Scripture Reading: John 8:31–36
But just beginning in chapter 8 at verse 31, then Jesus said to those Jews who believed him, If you abide in my word, you are my disciples indeed, and you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free. They answered him, We are Abraham's descendants and have never been in bondage to anyone. How can you say you will be made free? Jesus answered them, most assuredly I say to you, whoever commits sin is a slave of sin.
And a slave does not abide in the house forever, but a son abides forever. Therefore, if the son makes you free, you shall be free indeed. Amen. Well, let us pray.
Opening Prayer
Father, thank you for the word of God and thank you for these gospel records that present to us the Lord Jesus Christ. Help us to receive the teaching of this passage this idea concerning spiritual slavery and spiritual freedom. And we rejoice, Lord God, that though we were slaves, you have freed us, you have brought us out, you have given us life eternal. Certainly we confess with this passage that the Son indeed has made us free.
And in this we greatly rejoice and pray that others would know this blessing as well. Father, for any that are here tonight that are in spiritual bondage, those who are slaves, those who are estranged from you, we pray that your Holy Spirit would work in their hearts. God, one of the unfortunate things is that these sorts of slaves do not see it. They do not understand.
They don't get it with reference to their place before a holy God. We pray that they would get it tonight by the power of your Holy Spirit through your Word. and we pray these things through Jesus Christ our Lord, Amen.
Introduction
Well this morning in our confession of faith we studied the doctrine of free will and one of the things that we noticed is that man in sin is in bondage. Man in sin is a slave and that is essentially what Jesus teaches to these particular people in John chapter 8. And I want to just look at two broad categories. First, the reality of spiritual slavery.
This is in verses 33 to 35. And then secondly, the blessing of spiritual liberty. This is in verses 31 and 32 and then again in verse 36. And as I said, we'll seek to illustrate from other portions of Scripture because this is a most important subject, a most important topic.
The Reality of Spiritual Slavery
Notice first in terms of the reality of spiritual slavery. Notice Jesus says in verse 32, and you shall know the truth and the truth shall make you free. And then they say we are Abraham's descendants and have never been in bondage to anyone. How can you say you will be made free?
Jesus answered them, Most assuredly, I say to you, whoever commits sin is a slave of sin." So they are Abraham's descendants. That means these are people from the Jewish nation. These are people that confess the saving God. They confess the truth of Holy Scripture.
But Jesus is illustrating or highlighting or pointing out the reality that their conduct toward Him Ultimately, they want to kill Him. All of that definitely evidences that they are not right with God. I think we'd all agree with that particular statement. And so what Jesus is doing is He's causing them to reflect upon this and to see that, in fact, they are slaves, and that, in fact, they need to be free.
They need liberty that only the gospel of Jesus Christ can bring. But notice in verse 33,
Thinking in Carnal Categories
they are speaking, or they are thinking, rather, in terms of physicality. They are thinking in terms of temporal. They are thinking in terms of carnal things. Notice, we are Abraham's descendants and have never been in bondage to anyone.
Well, even here they're wrong. Have they forgotten the introduction to the Ten Commandments? The Decalogue wherein God the Lord says, I am the Lord your God, who has brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage. So as a body politic, as a people group, as a physical ethnic body, they have been in physical bondage.
So they're wrong even on this particular point. But that's not what Jesus is pressing them on. Jesus is pressing them on the reality of spiritual slavery, spiritual bondage, spiritual darkness. That is the emphasis in this particular passage.
And we know from the rest of the Bible that this is not unique simply to the Jewish nation. in the first century A.D.
Universal Bondage in Romans
Paul in the epistle to the Romans teaches this very clearly in chapter 1 verse 18 he says the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men who suppress or hold down the truth in unrighteousness. And then he details or he gives a vivid description of the Gentiles, those men that were apart from the oracles of God. They are sinful, they are in bondage, they are spiritual slaves. They are engaged in darkness and evil and every manifestation of it.
