In John 8:31-32, Jesus taught a group of Jews who already had some level of belief in Him. He is expounded on how one gains access to the Truth and becomes and remains a true disciple.
Therefore, Jesus began saying to the Jews who had trusted and were now believing by Him (or: in Him), “If you yourselves would remain (can dwell; should abide) within My word (My message; My communication; My expressed thought; My Idea), you folks are, and continue being, truly (really; genuinely) My disciples (or: learners from Me), “and you will progressively come to know the Truth (or: Reality; that which is unsealed, open and without concealment) by intimate experience, and the Truth (Reality) will progressively liberate and make (or: set) you free!” John 8:31-32, JMNT
Conditional Nature of True Discipleship
Jesus began with a conditional statement, emphasizing that access to the Truth and becoming and remaining a true disciple requires ongoing commitment and action. Jesus laid out a 2-part process that results in true discipleship.
1. Remain in His Words:
- Staying, dwelling, continuing, and enduring in Jesus’ teachings
- Maintaining constancy in one’s profession of faith
- Not changing or becoming different in one’s commitment to Christ
Jesus told them to ‘remain in the words of Mine’
TO REMAIN:
- To stay, dwell, continue, endure in a given place, state, relation or expectancy
- To continually held and kept
- To remain as one, not to become another or different
- To exist as
- To be patient and hope in
- To grow
- To inhabit, make to keep house, marry
The WORDS OF MINE:
- thoughts OF MINE
- reasoning OF MINE
- sayings OF MINE
- doctrine OF MINE
- motive OF MINE
- counsel OF MINE
- judgment OF MINE
- message OF MINE
- promise OF MINE
- power OF MINE
- report OF MINE
- understanding OF MINE
- interpretation OF MINE
- inspired teaching OF MINE
- prophesying OF MINE
- wisdom OF MINE
- side OF MINE
- evidence OF MINE
- answer OF MINE
- matter OF MINE
- ruling OF MINE
- correction OF MINE
- binding OF MINE
- boundaries OF MINE
- order OF MINE
- contract/covenant OF MINE
- authoritative prescription OF MINE
- regulation OF MINE
- law/prescriptive usage OF MINE
2. Embrace the Fullness of His Teachings
True discipleship involves embracing all aspects of Jesus’ teachings, including:
- His thoughts, reasoning, and wisdom
- His doctrine and inspired teaching
- His counsel, judgment, and correction
- His promises and power
- His authoritative prescriptions, regulations, and laws
The Result of True Discipleship is Liberation through Truth
When we have experiential knowledge of God’s Truth it will:
- Liberate us
- Exempt us from obligation of paying the full penalty of our debt to sin
- Free us from slavery to sin
- Grant us citizenship in God’s Kingdom
When we remain, inhabit, and reside in the reasoning, boundaries, and authoritative prescription of Jesus Christ we will exist as His own instructed, informed, enlightened, manifested disciples. Only then we will experientially know the manifested, unveiled reality laid out clearly before us, pure from all error and falsehood. The experiential knowledge of this reality will liberate us and exempt us from the obligation of paying the full penalty of our debt to sin, causing us to be unrestrained and set free. We will no longer be a slave to sin, but a citizen of the Kingdom of Heaven.
Principles and Life Lessons
- Perseverance: True faith requires ongoing commitment and endurance.
- Obedience: Following Jesus involves embracing all aspects of His teachings, not just select parts.
- Transformation: Discipleship leads to becoming knowledgeable, enlightened, and manifested as God’s children.
- Truth-Seeking: Disciples should actively seek to know and understand God’s truth.
- Freedom in Christ: True knowledge of God’s truth leads to spiritual liberation and freedom from sin.
- Kingdom Citizenship: Discipleship transitions believers from slavery to sin to citizenship in God’s Kingdom.
Practical Actions for Godly Living
- Consistently study and meditate on Jesus’ teachings in Scripture.
- Apply Jesus’ words to all aspects of life: thoughts, decisions, actions, and relationships.
- Seek to grow in knowledge and understanding of God’s truth.
- Actively work to identify and break free from areas of spiritual bondage or sin.
- Live as a citizen of God’s Kingdom, aligning one’s life with His values and purposes.
- Persevere in faith, even when faced with challenges or doubts.
Characteristics of THE DIVINE NATURE
- Teacher: Jesus is the ultimate source of wisdom and instruction.
- Authority: Jesus’ words carry divine authority and power.
- Liberator: Jesus desires to free people from spiritual bondage.
- Truth-Giver: Jesus reveals Truth that is pure and free from error.
- Transformative: Jesus’ Truth has the power to change lives and status (from slave to citizen).
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