Freedom in the Christian Life - John 8:31-36

Thank you for Kevin and his wife Christine. We pray for them as they finish off studies and think about their future and their desire to come to live and work in Ireland.

And we pray that if that is part of your plan it would become real clear to them and you would open up the right doors at the right time and provide a means for them to come.

And we pray for Kevin now and for us all that we would know your help, that we would understand your word, not just so that we can answer questions but that it would change us and help us see the kind of life you have called us to live and the life you have given to us.

So help Kevin and help us now we pray in Jesus name. Amen.

If you'd like a pen, I'm going to hand them around. If you want to take notes you can use the button.

All right, well good morning. It is good to be with you brothers and sisters.

Just as any of you who have traveled to another country, gone to a church there, you know just the joy that it is to be at a church in another country

and to immediately feel the unity of the spirit that you have with people in another country.

So it's great to be with you today.

If you would turn with me in your Bibles to John chapter 8.

John 8 · chapter mention

In the Bibles here it's page 1074, 1074, and that's John chapter 8.

John 8 · chapter mention

You know when I found out that you had, last week you had Dr. Vickers, Brian Vickers preaching here

and then many of you came to the Bible week all week and heard him all week,

I thought it wasn't fair that they asked me to preach this morning because you got to hear my professor all week

and now you got the B team coming up here.

But it really is good to be with you.

So let's read from John chapter 8, starting in verse 31.

John 8 · chapter mention

And this is what we'll be looking at this morning.

John chapter 8, verse 31.

John 8:31

To the Jews who had believed him, Jesus 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.

They answered him, that is the Jews,

We are Abraham's descendants and have never been slaves of anyone.

How can you say that we shall be set free?

Jesus replied,

Very truly I tell you,

everyone who sins is a slave to sin.

Now a slave has no permanent place in the family,

but a son belongs to it forever.

So if the son sets you free,

you will be free indeed.

Let's pray one more time.

Father, we come from many different weeks.

Maybe some of us had weeks that were joyful.

Some of us maybe had weeks that were painful,

that were hard.

All of us had weeks where we were full of sin

and full of struggle,

and we are just in need of hearing from your word this morning.

So Lord, I pray that you would help us.

I pray that you would help me to speak with clarity,

that you would give me the words of your spirit,

from your spirit to speak what would be helpful

to these brothers and sisters.

And Lord, would you give all of us ears to hear

what it is that you would be speaking to us today.

May your word not just be,

like Johnny just said,

an academic truth that we understand,

but it would be a transformative power

as your spirit applies it to our hearts.

We pray for this. Amen.

Well, I understand that you have been looking

at the topic of the Christian life this summer.

And so I wanted to go along with that

and talk about the topic of freedom.

And that's not just because we're coming from America.

I know America loves to talk about freedom.

But I want to talk about specifically freedom

in the Christian life.

What does it mean that we are free as Christians?

And when I say the word freedom,

I'm sure there's many different things

that come to mind for you

because our culture means many different things

when they use the word freedom.

When I say that word,

just think to yourself for a minute,

what comes to mind when I say freedom?

Maybe it's retirement.

Maybe paying off your mortgage.

Maybe vacation,

sunshine,

your parents leaving the home

and leaving you alone.

Maybe your children leaving the home

and leaving you alone.

Maybe it's this church service finishing

so that you can go and do what you'd like to.

Maybe it's just doing whatever you want to do

with your time.

That's freedom for you.

If you ask Google,

Google will tell you that freedom

is the power or right to act,

speak,

or think as one wants

without hindrance or restraint.

That's a very culturally appropriate

understanding of freedom.

And I understand just from watching the news

in your country

over the last few years,

there have been a lot of talk about freedom

and referendums

and being free to do what you want to do

with your life.

There's a lot of confusion

over this topic of freedom

in our culture.

And we are going to find

this same confusion

over freedom

in our passage this morning

in John chapter 8.

John 8 · chapter mention

The Jews,

as they listen to Jesus

speak about freedom,

are misunderstanding

and confused

about what he means by that.

And so this morning,

I want to look with you

at how does Jesus

define freedom.

And it's a radically different way

of defining it

than his contemporaries,

than our culture,

and honestly

than many of us as Christians.

The way that we normally think

of freedom,

Jesus defines it

in a very different way

than us.

