John 8:20-36 11/9/25 a.m. “Know the Truth”
The 8th Chapter of the Book of John is a well known Chapter because of the way it begins. In Verse 3, a woman is brought to Jesus accused of Adultery. We all know the story right? What do we do with her Jesus? Kill her? Let her go? Well, Jesus stoops down and begins writing in the sand and eventually they all leave.
Now we don’t know what Jesus wrote.
Maybe He wrote names of people that these men had wronged.
Maybe He wrote THEIR NAMES and begin to list THEIR SINS.
Maybe he wrote the names of different women these men had had affairs with themselves. We don’t know, but whatever He wrote, I can guarantee you it was TRUTH.
Jesus didn’t make up false allegations against these men.
TRUTH was important to Jesus and TRUTH should be important to ALL of us.
ILLUS: Nan Britton is a name most of you have probably never heard. I hadn’t until I read this story. Nan first met Warren G. Harding when she was 13 years old. He was a newspaper publisher. A politician. And ... 31 years older than her. He was handsome and kind to her and so she developed an adolescent crush. She hung his picture on the wall. Wrote him fan letters. And in 1917, when she was 20 years old, she went to visit U.S. Senator Warren G. Harding in Washington D.C.
That’s when the alleged affair started. Nan gave birth to a little girl in 1919. According to Nan, Senator Harding supported her and her daughter and promised to always take care of them but he refused to publicly acknowledge them. He knew it would ruin his political career. Nan said the affair even continued, IN THE WHITE HOUSE, after he became President of the United States. But in 1923, tragedy struck. President Harding died suddenly of a heart attack. Nan now had no way to support herself and her 4 year old daughter Elisabeth, so she went to President Harding’s family. His wife Florence denied that the child was from her late husband. She would not support Nan or Elizabeth and so Nan did what she felt like she had to to do. She wrote a book. “The President’s Daughter” It was a self published book because NONE of the BIG NAME PUBLISHERS of the day would touch it. The book tells the story of how she met Warren Harding, the affair and the birth of Elisabeth.
The book was published in 1927.
The Harding family was outraged. They called it fiction, slander, the lies of an opportunistic gold-digger.
The press crucified her. Newspapers called her a prostitute, and a woman of “questionable morals” trying to cash in on a dead President's name.
Bookstores refused to stock it. Libraries banned it. Reviewers called it “trash.”
But people bought it anyway.
"The President's Daughter" became a bestseller. People love a SCANDAL.
But when Nan sued for support, the courts refused to give any credence to Nan’s claims and she never received a penny from Harding’s estate.
Nan Britton struggled financially but survived by working odd jobs. She raised Elizabeth alone. Most didn’t believe her story. She never married and died in 1991 at the age of 94. Her daughter Elizabeth went on to marry Henry Blaesing and they had 3 children. She seemed to have a happy life and died in 2005. Nan said it was TRUTH but no one believed her.
This morning I want us to look a little further down in John Chapter 8. I want each and every one of us to Know the Truth. Let’s begin reading at Verse 21 and we’ll read through Verse 36.
“These words spake Jesus in the treasury, as he taught in the temple: and no man laid hands on him; for his hour was not yet come.
21 Then said Jesus again unto them, I go my way, and ye shall seek me, and shall die in your sins: whither I go, ye cannot come.
22 Then said the Jews, Will he kill himself? because he saith, Whither I go, ye cannot come.
23 And he said unto them, Ye are from beneath; I am from above: ye are of this world; I am not of this world.
24 I said therefore unto you, that ye shall die in your sins: for if ye believe not that I am he, ye shall die in your sins.
25 Then said they unto him, Who art thou? And Jesus saith unto them, Even the same that I said unto you from the beginning.
26 I have many things to say and to judge of you: but he that sent me is true; and I speak to the world those things which I have heard of him.
27 They understood not that he spake to them of the Father.
28 Then said Jesus unto them, When ye have lifted up the Son of man, then shall ye know that I am he, and that I do nothing of myself; but as my Father hath taught me, I speak these things.
29 And he that sent me is with me: the Father hath not left me alone; for I do always those things that please him.
30 As he spake these words, many believed on him.
31 Then said Jesus to those Jews which believed on him, If ye continue in my word, then are ye my disciples indeed;
32 And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.
33 They answered him, We be Abraham's seed, and were never in bondage to any man: how sayest thou, Ye shall be made free?
34 Jesus answered them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Whosoever committeth sin is the servant of sin.
35 And the servant abideth not in the house for ever: but the Son abideth ever.
36 If the Son therefore shall make you free, ye shall be free indeed.”
So as we go over this passage this morning I want to speak some TRUTH to you. It may not be popular. Everyone may not agree. But none of that matters. You see Verse 26 tells us,
“I have many things to say and to judge of you: but he that sent me is true; and I speak to the world those things which I have heard of him.”
You see, whether EVERYONE believes something or NO ONE believes anything, it doesn’t matter. GOD is the One who DEFINES TRIUTH. And so we’re going to look at KNOWING the TRUTH. But before we do, let’s go to the Lord in Prayer.
