seekeroftruth
Well-Known Member
John 8:31 To the Jews who had believed him, Jesus said, “If you hold to my teaching, you are really my disciples. 32 Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.”
33 They answered him, “We are Abraham’s descendants and have never been slaves of anyone. How can you say that we shall be set free?”
34 Jesus replied, “Very truly I tell you, everyone who sins is a slave to sin. 35 Now a slave has no permanent place in the family, but a son belongs to it forever. 36 So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed. 37 I know that you are Abraham’s descendants. Yet you are looking for a way to kill me, because you have no room for my word. 38 I am telling you what I have seen in the Father’s presence, and you are doing what you have heard from your father.[b]”
39 “Abraham is our father,” they answered.
“If you were Abraham’s children,” said Jesus, “then you would[c] do what Abraham did. 40 As it is, you are looking for a way to kill me, a man who has told you the truth that I heard from God. Abraham did not do such things. 41 You are doing the works of your own father.”
“We are not illegitimate children,” they protested. “The only Father we have is God himself.”
42 Jesus said to them, “If God were your Father, you would love me, for I have come here from God. I have not come on my own; God sent me. 43 Why is my language not clear to you? Because you are unable to hear what I say. 44 You belong to your father, the devil, and you want to carry out your father’s desires. He was a murderer from the beginning, not holding to the truth, for there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks his native language, for he is a liar and the father of lies. 45 Yet because I tell the truth, you do not believe me! 46 Can any of you prove me guilty of sin? If I am telling the truth, why don’t you believe me? 47 Whoever belongs to God hears what God says. The reason you do not hear is that you do not belong to God.”
b. John 8:38 Or presence. Therefore do what you have heard from the Father.
c. John 8:39 Some early manuscripts “If you are Abraham’s children,” said Jesus, “then
"The truth will set you free." That is one of those quotes from the Bible that gets a lot of use... but I would say a lot of the people who use that Bible Verse don't even know it's from the Bible.
In verse 33 the Pharisees and the Sadducees were claiming to be free from any enslavement.... while the Roman Guard worried them all the freaking time!
The pious Pharisees and Sadducees claimed their legitimacy by using Abraham..... a descendant of Seth.... Seth was on the Arc with his father Noah and his brothers Ham and Japheth. They claimed to be "chosen" because they happened to be born to the right boy in the Bible. After God had to wipe everyone else off the face of the earth. The descendants of Abraham..... Isaac.... Jacob [Israel] were the "chosen" they said. They said they had been "chosen" to be God's children..... but Jesus told them they sure didn't act like descendants of Abraham. Abraham loved God more than anything or anyone. Abraham would have given up everything for God. Abraham would have sacrificed his son for God.
OK... setting the scene.... This happened at the Festival of the Booths [Purim] on the last day. At first Jesus wasn't going to go to this festival. He knew He would wind up at the Temple arguing with those idiot Pharisees and Sadducees. If He had gone with His disciples, they would have been put in harms way due to this argument. Then He decided to go anyway... and sure enough at the end of the celebration He was in the Temple being harassed by the very people He wanted to avoid arguing with.
They considered themselves "chosen" better than anyone anywhere. BUT they cringed when crowds gathered around Jesus because Rome didn't like crowds. They were afraid of Roman Guards.... but they were "chosen".
Jesus told them that if they were really "chosen" then they would understand that they were talking to their Big Brother, Messiah, the Son of God. But they didn't have a clue. Jesus told them to stick to the Word of God.... but that went right over their heads.... they, after all, wrote all the rules and regulations, policies and procedures that made the 10 Commandments work. They were in charge of law and order. They knew the scriptures inside and out and they were in charge of keeping the "chosen" pure.
Those Pharisees even brought up the Samaritans. Some of those "chosen" descendants of Jacob [Israel] moved to Samaria and married Samaritan women who taught them about their gods..... so the "chosen" ones hated them..... hate.... wow that's really a good sign.... they hated.... but they were the "chosen".
Then Jesus pointed out to them... they wee trying to murder Jesus. All Jesus did was talk about God.... heal a man without worrying what day of the week it was.... and tell them about His Father.... the One True Living God.
They were the big heads though... they ran a "free" Temple while Rome watched their every move. They had been chosen to point out the sins of others so they could decide the proper sacrifice. Big sins would require the "purchase" of an ox.... tiny sins could be covered by the "purchase" of a sack of grain or a vile of EVOO. Jesus told them they were not free to do as they chose... they were stuck in tradition.... stuck in ritual... they weren't God's priests... they were appointed by Rome..... based on their bloodline with no regard to their "faith" in God.
They were so big headed... they were sure... if the Messiah was on earth... God would have notified them.... not a shepherd or a scientist.... they were God's "chosen" and if His Son was going to visit... they would know... and God didn't talk to them.... which was the point Jesus was making.... God didn't talk to them because they were no longer His Children. His Children wouldn't "hate" the Samaritans. His Children wouldn't "plot to murder" their Big Brother, the Messiah, Jesus.
When I was growing up... one of the worst things a grown up could call a child was "illegitimate brat". Illegitimate brats are unwanted... they were born out of wedlock... they were the product of sin. Every time their parents looked at them.... their parents were reminded of their sin. They were unloved.
Jesus told the Pharisees and Sadducees they were not acting "chosen". He told them they were acting like illegitimate brats.
