Believe!
27 January 2013 PM – John 8:21-59 – Scott Childs
Introduction: A little boy came home from Sunday School and his mother asked him what he had learned that morning. “Well Mother, we learned that Moses went behind the enemy lines and freed the Israelites. Then he took the army engineers and built a pontoon bridge across the Red Sea. Then when the Egyptians tank division started to cross over the bridge he called in the dive bombers and blew them to bits.”
His mother was outraged and said, “IS THAT WHAT YOUR SUNDAY SCHOOL TEACHER IS TEACHING YOU?” The little boy looked down for a moment and finally said, “Well – no Mom, but if I told you what she taught us this morning there’s no way you would believe it!”
Many people are like that little boy. They think the Bible is too incredible to believe. However, if they would read the Bible and let the Holy Spirit work in their hearts, they could believe.
Romans 10:17 So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.
Transition: This evening we are going to examine three aspects of the word “believe” that Jesus stressed for his listeners and for us.
I. Believe or Die in Your Sins John 8:21-30
A. Unbelievers cannot go where Jesus is
1. Jesus said that where he was going his critics could not go (v.21).
a) He was heading back to heaven’s glories.
b) He knew his critics did not believe sincerely on him.
2. Jesus said they were from beneath and from this world (v.23).
a) They were part of sinful humanity. They were children of Adam, corrupted by sin.
b) Jesus came from the sinless presence of almighty God. He left the glories of heaven to take the form of one of his puny creation.
B. Believing is the only cure for sin
1. Men must believe that Jesus is the I am.
a) All who did not believe this would die in their sins (v.24). In Luke 16:16, Jesus said, “he that believeth not shall be damned”.
b) The phrase “I am” is not used only of God, so we cannot be positive that he referred to his deity.
2. At this point, his critics did not interpret the phrase to mean deity. They asked Jesus, “Who are you?” (v.25).
3. Jesus replied that he already told them. He had not yet clearly told the Jews that he was the Messiah. He had already told them that he:
a) Gives life (Jn 5:21)
b) Came in his Father’s name (Jn 5:43)
c) Is the Bread of life (Jn 6:35)
d) Is the Light of the world (Jn 8:12)
e) If from above, not of this world (Jn 8:23)
4. His critics still did not understand that he came from the Father (v.27).
5. Jesus said that when they lifted up the Son of man, this would reveal who he was (v.28).
a) Several times John uses this phrase to describe the cross.
John 3:14 And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of man be lifted up:
John 12:32 And I, if I be lifted up from the earth, will draw all men unto me.;
John 12:34 The people answered him, We have heard out of the law that Christ abideth for ever: and how sayest thou, The Son of man must be lifted up? who is this Son of man?
b) His death followed by his resurrection proves his deity.
6. Believing that Jesus is the Christ is the only cure for our sin. Many believed (v. 30), but not all belief is genuine and from the heart.
II. Believe Genuinely John 8:31-47
A. Genuine believers are eternally secure.
1. Jesus is not adding works to believe. He is simply clarifying genuine belief.
2. He is now addressing those who professed belief, yet he calls them children of the devil (v.44). You may profess to believe, but your belief must be genuine.
In one of his sermons, Monroe Parker illustrated belief like this. Let’s say I fell off a high ledge and caught a long vine on the way down, I helplessly dangled over the jagged rocks far below. An angel came to me and said, “Do you believe that I could save you?” I looked at his powerful wings and strong arms and said, “Yes”. Then the angel said, “If you really believe I will save you, then let go of the vine and I will catch you before you hit the rocks at the bottom.” To believe in the Lord Jesus, we must let go of all our human efforts and self-righteousness, and trust him completely.
3. Genuine believers will continue in what Jesus says. Sin is our problem, but genuine believers will know the truth about Christ and that truth will set them free.
John 10:28 And I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand.
B. Many believers are not genuine.
1. The Jews were children of Abraham and they thought that this physical relationship would get them into heaven.
Sadly, many religious people think that a godly family, infant baptism, confirmation, good deeds, striving to keep the commandments, will get them into heaven. They are mistaken. Study John 1:12-13.
2. The Jews claimed that God was their Father, but Jesus told them the truth (v.42-44).
3. They heard the truth, yet they refused to believe it. To be a genuine believer, one must hear and obey God’s words (v.47), especially those about Jesus.
III. Believe that Christ is God John 8:48-59
A. They called Jesus a demon possessed Samaritan.
1. To call him a Samaritan was very derogatory. They hated the half-breed Samaritans.
2. To say Jesus was demon possessed credited his mighty works to the devil.
3. Notice that Jesus was not concerned about what men thought of him. He cared only what the Father thought of him (v.49-50). We need that same attitude.
4. In verse 51, we find another “verily verily” passage. All who keep Jesus’ sayings will never see death. Other scriptures explain that he was speaking of eternal death not physical death (i.e., Jn 5:24).
5. This riled up the Jews even more (v.52-53).
B. Jesus defended his deity
1. Jesus said that he did not honour himself but his Father honoured him; the same Father they claimed to be their God.
2. Jesus’ words get increasingly harsh and blunt as they continue to disbelieve and dishonour him (v.55-56).
3. Jesus makes another “verily verily” statement.
a) He plainly declares that he existed before Abraham.
b) He did not say “I was” but “I am”. By this, he was claiming to be the eternal, self-existing God.
Exodus 3:14 And God said unto Moses, I AM THAT I AM: and he said, Thus shalt thou say unto the children of Israel, I AM hath sent me unto you.
4. The Jews considered his words to be blasphemy and they picked up stones to kill him, but Jesus hid himself. This too was a mighty miracle (v. 59)
Conclusion: Believing is not an option if you hope to go to heaven. Unless you believe on Christ, you will die in your sins. Your belief must be genuine. It must be trusting in Christ alone. Did you let go of the “vine” of self-righteousness when you believed? Test yourself! Are you hearing and obeying Christ’s words? Do you enjoy reading the Bible? Do you enjoy spending time with God in prayer? Do you prefer to be around godly Christians than around worldly friends? Believe that Jesus is God.
Christians, let’s ask God to help us be more concerned about what He knows about us than about what people think or say about us.
Song: I Have Decided – 397