Last time we saw that many were
confused about who Jesus was, although there were many who put their faith in
Him. The religious leaders tried to
seize Him, but no one could lay a hand on Him because His time had not yet
come.
We also learned that we are to
follow Jesus’ example. He offers living
water. When we believe in Jesus, streams
of living water will flow in us. When we
come to Jesus we put our faith in Him, we trust Him, we rely on Him, and we
cling to Him.
John
8:1-11 – The Adulteress Woman
Jesus was teaching in the temple when
the Pharisees brought a woman caught in adultery to Him. They told Jesus that the law commanded such
women were to be stoned; they were trying to trap Jesus. Jesus bent down and started writing on the
ground with His finger. He said, “If any one of you is without sin, let him be the first to
throw a stone at her.” – John 8:7. Then he continued writing on the ground. When they heard this, they began to walk away
one by one. There was no one left but
the woman and Jesus. Jesus then told the
woman to go and leave her sinful life behind. (John 8:1-11)
These leaders weren’t really
concerned for the woman, but in trapping Jesus.
They interrupted His teaching wanting to make it as public as
possible. They wanted to embarrass both
the woman and Jesus. They used her sin
as a weapon against Jesus while ignoring their own sin.
Here we learn a lot about Jesus. He didn’t rush to speak, but took His time by
writing on the ground. He was loving,
patient, kind, fair, all knowing and forgiving.
We learn instead of throwing rocks at sinners, He loves and restores
them. He shows us we need to be
forgiving. We are to be gentle and humble
when confronting someone of their sin.
We should not think ourselves better than someone else. We should look at our own sin and not judge
others. When we gossip, that is like
throwing stones at someone.
What sin do you need God’s help
to defeat?
What was Jesus writing on the
ground? We really don’t
know. Maybe He was writing some of the
sins of those who were condemning her.
Or maybe He was just giving them time to think about what they were
doing using this time to convict their hearts.
Jesus’ words in verse 11
show He was concerned about her sin as He is with our sin. Jesus has a heart for sinners and wants all
to repent and turn to God. Sin always
matters, because God hates sin. God will
always forgive our sin if we are sincerely sorry, but we must not continue in
that sin. We can ask Him to help us with
the sin in our life and He will help us defeat it.
We’ve all been caught in the act
of sin. Even if we manage to keep our
sin hidden from others, God knows our every sinful thought. He knows every swear word we’ve said and every
hateful thought we’ve had. Religious
people are just as guilty of sin as immoral people are. We all sin.
None of us is perfect. Only Jesus
is the perfect One. James 2:10 tells us whoever keeps the whole law, which is all 10
commandments, but stumbles at just one is guilty of breaking all of the laws. We tend to rationalize our own sin. Of course we shouldn’t tolerate others sin,
but we also should not condemn them either.
We should restore them by being gentle and humble.
Are you more concerned about
someone else’s sin than your own?
Do you throw stones of gossip?
Principle: Jesus offers grace to broken sinners who
repent.
John
8:12-30 – Jesus is The Light of the World
Jesus spoke again to the people
and told them, “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in
darkness, but will have the light of life.” – John 8:12.
Jesus gives valid testimony of
Himself. He said He passes judgment on
no one. If He does, then His decisions
are right because the Father stands with Him.
In their own law if 2 men testify then the testimony is valid. Jesus testifies for Himself and the Father is
the other who testifies. (John 8:12-18)
When Jesus says, “I am the light of the world”, He means He is able to
shine the pure light of truth into hearts and consciences of everyone who
believes on Him. He is the exclusive
source of spiritual light. He can expose
the sin that lurks within everyone. He
came to open eyes to the truth, to enlighten, and to show the way of
salvation. We are to walk in the light
as He is in the light and we are to point lost souls to the One who lightens
the darkness in lifeless souls.
Verses 13-20 lists
the witnesses Jesus gave that prove His testimony is valid. He reminded them that their own Law was
written that the testimony of two men is valid.
He is His own witness; the other witness is the Father, who sent Him.
Jesus explained how He was
different from the people in verses 23-24. He said that He was from heaven above and
they were from the world below and they would die in their sins if they did not
believe in Him.
They asked Him, “Who are you?” – John 8:25. He answered that He was sent by the Father
who is reliable and that He speaks for the Him.
Jesus doesn’t make mistakes as people do. His judgment is always fair. He thinks just like His Father and God is
never wrong, but perfect in every way.
Jesus told them that they don’t
know Him or His Father. He said He is
going away, where they cannot come. He
is speaking to those who do not believe.
He is going to heaven and unless they believe in Him they cannot join
Him in heaven. He said they are from
below and He is from above. They are
from this world and He is from heaven.
They will die in their sins if they didn’t believe He is who He claimed
to be. (John 8:19-26)
Jesus said, “When you have lifted up the Son of Man, then you will know
that I am the one I claim to be, and that I do nothing on my own but speak just
what the Father has taught me. The one
who sent me is with me; he has not left me along…” – John 8:28-29. He is talking about when they would put Him
on the cross they would realize who He really is. He said God would never leave Him alone. This was His purpose and God’s plan. God would be with Him just as He is with us
in all circumstances.
Is Jesus the light of your life?
Will you reject Jesus’ claim
because you don’t want the Light exposing your sin?
Will you follow Him by trusting
Him as your Savior?
Principle: Jesus is the Light of the world.