He then turns his attention to the Jews, and he says that they are in the same spiritual condition. Sin is no respecter of persons, and ultimately all men everywhere are under sin. In fact, you can turn to Romans 3, verses 9 to 20, wherein he summarizes the entirety of his argument up to this point. And this is foundational for Paul in his presentation of the gospel in Romans.
Remember 1.16 is his thesis statement. I'm not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God unto salvation for everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek. He says, for in it, for in the gospel, the righteousness of God is revealed. from faith to faith, that just as it is written, the just shall live by faith. He then starts with sin.
He then speaks concerning the darkness of man's heart. Before he introduces the good news of Christ Jesus our Lord, he first sets up the context of the bad news concerning our sin in Adam. You see, this is wise. Paul doesn't say to people, God loves you and has a wonderful plan for your life.
Rather, Paul says, God's wrath is revealed from heaven against you. Paul shows men their sin. Paul calls men to consider these realities. Paul knows the reality that if men don't see this, they'll never see the need for the Savior.
So notice what he does in 3.9. He says, what then? Are we better than they? Not at all.
For we have previously charged both Jews and Greeks that they are all under sin. As it is written, there is none righteous, no not one. There is none who understands. There is none who seeks after God.
They have all turned aside. They have together become unprofitable. There is none who does good, no not one. Their throat is an open tomb, with their tongues they have practiced deceit.
The poison of asps is under their lips, whose mouth is full of cursing and bitterness. Their feet are swift to shed blood. Destruction and misery are in their ways, and the way of peace they have not known. There is no fear of God before their eyes.
Now we know that whatever the law says, it says to those who are under the law, that every mouth may be stopped and all the world may become guilty before God. Therefore, by the deeds of the law, no flesh will be justified in his sight, for by the law is the knowledge of sin. Now in the remainder of the book of Romans, Paul indicates again this idea of spiritual slavery, this bondage to what is dark and wrong. That's the language of B.B.
Warfield. But back to our text in John 8, Jesus tells them, if you abide in my word, you are my disciples indeed. You shall know the truth and the truth shall make you free. This causes them to say, we have never been in bondage, how can you say you will be made free?
Jesus then declares, I say to you, whoever commits sin is a slave of sin. Now that's where we have all found ourselves. By the grace of God tonight, we will eat this bread and we will drink this cup. Not as a reward for our well-doing, but as a remembrance of the One who died and rose again on our behalf.
But if you are here tonight and you are not a Christian, if you are here tonight and you have not believed the Gospel, if you are here tonight, you need to understand what Jesus says. Jesus says that you are a slave to sin. You are a slave to sin.
The Nature of Sin's Mastery
Carson says, for Jesus then, the ultimate bondage is not enslavement to a political or economic system. I think communism is wretched. I think communism is horrible. I think communism is abominable.
But being subject to sin, being in bondage to that which is dark and wrong, being under that power has to be worse. Carson goes on to say, but vicious slavery to moral failure, to rebellion against the God who has made us, the despotic master is not Caesar, but shameful self-centeredness and evil and enslaving devotion to created things at the expense of the worship of the Creator. Paul deals with that in Romans chapter 1 very specifically. Again, he's outlining the wickedness of the Gentiles, those men apart from the law of God.
Notice in chapter 1, verse 22, "...professing to be wise, they became fools, and changed the glory of the incorruptible God into an image made like corruptible man and birds and four-footed animals and creeping things." Now, you may say, well, I don't do that. I mean, come on, I'm not like the heathen out in the bush with his loincloth and his totem pole. I'm not like that man out there that is praying to a rock. I'm not like the persons that are herein described.
Those who make these images like corruptible man or birds or four-footed animals and creeping things. Okay, so your idols may look a little bit different, your idols may be a little more culturally relevant, your idols may be a little more culturally acceptable, but they are idols nonetheless. Slavery to sin, bondage to what is dark and wrong, results in this madness, and in this wickedness, and in this depravity, and in this rejection and rebellion against the living and true God. royal comments concerning spiritual slavery. He says, there is no slavery like this.
