The Truth Shall Make You Free

John 8:21-32

Review• On this day, Jesus has . . .

– Revealed the sins of those who accused the adulterous woman

– Taught that He was the Light of the world• And could lead out of the darkness of sin those

who are willing to follow Him

– Accused the Jewish leaders of not knowing God

• Now Jesus will further . . .– Demonstrate their lack of knowledge– Teach about leaving sin and following Him

“I am going away”• John 8:21-22

– The day before, Jesus had made similar comments (John 7:32-36)• Then, they thought He was going to Gentile lands

– Now they think He is going to kill Himself• Perhaps because He had used the word “die”

• They missed/ignored the rest of His remark

• After His departure, they would seek Him– Not seeking Jesus, but the Christ– Since He had already come (Jesus), they would

not find Him• Without a Savior, they would die in sin

Where?• John 8:23

– The Jewish leaders were both from this world (beneath) and of this world• Place of origin as well as mindset

– Jesus is both from heaven (above) and not of this world• His place of origin in heaven, and also His

mindset – on spiritual things

– A third possibility would be to be from the world, but not of the world • Jn 17:14-19

– An earthly origin, but a heavenly mindset

How?• John 8:24

– As long as one’s mindset remains tied to the world, there can be no hope of forgiveness

– In order to be forgiven, one needs to believe in Jesus• Believe what?

– “believe that I am” there is no “He” here in Greek» Grk ego eimi – “denotes continued existence

without respect to time” (Barnes)» Equivalent to what God said of Himself -Ex 3:14

• Did the Jews understand what Jesus was saying?

Who?• John 8:25-26

– They asked for clarification• “I am” would normally be followed by a name,

position, description, or title– Like many modern commentators, they assume

Jesus simply dropped a word

– Jesus said He had been telling them Who He is from the beginning (conversation or ministry?)• Conversation: “Light of the world” (Jn 8:12)

• Ministry: The Son of God – More likely since He speaks of “He Who sent Me”

Who?• You can know Who He is, by His teachings

– He is teaching the things of “He Who sent Me”• And those things are true

– A quality of God (Ex 34:6; Dt 32:4)

– There will still be time for more teachings, many of which will judge (condemn) the Jews• And many of the teachings will be for the world,

not just the Jews – Because God is true and keeping His promises

• John 8:27– But the Jews didn’t understand the “He Who

sent Me” was the Father • So Jesus gets more specific

When?• John 8:28-29

– When you lift up the Son of Man . . .• An expression with two possible meanings:

– When you “lift Him up” in your heart, exalt Him– When you physically “lift Him up”, crucify Him

» Jn 3:14-17

– You’ll know that “I am” (no “He”)• Again a statement of deity

• Those who accept and exalt Him know He is God

• Even non-believers knew His deity at the crucifixion (Mt 27:54)

When?• In the meantime . . .

– You can know Who Jesus is by examining His teachings and His actions• What He speaks is what the Father taught

– No contradictions– Makes clear the Father is “He Who sent Me”

• What He does is always in accordance with God’s teachings

– Not a claim even the Pharisees would make– The perfection of His life, and His miracles,

demonstrated the Father’s approval (Jn 8:16-18)

Belief• Jn 8:30-32

– Many took up the challenge Jesus laid down• Looked at His teachings and His life

• And they believed in Him

– But was belief alone enough?• Jesus said, they needed to abide in His word

– Faith alone is NEVER enough (Jas 2:14-26)– Continued obedience to His word needed– Jn 1:12 – belief is necessary in order to have the

right to become a child of God» But faith does not make you a child of God» Acts 2:38; Gal 3:26-27

The truth will make you free• Even after we believe and after we become

children of God– We still must “abide” (Jn 15:1-10)– As we abide in His words, we will know the truth

• What truth?– The truth Jesus taught from God (Jn 8:26)– The truth of God’s word (Jn 17:17)

– And that truth will set us free• Free from what?

– Rom 6:16-23» Freed from the bondage of sin and its penalty -

death

Conclusion• Jesus told them they were worldly

– If they remained worldly, they could seek a Savior, but they wouldn’t find the Savior God had sent

– Without God’s Savior they would die in their sins

• If you believe in God’s Savior you can escape from the power of sin– You still must act upon that belief (repentance,

confession, baptism)– You still must abide in Him– You can know the truth, and the truth will set

you free