In order to go to heaven we must:
Believe in Jesus as He is
revealed in scripture.
Believe in Jesus as the eternal
God, sent to earth by the Father.
Believe that Jesus lived a
sinless life in total dependence on the Father.
Believe that Jesus was lifted up
on the cross to die as the substitute for your sins. Believe that Jesus was raised from the dead
and ascended into heaven.
Believe in Jesus while there is
still time.
John
8:31-47 – True Freedom
To the Jews who believed He said,
“If you hold to my teaching, you are really my
disciples. Then you will know the truth
and the truth will set you free.” – John
8:31-32. They answered Jesus by
saying they were Abraham’s descendants and were never slaves. Jesus told them that everyone who sins is a
slave to sin. Yes, they were Abraham’s
descendants, but they were ready to kill Jesus.
They said Abraham was their father.
Jesus then told them if Abraham was their father, they would do as he
did. Even Abraham knew the Messiah was
coming and looked forward to it.
Never slaves? The Bible tells us they were enslaved by the
Egyptians, by Babylonians, by the Assyrians and even now under the Romans. Jesus said if you commit sin, you are a slave
to sin. Of course they were talking
about physical slaves, but Jesus was talking about spiritual slaves.
They didn’t understand what Jesus
meant. They were under the Roman rule,
but were not slaves. Jesus pointed out
that they were really slaves because of sin.
The freedom Jesus offers is spiritual freedom from the bondage of
sin. Sin controls people and guides how
they act. It affects how they
behave. Jesus is God’s Son and can stop
sin’s power over a person. He alone has
the authority to let people join God’s family.
Have you chosen to be a slave or
a child of God?
Jesus said they failed to recognize
Him because they didn’t belong to God. All
mankind is either a child of God or of the devil. If you have not received Jesus by faith then
you are a child of the devil. God has
offered you a way to be in His family – believe in Jesus as you Lord and
Savior.
Jesus offers us freedom. True freedom comes from knowing Christ
through genuine faith and abiding in His Word.
Freedom to know that when we sin (and we know we all do since we are not
perfect) we are forgiven. We don’t have
to worry about it. We will mess up from
time to time, but if we are followers of Jesus we are set free from sin’s
penalty. “For
there is no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.” – Rom. 8:1
What sin are you trying to hide
from God?
Do you want to experience this
freedom Jesus offers?
If you don’t have this freedom,
ask God to give it to you. Pray
specifically about the sin that is keeping you in bondage. It may be lust, gambling, alcohol, food,
etc. Whatever it is, Jesus can break
this bondage of sin.
In John 8:37-44 Jesus
challenged them to proudly claim Abraham as their father by doing the things
Abraham. Instead they wanted to kill Him
for telling the truth that He heard from God.
We can distinguish between the
truth of God and the lies of Satan by examining the Scriptures. If it goes against Scripture, it’s from
Satan. Also you can ask yourself, “What
would Jesus do”.
Principle: True freedom comes from knowing Christ
through genuine faith and abiding in His Word.
John
8:48-59 – Jesus is I Am
They became more and more angry
with Jesus. They tried to insult Him by
calling Him a Samaritan and demon-possessed.
Jesus told them He was not demon-possessed, but honors His Father and
does not seek glory for Himself.
John 8:51 – Jesus
said if anyone keeps His word, he will never see death. This means that believers will never see
eternal death but will have eternal life and will never be separated from God.
He told them even Abraham
rejoiced at the thought of seeing His coming one day meaning that he had hope,
desire, and great expectation that he would see the promised Messiah (John 8:56). The Jews said you aren’t yet 50 years old and
you have seen Abraham?
John 8:58 – He
said, “... before Abraham was born, I am!” Jesus is claiming to be the Messiah, the One
who Abraham saw by faith. He existed
even before Abraham existed; Jesus was foretold to be the promised
Messiah. This enraged the leaders so
they attempted to stone Him.
How do you start being a follower
of Jesus? First confess and
repent of your sins. Accept Him as your
Savior. Then start by abiding in the
Word of God – read it, study it, and pray it.
If you are faithful to this, you will know the truth. God will help you understand it. You will have eternal life in heaven with
Him.
Jesus calls Himself, “I Am”. This is
the name God revealed for Himself to Moses in Exodus 3:14. It means He is
eternal and has always existed and will exist forever. He is “the one who
is, and who was, and who is to come” (Rev. 4:8). He is the
beginning and the ending – the Alpha and the Omega. He is everything and everywhere. Jesus is God; He is the Great I AM.
Jesus’ claims:
John 8:49-50 – Jesus
claimed honor to His Father and to seek His glory.
John 8:46 – Jesus claimed He kept God’s word perfectly.
John 8:54 – Jesus
claimed the Father glorified Him.
John 8:56 – Jesus claimed that Abraham rejoiced to see His
day.
John 8:58 – Jesus
claimed to be God and pointed to His preexistence.
We face the same choice the Jews
faced; either Jesus was a blasphemer or He is God.
Do you believe that Jesus is God?
Do you believe all that He says
is true?
Will you rejoice at Jesus’ second
coming?
What difference should it make in
your life?
Principle: Jesus is the Messiah.
Key verses:
“I am the light of the
world.”
– John 8:12
“The truth will set you
free.”
– John 8:32
Next week we will study John 9. Have a blessed day and thanks for visiting my
site. – I encourage you to trust in Jesus
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Resources:
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