Well, this morning we continue our study in the Gospel of John, the Gospel of John chapter 8. I have to say up front that you know when people think of John, they think of everything that's good and wonderful about the love of God. That's one of the reasons we tell people to read the Gospel of John, that they would understand something like John 3.16, for God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten son that whoever believes in him should not perish but have everlasting life. That is a grand, great announcement that the gospel of John is bringing to us. There also, however, in the gospel of John are hard sections. There are challenging sections. There are sections that we don't typically spend a lot of time in of Jesus speaking just as strong the other way about the judgment to come. And that's where John 8 is today. That's where we are in John chapter 8. This is a great section that helps us understand what unbelief looks like in the community of faith. In the covenant community. And I think John often does this by way of contrast. Not only does he show us the positive examples of faith, we're going to see Mary at the end in the resurrection, coming to Jesus in the garden, But he also shows us those who are living not by faith and who actually are living contrary to the promises. And John exposes that for us. So I'm thankful for that exposure that we would have a good understanding of what true faith looks like. So we're going to read today from John chapter 8, beginning at verse 31. And I've titled the message, The Freeing Power of the Word. We'll read through verse 47. 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'll 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's our father. Jesus said to them, if you were Abraham's children, you'd be doing the works of Abraham. 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 are 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'm 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's no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks out of his own character for he's a liar and the father of lies. But I tell the truth. 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. There ends the reading of the word. Well, we have been spending quite a bit of time now studying the gospel of John. And we're nearing the end of what we call the book of signs, where Jesus is dealing with signs that he has done. um in israel and the response uh of his signs and his wonders uh among the people and showing us response and then we'll look at the book of glory that's coming um all those wonderful teachings and exhortations that jesus gives but in this particular section you'll notice that we're really dealing with belief true belief in the son of god that's that's the aim of this book that's the heart of this book we've been saying and there's a struggle that's presented to us about true faith with true faith true belief what is true belief how do we know we have true faith throughout history many of the theologians and writers and pastors have have commented from the scriptures that really the scriptures show us four kinds of faith in the bible there have been those who have noted the historical faith something like what james says that you believe there's one god you do well even the demons believe that and shudder that's kind of a historical there's a knowledge some kind of knowledge and belief that god is and there's a historical faith you've had other emphases given on temporary faith where people shoot up quick in the faith and they come and they're there for various reasons we'll look at that a little bit here in in john 8 and and because of certain reasons they just don't endure in it they're gone it was never true and abiding lasting faith and then of course you have faith in miracles how many times have we heard that hey god spared me from getting struck by lightning therefore i believe something of that kind of sort of radical miracle like faith belief in miracles is the basis on which they believe and we have seen that in john numerous times as we've gone through the book of john unless you people see signs and wonders you'll by no means believe said jesus so so so john is exposing all of these replies and responses to jesus's teaching and messages pressing us on true faith what is true faith what does it look like how do we know that we have true faith and when true faith hears the truth it receives that truth it believes that truth it rests on that truth and that truth changes someone's life that's uh what we've been seeing and studying in john but the people are fickle the people are fickle all over john's gospel they have been all over the map they have been undecided they have wrestled with where jesus is from john has been saying you're not listening at all he ultimately is from heaven he's ultimately not from nazareth galilee presenting jesus as the divine son of god they've been confused they've been fenced sitting. And in the last section, Jesus made a grand statement, unless you believe that I am, and we've been unpacking how all of this ties to Exodus and how John is unraveling Exodus and showing that it was all about Jesus. Unless you believe that I am, you will die in your sins. That is a painful statement to hear. In fact, that is the reality that there really are only in this life two ways to die. You will either on that day die in your sins or you will die in Jesus forgiven. And that can be known now. That's the beauty of the gospel message about forgiveness. Well, in this last section, it said that many people believed in him. And I think John is teasing us a little bit with that statement because all throughout John, that's been challenged that right from the beginning in John two, many believed in him when they saw the signs, but Jesus did not believe in their belief. Same word. And John is saying they're coming close. They're coming right up to the edge. And some, maybe, are they really believing now? Are we really getting