And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free

 

 Then Jesus said to them again, "I am going away, and you will seek Me, and will die in your sin.  Where I go you cannot come."  So the Jews said, "Will He kill Himself, because He says, 'Where I go you cannot come'?"  And He said to them, "You are from beneath; I am from above.  You are of this world; I am not of this world.  Therefore I said to you that you will die in your sins; for if you do not believe that I am He, you will die in your sins."  Then they said to Him, "Who are You?"  And Jesus said to them, "Just what I have been saying to you from the beginning.  I have many things to say and to judge concerning you, but He who sent Me is true; and I speak to the world those things which I heard from Him."  They did not understand that He spoke to them of the Father.  

Then Jesus said to them, "When you lift up the Son of Man, then you will know that I am He, and that I do nothing of Myself; but as My Father taught Me, I speak these things.  And He who sent Me is with Me.  The Father has not left Me alone, for I always do those things that please Him."  As He spoke these words, many believed in Him.  

Then Jesus said to those Jews who believed Him, "If you abide in My word, you are My disciples indeed.  And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free." 

 

- John 8:21-32 

 

In our current readings, Jesus is at the Feast of Tabernacles (Sukkot), an eight-day festival commemorating the time Israel wandered toward the Promised Land, dwelling in tabernacles (or tents).  He has been in dispute with the religious leaders, and in front of the crowds.  Yesterday we read that Jesus spoke to the Pharisees again, saying, "I am the light of the world.  He who follows Me shall not walk in darkness, but have the light of life."  The Pharisees therefore said to Him, "You bear witness of Yourself; Your witness is not true."  Jesus answered and said, "Even if I bear witness of Myself, My witness is true, for I know where I came from and where I am going; but you do not know where I come from and where I am going.  You judge according to the flesh; I judge no one.  And yet if I do judge, My judgment is true; for I am not alone, but I am with the Father who sent Me.  It is also written in your law that the testimony of two men is true.  I am One who bears witness of Myself, and the Father who sent Me bears witness of Me."  Then they said to Him, "Where is Your Father?"  Jesus answered, "You know neither Me nor My Father.  If you had known Me, you would have known My Father also."  These words Jesus spoke in the treasury, as He taught in the temple; and no one laid hands on Him, for His hour had not yet come.

 

  Then Jesus said to them again, "I am going away, and you will seek Me, and will die in your sin.  Where I go you cannot come."  So the Jews said, "Will He kill Himself, because He says, 'Where I go you cannot come'?"  And He said to them, "You are from beneath; I am from above.  You are of this world; I am not of this world.  Therefore I said to you that you will die in your sins; for if you do not believe that I am He, you will die in your sins."  Then they said to Him, "Who are You?"  And Jesus said to them, "Just what I have been saying to you from the beginning.  I have many things to say and to judge concerning you, but He who sent Me is true; and I speak to the world those things which I heard from Him."  They did not understand that He spoke to them of the Father.   My study Bible comments here that going away refers to Jesus' death, Resurrection, and Ascension into heaven.  It is now Christ's final year on earth (Sukkot, or the Feast of Tabernacles, is an autumn festival).  The following Passover, in spring, will be the occasion for Holy Week.  Let us note that Christ's efforts here are not simply about "convincing" the religious authorities about Himself, but express His attempts to save them.  

Then Jesus said to them, "When you lift up the Son of Man, then you will know that I am He, and that I do nothing of Myself; but as My Father taught Me, I speak these things.  And He who sent Me is with Me.  The Father has not left Me alone, for I always do those things that please Him."  As He spoke these words, many believed in Him.  To lift up, according to my study Bible, has the double meaning of being nailed to the Cross and also of being exalted by His Father upon completion of Christ's work.  Let us note the effect of His words upon those who listen to Him.  

Then Jesus said to those Jews who believed Him, "If you abide in My word, you are My disciples indeed."  My study Bible comments here that Jesus expects all who follow Him to be disciples, that is, learners.   It says that to abide in His word is the responsibility of all believers -- and not simply the clergy, or an elite class of zealots.  Let us note here that later on in John's Gospel we will be told that even among the rulers, there were many who believed in Him (John 12:42-43).  