Sin is the hardest of all taskmasters. Do you ever look at a man who's whacked out on drugs and think, wow, he's free? Do you hear of a man or a woman who's been sexually promiscuous and they have AIDS and you say, wow, wouldn't it be wonderful to be liberated like that? Absolutely not!
You see the effects when you worship these created things, when you worship these idols, at some time you have to pay the ferryman, at some time you have to pay the wages, at some time you have to render due to this taskmaster. There is no slavery like this. Sin is the hardest of all taskmasters. Misery and disappointment in the way.
Despair and hell in the end. These are the only wages that sin pays to its servants. I wish that everybody in the world would listen to that. I wish that you kids and you young people would listen to that.
It's not fun, it's not liberty, it's not free to go out and rebel against the living and true God. It's not liberty, it's not free, it's not fun to go do those things which are contrary to what your parents have taught you from as soon as you were able to pay attention, and even before that. I mean, you were in the womb and you heard the Scriptures read, right? You don't remember it, but you were nevertheless.
My wife at one time suspected that one of our sons responded to the voice of Earl Blackburn when he was in the womb. I don't know if that's the case, but she seemed to suggest that he got very active when he heard Brother Earl preaching. Maybe he liked that North Carolina drawl. You see, listen to what Ryle says, and pay attention to this.
I realize we're here as believers tonight to remember the Lord in a special way. Let's just assume there's no unbelievers. It's still good to be reminded. It's still good for us to consider the rock from whence we've been hewn, to consider where we came from, so that when we come to the supper, we come with glad hearts, we come with joy, we come with amazing grace on our lips.
Listen, he says, misery and disappointment in the way. What does Solomon say in the book of Proverbs? The way of the transgressor is happy, it's joyful, it's liberating, it's free. The way of the transgressor is hard.
You know this to be the case. You don't prosper when you are in bondage. So it's misery and disappointment in the way, despair and hell in the end. These are the only wages that sin pays to its servants.
Ryle goes on to say, to deliver men from this bondage is the grand object of the gospel. To awaken people to a sense of their degradation, to show them their chains, to make them arise and struggle to be free. This is the great end for which Christ sent forth his ministers. Happy is he who has opened his eyes and found out his danger.
To know that we are being led captive is the very first step. toward deliverance.
The Wages Sin Pays
You need to reckon with this reality. If you are not in the Son, if you have not believed the Gospel, if you are not fit and able to take the supper tonight because you're profane and ungodly, this is your condition. This is your position. This is where you are at currently, right here, right now.
To use the language of John 3.36, he that believeth the Son has everlasting life. He that does not believe the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God abides on him. So right here, right now, There could be the wrath of God abiding on those outside of the Lord Jesus Christ. Think about this the next time you run in rebellion against God.
Misery and disappointment in the way, despair and hell in the end. This is what Christ presses upon these men in John chapter 8. Jesus rather tells them very clearly Most assuredly, I say to you, whoever commits sin is a slave of sin. And realize, you're not a slave because you sin.
You sin because you're a slave. You are in Adam. And in Adam, all die. In Adam, we're all bound.
In Adam, we are all slaves. And we act consistently with the wretchedness of our own hearts.
The Blessing of Spiritual Liberty
Now notice secondly the blessing of spiritual liberty. Notice what Jesus says in 31 and 2 and 36.
Abiding in the Word as Discipleship
Notice first the manifestation of discipleship. 31, then Jesus said to those Jews who believed him, if you abide in my word you are my disciples indeed. You see, I just have this conviction, and I think it comes straight from the Scripture, that somebody who professes the saving faith in Christ, somebody that is a believer, loves Scripture. They love the Bible. They want to abide in the Word.
They want to know the Scripture. They want to hear it preached. They want to hear it taught. They want to read it for themselves.
They want to read it to their children. They want to traffic or truck with Scripture. They want the Word of God. They know the value and the import of the Word of God.
