February 12
JOHN 8
31 So Jesus said to the Jews who had believed him, “If you abide in my word, you are truly my disciples, 32 and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.” 33 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’?” 34 Jesus answered them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, everyone who practices sin is a slave to sin. 35 The slave does not remain in the house forever; the son remains forever. 36 So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed. 37 I know that you are offspring of Abraham; yet you seek to kill me because my word finds no place in you. 38 I speak of what I have seen with my Father, and you do what you have heard from your father.”– John 8:31-38
JOHN 8 ONLY TRUTH SETS YOU FREE
A poem by ILMA inspired by these verses
If you justify your sins and continue to practice it
You are definitely a slave to sin and you need Jesus
If you believe in Christ, you will follow his word
When you do so, you will be set free by the truth.
There are some followers who truly do not understand what being a true Christian means.
When you believe in Jesus, the Holy Spirit dwells in your heart and you will be changed. You will no longer long to follow your sinful nature which wants to cater to pleasures of the flesh. You will become aware of sins because the word of God will expose it and lead you to do what is right and true. You will no longer make a habit of sin. Even though you are still a sinner, you no longer are bent to follow it. Because the Holy Spirit leads you to give glory to God and to Jesus, you will become aware when you are being self-focused.
In this account, Jesus promises freedom to all those who will believe in him and follow his word. The Jews claimed that they are offspring of Abraham and thought they weren’t enslaved to anyone but Jesus was talking of spiritual slavery to sin which they didn’t understand. He identified the slave to sin by saying they practice it, meaning they make a habit of it. Jesus confronted them that they are unable to be free because their Father is not God but he was referring to the devil as their father.
REFLECTION
• What may hinder a Christian from being truly set free?