"And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free."  My study Bible comments that the truth refers both to the virtue of truth and, more importantly, to Christ Himself (see John 14:6).  To be free, it adds, means freedom from darkness, confusion, lies, and also freedom from the bondage of sin and death.  

What is freedom?  Let us consider what that means to us.  There are many ways in which we hear the word freedom used in a modern world.  So often it has to do with wanting something, or wanting to do something.  This is the freedom to pursue whatever it is that takes our fancy, whatever it is that we think might make us happier, or change our lives in some positive direction, or give us some sort of pleasure or well-being.  In the past, it seems like there has been great struggle for the freedom to pursue one's faith, or to follow one's conscience as one feels one must do.  Of course, those two things are closely linked.  And then there is also something we must consider, especially in a modern age when so many of our resources for communication and modern media dominate and inform us in so many ways, and that is freedom of thought.  What about freedom to debate, or freedom to consider things that are outside of the box or the framework of a modern way of life?  We have guidance for fashion and what we wear, there are fashions in what to think, there are fashions and pressures in what we might say and might not say.  Freedom can be a tricky thing, because what one is not free to say or do today might be turned upon another fashion or prohibition tomorrow.  And this is where truth comes in, because, without truth, how do we know that what we follow is essential to us, or helpful?  There are so many things that demand our attention, even slavish obedience that amounts to a kind of worship.  What we need first in our lives is a sense of truth, a rootedness in what is true, and meaningful, and good.  When Christ offers us truth and freedom, He is teaching us once again about what comes first in our lives, what is central, where to begin.  When we begin with God, and with the discipleship that follows, we rest ourselves in a kind of personal struggle for what is good and true and beautiful, and we rest ourselves in that place where we may grow in love, for this is what we learn from God.  If we begin there, we root ourselves in what frees if only because delusion, darkness, and distractions are thrown into relief against the light we pursue and where that leads us.  Jesus will go to the Cross because He persists in proclaiming the truth of who He is and who God is; but His freedom is full and complete. 

 

 

 

 

If you abide in My word, you are My disciples indeed. And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free

 

 Then Jesus said to them again, "I am going away, and you will seek Me, and will die in your sin.  Where I go you cannot come."  So the Jews said, "Will He kill Himself, because He says, 'Where I go you cannot come'?"  And He said to them, "You are from beneath; I am from above.  You are of this world; I am not of this world.  Therefore I said to you that you will die in your sins; for if you do not believe that I am He, you will die in your sins."  Then they said to Him, "Who are You?"  And Jesus said to them, "Just what I have been saying to you from the beginning.  I have many things to say and to judge concerning you, but He who sent Me is true; and I speak to the world those things which I heard from Him."  They did not understand that He spoke to them of the Father.  

 

Then Jesus said to them, "When you lift up the son of Man, then you will know that I am He, and that I do nothing of Myself; but as My Father taught Me, I speak these things.  And He who sent Me is with Me.  The Father has not left Me alone, for I always do those things that please Him."  As He spoke these words, many believed in Him.  Then Jesus said to those Jews who believed Him, "If you abide in My word, you are My disciples indeed.  And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free."

 

- John 8:21-32 

 

In our recent readings, Jesus is at the Feast of Tabernacles in Jerusalem, an eight-day autumn harvest festival which commemorates the time when Israel dwelt in tabernacles, or tents, following Moses.  It is the great and final day of the feast.  It is also the final year of Jesus' earthly life.  On Saturday we read that Jesus spoke to religious leaders again, saying, "I am the light of the world.  He who follows Me shall not walk in darkness, but have the light of life."  The Pharisees therefore said to Him, "You bear witness of Yourself; Your witness is not true."  Jesus answered and said to them, "Even if I bear witness of Myself, My witness is true, for I know where I came from and where I am going; but you do not know where I come from and where I am going.  You judge according to the flesh; I judge no one.  And yet if I do judge, My judgment is true; for I am not alone, but I am with the Father who sent Me.  It is also written in your law that the testimony of two men is true.  I am one who bears witness of Myself, and the Father who sent Me bears witness of Me."  Then they said to Him, "Where is Your Father?"  Jesus answered, "You know neither Me nor My Father.  If you had known Me, you would have known My Father also."  These words Jesus spoke in the treasury, as He taught in the temple; and no one laid hands on Him, for His hour had not yet come.

