John 8:30-36. Genuine Disciples

These six verses are of major significance in the history of the church. They describe the marks by which we may know if we are genuine Christians and not false, formal religious people. Jesus warned his disciples about this in the Sermon on the Mount when he said,

“Not everyone who says to me ‘Lord, Lord, will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. Many will say to me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord,, did we not prophesy in your name, and in your name drive out demons and perform many miracles?’ Then I will tell them plainly, ‘I never knew you. Away from me you evil doers!’” Matthew 7:21-23

John described the effect of Jesus’ teaching in the temple during the Feast of Tabernacles in Jerusalem,

“Even as he spoke, many put their faith in him.” John 8:30

Jesus then addresses these new believers in such a way as to test their newly expressed commitment.

“To the Jews who had believed him, Jesus said, ‘If you hold to my teaching, you really are my disciples.” John 8:31

This is a repeated theme in John’s gospel. After Jesus had cleared the temple of sheep and cattle and the money changers, the effect of his ministry was that he collected many followers.

“ . . . many people saw the miraculous signs he was doing and believed in his name.” John 2:23

However Jesus was concerned that this may be just a passing phase.

“But Jesus would not entrust himself to them, for he knew all men. He did not need the man’s testimony about man for he knew what was in a man.” John 2:24-25

True Conversion

The Bible is full of warnings for those who start to live as Christians but then turn their backs on Christ and his church. The Parable of the Sower, that Jesus told (Mark 4:1-20), warns us that God’s message may appear to be developing in a persons life but then ‘trouble or persecution’ comes and they fall away. Others have all spiritual life choked from them by ‘worries of this life, the deceitfulness of wealth and the desires for other things’ (Mark 4:19). It is up to us to hear the word, accept it and then go on to bear fruit. Salvation is only secure if we remain devoted to the Lord Jesus.

The great eighteenth century evangelist, George Whitefield (1714-1770), made the following comment,

“There are so many stony ground hearers who receive the Word with joy that I have determined to suspend my judgment till I know the tree by its fruits ...Do you think any farmer would have a crop of corn next year unless he plowed now? You may as well expect a crop of corn on unplowed ground as a crop of grace until the soul is convinced of its being undone without a Saviour. That is the reason we have so many mushroom converts, so many persons that are always happy! happy! happy! and never were miserable. Why? Because their stony ground is not plowed up; they have not got a conviction of the law . . . they fall away . . . That makes me so cautious now, which I was not thirty years ago, of dubbing converts too soon. Now I wait a little, and see if people bring forth fruit; for there are so many blossoms which March winds blow away that I cannot believe they are converts till I see fruit brought forth.”

It is vital to ask ourselves, ‘Does Jesus see me as a true follower or as a person who believes a few things but whose heart has not been changed?’

On this last day of the Feast of Tabernacles this is what Jesus wants to help his listeners understand. He gives three tests.

1. Is Jesus’ teaching that important to me?

“To the Jews who had believed in him Jesus said, ‘If you hold to my teaching you are really my disciples.” John 8:31

Note that Jesus does not say, ‘If you agree with my teaching’. True Christians ‘follow Jesus’ teaching’. This is a repeated theme in the New Testament .

“If you love me, you will obey what I command.” John 14:15

“If anyone loves me, he will obey my teaching.” John 14:23

It is incompatible for a Christian to say they disagree with what Jesus taught his disciples.

A student wondered if he was a real Christian. He had asked Jesus into his life earlier but certain sins had reappeared so he wondered where he stood with God. Should he be baptised again? His minister simply asked him to look within himself and determine whether he does love Jesus and wants to follow him. The fact that he did, confirmed that the Holy Spirit was in his life. Just as a child is in their element when swimming, cycling, or playing with friends, so a Christian is happiest when they are living as God wants. Conversely Christians are most discontented when we fail to live as our Lord wants.

Today, as in the early church, there are some churchmen who want to change the doctrines that Christ and his apostles taught. There is no doubt that in both the Old Testament and in the New, God intends that sexual activity should be restricted to marriage between a man and his female wife, so how can churchmen teach anything differently? There are some who teach that so long as a person adheres to the outward formularies of the church they are eternally safe. Yet Jesus insists that saving faith is heartfelt and not just a matter of religious activities.

Jesus said to the woman of Samaria,

“Yet a time is coming and has now come when the true worshippers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for they are the kind of worshippers the Father seeks. God is Spirit, and his worshippers must worship in spirit and in truth.” John 4:23-24

Modern deviations from the teaching of Jesus reflect those encountered by the early church.

a. Do good deeds contribute to our salvation?