And just to give you

a high-level view

so that you know

kind of where I'm going

with this

as we speak this morning,

we are going to see here

that Jesus tells us

that apart from him,

we are all blindly

slaves to sin

with no ability

to free ourselves.

but Jesus,

as the only one

with authority

over sin

and over us,

can break the power

of sin

and release us

to live free from sin.

That that is true freedom

is living away from sin.

And that only Jesus

provides true freedom,

the freedom to live

as God created us to live.

That is what we will see

here in our passage.

But before we get there,

before we look at

Jesus' definition of freedom,

I want to just take

a few minutes to see,

well, where are we

in John's Gospel?

We jumped in here

in chapter 8.

What happened before?

What's happening around this?

Well, John's Gospel,

if you've read it before,

you'll notice that

it focuses very often

on these lengthy

confrontations

between Jesus

and the religious leaders

of the day.

This is not the case

with other of the Gospels

as much,

but very much

in John's Gospel.

And the religious leaders

of Jesus' day

were very confused

by him.

They were struggling

to understand

because they were intrigued

with what he was saying.

They said he speaks

as no one has ever

spoken before.

And so some were

starting to believe.

You see that actually

in verse 30,

here in chapter 8,

it says,

as he spoke,

many believed in him.

So they were interested,

some of them

were believing in him.

And yet at the same time,

Jesus was saying things

that to these leaders

sounded harsh,

sounded confusing,

sounded even to them

sometimes blasphemous.

Like someone should not

say these things

if they love God.

And so when Jesus introduces

the topic of freedom

for them in this passage,

in our passage

we're looking at today,

again,

they misunderstand him.

Look back at verse 33 here.

It says,

they answered him,

we are Abraham's descendants

and we have never been

slaves of anyone.

How can you say

we shall be set free?

Now this is an interesting

statement they make here

because if you have ever read

any of the Old Testament,

you might think that

this is a bit strange.

How can the Jews say

they have never been

slaves of anyone?

In fact,

the Old Testament

is the story of the Jews

being enslaved to everyone.

The Egyptians,

the Philistines,

the Babylonians,

the Assyrians,

every world power

around them

at some time

enslaved the Jewish people.

And yet they say here,

we have never been

a slave to anyone.

We are Abraham's descendants.

But see,

for the Jews at that time,

they knew rightly

that they were God's people.

And so they had this

spiritual,

inward freedom

that no,

we are God's people.

God has made a covenant

with us.

And so no matter what

our external circumstances

look like,

we have this inward,

real freedom

freedom,

because we are God's people.

But the problem is,

well,

and I should say,

that is why they ask

this question.

They say,

how can you say

we shall be set free?

In other words,

if I'm already free,

how can I be more free?

How is that possible?

That's what they're asking Jesus.

But the problem is,

and what we'll see here,

is Jesus is going to expose

that they are in fact mistaken.

That they have

misdiagnosed

their need,

and they have

misunderstood

what it really means

to be free.

And so what can we then

learn about freedom

as a Christian,

and the freedom

that Jesus brings

from this passage?

Well,

I'm going to show you here

quickly three things

from this passage

that Jesus,

three ways

that Jesus describes

the freedom

that he brings.

The first thing he says

is that it is

conditional freedom.

The second thing

is he will say

that it is

a created freedom.

And then third,

he will say

it is a costly freedom.

So let's look at

those three things

in turn.

First,

the freedom

that Jesus brings

is a conditional freedom.

Look back

at verse 31.

To the Jews

who had believed him,

Jesus said,

if.

That's an important word.

Whenever we see that word

when we're reading the Bible,

it should cause us

to stop.

Because if

always brings

a condition

attached.

If you hold

to my teaching,

you are really

my disciples.

Then you will know

the truth

and the truth

will set you free.

So the freedom,

the first thing

we see here

is that the freedom

that Jesus brings

is not an automatic freedom.

It's not a freedom

that everyone

automatically receives.

And this is something,

putting these

if statements

is something

that Jesus does

very often,

especially in the

gospel of John

that we are looking

at right here.

You can think

of other places

that are familiar

to us,

like in John 15

where Jesus is talking

about being the vine

and the branches

and he says,

if you remain in me,

then you will bear fruit.

Or he talks about

if you remain in my love,

then you are my disciples.