belief now? That's sort of the effect of this as Jesus now challenges this and presses them to true faith to help us understand true faith. Americans would say, of course, well, you can never question that. You can never challenge that. Don't ever tell me or challenge me as to whether my faith is true or Not that's Americans. But the good news is Jesus is not American. He has a way of challenging us that transcends all the time and culture and that is absolutely good and right. And it's as if Jesus knows this problem, and Jesus now tackles it head on of what is true faith. And the Jews become a sort of looking glass here for us, as Paul would say in 1 Corinthians 10, that we should study them and not do what they did, for they did not enter by faith. as the author of Hebrews says. This shows us false belief. This shows us false coming. And it has everything to do this morning with one thing in your life. One thing that is absolutely important. One question that really does encompass all of this text. And it is, what place has the word in your life? What place has his word in your life? For it is the word of God. That's what he's saying to them. And it has everything to do with that place. And you'll notice here that Jesus emphasizes this in three different ways, which are essentially saying the same thing. So we're going to look at that that way this morning. Look at this emphasis here of Jesus giving here a call, essentially, to receive that word, to hear that word, to embrace that word, their immediate challenge to Jesus' statements about the word, and then Jesus' expression of the consequences both ways, whether you receive or not that word. And so you'll notice here that he has three different ways that he begins by saying if you abide in that word. Does that word have a place in you? Are you hearing that word? It's amazing to me as much as we talk in this day about preaching and whether it was good and whether it was effective and whether I liked it and whether I didn't like it. Jesus talked just as much about people's hearing. Was your hearing good? Did he like it? you know was your hearing effective it was just as much emphasis on the hearing as opposed to at times how we talk about the delivery and how we talk about did it really touch me and did it really affect me jesus would turn it around on us and say how are you hearing if you were out getting drunk last night how could you hear the word if you never prepared your heart to hear the word do you think you'll really receive it If your attitude is, I don't really want to be here, do you think you'll really receive anything? See, this is the challenge of hearing the word. And we come with presuppositions at times, and we come with ideas, and our minds put up roadblocks to hearing the word. And Jesus is here challenging us as to that place in our lives. So that's where this begins today in John chapter 8. Many believed in him, and he says the same thing essentially here. Three different ways to call this about. First, in verse 31, I want you to notice, having the scriptures in front of you, of John 8, verse 31, where he says, So Jesus said to the Jews who had believed in 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. This is one of those wonderful statements in the Gospel of John that we talk about and embrace. That this claim that Jesus is the way, the truth, and the life. And when you know this truth, you're set free. We'll come back to that. But I want you to notice the context in which this comes here. If you abide in my word. It's a really powerful statement because it has the sense here of holding on to that word. of remaining in that word, of embracing that word, of staying with that word, commitment to that word. If that is the characteristic of you, you are my disciple. You are following me. You are truly following me. And then in verse 37, he gives another aspect to this. He says, I know that you are offspring of Abraham, yet you seek to kill me because my word finds no place in you. So that word doesn't have a place in you. Jesus is helping us to understand that. It makes no headway in you. You don't have room for it in you, is really how it should be said. There's no room in your hearts for my word. You're not giving place in your life to the one thing that is the actual power of God to deliver you. That has a massive bearing on the kind of follower we are. One of the characteristics of the Bible of the Christian is that depth and that growth and that persistence in the Word of God. I know we don't like to talk about keys in the Christian life, but this is the key to the Christian life. It is the Word. So he's describing something that's characteristic of true following of Jesus. And he's describing the progressions in that Word. It's so important. so that one so holds on to that word, that that word is actually expanding and growing in them. It's ever growing in understanding and of knowledge of Jesus. The love of the word of God, the growth in that word, that the believer holds on to that word, is a mark of true discipleship, is what he's saying. We'll talk about what is following of Jesus. We all have our ideas of how to get out and follow Jesus. And Jesus would first say is, where does the word, what place does it have in your life? How much does that word have a real place in you? I think this is where the sort of black and whiteness of Jesus' statements sometimes make us uncomfortable. John 8 is very black and white this way. The word is so powerful, says Jesus, it's doing one of two things. You're either growing in your love for that word, and you're understanding that word, or you're going backwards. and he's challenging us that way. You either come, and I'm not talking about going through dry periods of the word and all of that that we struggle with. That's not what I'm talking about. The general trajectory of a Christian is a growth in the word of God. You either come on Sunday wanting to receive the word from the Lord, or you view this