 

  Then Jesus said to them again, "I am going away, and you will seek Me, and will die in your sin.  Where I go you cannot come."  So the Jews said, "Will He kill Himself, because He says, 'Where I go you cannot come'?"  And He said to them, "You are from beneath; I am from above.  You are of this world; I am not of this world.  Therefore I said to you that you will die in your sins; for if you do not believe that I am He, you will die in your sins."  Then they said to Him, "Who are You?"  And Jesus said to them, "Just what I have been saying to you from the beginning.  I have many things to say and to judge concerning you, but He who sent Me is true; and I speak to the world those things which I heard from Him."  They did not understand that He spoke to them of the Father.  My study Bible comments that going away here refers to Christ's death, Resurrection, and Ascension into heaven.  Note how Jesus once again ties everything in to His communion with the Father.  All things come from God the Father:  "He who sent Me is true; and I speak to the world those things which I heard from Him."  That includes the identity of Christ from the One who sent Him, and all the things Jesus speaks to the world.

Then Jesus said to them, "When you lift up the son of Man, then you will know that I am He, and that I do nothing of Myself; but as My Father taught Me, I speak these things.  And He who sent Me is with Me.  The Father has not left Me alone, for I always do those things that please Him."  As He spoke these words, many believed in Him.   Lift up, as used here by Christ, has the double meaning of being nailed to the Cross, and also of being exalted by the Father upon completion of His work.  

 

 Then Jesus said to those Jews who believed Him, "If you abide in My word, you are My disciples indeed."  My study Bible says that Jesus expects all who follow Him to be disciples.  "Disciple" is the Greek word μαθητής/mathetes, which literally means "learner."  He expects those who follow Him to be learners.  To abide in His word, my study Bible continues, is the responsibility of all believers -- not simply of the clergy or of an elite class of zealots, but all who believe.

 

 "And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free."  My study Bible explains that the truth refers both to the virtue of truth, and even more importantly, to Christ Himself (John 14:6).  To be free refers to freedom from darkness, confusion, and lies, as well as the freedom from the bondage of sin and death. 

What does it mean to be free?  To some people, freedom means freedom from something.  Some may want to be free of financial debts, or possibly a difficult circumstance one wants to escape.  Some may want a kind of spiritual freedom in the sense of doing what pleases them, or what they think is right on their terms.  For others, there is emotional freedom, such as freedom from worry, or freedom from sorrow.  And there is also physical freedom from things:  freedom from pain, freedom from social or political circumstances, freedom from authority with the power to punish or imprison.  There are other kinds of freedom that people desire as well; this is from to do things.   As opposed to freedom from something, one may desire freedom to go to the beach, to smoke cigarettes (or other substances), to shout in a movie theater, to buy a car or build a swimming pool, to go take a walk when we need a break, even to breathe fresh air.  But the kind of freedom which Jesus offers here is the truth in an absolute and even relative sense (relative to our present circumstances, for example), but His truth also includes Himself, everything that is in His being which He offers and freely shares with us.  This is a freedom that goes far deeper than an immediate desire for freedom to or freedom from something.  This is the root of all freedom which asks us the question about what we do with freedom, how we use it, how we take it and explore it, how we think of it or even understand it.  This deep-rooted place of freedom is the place where Christ offers us both "freedom to" and "freedom from," for it is the place of the deep truth which is reality, and offers us what will correct not only what ails us but also offer to us what we need.  It is a truth that teaches us what our best use for freedom is, and how to live that freedom in the best way possible.  It will throw out what is extraneous by getting us down to the nitty-gritty of where our identity is, what truths are that we need to embrace, and what delusions and personal handicaps we need to discard to find who we are.  This kind of freedom roots us in the place where our values can be restored, made whole, and revivified when our dreams are cast down, or our own disillusion gets the better of us.  It will teach us which false gods we worship, and be there when their feet of clay are exposed, and we need direction.  It will make out of us "learners" -- that is, disciples, so that we may find what is worthwhile and not waste our time on what is not.  Christ's truth, therefore, offers us a freedom which cannot be found anywhere else, because His truth is the light of life.  It is therefore the light of this world, where darkness can so easily obscure our best path, because we don't of ourselves have the capacity to know what Christ can reveal and give to us.  For this reason we must all be "learners," and walk the path of the truth He offers, which makes us truly free.