Jesus says, if you abide in My Word, you are My disciples indeed. Again, this is not a condition. Jesus is not saying to these people, if you do this, then you will be accepted. He is vetting.
He is ferreting out. He is showing that these ones who John tells us in verse 31, who believed Him, really didn't believe Him, because if they believed Him, they would have abided in His Word. If they abided in His Word, they certainly wouldn't want to kill Him. If they abided in His Word, in John 8, 58, when He says, before Abraham was, I am, they certainly wouldn't pick up stones to throw at Him to try and destroy Him.
You see, Jesus knew all men, John chapter 2. Jesus knew who the fakes were, and Jesus is showing them to be the fakes that they are in fact. And notice the close connection between the person of Christ and the truth of Christ. Notice, verse 32, you shall know the truth and the truth shall make you free.
Verse 36, therefore, if the Son makes you free, you shall be free indeed. It's almost like they're just used interchangeably. The word in Christ. The idea is, if you value the Word, you'll certainly value Christ.
And if you value Christ, guess what, brethren? You will value the Word. You know, sometimes people wonder, am I really a Christian? What do you think of the Scripture?
What do you think of the Bible? We saw this morning that humility is certainly a trait of a kingdom citizen, but a love for Scripture is certainly a trait of a kingdom citizen. A disciple of Christ wants to abide in the Word of Christ. He doesn't want to redefine it.
He doesn't want to try to explain it away. He doesn't want to pare off the rough edges. The Bible says that man shall not lie with man. The believer accepts that.
It doesn't matter what the culture thinks. It doesn't matter what weak churches say. It matters what God says, you see. That is a telltale sign that one is in a good place, if you abide in my word.
This is what our Lord Christ says. Remember in Mark when he says, whoever is ashamed of me, and my words." There is this close conjunction between the two. You do not have Christ if you despise his word. That is simply the case, brethren.
This is what he is saying. This is what he is indicating. This is what he's pressing upon these people. You say that you believe, but you don't abide in my word.
You say that you are mine, but you don't Do what I say. Luke 6, 46. Why do you call me Lord, Lord, and you don't do what I say? You see, brethren, this is epidemic today.
We have a whole host of people that profess the name of Jesus or confess the true religion. If that's the case, why is there such a large degree of biblical illiteracy? Especially when we have five Bibles in our homes. Especially when we have sermonaudio.com, when we've got Banner of Truth, and we've got Presbyterian and Reformed, and we've got RHB, we've got books, we've got an abundance of resources.
You see, sometimes the people of God may be lazy, I grant that. Sometimes the people of God may be negligent, I grant that. I'm not excusing it, I want to encourage you, please pick up your Bible and read. But sometimes the people of God may be faking it.
They may just be faking it. If you're a Christian here tonight, and you are under conviction, this is a problem with a simple fix. We talked about this on Wednesday night. You know there's problems in your life that don't always have a simple fix, right?
There are certain problems in your life that require a bit of skill and wisdom on how to navigate. You know how you deal with, well brother I haven't been reading my Bible as I ought. Read your Bible. It is that simple, right?
Oh, I'm struggling. I haven't read my Bible for however long. Pick it up. Open those ocular cavities and look at the page and read it, okay?
It's a problem with an easy fix. You see, if this is a pattern, if this is symptomatic, if this is something you profess, but you never, ever spend time with Christ, according to Jesus in this passage, if you abide in my word, you are my disciples indeed. A.W. Pink says this, continuance in his word is not a condition of of discipleship.
Please hear me. I agree with that a hundred percent. I'm not suggesting that if you read Romans today you're gonna automatically be saved. I am saying that when you are saved you're gonna want to read Romans at some point.
Okay? It's not a condition of discipleship, but rather a manifestation of it. How do we know that their profession of faith is right? Because they abide in the Word.
How do we know their profession of faith is right or is true? Because as a father, he abides in the word of the Lord, and he seeks to rear his children in the training and admonition of the Lord. As a husband, he seeks to love his wife and do so in a self-sacrificial way, giving himself for her the way Paul enjoins. How do we know a woman's testimony or her profession of faith is the real deal?