whole thing, as we're going to see in a minute, as just a mere tradition and a burden. And a burden. And that's why Jesus says, thirdly, about the word, whoever's of God, verse 43, you'll notice, whoever is of God, in verse, yes, whoever's of God, notice what he says. Here's the word, and then at the very end, I'm sorry, it's the verse 47, here's the words of God, the reason why you do not hear them is that you're not of God. So again, there's that emphasis. notice how this whole section is saturated with everything having to do with what where the word has a place in us and the ability to hear that word to receive that word to grow in that word and to follow Jesus through that word this is the Christian life it's one of the most important sections of John and that's exactly what what Jesus is helping us to understand you'll remember that this was the whole emphasis everywhere of Jesus in the parable of the sower. This is John 8's version of the parable of the sower, if you will. Jesus is teaching on the word that the way that people receive that word is crucial to how you've entered the kingdom or not. With some, it's like casting the word today and it hits this path. And the devil comes and takes away and they're critical of that word. They didn't get anything out of it. Remember Jesus said with others, It hit into the soil, and there were a lot of rocks in that soil. And so it sprouted up quickly. But a little tribulation came. The coronavirus came. And they're gone. They're not a church anymore. That's how shallow the word was in their life. And by the way, I'll come back to that in a minute. It's a huge problem right now. Tribulation, cares of this life. And then he says the word is also like a seed that comes among the thorns and it grows. But actually all the riches of this life and all the stuff of this life and all the cares of this life choke that word and there's no growth. And then Jesus says there are those who hear that word and receive that word with joy. And in their lives, they're growing according to his purposes, 30, 60, and 100 fold. So you see how important and prevalent this teaching is in Jesus's very teaching everywhere throughout the scriptures. And Jesus is now challenging belief, saying, what kind of belief? Is it true faith? Remember when we went through Acts, I was always taken with, in Acts, there was a curious little phrase in the book that said that the word of God grew. And I was often puzzled by that as I was going through Acts. And it wasn't that the word of God needed to grow. It was growing in the hearts of people. And that's how the gospel spread. That's how effective evangelism happened. That's how the nations were evangelized. As the word grew in them, then it organically spread. That's why it has to grow in us or we will be ineffective as a church. So this was everywhere. It was Lydia where he was preaching. It said the Lord opened her heart to receive the word. That's what has to happen. So we're either seeking to understand that word and grow in that word and feed off that word. Or we're not. It has no place in us. And Jesus is describing the blessedness of this. And that's why I think it's helpful to say, even though this section comes as a dark confrontation, it's meant to encourage believers who hold fast to that word that you're in the truth. And you're in the light. And you're a disciple. And your end is glory. Now, the big issue then for Jesus is, why do we need that word so much? Jesus says it so plainly here. He says one of the most beautiful things in the Bible, because it's through that word that you're going to know the truth, and the truth is going to set you free. Free from what? Well, we're in an age that endlessly tells us there is no truth. And you all are in a come out of weeks that tell us that really the big issues that are really big in this life are politics right now. And we're stuck in it. These are the big issues, they say. These are the real issues. And for the Jews, that was the same thing. They were into the politics of the day. They wanted Jesus to deliver them out from Rome. They wanted it fixed now. And that's not where Jesus is. Jesus says, you're going to know the truth. from my word, and it's going to set you free. How is it going to set you free? Free from what? Sin. Sin. You look carefully at verse 34. Truly, truly, I say to you, everyone who practices sin is a slave to sin. That should have been a startling statement. Often what's surprising in the scriptures is that you come to the nation of Israel on Jesus' day, and they just didn't seem to take sin very seriously or as the great problem. And it's always been our battle as the church. Is that the real problem? Don't we have all these other issues? And Jesus was so focused on staying on the core issue of what people needed to be reconciled with God. Sin. It's an interesting statement where he says, if you continue to practice, notice there's a distinction there between continuing in sin, living in sin, not caring about sin, doing whatever you want to do, as opposed to being freed from its dominion. That was teaching taken when he says here, notice what he says, whoever commits sin is a slave of sin. A slave does not abide in the house forever. That was directly taken from Exodus, lo and behold, 21, as we've been looking at. And in Exodus 21, there was a law of slavery. And in that particular passage, the Israelites, every year, were to set free their slaves on the seventh year. The seventh year. I want you to listen to this. Something remarkable could happen, though, for the slave. If a slave plainly says, however, I love my master, my wife, and my children. I will not go out free. and his master shall bring him to God. And he shall bring him to the door or the doorpost, and his master shall bore his ear with an owl, and he shall be his slave forever. Now listen carefully to what Jesus just says here. The slave does not remain in the house forever, but the son does. But the son does. When the