Or he says,

if you keep my commandments,

then you will show

you are my disciples.

So this is a very common thing

for Jesus to put

these kind of

if statements

and put a condition

on a promise.

Well, so what is

the condition here

that Jesus is placing

on this?

What does he say

you need to do

to prove

that you are his disciple?

Well, he says,

you see it in verse 31 there,

he says,

if you hold

to my teaching.

And that word hold

there is the same word

that is used

in John 15

for abide

that you might be

familiar with

where he talks about

abiding in him

as the vine.

So that word hold

or remain

or stay

in his teaching.

So just to show

that we are his disciples,

Jesus is saying,

you must hold

to my teaching.

You must remain

in my teaching,

my word

that I have taught you.

And see,

in the Christian life,

there is this great emphasis

on truth

as we see here

that Christianity

is not just about

feelings

or emotions

or opinions,

but Jesus is concerned

with what is true

because he says

knowing the truth

in verse 32

is what sets you free.

So let me just

make a,

just apply this

very briefly,

very quickly here

that if,

if just saying

that you are a Christian

is not enough,

just,

just to make

that statement,

being a disciple

or a follower

of Jesus

is not just

an intellectual thing

that you know

certain truths

about him,

but Jesus is saying,

no,

this is about

a moral commitment

to me

that you must remain

in my teaching,

hold to my teaching.

And so,

well,

what does knowing

the truth do?

Well,

the truth

sets us free,

right?

That's what he says here.

But the next question

that we should ask

is,

well,

what does it set us free to?

I mean,

what are we free from?

What are we free to?

What is this freedom

giving us?

And that brings us

to the second point

that not only

is Jesus' freedom

conditional,

but his freedom

is also created.

And that's a bit confusing.

What I mean by that

is that it is a freedom

that is according

to our design,

according to the way

that we have been created.

Truth sets us free.

And so that means

that knowing

what is true about us,

knowing what is true

about God,

knowing what is true

about how God

has created us,

is what will set us free.

That is the truth

that will free us.

So the question

that we need to ask

is,

okay,

well,

what is true about us?

How have we been created?

How has God made us?

Well,

turn with me back

all the way

to the beginning

of the Bible,

Genesis chapter 1.

Genesis 1 · chapter mention

It's on page 3

of these Pew Bibles,

but it's a little

difficult to find,

so just find the first book,

Genesis 1.

And let's read here

just for a minute

about what is true

about our design

that would help us

to understand

what has God created us for?

What is the freedom

that God has made us to do?

So starting in verse 26

of Genesis 1,

it says,

Then God said,

Let us make mankind

in our image,

in our likeness,

so that they may rule

over the fish

and the sea

and the birds

and the sky

over the livestock

and all the wild animals,

over all the creatures

that move along the ground.

So God created mankind

in His own image.

In the image of God,

He created them.

Male and female,

He created them.

God blessed them

and said to them,

Be fruitful

and increase in number.

Fill the earth

and subdue it.

Rule over the fish

and the sea

and the birds

in the sky

and over every living creature

that moves on the ground.

Okay, there's a lot there,

but let me just point out

a couple things to you.

And the first thing is,

if you can see,

and this is a very interesting thing

to notice,

in verse 28,

when God created mankind,

man and woman,

the first thing that He does

is He blesses them, right?

In verse 28,

it says,

God blessed them.

And then He says to them,

Be fruitful

and increase in number.

Fill the earth

and subdue it.

Well, what is that?

That's a command, right?

So the first words

that God speaks to you

and to me

or to Adam and Eve

as creatures

is a command.

And yet it says

that command

is a blessing.

Do you see

what I'm saying here?

This is very interesting

because often I think

even as Christians

we can think,

well, commands from God

are almost bad things.

They come because of sin.

Because we're broken people,

God has to tell us what to do.

But that's not the way

the Bible presents it here.

This is before sin

had ever entered the world.

Adam and Eve are perfect,

living in unity

with each other,

with God.

And God blesses them

with a command.

A command from God

is a blessing.

And so the first thing

that we can see here

is that we are created

as creatures

to obey God.

That is how we are designed.

And obeying God

and loving God

and enjoying God

and following His commands

is the freedom

that we were given

when we were first created.

Those are not things

that came afterwards

as a second idea from God.

