Those That Follow Are Free!

Study Text: John 8:30-36

8:30: As Jesus was saying this, many people believed in him.
Jesus’ words were so powerful and His miracles so compelling that many people were persuaded by His message. They were convinced that Jesus was truly the Son of Man, sent from the Father, the Lord God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. God had opened their eyes to see that Jesus was truly the Messiah, the one promised to Israel. To see the power and authority of Jesus as He spoke to them of things beyond the understanding of mortal men was to accept and embrace Him as their Savior. From God’s perspective, any other conclusion simply did not make sense.

8:31: So Jesus said to those Jews who believed in him, “If you live by what I say, you are truly my disciples.
Jesus knew that this response had occurred in the minds and hearts of many of the people. Just as He was able to discern the animosity of those that hated Him, He could also see the hearts of those that had been changed by His teaching. As He spoke to those whose hearts had been changed, He encouraged them to “live” in His word. Because their spiritual eyes had been opened, they understood the full impact of His words. His word was the means by which these new believers would remain steadfast in their faith (2 Timothy 3:14).

The word translated “live” comes from the Greek word μενος (meno), which is one of John’s favorite expressions. It implies that believers are firmly rooted in His Word. This provides a staying power to remain firmly committed to God’s Word, imparted to us through His Son and the indwelling of His Holy Spirit.

8:32: You will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.”
What is the marvelous result of this discipleship? The result is found in the assurance of knowing the truth. This sentence explicitly answers the question of Pontius Pilate, “What is truth?" This verse is so deeply moving, to grasp the full import of Jesus’ promise we must understand the meaning of the word know. The Greek implies a knowledge gained through the rigors of one’s personal experience. This is not some vain intellectual pursuit or even a disciplined study of some worthwhile subject. Rather, it is the deeply personal knowledge that comes from the intimate experience of knowing Christ. Discipleship results in personal, intimate knowledge of the truth.

So then, what is this truth? Is this some mystical experience that gives some intangible hope to our earthly wanderings? Is it some philosophy that provides a degree of meaning to our otherwise meaningless existence?

Certainly not! The truth is the central core of Jesus’ teaching. In fact, it is His very essence. This is the truth He had been trying to share with the stiff-necked Pharisees for the past months of His ministry. It is the revealed truth that Jesus is exactly who He said He is; He is the bread of life, He is the Messiah, He is the Son of God, He is the Word, the Light of the world, the Lamb of God. This is the truth that every disciple embraces by virtue of his washing by the Holy Spirit, knowing that Jesus is his Savior. It is the same truth that sticks in the throats of those that do not believe and virtually chokes them to death—their eternal death.

Furthermore, this experienced knowledge of Jesus, the truth, sets His followers free. Not free from Rome. Not free from responsibilities or even from the temporary consequences of sin. It frees Christ’s own from the eternal consequences of their sin. For this reason, Jesus vigorously castigated the Pharisees for their unbelief because they “would die because of their sins” (John 8:24). They would never see the truth.

In a world so torn by contradictory philosophies, so desperately in search of some minute element of truth, Jesus’ words ring clearly throughout all the centuries of time and on into the halls of eternity. There is truth! There is truth that remains unchanged by the vain imaginations of the individual—the scholar, the intellectual, the religious, and the misguided seekers of the world.

We may conclude with absolute assurance that the truth of which Jesus spoke was not some vague concept. It is the very person of the Lord Jesus Christ. Later Jesus said, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one goes to the Father except through me” (John 14:6). The message that Jesus faithfully declared during His earthly sojourn could not be clearer. Jesus, in the essence of His eternal being, is the eternal truth. This truth is eternal and unchanging.

In a world that seeks truth, Jesus provides the answer in the absolute, indisputable reality of His person. Here we find an anchor, a foundation that crushes all worldly philosophies that compete for our lives, our hopes, and our dreams. Any other message is doomed to failure and condemnation because it does not exalt the person and work of the living Christ.