son, the true son, sees how gracious the master is and how kind he is, why would he ever want to get out of that house? So there was a provision for him to stay in the house. Jesus is saying here, in this life, you are either a slave or you're free. In this life, you are either a slave or you are free. And that is evidenced by your relationship to the word in your life. The great problem that Jesus is teaching on here in the gospel is sin has made us all enemies of God and alienated from God so that by nature we're all children of wrath. It's a nature issue that really Jesus is dealing with here. That by nature we grow up and we are children of wrath because of sin in our lives. Alienated from God. Separated from God. And one is free not when he can do what he wishes to do. But when he wishes to do and can do what he should do. Well, you need a changed heart, says Jesus. Isn't that been what the Gospel of John is all about? That Jesus says, when you're forgiven, then you're reconciled to God and you're brought into the house and that relationship is no longer one of enmity. You want to be in that house and you're receiving from the master forgiveness and love. There are a lot of people who want to get out of the house. and that shows they're slaves of sin. Let me pause for a moment of application here. Notice the attitude coming out of the Pharisees here. It's all exposed. Those who truly are sons love God's word, receive forgiveness, love the Father's house, but those who are not don't really want to be in it to receive the word. You know, the coronavirus, I said a moment ago, is rather exposing. It was in our own URC discussion list among pastors that one of the pastors wrote in and said, I don't know what you brothers are experiencing in the life of the church, but it's been the most remarkable time where we're seeing many of our families gone and new families coming in. And it was amazing to read some of the response, but also from this brother, confused by this whole phenomenon, did a little virus, and I'm talking about those who have legitimate concerns health-wise for the virus. Aside from that, did the little virus shake people so much that it drove them away from the house of the Lord and was finally their way of escape? I've heard this concern everywhere. But the issue that Jesus is saying is, what is the place of the word in us? Could it be that this is a great test for us of how much we really value the word in our lives? And I have to say, I am so thankful to look out at a church hungry for the word when I say these things. I mean that. They always say, when you say, I mean that, you don't really mean that. I really mean that, okay? You're here. You come to receive that word, but you see the challenge that has to go out in this. Because this is a real phenomenon, and it does happen in the church. What does it sound like among a religious people who have not been set free when they hear this kind of teaching? That's what I think we have to ask. What does it sound like among the religious people when they're pressed this way and they're not yet set free? well this is it verse 33 they answered him this is their challenge we are offspring of abraham and have never been enslaved to anyone how is it that you say you will become free they haven't been able to receive anything jesus has been saying jesus and his word and his ministers are the greatest agitators ever the people who are not free how dare you say i'm in bondage who do you think you are we belong to abraham look god made his great covenant with abraham and and we're as direct as you could just substitute this with anything you want today where we put our confidence in outside of Jesus, right? Look, we've been in the church all our life. We're reformed after all. I am reformed. Our family's always been here. What do you mean telling me that I may not be a child and I'm a slave? We've always been invested in this project. Hear the presumption here? Presumption? Don't you dare talk to us that way. How dare you challenge the covenant people? It goes hand in hand with some groups. We're the elect. We are a people of his own possession. You only, Amos 3, have I known of the families of the earth. Rabbi Akita said, all the Israelites are kings since they directly descend from Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. We are the sons of the kingdom. Jesus says in the midst of this, your greatest problem is not political and ethnic deliverance. You're not listening. You're not listening. The greatest problem is not political oppression right now. The great problem is not the election to come. That's not even close. Your greatest problem is you're in no better of a position than the prostitute on the corner because of sin. See how he leveled the playing field here that there's really now neither Jew nor Greek and everyone has to be saved in Jesus through the forgiveness of their sins. This is a really important point in the Gospels. He's saying to them, you need your sins forgiven. And you stop, you say, this is so wonderful. He's saying, come to me, I'll do it. I'll give it to you. Come to me. How dare you talk to us that way? The attitude is, I want out. Get me out. I want nothing to do with that. Abraham's our father. I taught a class at the Reformed Bible College in Canada years ago. I'm a Gospel John, ironically. And there was a gal in the class, as I was describing John 8, she sat up after the class. I mean, she might have raised her hand in the class and said this. I wonder if hearing all the time, And there's always a danger on both sides of the ditch. But I wonder if hearing all the time that we're of the covenant and we are baptized has removed all calls in our home of parents actually calling their children to faith in Jesus. Where discussion of the new birth and the necessity of it is absent and faith is bypassed and everything is put back on covenant status and baptism as if that's what makes us the sons of God. Everything's assumed, and yet, if