But that was His first

primary free thing

that He was giving us

is in your freedom

as my created creatures,

obey me.

This is my design for you.

And so before sin,

we joyfully lived

under God's commands.

We followed the blueprint

that He had put in us

or maybe if you're

a computer person,

you could say

the software

that God gave us

inside to run properly

was to function

according to this design,

the design that He gave us.

And what was that design?

What was the design

that God gave us

when He created us?

Well, you saw that there

in verse 26

it said of Genesis 1,

God says,

let us make mankind

in our image,

in our likeness.

So our design

is the image of God.

That is the way

that God has created us.

And sometimes I think

we can be confused

over what does

the image of God mean?

Does that mean

I look like God?

That God kind of

looks like Kevin

or Kevin looks like God?

What does it mean

to be in the image of God?

Well, it really means

that we are God's representatives,

that we are little pictures

of God in this world.

And we know that

because if you study

the cultures

around the Jews

at the time

that Genesis was made,

the kings of those cultures,

so Egypt

and those other ones

that were living,

the kings were called

the image of God.

So it wasn't just the Jews

who used this kind of language,

it was all the cultures

around them as well.

That they were,

the king was called

the image of God.

And that didn't mean

that these kings

looked like God.

They could even be

the image of a female God.

But what it meant

was that

they were representatives

of that God's rule

in the world.

That was what it meant

to be the image.

And so,

then these kings

would then set up

images of themselves

in their land.

So you think of,

in Egypt,

the Sphinx,

which is an image

of the king.

That was a way

that the king

then put an image

of himself

into the land,

again,

to show

this is my land.

I rule

in this land

through these images

that I have created.

And this is exactly

the same imagery

that God is giving us

in Genesis 1,

that he was giving

to the Jews,

that he was giving

to the people of God

when he first created them,

is you are little images

of me

in this world

created to show

God's character,

to bring his rule,

to bring his reign

into this world.

That is what it means

for us to be

the image of God.

And so,

by design,

we are created

to reflect God,

to show what he is like.

That is our software,

is to show God.

And if you think

about that for a minute,

that means that

the freedom that we have

when we were created

was a freedom

with boundaries

around it, right?

Because God

is a God

who only acts

in certain ways.

God is a God

who is holy

and only does

certain things.

And so,

if we were created

in God's image,

that means that

our freedom

that we were created in

was a freedom

with boundaries

around it.

And that may sound

strange to you

to hear about

a freedom

that has boundaries,

but I think I can

illustrate that for you.

Think about

the roads

around here.

What would happen

if you took

all the street signs down,

all the street lights away,

you know,

any painting

that was on the ground

and just made it free?

What would happen

the next day

when you were driving

trying to get to work

the next day?

It would be chaos, right?

Absolute chaos.

No one would get anywhere.

I've been in countries

like that

and it really doesn't

feel like freedom.

It feels just like a zoo

trying to get around

to where you're going.

There are boundaries

put in place

to give you freedom

to get to where

you want to go.

Or another way

that we could illustrate this,

think of a child

flying a kite.

I don't know

if children in Ireland

fly kites.

I don't know

if children in America

fly kites,

to be honest.

They probably

just play video games.

But if you know

what a kite is,

think about a child

flying a kite.

The kite is

at the end of a string,

say 200 feet up,

and that kite

is just straining

at the wind

trying to get free,

right?

Because the kite

just wants to go higher.

It wants more room.

It wants less boundaries

on it.

Well, what happens

if the child

cuts the string?

The kite feels free

for a minute,

it flutters for a second,

jumps up for a few feet,

and then suddenly

falls to the ground,

right?

It just flutters

its way back down

to the ground

because the string,

the boundary,

was what actually

gave it freedom to fly.

And that's exactly

the way that it is

with us,

brothers and sisters,

is God gave us

boundaries

to make us free.

As we function

within those boundaries,

that is the freedom

we have.

So it is a freedom

of obedience.

that God has given us.

Let me just show you

something else.

Let me show you

another offer of freedom,

though,

from Genesis 3.

If you turn over

just a couple pages,

this is on page 5

in your Bibles.

Because again,

we were created

with this freedom,

but now listen to this

next offer of freedom

that came to us.

In Genesis 3,

let's look at verse 2.

Sorry,

but we'll start at verse 1.

