Remain In His Word
The Gospel of John • Sermon • Submitted • Presented • 41:09
0 ratings
· 26 viewsWhat does it mean to "remain" in God's Word, and how does that set us free? Find out in this message from John 8:30-36.
Files
Notes
Transcript
Sermon Tone Analysis
A
D
F
J
S
Emotion
A
C
T
Language
O
C
E
A
E
Social
Go ahead and open your Bibles up to John 8 again this morning.
This is our last message in John until after the first of the year as we take a few weeks to talk about the events of Christmas.
We are at the end of another year, which is hard to believe, isn’t it?
For many folks, you might echo the person who said, “The days are long, but the years are short.”
Some days, you felt like you would never make it through 2021, and now you look back and the year is just a blur.
Does that get you thinking about 2022? I know many people have given up making New Years’ Resolutions, and others are just trying to make it to the end of the day, but can I challenge you to look up a little from the daily grind and start thinking about what you want to see happen over the next year.
Some of you may want to see something change about your physical health, your financial situation, your job, or your relationships.
Some of you may also be thinking about your spiritual health, and you are already making a commitment to read the Bible more in 2022.
Can I challenge you on that point for just a minute: Why?
Why do you read your Bible? Why do you go to Sunday School, or to a Bible study, or even here for our worship service?
Is it so you can check a box, or so you can learn more facts?
This morning, I want to challenge you to do more than just read the Bible or hear me or someone else talk about it. I want to challenge you to remain in his word.
We are going to unpack that idea as we see Jesus using this phrase with some people who had just started believing some of the things he said.
Although there is a lot of great stuff in this chapter, I want us to look at a few verses this morning. We are going to read verses 30-36 together.
When Jesus says “continue,” that is the same word that we translate as “remain” or “abide” in other places in John.
That’s why this morning, I am going to challenge you to not only read his word or listen to it preached, but rather, to remain in his word in the year to come.
Before we can talk about what Jesus means by remaining in his word, let’s talk a little about what it isn’t.
Remaining in his word is more than simply knowing what the Bible says - We have mentioned before that the Pharisees, who keep fighting with Jesus and who attempt to kill him at the end of this chapter knew the Bible better than anyone, yet they weren’t obeying God from a heart that was rightly related to him.
In fact, we know that is has to be more than that, because Jesus’s words hadn’t been recorded as Scripture when he said that, so remaining in his Word must have been more than just knowing what was in the Bible.
On the flip side, though, it cannot be less than knowing what the Bible says, because now his teachings and actions are recorded for us and further explained in the Bible we have in front of us, so we cannot remain in his word without knowing what it does say and doesn’t.
Some make this error by taking verses out of context or saying, “Well, that’s not what I think Jesus would have done.” You see this publicly as politicians and media personalities pick which verses they want to focus on and dismiss what they don’t like, but we have to acknowledge that we all do this personally as well. We have a tendency to pick and choose what we like and don’t like, or we just operate off of feelings instead of consulting what the Bible actually says.
So, remaining in his word isn’t less than knowing what the Bible says; it is actually much more.
In fact, we are going to try to work backwards from what Jesus says to get a picture of what he means by remaining in his word.
He says that if you remain in his word, you will be marked by at least three characteristics.
If, then, we can look at our lives and see these characteristics growing, then we can have confidence that we are remaining in his word.
Notice that these are not the things that save us; they are what demonstrate that we really are. He said these words to those who had already expressed belief in him at some level.
If we truly believe, then we will remain in his word, and our lives will be marked by these three characteristics.
First, to remain in his word, we have to...
1) Show that you are his disciple.
1) Show that you are his disciple.
Look back at verse 31 again...
If we are remaining in his word, then we are demonstrating that we really are his disciple.
Remember that a disciple is a learner. He or she is someone who devotes themselves to a particular teacher and learns not only the external concepts of the subject they are covering but also seeks to take on their identity as much as possible.
A true disciple’s goal is to think, talk, and act like the one they are following.
God’s goal is that you and I would be disciples of Jesus—that we would think, talk, and act like Jesus and teach others to do the same.
Speaking of God’s design for the church, the apostle Paul says it this way:
And he himself gave some to be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, some pastors and teachers, to equip the saints for the work of ministry, to build up the body of Christ, until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of God’s Son, growing into maturity with a stature measured by Christ’s fullness.