you look at us, the word has no place in our homes. We're not gathering around it. We put our trust in the tradition itself. And we don't talk about a new life. The new birth is bypassed. I could say I know the context of some of what she experienced, but don't you think it's fair to be challenged that way and lie to this phenomenon? You can so disregard those good things, but forget that those good things are pointing us to the thing. Life, Jesus, forgiveness, hope. We trust the promises of God, but we recognize what Jesus describes here, that a true Jew is not one outwardly, nor is circumcision outward in the flesh, but he is a Jew who's one inwardly, whose circumcision is that of the heart, in the spirit, not of the letter, not in the law, whose praise is not from men, but from God. See, Jesus is not allowing them to do this to him because it depends on his work for them. It doesn't depend on the covenant privileges that they've enjoyed. It depends on him, which those privileges pointed to. And so Jesus is saying here, you seek to kill me. It's really remarkable in the middle of this. A man who has told you the truth that I heard from God, That's not what Abraham did. Abraham didn't reject the truth, and Abraham didn't try to kill me, which he's going to say in the next section, which tells you this is the eternal preexistent son of God whom Abraham saw and knew. You're doing the works your father did. Whoa. Now we've really gotten serious here. They said to him, we're not born of sexual immorality. We're not like you. We know your dad. We know you're born of sexual immorality with your mom. That's what he's saying. We have one father, even God. Jesus said to them, if God were your father, you'd love me. For I came from God, and I am. So he said, I am. I am who I am. I came not of my own accord, but he sent me. If God were your father, you'd love me. It's just a heartbreaking statement, isn't it? If God is not their father, who is their father? You know, one of our presidents got up one time and said, what we need to understand, you ever see the signs we're all in this together? What we need to understand is God is everyone's father. And that's how humanity is going to come together and overcome all these problems. And I thought, he's never read John 8. Who's their father? Jesus says it. You are of your father, the devil, and you're doing his work because you hate me and you don't receive my word. That's the black and whiteness I'm talking about. He spoke a lie from the beginning. He brought a lie into this whole thing. He pulled Eve out and he said, look, God is hard on you. That's bondage if you follow God. Here's my way, it's freedom, and it puts you all into slavery. It puts you all into sin. You're all in a dire situation. And that was the lie from the beginning. And guess what? You're still in that lie. The evidence of being a son, being set free, is not being enslaved to do the will of a different father. The evidence of being a son is whether you've received the word that comes from God. And guess what? That's my word, says Jesus. He concludes in verse 47, He who is of God hears God's words, therefore you do not hear because you're not of God. So you see the purpose of this passage this morning, it is to show us at the root what constitutes true faith. That's what we say in the Heidelberg. True faith is not only a knowledge, but a certain conviction and what heartily trust that everything God says in his word is true. That's our own confession. See how that fits right here in John 8? And I have to encourage you today. I've seen through all of your trials and tests that you abide in that word. That that word has a place in you. And that you hear that word. And think about the joy of when that is said and that is true of you. What's being said to you here? That means you're set free. You have come out of bondage to an evil father and back to the true father through the son. And now that means your sins have been dealt with. Your sins are forgiven. And you're truly in the house. And you know what you say about the house? well, the coronavirus isn't going to shake my faith. Give me just to be the doorkeeper because it's a great house to be in. That's when you know you're free. That's what Exodus 21 was saying. I love your word, oh Lord. Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path. Where else would I go, said Peter. Jesus, you have the words of eternal life. And that's what was spoken to you today. You shall know the truth, says Jesus. And the truth will set you free. That's what Jesus has announced to you. That when you receive him and believe in him, and that word has a place in your life, you're set free. And the general trajectory of your life now is going to be a growth in that word, a love for that word, until you receive, with your resurrected eyes, him in glory, and see him. That's the promise of the gospel. And what a great news we have to share today. I'm thankful Jesus cares to teach us this, to expose the lie, and to set you free. Let's pray together. Heavenly Father, thank you for your word that guides us in its light. For those who could not hear today, whose attitudes and hearts are hard, and really want to leave, I pray that you would work by your spirit to shatter that unbelief hardened heart and they would stop doing the works of their father, the devil. For all who have trusted and believed in Jesus, may they see that they have been brought into a reconciled relationship, that there is new life given to them, that we now would no longer go on living in sin even though we struggle with it, no longer practicing it, but that we would be set free with this truth, the word would find a great place in us, that we would abide in it forever and that we would be able to hear all the days of our lives and produce fruit some 30, 60, and 100-fold with great joy. Thank you, O Lord, for instructing us today in the word that gives life through your spirit. In Jesus' name, we pray these things. Amen.