Judaisers in the time of Jesus and the early church thought that, to some extent, their good works, their religious background and their religious activities somehow contributed to them being saved. Yet the Bible teaches that salvation is a gift and that only union with Christ is necessary for salvation. Clearly this union with Christ will result in a new way of living. In a recent study, 36% of self-identified evangelicals believed that “by the good deeds that I do, I partly contribute to earning my place in heaven”. Any belief which holds that our good deeds or efforts contribute to salvation is similar to that held by the Judaizers in the New Testament. We must all be clear,

“For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith – and this is not from ourselves, it is the gift of God – not by works, so that no-one can boast. For we are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.” Ephesians 2:8-10

“ . . . he saved us, not because of righteous things we have done, but because of his mercy. He saved us through the washing of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit.” Titus 3:5

This last sentence is yet another example of the twofold aspect of salvation, we are washed of our sins because Christ took responsibility for them on that cross and we are empowered by the gift of the Holy Spirit to live lives that reflect our Lord.

Some years ago I was in conversation with a large group of nuns who were members of Mother Theresa’s ‘Sisters of Mercy’ order. I asked them, ‘What is the Christian gospel?’ One nun replied,

“For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was in prison and you came and visited me.” Matthew 25:35-36

I asked them ‘If that is true, what is the importance of Jesus and his crucifixion’? A senior nun then interjected and reminded everyone that the gospel is about Jesus, who he is and the salvation he has given us. Clearly Jesus, in this passage, is talking to people who have already become members of God’s family as they are told to come and receive ‘their inheritance’. An inheritance is not earned but is a gift, usually given to those in the family. Jesus is emphasising that evidence of the Spirit’s presence is a real care for other brethren who are also members God’s kingdom but are in trouble.

“I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me,” Matthew 25:40

This heresy that our good deeds contribute to our salvation is rife in western societies today. A lady said recently,

“I live as good a life as most. I don’t need Christianity to live as I do.”

A good answer would be what the Lord said to Samuel when he was looking for a king for Israel,

“Man looks at the outward appearance, but the LORD looks at the heart.” 1 Samuel 16:7

b. Is the spiritual more important than the physical

The early gnostics were much more interested in spiritual notions and experiences than in living in this world for Christ. Some religious people felt it was more spiritual to be a hermit than live for God in society.

c. Is the physical is more important than the spiritual

Today there are religious people who do not think that the Christian faith is built on facts about the life of Jesus, preferring instead to spiritualise everything and infer that the only life that matters is the here and now and that social equality is the essence of Christianity. There have been some vociferous bishops who disregard the physical death and resurrection of Christ emphasising the experience people can have today of the power of God in their lives. This radically alters the apostolic faith and the Bible is clear that such changes must be rejected. Paul said,

“If anyone is preaching to you a gospel other than what you accepted, let him be anathema.” Galatians 1:9

The Christian faith is dependent on Jesus being a real man who was also God our creator, who entered this world to die and rise again. Christianity is nothing if Jesus Christ is not God who entered this world to pay the price for our sin and empowers us with the gift of God’s Holy Spirit.

“And if Christ has not been raised, our preaching is useless and so is your faith.” 1 Corinthians 15:14

d. Is the Prosperity Gospel right?

The Bible promises that God’s people enjoy great privileges in the world to come. However there was a movement that troubled the early church in Corinth that is returning with a vengeance today. This quote from prosperity gospel teacher Kenneth Hagin would have been right at home with the Corinthians:

“I believe that it is the plan of God our Father that no believer should ever be sick…It is not—I state boldly—it is not the will of God my Father that we should suffer with cancer and other dread diseases which bring pain and anguish. No! It is God’s will that we be healed.”

But we all know that Christians do suffer and die. Paul taught the Corinthians that such perfection is only true in the age to come. There is no crown without a cross. This modern version of an ancient heresy is deadly. Sick and dying people expect to be miraculously healed. The poor expect to get rich if they give what little they have. It harms those who are suffering, it detracts from the gospel, and breeds cynicism when promises which God never made do not come true. Yet people too often follow those who enthusiastically lead them without asking if what is being said is the balance of Scripture.

2. Does truth matter?

A group of hospital consultants were asked, ‘What is truth.’ They were unsure, one finally suggesting that ‘truth must be consensus’. That is clearly incorrect as consensus can be manipulated by politicians and the media. Truth is an absolute concept, truth is a concept compatible with God. In science we are trying to discover God’s truths by trial and error. In medicine we search for the true cause of a person’s symptoms in order to give optimal treatment. In law barristers and juries are trying to determine the truth of what has happened and attribute blame.

Here Jesus makes a profound statement,

“If you hold to my teaching, you really are my disciples. Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.” John 8:31-32

Jesus again puts himself in the centre. Truth is a concept compatible with God and here Jesus says he is truth. In other words he is saying ‘I am God’. Jesus is the truth. Later Jesus said something similar to his disciples,

“I am the way and the truth and the life. No-one comes to the Father except through me.” John 14:6

Nothing matters more in life than becoming accepted by God and then living to please him. Jesus says that there is no other way to be forgiven or empowered, outside of himself. How foolish people are to live without Jesus.

When a person becomes a Christian they receive both forgiveness of all their sin and the gift of the Holy Spirit. Jesus promised that his presence would be replaced by that of the Holy Spirit.

“I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Counsellor to be with you for ever – the Spirit of truth.” John 14:16-17

Most people ask at some time, ‘Why am I here? What is the purpose of my life.” Jesus demands that we look to him to supply the answer.