The goal God expresses for his church is for us to keep growing into maturity, so that our growth chart one day measures up to Jesus!
We are never going to achieve perfection in this life, but our goal should be to show that we are his disciples.
That means that as we learn what God says in his word, we need to change the way we live!
James, Jesus’ half brother taught us this in his letter:
But be doers of the word and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves. Because if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like someone looking at his own face in a mirror. For he looks at himself, goes away, and immediately forgets what kind of person he was. But the one who looks intently into the perfect law of freedom and perseveres in it, and is not a forgetful hearer but a doer who works—this person will be blessed in what he does.
How often do you actually apply what you read or hear?
Let’s just take our messages in John so far and see how we are doing. I have people regularly encouraging me that God is using this series to challenge them to grow as a disciple.
If we are remaining in his word, then that should show. This is our 11th message in John. What about you is different than when you walked into church on September 12th when we began this series? Let’s think back about some of the application points from some of these messages:
Are you a stronger voice who points people to Jesus like John the Baptist did?
Are you following Jesus more and the world less?
Do you know beyond a shadow of a doubt that you have been born again by believing in Jesus?
Are you drinking deeply from the living water Jesus gives, finding satisfaction in him?
Are you seeing him give you strength to move past sinful habits and painful experiences—do you want to be made well, like the paralyzed man Jesus healed?
Is your life overflowing with the fruit of the Holy Spirit? That gets to this very point, doesn’t it? Are you showing your heart is filled with him?
Are you less willing to condemn without concern, and more aware of your own sinfulness like we saw last week?
If not, then can you and I really say we are remaining in his word? Are we just looking at his word and then walking away unchanged?
If I am a disciple of Jesus, then I should think, talk, and act like him more and more.
His claim on my life should show—so are you remaining in his word?
Maybe you aren’t showing that you are his disciple because you aren’t living out the second part...
Jesus says that if we remain in his word, we will...
2) Hold on to what is real.
2) Hold on to what is real.
Look at the first words in verse 32… “You will know the truth.”
This is a bold statement in our world today, isn’t it?
As a whole, we have thrown away the concept that there is such a thing as absolute truth.
You may hear someone say things like, “Well, I am just living out my truth. That’s fine for you to believe, but that isn’t my truth.”
You may even think things like, “Well, I am a Christian, and I follow Jesus, but I wouldn’t want to push that on anyone. I want to let them just figure out what they think is best, and it isn’t my place to say anything.”
Listen, guys—that doesn’t work.
Take this out of the realm of morality for a second, and let’s just think of a ridiculous example.
How would you respond if I told you this morning that I am actually a multi-billionaire, and that after this service is over, I am going to hop in my private jet that is parked at VT airport and fly to my private island in Fiji where I will live out the rest of my days on the beach or sailing around the South Pacific on my $26 million yacht?
You would say I was either a liar or was having a major struggle with mental health and I need some help, right?
Why? Because those things simply are not true. My bank account doesn’t have that many digits, I don’t own a private plane, island, or a yacht!
If I told you that, I would either be delusional or a liar—I couldn’t just assert that this is “my truth,” and go to the airport and take a plane!
We understand that truth must exist in situations like this, so why do we assume that it doesn’t when it comes to matters of faith and morality?
We may have things wrong, but we can’t all just live out “our truth,” because there is no such thing.
So, then, if we remain in Jesus’s word, we will know the truth, right?
This means that you and I will see the world as it actually is.
Now, I am not talking about buying into whatever conspiracy theory is hot on your Facebook feed today.
What I am talking about is coming to understand that this world was created and is sustained by a loving and just God who revealed himself to us. We have rejected him, breaking our relationship to God, to each other, and even to our own minds. In fact, our decision to reject God is what broke the world as well, which is the ultimate cause of disease, deadly weather, and everything else that is wrong.
The truth is that the only way for that to be mended was for Jesus, as God in the flesh, to be born without sin, live a life honoring to God the Father, and die in my place and yours.
Now, he sits in heaven, ruling and reigning over all creation, and will one day return to earth to eradicate every trace of sin and reunite us with him forever.
That is what the Bible teaches us is going on.
Remaining in his word means that we hold onto that.
That means things like recognizing that God is the one who is gave me every physical thing I have, so I need to live generously with my money, my time, and everything else I have
The truth that Jesus is in charge of the universe means that I need to change the way I behave, to look more like him and reflect that he is my King. I need to work, not to validate myself or make me important, but to do my job and study well so that Jesus is reflected in everything I do.
