition here to application).

Word to the conscience by his Spirit. But Jesus is asking all believers, and now particularly and graciously even these wavering believers, for a change of residence—no little request

The test of a real disciple is just this: “Do you make your home in Jesus’ Word?” If you or I can honestly say that we do, then we can honestly say that we are beginning to be real disciples of Jesus.

my hearts christ home. Is a book you might be tempted to call hokey its a very simple illustration that can stay with you forever.