Because she abides in the word. She submits to and honors her husband. How do we know children are actually legit when they make the profession of faith? They abide in the Word.
They're not perfect little robots in your home that bring you coffee and slippers and polish your shoes, but there is an abiding in the Word that will manifest itself in a degree of honor and obedience to their parents. You see, you can't avoid this reality. Continuance in His Word is not a condition of discipleship, but rather a manifestation of it. It is not how a man begins, but how he continues and ends.
Gil says, if ye continue in my word, meaning the gospel, called his because he was both the author and preacher and sum and substance of it. It's a beautiful statement. If you continue in my word. Gil says, meaning the gospel, called his, my word, because he was both the author and preacher and the sum and substance of it.
And to continue in it. is having cordially received it, to abide by it, and hold it fast, and not to be moved from it by the temptations of Satan, the cunning of those that lie in wait to deceive, nor by the revilings and persecutions, the frowns and flatteries of men. And when men continue thus steadfast in it, and faithful to it, it is an evidence that it has come with power, and has a place in their hearts, and that they are the true followers of Christ. You see, what Jesus is doing is exploiting these men, not in a sinful way, but in an honest way. They profess to be believers, and He indicates to them, most assuredly, whoever commits sin is a slave of sin.
The reason that Jesus knows that they're false, the reason that Jesus knows that their profession is not legit, is because they do not abide in His Word. But on the heels of that, and in this context, it's as if there is an emotional, not an emotional, but an evangelistic appeal. It's almost as if He is saying, look, believe my words. Listen to the truth.
Come to me really, believe the gospel for real." That's what is behind this.
Freedom Through Truth and the Son
Now notice the freedom of discipleship. Verse 32, you shall know the truth, the truth shall make you free. And then again, verse 36, therefore if the Son makes you free, you shall be free indeed. I remember hearing one time Dr.
Greg Bonson, it was a lecture or a sermon or a message of some sort, And he indicated, because he went through USC, that's where he did his graduate work, at the University of Southern California, and apparently they've got a strong philosophy program there, and they've got quite the big philosophy building, and there's one part of the building where that text is there. You shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free." I mean you hear that in the world as well. I actually googled that, I tried to find it, couldn't find it. Someday when I go to LA I'll walk over there so I can see it for myself, and I won't have to say, I heard Dr.
Bonson say this. I can say, guess what? I saw this. But he made this very important observation.
You shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free. Disconnected from verse 31. There is no truth apart from the word of Christ. It's not just some nebulous philosophical truth out there that Jesus is pressing.
Jesus is pressing the truth of Holy Scripture. He is pressing the Old Testament. He is pressing the Gospel. He is pressing, at least in a proleptic sense, the apostolic writings.
He is saying that it's the Word of God Most High that is the truth that makes you free. And then in verse 36, therefore, if the Son makes you free, you shall be free indeed. And if we were to tease that out for a moment, and this is where I hope it will prepare us for this time to take the supper, a fresh look at what we've been freed from in order that we may respond with great joy and thanksgiving to this time as we eat and drink.
Five Dimensions of Spiritual Liberty
We are, first of all, delivered from the penalty of sin. Isn't that beautiful? What's Romans 8.1 say? Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.
Isn't that beautiful? There's no condemnation. I said earlier, with reference to John 3.36, if you're an unbeliever, the wrath of God abides on you. Because the Son has set us free, guess what's not over us anymore?
There is no condemnation now for those who are in Christ Jesus. We have been freed. We have been blessed. We have been begraced by our gracious God.
Secondly, we have deliverance from the curse of the law. The law is a taskmaster that demands payment, and we certainly are not law keepers. Jesus is our law keeper. Jesus paid the debt.