Now the snake

was more crafty

than any of the wild animals

the Lord God had made.

He said to the woman,

Did God really say

you must not eat

from any tree in the garden?

The woman said to the snake,

We may eat fruit

from the trees in the garden,

but God did say

you must not eat fruit

from the tree

that is in the middle

of the garden,

and he must not touch it

or you will die.

You will not certainly die,

the snake said to the woman,

for God knows

that when you eat from it,

your eyes will be opened

and you will be like God

knowing good and evil.

How's that for an offer of freedom?

Don't follow what God says.

God knows when you disobey Him,

then you'll really find freedom.

Your eyes will be opened.

You'll be like God.

You'll know good and evil.

You see what's going on here?

God created us

with freedom to obey.

And Satan came and tempted

Adam and Eve

with the first sin

with this offer

that sounded like more freedom,

but really ended up in slavery.

Slavery to sin.

And this is exactly the way

that the Bible talks about this,

is that we have given up

freedom to obey

and we have taken on

a freedom,

or sorry,

kind of a freedom

to obey God

and now we have given up

that freedom

and given up all freedom

and now are slaves of sin.

Let me show you

where the Bible

describes it in that way.

Go to page

1,223.

It's 2 Peter 2.

This is just a very graphic image

of how this works.

2 Peter 2.

It's on page 1,223.

And this is a chapter

of the Bible

that is talking about

these false teachers

that are coming

to this church

and they are telling the people,

listen,

I know that you heard

that Jesus is coming back,

but it's actually not true.

And so,

you can just live

however you want to live.

Don't worry,

there's no judgment

that's coming.

You're never going to have to answer

for what you've done.

You're just free to live

however you want to live.

They're offering freedom

to these people.

But it's not a real freedom.

And this is what we see here

in 2 Peter 2, verse 19.

2 Peter 2:19

It says,

They promise them freedom.

This is the false teachers.

They promise them freedom

while they themselves

are slaves of depravity.

For people are slaves

to whatever have mastered them.

So you see that.

Here's these false teachers

coming to the people

saying,

Don't worry about

obeying God's commands.

Just be free.

Just be free from those.

Take this freedom.

But Peter says,

No,

these people themselves

are slaves of their sin.

No one is free.

You are either

a slave,

a servant of God

obeying Him,

or you're a slave,

a servant of sin,

obeying sin.

And that is exactly

what Jesus says

back in John 8.

So let's go back there.

If you lost the place,

it's John 8, 1074,

that page.

In verse 34,

Jesus says,

Very truly I tell you,

everyone who sins

is a slave of sin.

So see,

this is exactly

the language

that Jesus is using

back in our passage

in John 8.

He's saying that

the real bondage

is not bondage

to the Egyptians

or sitting in a church service

or whatever it is.

The real bondage

that we experience

as humans

is bondage to sin.

And Jesus says here,

it's interesting to notice

that sin cannot be controlled.

It can't be something

that you think,

Yeah, you know what?

I don't actually think

that anyone is controlling me.

I don't want to live

to obey God.

I don't want to be

His servant.

But I don't think

I'm really owned by sin either.

I kind of just do

what I want to do.

That's kind of the way

that I live.

I mean,

according to Jesus,

that's not a real category.

He says,

Everyone who sins

is a slave of sin.

Right?

So you can't control your sin.

If you are a person

who does sin,

you're a slave.

You're a slave to sin.

You're either a slave to sin

or a slave to God.

And that's exactly the way

that Paul describes it.

You don't need to turn there,

but just in Romans 6,

if you read through that chapter,

that entire chapter

is showing

you are either

a slave of God

or a slave of sin.

It's one or the other,

and you need to decide

on which one.

But Jesus came,

Jesus came

to bring us back

our freedom.

And that's exactly

what we see here

in this passage.

Look again,

look at verse 35.

Now,

a slave has no permanent place

in the family,

but a son belongs

to it forever.

So if the son

sets you free,

you will be free

indeed.

So we think

that we are free

in our sin often.

We think,

I'm doing whatever

I want to do,

just living my life.

We're like those people

in 2 Peter 2

that we read about

who are promising freedom.

You know,

I don't have to worry

about judgment.

But we are slaves.

We need this freedom

that Jesus is offering us.

He says,

the son is the one

who can set you free.