The fact that he is coming back one day should challenge me to make sure that not only am I ready to meet him, but that every family member, friend, co-worker, roommate, and cashier at Wal-mart is ready to know him as well.
It means that when the world feels out of control, I can hold on to the truth that he is actually in charge and working, even when I can’t see exactly how.
If I am going to remain in his word, then I have to hold on to the truth of what is real—who God is, who I am, what is wrong with the world, and how he is going to make it right.
We will know the truth about, and we have to hold on to it as we live out our lives.
Are you remaining in his word in the way you look at what is really going on around you?
Are you holding on to what is real?
If so, then you will also find this last characteristic to be true...
3) Walk in freedom.
3) Walk in freedom.
We have already said that remaining in God’s word means I will show that I am his disciple through my actions.
How does that work?
Because as we remain in his word, and we come to know the truth, the truth sets us free to live like God designed us to live.
Let’s be clear about what this means, though, because this passage gets used out of context often.
You will hear schools and universities use these phrases as if somehow just knowing what is true sets you free to live on some higher plane of reality.
You will hear it used facetiously in movies when a character finally figures something out that the others knew all along.
What did Jesus have in mind when he said this?
The crowd that heard him that day got offended—was he implying that they were enslaved persons?
Look at verse 33...
This is somewhat comical, because they seem to ignore completely that they were enslaved in Egypt for 400 years. Even as they were saying this, they weren’t exactly enslaved to Rome but their country was ruled by the Roman empire and they didn’t enjoy complete freedom.
Their reaction is ruled by irony and pride.
Before we are too harsh on them, we have to acknowledge that might be tempted to respond in a similar way.
“I am an American—this is the land of the free and home of the brave.” Our founding documents established freedoms that are designed to secure life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.
Maybe for you, you aren’t thinking politically—you are thinking about your bank account. You may be debt free, or at least have enough to live off of and so you feel like you have financial freedom. There isn’t really anything tying you down or holding you back.
Maybe you are empty-nesters, so you have the freedom to do whatever you want when you want and you don’t have to worry about the kids’ schedules anymore.
Perhaps you are a college student, and you don’t yet have a career or a lot of bills to pay or a spouse or kids to tie you down—you are free to come and go as you please.
Any of us could find ourselves feeling strong and independent, the masters of our own fate, right?
If that’s the case, then what do I need to be freed from?
Look at what Jesus says in verse 34-36.
All of us, apart from Christ, are enslaved to sin.
However, when we come to know Christ, to know the truth, he frees us from slavery to sin!
I would encourage you to dig into Romans 6:15-23 this week to get a great picture of what Christ does.
Through his death and resurrection, Jesus has broken the power of sin, and now anyone who believes in him and surrenders to him is no longer enslaved to sin.
The freedom Christ gives us is both a one-time experience and an on-going reality.
There is a moment when God draws us to himself and we place saving faith in Jesus. When we do, he frees us from our slavery to sin, makes us alive, and fills us with his Spirit so we can now do everything he created us to do.
That passage I mentioned in Romans 6 tells us that we are no longer enslaved to sin, but now we are enslaved to God.
Back up a second—that doesn’t sound like freedom, does it?
“I am just trading one master for another. How can you say that I have been set free?”
Because serving and honoring the God who created us is what we were made to do.
When Christ sets you free, you are finally free to be who you were designed to be!
You can give up trying to control the world, because you are now serving the God who is actually in charge.
You can stop trying to make your life mean something, because you now understand that the most mundane tasks in life are a part of what God calls you to do. Your life has purpose and meaning that he sets, not that you have to come up with on your own.
You are free to be who you were made to be—a servant of the God who loved you enough to send his own Son to die in your place to purchase your freedom.
The freedom the world offers can never truly make you free, because you cannot escape the slavery from sin.
However, if you remain in his word, if you have believed in him, which comes out in the way you live and shows that you are his disciple—if you remain in his word, holding fast to what is true and living life with God’s perspective—then the truth has and will set you free from slavery to sin and your own sinful desires and set you free to serve and honor God in the way you were meant to.
Remain in his word.
If you have never started, today would be a great time to start your walk with him.
If you thought you had but realized you haven’t, why not really get started today?
If you have, take time to evaluate where your life isn’t measuring up to what Christ has called us to do.