Daily Scripture Reading John 8:28-51
Modern Christianity puts forth a lot of time and effort catering to feelings. Many believe that an emotional experience is worship. Meanwhile, truth is minimized and often ignored.
The eighth chapter of John records a statement Jesus made about truth that teaches we should have the opposite perspective. We should value truth over emotion.
When Jesus was in Jerusalem for the Feast of Booths, He claimed to be the Light of the world. The Pharisees replied that He was testifying about Himself, and that His testimony was not true. Jesus went on to offer proof of His claims. He cited the ultimate proof in verse 28.
John 8:28 So Jesus said, “When you lift up the Son of Man, then you will know that I am He, and I do nothing from Myself, but I speak these things as the Father taught Me.
The phrase “lift up the Son of Man” refers to the crucifixion of Jesus. When Jesus rose from the dead, He provided the ultimate proof that He is God.
John 8:29 And He who sent Me is with Me; He has not left Me alone, for I always do the things that are pleasing to Him.”
God the Father is the One who sent Jesus.
John 8:30 As He was speaking these things, many believed in Him.
The phrase “these things” refers to the statements Jesus had been making in chapter 8.
Notice the word “believed”. Jesus was making statements about Himself. Some people did not believe Jesus. Many did.
John 8:31 ¶ So Jesus was saying to those Jews who had believed Him, “If you abide in My word, then you are truly My disciples;
John 8:32 and you will know the truth, and the truth will make you free.”
In verse 31 Jesus was speaking to those who had believed Him. Note the absence of the word “in”. It does not say it was people who believed in Him. There is a difference between believing the statements of Jesus and believing in Jesus.
Verse 31 tells us it was necessary for them to abide in the word of Jesus in order to be a disciple. A disciple is a learner, someone who adheres to the teachings of his teacher. A disciple becomes like his teacher. It was necessary for the Jews to abide in the words of Jesus in order to become like Jesus.
Verse 32 tells us a true disciple will know the truth and be free. Jesus was not referring to political freedom. He was referring to spiritual freedom, freedom from Satan and sin.
Truth is not valued in the 21st century. Unfortunately, churches have followed that mentality.
Modern Christianity focuses on emotions and entertainment. There is little emphasis on knowledge. Contemporary Christian Music is fundamentally designed to put people on an emotional high. Meanwhile, the words of modern Christian songs lack substance. Sermons also have devolved into motivational speeches that are high on entertainment, but low on Biblical substance.
However, we see in verse 32 that truth is the result of being a disciple. Truth is what brings spiritual freedom, not emotion.
Christians need to spend more time pursuing truth and less time catering to feelings. We need to value the hymns from prior ages that accurately communicate scriptural truth. It is also important to create new music, so effort needs to be invested in creating songs that have substance and depth.
John 8:33 They answered Him, “We are Abraham’s seed and have never yet been enslaved to anyone. How is it that You say, ‘You will become free’?”
The Jews thought that since they were Jews, they were spiritually free.
John 8:34 ¶ Jesus answered them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, everyone who commits sin is the slave of sin.
John 8:35 And the slave does not remain in the house forever; the son does remain forever.
John 8:36 So if the Son makes you free, you will be free indeed.
Being a Jew did not bring true freedom. Jesus brings true freedom.
John 8:37 I know that you are Abraham’s seed; yet you are seeking to kill Me, because My word has no place in you.
The seventh chapter of John tells us the Jews were seeking to kill Jesus and Jesus knew that was their desire.
John 8:38 I speak the things which I have seen with My Father; therefore you also do the things which you heard from your father.”
John 8:39 ¶ They answered and said to Him, “Abraham is our father.” Jesus said to them, “If you are Abraham’s children, you would do the deeds of Abraham.
John 8:40 But now you are seeking to kill Me, a man who has told you the truth, which I heard from God. This Abraham did not do.
Note the reason the Jews were trying to kill Jesus. It was because Jesus spoke the truth.
It is common for people who abuse power to try and destroy those who speak the truth about their abuse.
John 8:41 You are doing the deeds of your father.” They said to Him, “We were not born of sexual immorality; we have one Father: God.”
Jesus was conceived by the Holy Spirit. That happened before the mother of Jesus married Joseph. Apparently, that generated rumors about the morality of Mary, the mother of Jesus. The Jews knew about the rumors and held that against Jesus.
Unfortunately, many people know what it is like for there to be false rumors about them. It is easy for victims of false rumors to have self-pity. If that happens to you or I, one way we can console ourselves is to remind ourselves that Jesus knows what that is like. He was accused of being the child of sexual immorality. That was not true.
John 8:42 Jesus said to them, “If God were your Father, you would love Me, for I proceeded forth and have come from God, for I have not even come of Myself, but He sent Me.
John 8:43 Why do you not understand what I am saying? It is because you cannot hear My word.
John 8:44 You are of your father the devil, and you want to do the desires of your father. He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth because there is no truth in him. Whenever he speaks a lie, he speaks from his own nature, for he is a liar and the father of lies.
Many people insist that people should only say nice things to and about other people. Jesus did not live that way. He told the Jews to their face that the devil was their father.
Jesus used the word “truth” two times in this verse. The problem with the devil was the absence of truth. This reminds us that the absence of truth in our lives would be a problem. Instead of focusing on emotions, Christians should prioritize the acquisition of truth. Churches should not focus on creating emotional experiences. Instead, they should prioritize the proclamation of truth.
John 8:45 But because I speak the truth, you do not believe Me.
John 8:46 Which one of you convicts Me of sin? If I speak truth, why do you not believe Me?
John 8:47 He who is of God hears the words of God; for this reason you do not hear them, because you are not of God.”
Once again Jesus did not say nice things. Instead, He spoke the truth.
John 8:48 ¶ The Jews answered and said to Him, “Do we not say rightly that You are a Samaritan and have a demon?”
John 8:49 Jesus answered, “I do not have a demon, but I honor My Father, and you dishonor Me.
John 8:50 But I do not seek My glory; there is One who seeks and judges.
John 8:51 Truly, truly, I say to you, if anyone keeps My word he will never see death—ever.”
This was an audacious claim. Every human knows he will eventually die. It was unbelievable that anyone could escape death.
Modern society is infatuated with entertainment and feelings. One of the main effects of entertainment is to generate an emotional reaction.
However, Jesus taught the importance of striving after truth.
What are some ways your church prioritizes feelings and emotions over truth?
What are some markers you can look for to identify a church that recognizes the value of truth, and gives proper emphasis to the acquisition of truth?
Thanks for visiting Bible Mountain. If you have already joined my email list, thank you and please tell others about Bible Mountain. If you have not joined my email list yet, please do so now. In order to join, go to Bible Mountain dotcom, click on subscribe, and that will take you to a page where you can sign up. Your email address will not be sold nor given away. Once again, thanks for visiting Bible Mountain.
“Scripture quotations taken from the (LSB®) Legacy Standard Bible®, Copyright © 2021 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. Managed in partnership with Three Sixteen Publishing Inc. LSBible.org and 316publishing.com.”