“I am the light of the world. If you follow Me, you won’t have to walk in darkness, because you will have the light that leads to life.” – John 8:12 (NLT)
“You are truly My disciples if you remain faithful to My teachings. And you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.” – John 8:31
“So if the Son sets you free, you are truly free.” – John 8:36
The Truth. Something that is truly lacking in our society today. Something that, when attempted to be spoken, is attacked with such a fury that those who attempt to speak it end up backing down in fear.
What is so sad about this is that this applies to those within the church. It is understood that those who are of the world would want to ignore the truth, but those within the “community of believers”? This should have never been allowed to thrive within the Body. Yet here we find ourselves in a time where those who claim to be “believers” are the first to attack the very truth they say they supposedly believe.
And let us not forget, Jesus is the Truth. So when He is speaking of knowing the Truth, and speaking of the Truth setting people free, He is speaking of Himself. He is the Way, the Truth, and the Life, the one and only way to Heaven. So a rejection of the Truth is rejection of Jesus Himself. Meaning that those who refuse to hear the Truth and abide by it, they are not truly followers of Christ.
Jesus makes this reality very clear throughout His ministry, and He says it multiple times in this chapter of John alone. He says again in verse 47, “Anyone who belongs to God listens gladly to the words of God. But you don’t listen because you don’t belong to God” (John 8:47). Jesus is God become flesh. He speaks only what the Father has given Him to speak. Meaning that a rejection of Truth is not just a rejection of Jesus, it is a direct rejection of God. Rejection of God means you do not belong to God. Meaning that, unless you abide by Truth and live in the reality of God’s Word, you are not saved and you are not inheriting eternal life from Christ. Eternal punishment is all that awaits those who do not belong to God.
Again Jesus says, “I tell you the truth, anyone who obeys My teaching will never die!” (John 8:51).
Dear believing Christian, follower of Christ, if you do not follow His teachings, His TRUE teachings, you do not belong to Him. You do not know Him, and He does not know you. If you do not know His words and listen to them GLADLY, you do not know Him.
This is the reality of how you know someone is truly a follower of Christ. They are truly a follower if they actually follow and obey His teachings. This is not judgemental, it is reality in the Kingdom of God. This is not a casting of condemnation because you condemn yourself when you don’t abide in and by the Truth. This is simply a reality. Truth is the purest form of Love, because Jesus is the embodiment of Truth and Love. Love keeps no record of wrong, yes, but this is only for those who abide in Love. Outside of Love, outside of Truth, there is only God’s wrath.
“But the gateway to life is very narrow and the road is difficult, and only a few ever find it.” – Matthew 7:14
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