Did you read about the incredible events surrounding a ‘follow up’ talk to a mission in which the speaker gathered those who had believed and accused them of being both illegitimate and children of the Devil? In response, this group of men turned violent and tried to kill him.
The speaker was, of course, Jesus and the ‘believers’ were religious Jews. 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’ (John 8.31-32).
We are not what we think we are
According to Christ, the measure of authentic faith and discipleship is not merely a profession of belief in Jesus, but rather ‘holding to his teaching’ as the basis of our identity and day-to-day lives. The religious ‘believers’ in John 8 were happy to believe in Jesus until his teaching both revealed and challenged where they located their identity and security. For them, the thought of being ‘made free’ by holding to Jesus’s teaching was offensive: ‘We are Abraham’s descendants and have never been slaves of anyone’, they claimed (v.33).