Brother _______, would you lead us?
And so let’s look at some of the TRUTHS that we find in this passage.
I. The first TRUTH we find is found in Verses 21-24. “Without Jesus YOU WILL DIE!!!”
Look at those 4 Verses 21-24. Three times Jesus says “You will DIE in your SINS”
Verse 21. I GO MY WAY and you’re gonna look for me but instead, You’re gonna DIE in your SINS.
Verse 23. “Ye are from beneath; I am from above: ye are of this world; I am not of this world.” You’re gonna DIE in your sins.
Verse 24. “for if ye believe not that I am he, ye shall die in your sins.”
Do you see what Jesus was trying to get these Jews to GRASP? What He was trying His best to get them to UNDERSTAND. “Without Him, THEY WERE LOST.”
You Jews can try to find Jesus but you’ll never find Him on your own.
You can try live a GOOD ENOUGH LIFE, KEEP the commandments, the Laws and the Statutes but you’re still LOST.
If you don’t TRULY BELIEVE on Him, YOU ARE LOST!!!
Pisteuo is the Greek Word used for Believe and it has a deeper meaning than just an INTELLECTUAL MEANING. It means more than just to believe something is true. It means to TRUST IN, RELY ON and even CLING TO.
So this TRUTH that Jesus was trying to get these JEWS to believe was that they were going to have to put ALL of their FAITH in JUDAISM BEHIND THEM and TRUST HIM, RELY ON HIM and CLING TO HIM. This wasn’t something that would be easy to do. Judaism had been INGRAINED into them since they were BABIES.
And this same TRUTH is what is REQUIRED of you and I today or WE WILL DIE IN OUR SINS!!!
Church people today must TRUST HIM, RELY ON HIM and CLING TO HIM.
Religious people today must TRUST HIM, RELY ON HIM and CLING TO HIM.
ILLUS: Rachel and I were down at the Hospital Tuesday evening waiting for the doctor’s to squeeze Mary in for surgery. Leah, our daughter who doesn’t attend church here, showed up and was helping Ethan with the baby. And Rachel and I were starving so we slipped out and went across the street to Olive Garden. MMM MMM. All you can eat Soup and Salad. It was delicious. But anyway, we were seated and the waiter came and took our order.
He was nice enough but I got the idea that he was probably not a follower of Jesus. I think he probably lived an alternative lifestyle. And so before we left I gave him a generous tip and I told him that God loved him and that he wanted him to be his child. And this fellow began to tell me how RELIGIOUS his family was. How that they attended a Christian University in Tulsa. And so I said, “But are you, ARE YOU, a FOLLOWER of JESUS?” And he said, “We’re all HAPPY PEOPLE.”
Listen, I’m GLAD he and his family are HAPPY PEOPLE. But has he TRUSTED in JESUS, is he RELYING on JESUS, and is he CLINGING to HIM? Because the TRUTH of the MATTER IS, “for if ye believe not that I am he, ye shall die in your sins.”
II. The Second Truth is found in Verses 25-29.
“Jesus was and still is GOD.”
In Verse 25, the Jews ask Jesus a question. Who art thou? And that’s a good question to ask.
But the problem was they were trying to find something in what He said so that they could CONDEMN HIM. This question was asked out of ANGER and HATRED. Who are you Jesus? Who do you claim to be? And so Jesus answers this question in several ways.
So first of all, He says I’m who I’ve always claimed to be. I can just see these Jews scratching their heads. “Now who did He claim to be?” “I don’t remember. Let me think back on all of the things that He said.” They’re just not getting it.
Secondly, in Verse 26, He says I am the VOICE of the One who sent me. I can see them turning to their friend standing next to them, “Well, who was it that sent Jesus?” “Beats me, I don’t know.”
And so then in Verse 27, it says,
“They understood not that he spake to them of the Father.”
Such an important TRUTH and they just can’t GRASP it.
And so then in Verses 28 and 29 He tells them, you’re EVENTUALLY going to understand. When I am CRUCIFIED you’ll understand. You’re gonna understand that I am SIMPLY OBEYING MY FATHER, the One who sent me.
In so many ways things have changed but in so many ways, things are just the same. People still today JUST CAN’T GRASP this TRUTH. Jesus was and still is God.
John 10:30 “I and my Father are one.”
Here in the United States probably the majority of people would say that Jesus was and is GOD, especially around here, but they won’t let Him be THEIR GOD. THEIR LORD.
Do you know what most people want Jesus to be today? They want Him to be their SUGAR DADDY. They want His GIFTS. His SALVATION. His HEALING. His HOME in HEAVEN. But they don’t want Him to be their LORD.
Can I tell you something? Jesus came as God in the Flesh. Now He is the SECOND PART of the TRINITY. HE IS GOD.
He’s NOT in the business of playing games.
His PRECIOUS NAME is NOT to be used in VAIN. He’s NOT a CURSE WORD. He’s NOT someone to laugh at and make fun of. HE IS GOD.
ILLUS: How many of you all remember Sister Opal Waggle? What a neat lady. She’s been gone several years now.