 

 

If you abide in My word, you are My disciples indeed. And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free

 Then Jesus said to them again, "I am going away, and you will seek Me, and will die in your sin.  Where I go you cannot come."  So the Jews said, "Will He kill Himself, because He says, 'Where I go you cannot come'?"  And He said to them, "You are from beneath; I am from above.  You are of this world; I am not of this world.  Therefore I said to you that you will die in your sins; for if you do not believe that I am He, you will die in your sins."   Then they said to Him, "Who are You?"  And Jesus said to them, "Just what I have been saying to you from the beginning.  I have many things to say and to judge concerning you, but He who sent Me is true; and I speak to the world those things which I heard from Him."  They did not understand that He spoke to them of the Father.  Then Jesus said to them, "When you lift up the Son of Man, then you will know that I am He, and that I do nothing of Myself; but as My Father taught Me, I speak these things.  And He who sent Me is with Me.  The Father has not left Me alone, for I always do those things that please Him."  As He spoke these words, many believed in Him.

Then Jesus said to those Jews who believed Him, "If you abide in My word, you are My disciples indeed.  And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free."

- John 8:21-32

In our current readings, Jesus is in Jerusalem, at the Feast of Tabernacles, an eight-day autumn festival.  It is the last day of the Feast, and He has been debating with the leaders in the temple.  Yesterday we read that Jesus spoke to them again, saying, "I am the light of the world.  He who follows Me shall not walk in darkness, but have the light of life."   The Pharisees therefore said to Him, "You bear witness of Yourself; Your witness is not true."  Jesus answered and said to them, "Even if I bear witness of Myself, My witness is true, for I know where I came from and where I am going; but you do not know where I come from and where I am going.  You judge according to the flesh; I judge no one.  And yet if I do judge, My judgment is true; for I am not alone, but I am with the Father who sent Me.  It is also written in your law that the testimony of two men is true.  I am One who bears witness of Myself, and the Father who sent Me bears witness of Me."  Then they said to Him, "Where is Your Father?"  Jesus answered, "You know neither Me nor My Father.  If you had known Me, you would have known My Father also."  These words Jesus spoke in the treasury, as He taught in the temple; and no one laid hands on Him, for His hour had not yet come.

 Then Jesus said to them again, "I am going away, and you will seek Me, and will die in your sin.  Where I go you cannot come."  So the Jews said, "Will He kill Himself, because He says, 'Where I go you cannot come'?"  Jesus' going away refers to His death, Resurrection, and Ascension to heaven.

And He said to them, "You are from beneath; I am from above.  You are of this world; I am not of this world.  Therefore I said to you that you will die in your sins; for if you do not believe that I am He, you will die in your sins."   Then they said to Him, "Who are You?"  And Jesus said to them, "Just what I have been saying to you from the beginning.  I have many things to say and to judge concerning you, but He who sent Me is true; and I speak to the world those things which I heard from Him."  They did not understand that He spoke to them of the Father.   Jesus reiterates His identity.  There is almost a plaintive quality to these words, and His repeated warnings that they will die in their sins, as they have no faith in what He says about Himself.  He repeats twice the warning, and the assertion that He is from above, and not of this world.  All things turn back to the Father, as Jesus replies that "He who sent Me is true; and I speak to the world those things which I heard from Him."    But they do not understand.  It is very important, also, to note that Jesus says He is from above.   In chapter 3, Jesus spoke of Baptism as literally being born "from above" (3:7), which is usually translated into English as "born again."

