Episode 59 - Abide in Jesus' words and find freedom - John 8:31-33

John 8:31   So Jesus said to the Jews who had believed him, “If you abide in my word, you are truly my disciples, 32 and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.” 33 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’?”

Think about some of the people Jesus has interacted with as recorded in this book. We’ve read about the Pharisees and other religious leaders who “know that he is from God,” but refuse to accept his word. There were people who witnessed him work miracles and some declared that Jesus was the Prophet like Moses; only to turn away from him when he taught them they needed to eat his flesh and drink his blood. Finally, the disciples who he had called were asked if they were going to leave as well. But, Peter’s response spoke for them when he said, “Lord, to whom would we go? You alone have the words of eternal life.” (John 6:68)

In this section, John records that Jesus is speaking to the Jews that had just believed in him. It’s important to note because by the end of their conversation they will accuse Jesus of having a demon and will try to stone him to death. 

The focus of this lesson is that Jesus tells them how they can gain three benefits that are associated with each other. The first is that they can be true disciples of Jesus. This means that if they truly believe in who he is and what he teaches, they can learn from him and become more like him. In pursuing being a true disciple, they receive the second benefit and that is they will know the truth. This is something we desire in our society today isn’t it. We do not know who to believe because we recognize that different people and organizations do not always tell the truth. This truth has to do with the truth about God. Becoming a learner of Jesus helps us understand the truth about God. Finally, Jesus says that “the truth will set you free.” Sounds good. But, how do we become a true disciple and know the truth and receive the kind of freedom this truth provides? The answer is to “abide” in Jesus’ word. 

What does it mean to abide in Jesus' word? It means to remain and continue in his teaching. This means that we cannot pick and choose the sayings of Jesus that we like and disregard the ones that confuse or offend us. We cannot follow some of Jesus’ teachings. Like those early few disciples, we must decide to follow Jesus regardless of our confusion or not liking something he taught because we know that he has the words of eternal life. 

But, even this saying offends these “believers” doesn’t it? They immediately argue from pride in their heritage as Jews. They claim that they are Abraham’s descendants and have never been a slave to anyone. In other words, they don’t believe they need to be freed from anything. But, this is not true. They were under the control of the Roman Empire. They did not have true independence and liberty. They had what the Roman government allowed. 

This is not the kind of freedom Jesus was talking about. As we’ll see in the next lesson. He is telling them about the control and enslaving power of sin. That is more powerful and dangerous than any other kind of enslavement. 

Jesus’ simple and clear message that we need to abide in his word should be liberating in itself. It tells us that we need to be reading his word and praying for his help in abiding in it. We can trust that his word is truthful and it brings us freedom in Christ.