The Truth that Sets Them Free

So Jesus said to the Jews who had believed in Him, "If you abide in My word, you are truly My disciples, and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free."  They answered him, "We are offspring of Abraham and have never 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 a slave to sin.  The slave does not remain in the house forever; the son remains forever.  So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed.  I know that you are offspring of Abraham; yet you seek to kill Me because My word finds no place in you.  I speak of what I have seen with My Father, and you do what you have heard from your father."
--John 8:31-38

This conversation (and the rest of it, as it continues through verse 59) is quite frustrating to read.  There is nothing quite like talking to someone with head-knowledge of Jesus, and apparent close proximity to embracing His truth, yet who staunchly and wilfully remains ignorant of Him in the most important ways.  The verses tell us that these Jews "believed in Him."  Yet they also were "slaves to sin" and were even seeking to kill Jesus.  How is this even possible?  How can someone believe in Jesus, yet be totally lost?  The answer to this question can be found at the borderline of belief and unbelief.  That line is this: "If you abide in My word, you are truly My disciples."

There can be no freedom outside of God's word.  There can be no following Jesus in any way other than His word lays out.  Rejection of God's word is rejection of Jesus, and no one who rejects is a disciple.

Reading these verses this morning reminded me of a somewhat similar conversation I had with a woman on an airplane.  I was witnessing to her, despite her immediate affirmation that she was a Christian, because it was obvious that she did not know the truth, and had not been set free.  She, like the Jews, was claiming belief--yet contradicting in the next breath the very words of God.  From her mouth, I heard little gems like this:

"Yes, I absolutely agree with you that Jesus is essential to salvation!  He is a wonderful son of God!"
"Yes, I agree with you that the Bible is absolutely true and it is the only message of salvation!  But without the Book of Mormon, the Bible can't be verified and its message will be twisted."
"Yes, I believe that salvation is only by God's grace and our faith.  But if my child dies without being baptized, I need to baptize someone else for her, so she can get into heaven."

Strangely enough, I was having a brutal argument with someone who only ever expressed joyful acquiescence with me.  And now I know the tragic problem that had kept this woman from salvation for so many years.  She was willfully refusing to know truth.  Because of this, she could not be freed by truth, or truly be a disciple of God's word through His Son Jesus Christ.  Jesus' words "found no place" in her--for although she accepted them in her mind, she had laid them beside other qualifying "truths" that limited their absolute authority.

I have been just like that woman, and just like those Jews.  I was willfully blind to God's truth, and with no excuse.  God alone opened up my eyes to finally behold that which I had put off for years--that He is Truth.  He would not tolerate a mind shared with other beliefs.  So He set me free from my sins, and made me His child once and for all by the death of His own Son.  I am free indeed!

I need to remember this as I seek to witness to others who don't know Truth.  It is absolutely impossible--not worth trying--to convince them with brilliant arguments or concise refutals of whatever they say.  There is only one way for them to believe, and that is for them to hear Truth.  As a disciple of Jesus, I must be personally abiding in His word if I ever hope to make disciples of others.  The best thing they could possibly hear from me is a direct quotation of Jesus' words.  His truth alone can set them free--so let's abide in it, and boldly proclaim the Truth that fills our hearts.