She is the oldest person I have ever had the privilege to baptize. I think she was like 91 years old when I baptized her.
But one day she was telling me how much she liked men. She said, “I just like men.” And boy did she. I think she had been married 4 times. Maybe more. I’m not sure. But she was well up in her 90’s and she had widowed all of them EXCEPT for one. She said, “He was NOT FAITHFUL to me and I WILL NOT BE TRIFLED WITH!!!”
That’s funny but let me tell you something. The CHURCH WORLD needs to hear this today. Jesus will not be TRIFLED WITH. SERVE HIM or DON’T SERVE HIM.
Jesus told us in Matthew 12:30, “He that is not with me is against me; and he that gathereth not with me scattereth abroad.”
There’s NO middle of the road. This is NOT a game. THIS IS TRUTH. Jesus came as God in the FLESH and HE IS STILL GOD. And we need to treat Him that way today.
III. The Third Truth is found in Verses 31-36.
“Sin brings BONDAGE but Jesus brings FREEDOM.”
Do you remember what Jesus said in Verse 30?
“As he spake these words, many believed on him.”
And now Jesus turns to them and this is what He says.
“If ye continue in my word, then are ye my disciples indeed;
32 And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.”
I LOVE THAT. “THE TRUTH shall make you FREE!!!”
ILLUS: It made me think of the movie made in 1995 with Mel Gibson, who played William Wallace. “BRAVEHEART” In it’s most famous scene he screams out “FREEDOM!!!”
You see, William Wallace was the Scottish Patriot who led the SCOTS in their war against the British. In the movie they’re getting ready to go into battle, they’re outnumbered, some of them want to turn tail and run, and so he asks a question.
“What will you do without FREEDOM?” And then he goes on to explain that FREEDOM is worth dying for.
These VETERANS who stood up here today understand that. I hope for generations to come, the people of the United States of America remember and understand that. If we as a people ever cease to BELIEVE THAT TRUTH we are DOOMED to LOSE our FREEDOM.
And what Jesus is talking about here is FREEDOM from our SINS. You see, every single one of us WAS BOUND by the SINS in our LIFE. But yet we have found FREEDOM through Jesus.
And IF we continue IN HIS WORD, HIS STATUTES, HIS COMMANDMENTS and HIS TRUTHS, “then are ye my disciples indeed”
I said it earlier and I’ll say it again. This is NOT a game. This CHURCH is NOT just another SOCIAL CLUB. You’re either a DISCIPLE of JESUS or you’re NOT. You’re either FREE from your SINS or you’re LIVING in them.
LISTEN!!! This TRUTH is IMPORTANT. You’re either on your way to Heaven or you’re on your way to HELL. There is NO IN BETWEEN. JESUS BRINGS FREEDOM!!!
Now the BIBLE is 100% TRUE but NOT everything people said in the BIBLE is TRUE. Look at what some of these fellows said there in Verse 33.
“They answered him, We be Abraham's seed, and were never in bondage to any man: how sayest thou, Ye shall be made free?”
Are you kidding? Are they living in a DREAM WORLD? That’s laughable. The Jewish Nation had been in bondage to the Egyptians. Did they not remember Moses and the 10 plagues?
Did they not remember the Philistines, the Babylonians, the Persians and the Syrians?
There were probably Roman soldiers walking around as they were saying this. They were BLIND to the TRUTH.
Jesus answers them in Verses 34 - 36.
“Jesus answered them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Whosoever committeth sin is the servant of sin.
35 And the servant abideth not in the house for ever: but the Son abideth ever.
36 If the Son therefore shall make you free, ye shall be free indeed.”
And maybe you’re here today and you are BLIND to the TRUTH. Maybe you think you’re free from the BONDAGE of SIN but yet you’re living in SIN. That might sound crazy but the church is FULL of people CLAIMING the name of JESUS and but yet living in SIN. Look at Verse 36. Are you FREE? YOU BETTER KNOW THE TRUTH!!!
Jesus told us in Matthew 7:21-23,
“Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven.
22 Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? and in thy name have cast out devils? and in thy name done many wonderful works?
23 And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity.”
You all remember Nan Britton? In 2015 her Great Grandson, Elisabeth’s grandson, decided to find out the TRUTH once and for all. President Harding had no KNOWN descendants but Nan’s great grandson convinced two of President Warren Harding’s nephews to take a DNA test along with himself. The results came back ABSOLUTELY CONCLUSIVE. Elizabeth Blaesing WAS the Biological daughter of President Harding.
92 years after Harding's death. 88 years after Nan published her book and was destroyed for it. 24 years after Nan died. THE TRUTH WAS TOLD.
And let me say this. The TRUTH still matters.
The TRUTH MATTERED 2000 years ago when Jesus straightened out the Scribes and Pharisees.
The TRUTH mattered 100 years ago at the highest levels of government.
And the TRUTH still matters today. So let me ask you again. Where do you stand with Jesus? If you was to die today, where would YOU spend eternity? You better KNOW THE TRUTH, because it will SET YOU FREE.
Let’s Pray