Jesus fulfilled the law, such that the Apostle can say, Christ has redeemed us from the curse of the law, having become a curse for us. For it is written, is everyone who hangs on a tree. Our beloved Savior bore the curse, bore the wrath for us so that we might be free. Thirdly, it is deliverance from the wrath of God.
Notice in chapter 3 of the book of Romans. We are delivered, we are free from the wrath of God. Romans chapter 3, verse 21. You'll notice how Paul structures these beginning chapters of Romans.
Romans 1.18, "...for the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of man." He then details that sin, the universality of sin, from chapter 1.18 or 1.19 all the way to 3.20. And then in verse 21, look at what he does, "...but now." But now, Romans 1.18, wrath revealed, but now righteousness revealed. The righteousness of God apart from the law is revealed, being witnessed by the law and the prophets, even the righteousness of God, through faith in Jesus Christ to all and on all who believe. For there is no difference for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, being justified freely by His grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, whom God set forth as a propitiation by His blood." Propitiation presupposes the wrath of God.
The word propitiation that is used here has to do with God's wrath. Christ was set forth as a propitiation. When Christ was set forth as a propitiation, it means that the Father crushed Him. The Father poured out His wrath upon Him.
The Father heaped up judgment upon Him that we deserved, that was due to us, but because of the work of the Lord Jesus Christ, we are free. We are free. Jesus said on the cross, why hast thou forsaken me? And because he said that, those who are in Christ Jesus will never, ever, ever have to say that.
Isn't that beautiful? Jesus said, why hast thou forsaken me? We are never in a position where we will say that. We have the promise of God in the scripture, I will never leave you nor forsake you.
And on that day of judgment when we deserve hell and we deserve wrath and we deserve curse, we have our blessed substitute who stood in our place and as a result it will not be that we are forsaken by our God. Fourthly, it is deliverance or freedom from the power of Satan. Later on in John's Gospel, in John chapter 8, Jesus says to them, you are of your father the devil. Notice the interchange there.
Jesus would be thrown out of most churches today. You shouldn't say that, Jesus. You'll make them feel bad. Don't you know you'll hurt their delicate psyche?
They'll go home and cry. They'll feel bad. They'll have to punch pillows because you've upset them. We are Abraham's descendants.
Now your father is the devil. And the desires of your father you want to do. You see, that is the reality was asked this morning. Does the devil make us sin?
No, I do not believe the devil makes us sin. That's Flip Wilson theology. I reject that. But the devil tempts, the devil seeks, The devil presents, but he doesn't actually get into our heart and make us sin.
We got enough of that in our hearts already. He just coaxes out what's already there. He just says, come on out. I know you're in there.
I'll present these temptations so that you will succumb. So when we realize that we are in bondage to that which is dark and wrong, our hearts have a natural downward bent, certainly the devil over us, or the devil as our father, setting a pattern of murder and lies, certainly we will willingly follow him. But one of the things that happens in the gospel is that we are freed from the devil. Notice in Acts 26.
Acts chapter 26 verse 18, Paul's testimony before Agrippa. He indicates what Jesus reported to him concerning his mission proclaiming the gospel. In chapter 26, we'll pick up reading at verse 15. So I said, Who are you, Lord?
And He said, I am Jesus whom you are persecuting. But rise and stand on your feet, for I have appeared to you for this purpose, to make you a minister and a witness both of the things which you have seen and of the things which I will yet reveal to you. I will deliver you from the Jewish people as well as from the Gentiles, to whom I now send you. Notice the purpose. 2, verse 18, open their eyes. in order to turn them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan to God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins and an inheritance among those who are sanctified by faith in me." We thought about that and we referred to that passage this morning, Colossians 1.13.
He has transferred us from the kingdom of darkness into the kingdom of the Son of Islam. You see, this is the paradoxical thing. The man in sin, the man in bondage, the man in slavery thinks himself free. He thinks he's got liberty.
He thinks he can do whatever he wants. Nobody's going to pin him down. Nobody's going to stand in his way. Nobody's going to keep him from the fun that he deserves.