Well,

brothers and sisters,

this is a radically

different vision of freedom

compared to our culture

that we have talked about.

Our culture,

like we talked about

at the beginning,

defines freedom

as doing what you want to.

But the Bible here,

we see,

defines it as doing

what you were created to do.

That is what freedom is

according to the Bible

and according to Jesus.

And that is a view

of freedom

that is very oppressive,

or the culture

views that

as very oppressive.

And so I want to

encourage you

just for a second here,

do not be discouraged

by the culture

around you in Ireland.

It's the same for us

in America

that tells you

you are oppressive,

you are hurting people

by telling them

that they need to live

in certain ways.

We are the ones,

as Jesus' representatives,

bringing his message

of wholeness,

of flourishing,

of telling people

how to live

in the way God

has created them

to live.

Well,

how do we know

what that looks like?

What does that freedom

to live as we are created

to live look like?

Well,

Jesus already showed us

in verse 31,

he says,

if you hold to my teaching,

you are my disciples,

you will know the truth,

and the truth

will set you free.

Right?

So,

it is the truth

of God's word

that shows us

what that freedom

ought to look like.

And I do want to

move on to the third point,

but I do,

just to make a quick

application here,

sometimes,

as God's people,

maybe I should say

all the time,

if my experience

is accurate,

I don't feel

that freedom

all the time.

I know that

God's word,

and Jesus tells me here

that I have been set free,

he says,

if the Son sets you free,

you are free indeed,

but sometimes

I don't feel free indeed.

I feel my sin,

I feel my weakness,

I feel that I can't

get past those things

and live the way

that God has created me

to live.

And so,

I think it's just important

to acknowledge that reality

and acknowledge that

while,

in one sense,

the Bible does say

that in places

like here in John 8

or Romans 6,

it says that you are

free definitively now,

you are no longer

a slave of sin,

you are a slave to God,

there also is

the recognition

in the Bible

that the fullness

of that reality

is not here yet.

You think about

1 John 1

that says,

if anyone says

he does not sin,

he is a liar

and the truth

is not in him.

So,

the fullness

of the true freedom

of God's children,

we wait for a final day

where we will be

with God in heaven

with no more sin,

no more sorrow,

no more weeping,

no more weakness.

We wait for that final day

and yet,

we have a preview

of that today

in that Jesus

really definitively,

truly has liberated us

from sin

to serve Jesus.

But I just want

to acknowledge that

because I know

sometimes we don't feel that

and that often

you will hear

if you read books

about the New Testament

that there is kind of

this balance

of already but not yet.

We are already free

but not yet totally free.

We are waiting

for the day

when we will be

finally free.

Well,

let me just turn

for the last couple minutes here.

I do want to go

to the third characteristic

because it is very important here.

The freedom that Jesus gives

is not only conditional,

it is not only

a created freedom

but it is a costly

freedom as well.

You see,

freedom

is never free.

Look at verse 35.

Jesus says,

now a slave

has no permanent place

in the family

but a son belongs

to it forever.

Jesus here

kind of changes

the tone

a little bit

of what he is saying

to introduce

an image for us

so that we can

understand this better

and he says

there is this imagery

of a household

that has servants

in the household

and then sons

in the household.

And a slave

or a servant

in a house

they can't free themselves.

Sometimes it is hard

for us to relate

because we don't see slaves

in our culture

but maybe you can relate

as an employee.

If you are an employee

working for a boss

you are not really free

to do whatever you want.

You are not necessarily

free to take the company

whatever direction

you want to go.

You kind of have to do

what your boss says

and there is also

not permanency.

You could be let go

at any point

by your employer.

And that is exactly

what Jesus says.

A slave has no

permanent place

in the family.

A slave could be let go

at any time.

If the master

doesn't like him

he is gone.

But what about

the boss?

Or what about

the boss's son?

The boss

who walks into

the workplace

never has to worry

about his permanency.

No one can fire

the boss

because he is there.

He is there forever.

Same with a son

that is in a house

and that is what

Jesus is saying.

A slave has no

permanent place

in the family

but a son

belongs to it

forever.

And what Jesus

is saying to us

here is that

only the son

of a family

has inheritance

has rights

has permanency

to stay in the

family forever.

And then look

what he says

in verse 36

so if the son

sets you free

you are free

indeed.

