Gospel Light Christian Church Thru-The-Bible Series (3.4)

The Gospel Of John

John 8:33-59 - Read this Bible passage once through before referring to the notes below.

The Truth will Set You Free

v.33 Obviously, they were not referring to physical bondage, because they had been in bondage to Egypt, Babylon, Medo-Persia and Rome. Furthermore, many Jews had been sold as slaves to their fellow Jews. However, in terms of religion they considered themselves as occupying an unique position in relationship to God, and as not "in bondage" to the foolish religions of other men.

v.34 "Committeth sin" means habitually sinning. Few people realise that they are servants of sin, and servants of the effects of sin (eg. slaving to keep up with their neighbours). Many people think that God's laws are restrictive, denying them the freedom to do what they want. True freedom is to be free from sin and its snares, and to be free to desire and to be able to do the things that are good for us (as taught in God's Word).

v.35 Slaves (ie, servants) may be sold out of an household, unlike children (ie, the Son) who are not sold out but who always remain a part of the household. [1]

v.36 The freedom in the Gospel is the only true freedom. Only faith in Jesus as the One who died for our sins, can make us free from the guilt of sin, free to approach God, free from the dominion and snares of sin, and free from the fear of death. Men cherish freedom, but fail to realise that the freedom in the Gospel is the true freedom, and that all other freedoms are secondary to this freedom.

v.37 Jesus agrees that they are indeed Abraham's seed – but in the physical sense only (see v.39). They hated Jesus because His words were not acceptable to them (ie, hath no place in them).

v.38 Jesus brings up the fact that, though He too was a Jew, His Father was different from their father. However, at this point He does not mention who their father is, though he does so later in v.44. Jesus is saying "My words are from God, and your murderous thoughts you have learnt from your father (the devil)".

v.39 The Jews were startled at Jesus' remark regarding their father, whom they all believed to be Abraham. Jesus tells them bluntly that if they were Abraham's spiritual children, then they would behave like Abraham, ie, be obedient to God's Word (GEN 12:1-4), and welcome God's messengers (GEN 18:1-8). We know whether we are really the children of our parents by our resemblance to them. Abraham's true spiritual children are those who trust in God (ie, saved people).

v.40 Jesus proves that they were not the spiritual children of Abraham by telling them that Abraham would not have tried to kill a man who told the truth of God.

v.41 Jesus clearly refuted their claim to be Abraham's spiritual children, so they now claim to be the children of God. One who is born of fornication cannot be sure who his father is, but the Jews are sure that God is their Father. Many "Christians" also have this same false confidence that they are God's children.

v.42 If they were really spiritually the children of God, then they would love Jesus who was "the brightness of his glory, and the express image of his person" (HEB 1:3). The test of whether we are God's children is whether we love Jesus, not whether we know much about God.

v.43 The reason why they could not "understand,” was because they could not bear to hear (ie, cannot hear) Jesus' word, rather than the fact that it was too hard to understand. They had a moral inability, not a mental inability. This is the reason why the clearest preachers are often "misunderstood" by intelligent hearers.

v.44 Up to this point Jesus had merely stated that their father was different from His, now He tells them bluntly that their father was the devil. Creationally-speaking, we are all children of God but spiritually-speaking all unsaved people are children of the devil. They are not children of the devil because he created them, nor are they children of the devil because he made them wicked, but they are children of the devil because they behave like him. Satan is the greatest murderer, from the beginning in the Garden of Eden, when he caused the eternal death of millions by tempting our forefather Adam to sin.

Satan was created a glorious angel and first abode in the truth. However, after his rebellion, he abode not in the truth. Henceforth, there was no truth in him because he speaketh of his own lies, and not of God's truth. He is the father of lies in the sense that he was the first liar on earth (GEN 3:1,4), and the one who promotes lies. [2]

v.45 "You do not believe me because I tell you the truth, but you believe the devil because he flatters you with lies." [3]

v.46 Jesus reads the question in their mind, namely: "Why should we believe your accusations?", and pre-empts it by saying that they should believe Him because He was faultless. The Jews could not find fault with Him, ie, which of you convinceth me of sin.

v.47 A genuine Christian desires to hear God's words.

v.48 Having run out of arguments, they call Jesus a "possessed Samaritan who talks nonsense."

v.49 Jesus says that He is saying all these things not because He is possessed but because He is zealous for God's honour, and cannot stand to see these hypocritical Jews claiming to be God's children, nor dishonouring His God.

v.50 "Your insult does not hurt me because I seek not mine own glory, but there is one, namely, God that seeketh that I be glorified, and judgeth all that dishonour me."

v.51 Jesus, in love, continues to plead with His enemies to accept the Gospel. "Death" refers to spiritual death, ie, separation from God.

v.52 They interpret "death" literally, and charge Jesus as being crazy.

v .53 Jesus' claims are absurd to those who reject His deity. Nonetheless, He has succeeded in arousing their curiosity about who He really is.

v.54 God honoured Jesus, especially through the miracles (11:4, ACT 2:22).

v.55 Jesus reminds them that though they claim to be God's children, they really do not know Him. But He knows God well.

v.56 The Jews claimed to be Abraham's children, but Jesus tells them that, unlike them, Abraham rejoiced to see, by faith, Jesus' "day" when He took ours sins away (GEN 22:18, HEB 11:13). Abraham saw God’s promised salvation plan by faith. In other words, Abraham saw by faith what would take place in the future. We also see God’s promised salvation plan by faith but in our case, we see what has taken place 2000 years ago. Both Abraham and a Christian see it by faith – one looking by faith into the future, one looking backwards into the past. Both Old Testament or New Testament saints are saved by faith in Christ’s finished work at Calvary.

v.57 Again the Jews interpret Jesus literally, and question how Abraham, who lived 1850 years before Jesus, could have seen Him. [4]

v.58 The Jews had asked Jesus "Whom makest thouthyself?" (v.53). Here, Jesus gives the answer: He is the eternal "I AM" i.e, He is God! (EXO 3:14).

v.59 As they looked for stones to cast because He had "blasphemously" claimed to be God (LEV 24:16), Jesus miraculously passed through the midst of them.


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Footnotes

[1] The Jews were familiar with the story of Hagar who was asked to leave Abraham’s household. The Jews believed that they were God's children, but Jesus was a usurper. They tried to kill Jesus to remove Him. Therefore, Jesus tells them that they (ie, the nation of Israel) would be cast out, but He will abide forever with God. Israel lost her special privileges in the New Testament era.

[2] Satan would have succeeded in the murder of the whole human-race, but for the salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ.

Satan is also the most dangerous liar because he is subtle (GEN 3:1, 2CO 11:14). Lies are his choice weapon.  He slays many by his lies, which are now accepted as truths, eg. the rich are happy. We must resist the devil's lies, and they will flee from us (JAM 4:7).

[3] We must not be discouraged when people reject the truth that we teach.

[4] Were the Jews being "generous" by saying that Jesus was not yet fifty years old, or did Jesus look older than his thirty-three years? Possibly, the hard life that he lived made him look older than His true age.