The man's a slave. The man is in bondage. The man is in a degraded state. The man is in misery and in darkness.
It is that transfer from the kingdom of darkness into the kingdom of the Son of His love that brings freedom, that brings liberty, that brings joy, that brings peace, that brings security. And then finally it is a deliverance from the power of sin. You need to understand that with reference to justification and sanctification. We were to think in those ordo salutis categories.
Justification, we are freed from the penalty of sin. Sanctification, we are freed from the power of sin, right? Sin's back has been broken in our lives. We have remaining corruption to be sure.
The good that we wish to do, we don't always do. The evil that we don't want to do, sometimes we do. We find a law working in our members. We have the Galatians 5.17 reality.
The flesh lusts against the spirit, spirit against the flesh. These two are contrary to one another. That's there to be sure. Do you know what else?
We have the ability, by God's grace, to no longer present our members as instruments of unrighteousness. That's Romans 6. He breaks the power of reigning sin. We are freed from its penalty, but as well we are freed from its power.
Sin's back has been broken by the grace of the gospel, and herein is the liberty that the sons of God definitely enjoy. We have freedom from those things, but we have freedom unto things. We have freedom to serve and worship God as we were created. We are free to serve and worship God as we were created.
This is why God made us. He didn't make you so that you could go out and spend your time pursuing your lusts. He didn't make you so you could be sexually immoral. He didn't make you so that you could take drugs and whack out your mind and brain.
He didn't make you for those purposes. He made you to worship. He made you to serve. So when God, by His grace, saves us, redeems us, brings us out of darkness into marvelous light, He has put us where we should thrive and flourish.
Spiritual freedom is the freedom from sin. Matthew 121, You shall call His name Jesus, for it is He who will save His people, what? From their sins. Again, the penalty.
Romans 6 outlines the power. and then spiritual freedom brings true joy, true everlasting happiness. No, it's not without its trials. You brethren know as well as I do the Christian life isn't one of singing zippity-doo-dah as we skip to heaven. I have yet to open my windows in the morning and see bluebirds out there flapping their little wings and saying, come on Jim, we're going to take you to heaven.
I have never seen rose petals in my path. There are trials, there are difficulties, there are hardships to be sure. Christ is with us every step of the way.
Application and Self-Examination
Well, in terms of our text, it is a time to examine ourselves, isn't it? We're told this in the actual supper, or in the record of the supper in 1 Corinthians 11. Let a man examine himself. And so let him eat of the bread and drink of the cup.
It's good to examine, have I been dealing with my sins? Should I come to the supper tonight? But there is a broader category wherein we should examine ourselves. What do we think of the Word?
What do we think of Christ? Are we able to say, He breaks the power of reigning sin, He sets the prisoner free, His blood can make the foulest clean, His blood availed for me. I shared with you, I heard from Carl Truman, that one of the things that Luther said, you know, the Pope speaks about the death of Christ, the Pope speaks about the resurrection of Christ, the Pope speaks about the ascension of Christ, same sorts of things that I speak of. The only difference is, Luther says, I speak of it for me.
He died for me, He rose for me, He ascended on high for me, and He will return again in glory for me. That's a Galatians 2.20 sort of a thing. Paul said, He loved me and He gave Himself for me. Can you say that tonight?
Can you actually sing this song? He breaks the power of reigning sin. I've seen Him do it in my life. I had this orientation to whatever the sin was, but He broke the back of that sin.
He sets the prisoner free. I now want to come to the house of God. I now want to read my Bible. I actually want to be with Christian people.
If you would have asked me 28 years ago, do you want to hang out with Christians? Yeah, right. Absolutely not. Now I love to hang out with Christians.
It's wonderful. That's the freedom that Christ brings. His blood can make the foulest clean. His blood availed for me.
That's the examination we ought to concern ourselves with. Listen again to A.W. Pink. The man of the world imagines that to become a Christian means to forego his freedom.