Nothing matters more than entering a relationship with Jesus. One week-end in 1982, President Reagan was very concerned for the failing health of his father-in-law, a retired neuro-surgeon. Loyal Davis. He was just a few days away from dying and he was an atheist. Davis once wrote,

“I never have been able to subscribe to the divinity of Jesus Christ nor his virgin birth. I don’t believe in resurrection, or in heaven or hell as places.”

Reagan, on the other hand, believed everyone would face a day of judgment and that that of Davis was near. So the most powerful man in the world put everything else aside and took pen in hand and set out on an urgent mission, to save his father-in-law. The following letter was found in the Reagan library; it had been part of Nancy Reagan’s personal effects:

“Dear Loyal,

I hope you’ll forgive me for this, but I’ve been wanting to write you ever since we talked on the phone. i’m aware of the strain you are under and believe with all my heart there is help for that . . . It was a miracle that a young man of thirty years without credentials as a scholar or priest had more impact on the world than all the teachers, scientists, emperors, generals and admirals who ever lived, all put together. Either he was who he said he was or he was the greatest fake and charlatan who ever lived. But would a liar and a faker suffer the death he did?”

Reagan then wrote out John 3:16 for his father-in-law,

“For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.”

He then added,

“We have been promised that all we have to do is to ask God in Jesus’ name to help when we have done all we can. - when we’ve come to the end of our strength and abilities and we’ll have that help. We only have to trust and have faith in his infinite goodness and mercy.”

Did this letter have any impact? Nancy Reagan, who was with her father, Loyal Davis, when he died, and who saved this letter from his son-in-law, would later claim that her father did indeed turn to God at the very end of his life.

3. Am I a slave?

The religious Jews were annoyed with Jesus’ statement that ‘the truth will set you free’, as it suggested that they were enslaved.

“They answered him, ‘We are Abraham’s descendants and have never been slaves of anyone. How can you say we shall be set free?’” John 8:33

Had the Jews forgotten that they had been captives in Egypt, of the Philistines, of the Babylonians and now of Rome? It is more likely that they were saying that inwardly they had never been slaves. They had always been an independent people. But Jesus contradicts them by saying that all people are slaves to their degenerate side. We are all selfish and ungodly and this results in a wide variety of sins, such as pride, jealousy, theft, and promiscuity. It is not only the alcoholic or drug addict who is enslaved, we all are, however respectable we are. Indeed the whole history of the world has been described as a search for freedom. People often look for this in political terms and think that political independence will provide the answers but Jesus emphasises that the real freedom we need is the freedom to do what is right, a freedom from sin. Jesus continues,

“Everyone who sins is a slave to sin.” John 8:34

In ancient households, people were either part of the family or they were slaves. Jesus uses this fact to compare the plight of those who are slaves, with no rights with those who are members of the family.

“Now a slave has no permanent place in the family but a son belongs to it for ever. So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed.” John 8:35-36

Jesus is using the analogy of slavery to again make the point that the only way to be adopted into the family is to allow the Son, Jesus himself, to free you. Clearly when a person has been adopted, it is into a permanent relationship. The son in a family has all the privileges so to reject the offer of being adopted would surely be idiocy.

The Jews relied on the fact that they were physical descendants from Abraham. They accepted and tried to follow the rules of the Old Testament that Moses had passed on to them, but they had overlooked the multitude of passages in the Old Testament that the Lord wants their hearts and not just formal acknowledgment. It is astounding how easy it is to overlook passages in the Bible that make us feel uncomfortable. The prophet Joel had been very clear,

“’Even now,’ declares the LORD, ‘return to me with all your heart’ . . . ‘Rend your heart and not your garments. Return to the LORD your God, for he is gracious and compassionate, slow to anger and abounding in love, and he relents from sending calamity.” Joel 2:12-13

The New Testament makes it clear that those who share the faith of Abraham are his true descendants. Paul explains this in the following way,

“Consider Abraham: ‘He believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness’. Understand then, that those who believe are children of Abraham.” Galatians 3:6-7

The only way to be acceptable to the holy God is to be given the status of being ‘righteous’. No-one can earn this, however exemplary their life. Paul wrote,

“I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes, first for the Jew, then for the Gentile. For in the gospel a righteousness from God is revealed, a righteousness that is by faith from first to last, just as it is written: ‘The righteous will live by faith.’” Romans 1:16-17

It is by our actions that our true allegiance is demonstrated. The Jews claimed to be children of Abraham but their rejection of the embodiment of God betrayed the fact that they were not members of God’s kingdom.

“If you were members of God’s kingdom, you would do the things Abraham did. As it is you are determined to kill me, a man who has told you the truth that I heard from God. . . . You are doing the things your own father does.” John 8:39-41

Jesus is inferring that if their father is not God he must be Satan. As so often happens they respond with cynicism and sarcasm, referring to the doubt about whether Jesus was the legitimate son of Mary and Joseph,

“‘We are not illegitimate children,’ they protested, ‘The only Father we have is God himself.’”

Jesus wants everyone to determine which family we belong to and then to live accordingly.

BVP