Well what is

Jesus saying there?

He is saying

that Jesus

as the son

in the family

has the authority

to liberate

the slaves.

That is the picture

that he is giving us here.

And so we are

those people

in this image

that were slaves

in the family.

We were servants

to sin.

We had no permanency

in God's family

because of our sin.

But Jesus comes

as the son

with all authority

and he is the one

who can liberate us

and set us free.

But brothers and sisters

how did Jesus

liberate us?

How was it possible

for him to free us?

Peter tells us

in 1 Peter 2

that he bore

our sins

in his body

on the cross

so that we might

die to sin

and live to righteousness.

See the only way

to free us

from our slavery

to sin

was for Jesus

to come

and to take on

the punishment

of sin

which was death.

Jesus had to take

on our punishment

so that he could

then give us

his righteousness

and free us

so that we would

then be sons

in the family

sons and daughters

in the house

just like he is.

And that's why

the Bible uses

this imagery

of adoption

so often

because we were

slaves in the family

but now Jesus

has exchanged

his life for ours

and given us

his sonship

given us

his daughtership

for those of you

who are women here

and allowed us

to come into the family

as adopted children

into the family.

So let me

end just with

two quick applications

here

with how do we

respond to this

vision of freedom

this vision of freedom

that Jesus is giving us.

Well some of you

who are sitting here

you may still be living

as a slave

to sin.

You may be someone

who says

I am not willing

to give up

my autonomy.

My freedom

is too precious.

I want to be able

to live

however I want to live.

If that is you

here today

then my friend

consider

the cost

without Christ.

Let me just

read you

a verse here

in Romans

Romans 6 · chapter mention

chapter 6.

You don't need

to turn there

I'll just read you

a quick verse.

Paul here

writing

he acknowledges

that if you

don't follow God

yeah you're free

to do whatever

you want to.

You can sin

whatever way you want to.

he says

when you were

slaves to sin

you were free

from the control

of righteousness

but listen

what benefit

did you reap

at that time

from the things

you are ashamed of?

Those things

result in death.

So yes

if you want

to live free

from the rule

and reign of God

you are free

to do that

but the end

of that

is death.

And my friend

Jesus is offering

you freedom

from that.

But remember

this freedom

is conditional

and the freedom

is costly.

Jesus paid

the price

to free you

from your sin

and all that

is required

of you

is that you

repent

and believe

and then he

will give you

the ability

to remain

in his word

to be set

free

by his truth.

Maybe others

of us here

the Lord

is using

these words

of Jesus

to we

want to be

we want to be

servants of God

we want to live

in the freedom

of obedience

and maybe

the Lord

is showing

you areas

of your life

that are coming

to mind

where you're

not living

in this freedom

of the sons

of God

you are still

living as if

you were a

slave of sin

well how do we

how do we

get by that

how do we

live in that

freedom of

obedience

and this

sounds like

a very simple

application

it sounds

too simplistic

to say

you should

read your

bible

and pray

but what

did Jesus

say in our

passage

in verse 31

he said

you will

know the

truth

and the

truth

will set

you free

right

he says

if you

remain

in my

word

then you're

my

disciples

so really

it's not

as simple

as that

but it is

as simple

as that

that as we

know more

and more

of God's

truth

God will

allow us

more and

more to

be set

free

the real

freedom

comes from

the work

that Jesus

has done

in dying

for us

but experientially

day in

day out

God conquers

more and

more of

our hearts

through

the word

of God

showing us

truth

and that

truth

setting us

free

well

let us

pray for

that together

that the

Lord would

set us

free

in this

way

Father I

thank you

just for these

brothers and

sisters for

the joy

of being

with them

this morning

for the

privilege of

looking at

your word

Lord would

you

give us

a great

vision of

the glorious

freedom of

obedience

that Jesus

has died

and rose

again to

win for

us

and would

you give

these brothers

and sisters

great strength

as they fight

for the fight

of obedience

which is the

fight to

fight in the

way that we

were created

to live

in your name

amen

thank you

very much

Kevin

thank you

all for

coming today

it's great to

have you with

us

we'll see you

next week

and if you

want to

feedback any

comments or

ask any

questions to

Kevin

please feel

free to do

that afterwards

and talk to

Jack and

Zona while

they're here

and find out

a little bit

more about

them but

good to see

you