A question that I have been pondering over this election season as I watched everything unfold was this. What if you are wrong? Well, me too. What if I am wrong? That uncertainty can shake us, or it can bring us to our knees, asking the Lord for His truth to permeate all of our lives. Not just the showy parts.
Think about you. You are a complicated person. You wrestle with thoughts and feelings. You pray to make the right decisions. You mess up. You get up again. People who think differently than you do all the same things. They put their socks on, just like you. They kiss their loved ones. They try to make the best decisions they can. Humanize the person across the aisle. Humanize the one that thinks radically different from you. When you and I say the dreaded word,..them…you have placed “them” (whoever they are) apart from you.
If they do not know or trust the Lord, there is reason to pray, to cross the bridge, sit and be curious in conversation. Jesus calls us to see each other as His beloved whether they accept Him YET or not. Maybe we can be part of the story by displaying the sacrificial love of Christ.
In John 8, the disciples, the people, the teachers of the Law whether they knew it or not, were hearing the truth. They didn’t have to wonder if Jesus is wrong or misguided, the Truth stood before them. He was never wrong. He could/can be trusted. The Jews just were not sure and these verses are question after question. To almost every question, Jesus answers with an “if”.
“So Jesus was saying to those Jews who had believed Him, “If you continue in My word, then you are truly disciples of Mine; and you will know the truth, and the truth will make you free.” They answered Him, “We are Abraham’s descendants and have never yet been enslaved to anyone; how is it that You say, ‘You will become free’?” Jesus answered them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, everyone who commits sin is the slave of sin. The slave does not remain in the house forever; the son does remain forever. So if the Son makes you free, you will be free indeed.”
John 8:31-36 NASB1995
These Jews, John tells us, believed Jesus. This instruction, follow my words, become my disciple and here it is, know the truth that sets you free. Knowing the truth sets you free. It doesn’t stop there. We are meant to share this, live this. The question I began with stops right here. We are not wrong about the truth. We are not wrong about Jesus. On this I am sure.
The Jews push back, wait, your words, Jesus, don’t make sense. We have Abraham. We are not slaves. What do you mean??? And Jesus makes it clear. Everyone who sins is a slave.
Here’s the first IF. If the Son makes you free, you will be free indeed. Just before that Jesus said, believe my words, be my disciple,and the TRUTH will set you free. By believing the Son, trusting in him, His words, we are set free. This IF requires a choice on our part. Choose to believe Jesus’ words, believe in HIM.
“I know that you are Abraham’s descendants; yet you seek to kill Me, because My word has no place in you. I speak the things which I have seen with My Father; therefore you also do the things which you heard from your father.” They answered and said to Him, “Abraham is our father.” Jesus *said to them, “If you are Abraham’s children, do the deeds of Abraham. But as it is, you are seeking to kill Me, a man who has told you the truth, which I heard from God; this Abraham did not do. You are doing the deeds of your father.” They said to Him, “We were not born of fornication; we have one Father: God.””
John 8:37-41 NASB1995
Title will not save us. The Jews might be Abraham’s descendants , but Jesus knew that his word had not permeated their thoughts and actions. THEY were TRYING to KILL him. Just saying. Our thoughts are known by our Father. Our actions speak to the intentions of our hearts. Oh Lord Jesus, let your word have a place in me, for my friend reading this. Reveal to us any ways we are not following, not listening, not abiding. Lord, we want to do the deeds of our Father who is in heaven.
I will pick this up again. Have. Blessed day.
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