John 8:31-47, Who is Your Father?

The major portion of John 8 involves Jesus’ concerns about His Father and about who is the father of the Jews with whom He is engaged.  Jesus first said, “I am with the Father who sent Me” (8:13-18).  Then He made the powerful claim: “If you had known Me, you would have known My Father also” (8:19-20).  The result was that many believed in Him, including some from the Jewish leadership (8:30-32). 

Now He challenged them to be true disciples or followers of Him by abiding in His word.  If they did this, that “word” would make them free.  Talking about “freedom” with Jews in Jesus’ day could be volatile.  They chafed being under the authority of Rome, and were notorious for their rebellious attitude and actions. 

·       8:33-38: First, they rejected the thought that they needed to be “free” from anything: We have never been in bondage to anyone.  Jesus clarified the issue: I am not talking about bondage to some political power; I am talking about bondage to sin. Specifically, He referred to their desire to put Him to death.  Then He charged them: you do what you have seen with your father.

·       8:39-41a: Second, they claimed that Abraham was their father.  Again, Jesus challenged them: if Abraham was your father, you wouldn’t be trying to kill Me.  Abraham never tried to kill those who spoke God’s truth.  And again, Jesus charged them: you do the deeds of your father.

·       8:41b-43: The response of these Jews was, “God is our Father.”  Jesus had pointed out something from the life of Abraham, a story that is recorded in Scripture for all to see.  So, they changed their story, claiming that God, whom no one has seen at any time, was their Father.  Jesus’ response, however, was essentially the same: if God was your Father then you would love Me! 

Did you ever have a discussion like this, where every time you challenged someone they changed their position to something else.  That’s what we do if we are not pursuing the truth but just trying to win the argument.  In this case, these Jews who believed in Jesus were struggling with what it meant to follow Jesus.  Jesus called them to abide or remain or continue in His word (v31).

They failed to understand the principle of, “like father, like son.”  They were not acting in a way that fit either Abraham or God.  Jesus spoke the truth: you are of your father the devil, who was a murderer from the beginning, and in whom there is no truth (v44).  Becoming a follower of Jesus would require them to openly separate from the leadership that desired to kill Jesus.  They claimed to believe Jesus (v31), but as Jesus pointed out, they did not believe Him (v45-46), and thus could not be true disciples because they did not continue in His word.

To believe in Christ is a simple matter.  It is also a monumental event because we are no longer slaves to sin but become children of God.