He supposes that he would be fettered with a lot of restrictions which nullify his liberty. Take it down to the level of the playground, or take it down to the level of the schoolyard, or take it down to the level of your peer group. It's almost like I can hear them. Oh, you gotta go to church all day on Sunday?
You've got to do this? Oh, I mean, it sounds like murder, doesn't it? Sounds like putting your head in a vice and having someone crank it to those outside of Christ. You ever heard that?
Have you ever experienced that? You know, I suppose that on a day like this, I had the morning service, and then I had the hospital service, and then we had tonight, you know, me going to my car. People are probably going, what the hell, Protestants, why do you have to go to church so much on a Sunday, man? I want to go!
This is spiritual freedom. This is blessed liberty that the sons of God enjoy. I want to be with the blood-bought children of God. There's no greater place on earth than the church.
God is praised and worshiped and glorified in His church. You can worship privately. I am not suggesting otherwise. But there is a sense wherein the New Covenant presents to us the corporate gathering of God's people is where He is pleased to dwell.
The psalmist says this, God loves the gates of Zion more than all the dwelling places of Jacob. Doesn't mean he hates the dwelling places of Jacob, doesn't mean he despises godly families in Israel, but he loves the gates of Zion because all of his people gather and all of his people sing and all of his people praise and worship and glorify. What better place is there for the people of God to be? Back to Pink.
He supposes, this is the man of the world, that he would be fettered with a lot of restrictions which nullified his liberty. It is this one out of Christ, not the one in Christ, who is in bondage, in the bond of iniquity. He is impelled by the downward trend of his nature, and the very freedom which the sinner supposes he is exercising in the indulgence of his evil propensities is only additional proof that he is the bond slave of sin. The love of self, the love of the world, the love of money, the love of pleasure, these are the tyrants. which rule over all who are out of Christ.
That's reality. That's the real deal. That's what Jesus is communicating. That is the essence of 834.
Whoever commits sin is a slave of sin. There's one place to go to have the back broken, and it is Calvary's cross. It is believe on the Lord Jesus Christ. It is flee, it is run, it is hide, it is take refuge, it is to come to receive the Lord Christ Almighty by faith alone.
Brethren, with reference to some exhortation, the follower of Christ abides in the word of Christ. The follower of Christ sees that word in the Lord's Supper. May God indeed use this, as our confession says, as a means of confirmation of the faith of believers and all the benefits thereof. And finally, that freedom comes through the blood of our Lord Jesus Christ.
Galatians 4, 4-7. Galatians 4, 4-7, When the fullness of the time had come, God sent forth His Son, born of a woman, born under the law, to redeem those who were under the law, that we might receive the adoption as sons. And because you are sons, God has sent forth the Spirit of His Son into your hearts, crying out, Abba, Father. Therefore you are no longer a slave, but a son.
And if a son, then an heir of God through Christ. Ephesians 1, 7, In Him we have redemption. through His blood, the forgiveness of sins according to the riches of His grace." Colossians 1.13, I've already alluded to it. Verse 14 rehearses essentially what we have there in Ephesians 1.7. And first, Timothy.
This is just a sampling of Pauline passages on this particular theme. 1 Timothy chapter 2 verses 5 and 6. 4 There is one God and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus, who gave himself a ransom for all to be testified in due time. He gave Himself as a ransom for all those whom the Father had given to Him. So it is by the grace of God, through faith in our Lord Jesus Christ, that we are free. Let us pray.
Closing Prayer
Our Father, we thank You for Your Word, and we thank You for this emphasis so clearly in 831 to 836 of John's Gospel. We were slaves to sin, and You have set us free. You have blessed us richly. You have dealt with the reigning sin.
You have freed us in terms of the devil. You have freed us in terms of the power of sin. All these blessings we give You praise and glory and honor for. And as we eat this bread, and as we drink this cup, we would think fondly on these things, that we would be encouraged, and that we would be strengthened, and that we would be confirmed, and that we would glorify and worship and praise you for your mercy.
And we pray these things through Christ our Lord. Amen.