Then Jesus said to them, "When you lift up the Son of Man, then you will know that I am He, and that I do nothing of Myself; but as My Father taught Me, I speak these things.  And He who sent Me is with Me.  The Father has not left Me alone, for I always do those things that please Him."  As He spoke these words, many believed in Him.   My study bible explains that lift up has the double meaning of being nailed to the Cross and also of being exalted by His Father upon the completion of Christ's mission and work.  John notes here that many believed in Him.

Then Jesus said to those Jews who believed Him, "If you abide in My word, you are My disciples indeed.  And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free."   To be a disciple is to be a learner (the literal meaning of the word in Greek).   My study bible explains that to be disciples is what Christ expects from all who follow Him.  To abide in His word is the responsibility of all believers -- not simply the clergy or an elite class of zealots.  The truth, it explains, refers both to the virtue of truth, and even more importantly, to Christ Himself (14:6).  My study bible adds that to be free refers to the freedom from darkness, confusion, and lies, as well as the freedom from the bondage of sin and death.

The threads of themes of justice continue to run through John's chapter 8, as we have observed with each reading in this chapter.  Today, Jesus deepens our understanding of judgment on spiritual terms, as He speaks of faith, sins, truth, and freedom.  His judgment, as He has said in yesterday's reading (above) is true, because His judgment is not of Himself but from the Father, whom He follows in all of His choices.  Let us look carefully at the text, and at Jesus' reply after all that He has said and sought to teach:  Then Jesus said to those Jews who believed Him, "If you abide in My word, you are My disciples indeed.  And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free."   Let us note that this is not just the common people He addresses, but those among the leaders who also believed Him.  He now turns and addresses them with this statement, exhorting them to abide in His word and to be His disciples, so that they will find the spiritual truth that makes them free.  In the next reading, Jesus will teach, "Most assuredly, I say to you, whoever commits sin is a slave of sin" (8:34).  Each of these teachings touches on justice and judgment, and the freedom He offers through His truth is the freedom of a judge or deliverer in the traditional sense of the spiritual heritage of the Jews.  He is liberator, and He sets free through the judgment He brings into the world.  He offers redemption, a way out.  But it's no shortcut, and it's not a cheat.  It is a way through the mess of this world, the evil that might ensnare and entangle us in its mazes of deception and confusion.  It is a way out, a straight path, and it is through Him because of His allegiance to the Father, which He shares with us.  One might wonder, in the modern perspective or mindset, why we need to bother with all this.  Don't all sin?  Isn't the world filled with sin as a way of life?  With shortcuts and expedience, and cheating?  But those who have struggled in their hearts with a life of lies know that these things kill the soul, that they go more deeply into the self than the surface can understand.  The experience of the killing nature of sin is not something easily shaken off, and for that, there is only one remedy:  and that remedy is the truth, the spiritual truth that Christ offers, which is found in discipleship.  As He follows the Father, so we may follow and learn from Him, and neither will He desert us.  In keeping with the themes of justice and judgment, He has sent us a Counselor, an Advocate, one who pleads for us and is on our side when we call, and that is the Spirit who is always with us.  Let us be certain to understand that when the world presents us with simple solutions, they are rarely as simple as they look.  It is easy to be ensnared in what looks like the easy way, and easy to feel discouraged and tired of struggling, of making an effort.  The grass always looks greener when you see from the outside the appeal of a simple life, where all that matters is the worldly perspective of getting ahead, not thinking too much or too deeply, skating on thin ice and fantasies that deceive us.  But real life is what Christ offers us, the truth of His message and His love, and His once-for-all-time sacrifice that calls us to Him and asks of us to let Him show us the way through our problems and struggles.  This great Reconciler is the One who offers us a justice that does not evade truth and does not take shortcuts around our pain and struggles.  He offers us truth and beauty, the real deal, the way through, and He means every word He teaches.   All we need is faith.