1. (verse 33) Are the people telling the truth? Have they never been in bondage? What does this tell you about their pride?

The Jews had been in exile in Babylon, and they were now under Roman occupation. To say that they had never been in bondage to anyone was the height of pride. They were too proud to admit that the Romans were controlling their political affairs. Of course Jesus was talking about spiritual things, and they were thinking of the physical.

34 Jesus answered them, "Most assuredly, I say to you, whoever commits sin is a slave of sin.

35 "And a slave does not abide in the house forever, but a son abides forever.

36 "Therefore if the Son makes you free, you shall be free indeed.

2. (verse 34) What does it mean to be a slave to sin? What enslaves people today? (verses 35-36) What do you think Christ means about the analogy of the son?

If you have ever seen anyone enslaved by an addiction, you know what Christ meant by saying that when we sin, we are a slave to sin. We do not realize how much sin grips our heart and influences our outlook on life. Some people think it’s OK to watch vulgar television shows, movies, or read books with graphic descriptions in them. But all of these activities fill our mind with sinful thoughts. The more we indulge sinful behavior, the harder it is be loosed from it.

But Jesus gives the analogy of the son. In an estate, the father may have offered to set his slaves free upon his death, but it was up to the son to carry out the father’s wishes. So Christ uses this analogy to show how if they are set free by the son, they know they are free indeed. Of course his analogy is referring to the previous verses in this chapter when he was talking about his heavenly Father. So no matter what sins may enslave you, know that the Son has set you free, and you are free indeed.

37 "I know that you are Abraham’s descendants, but you seek to kill Me, because My word has no place in you.

38 "I speak what I have seen with My Father, and you do what you have seen with your father."

39 They answered and said to Him, "Abraham is our father." Jesus said to them, "If you were Abraham’s children, you would do the works of Abraham.

3. (verse 39) What works of Abraham do you think Christ is talking about?

Romans 4:1-3, 12-16 tells us about Abraham,

1 What then shall we say that Abraham our father has found according to the flesh?

2 For if Abraham was justified by works, he has something to boast about, but not before God.

3 For what does the Scripture say? "Abraham believed God, and it was accounted to him for righteousness."

12 and the father of circumcision to those who not only are of the circumcision, but who also walk in the steps of the faith which our father Abraham had while still uncircumcised.

13 For the promise that he would be the heir of the world was not to Abraham or to his seed through the law, but through the righteousness of faith.

14 For if those who are of the law are heirs, faith is made void and the promise made of no effect,

15 because the law brings about wrath; for where there is no law there is no transgression.

16 Therefore it is of faith that it might be according to grace, so that the promise might be sure to all the seed, not only to those who are of the law, but also to those who are of the faith of Abraham, who is the father of us all.

Notice the traits of Abraham. He believed God, his faith was accounted to him for righteousness, and he walked in faith. The promise is to those who have the faith of Abraham, not his lineage.

40 "But now you seek to kill Me, a Man who has told you the truth which I heard from God. Abraham did not do this.

41 "You do the deeds of your father." Then they said to Him, "We were not born of fornication; we have one Father-- God."

42 Jesus said to them, "If God were your Father, you would love Me, for I proceeded forth and came from God; nor have I come of Myself, but He sent Me.

4. (verses 40-42) What works are the Jews doing that are not like Abraham? Do you think in verse 41 the Jews are more concerned with their biological ancestry or their spiritual walk?

Abraham did not seek to kill God nor did he refuse to listen to God’s voice. The Jews are doing both.. Notice how they respond – "we were not born of fornication." They seemed to be more interested in being known as children of Abraham than to understand the spiritual lesson that Christ was trying to teach them.

43 "Why do you not understand My speech? Because you are not able to listen to My word.

44 "You are of your father the devil, and the desires of your father you want to do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaks a lie, he speaks from his own resources, for he is a liar and the father of it.

5. (verse 44) What does this tell us about the tactics of Satan? What examples can you think of that Satan has used against you?

Jesus identifies the tactics of Satan. He is a murderer, he does not stand in the truth, there is no truth in him, and he is the father of liars. Most of Satan’s attacks on Christians involve lies. He tries to lie to us about scripture, lie to us about God, and lie to us about our Christian walk. We need to be on guard for those lies from the enemy of our soul. If he did it in Jesus’ day, he will probably try to do it today also.

45 "But because I tell the truth, you do not believe Me.

46 "Which of you convicts Me of sin? And if I tell the truth, why do you not believe Me?

47 "He who is of God hears God’s words; therefore you do not hear, because you are not of God."

48 Then the Jews answered and said to Him, "Do we not say rightly that You are a Samaritan and have a demon?"

6. (verse 48) Why do you think they accused Jesus of being a Samaritan? Can you think of examples where people attack another person’s reputation instead of challenging the words they are saying?

Now the Jews resort to name calling. They call him a Samaritan, which was the equivalent of a racial slur, and they accuse him of having a demon. So they try to label him with negative physical as well as spiritual characteristics. How many times have we seen this pattern repeated in today’s society!
Whenever someone is starting to feel that they are losing an argument, they seem to resort to name calling or attacking someone’s reputation. If they felt secure in their position, they would not have to stoop to this. But they sense there is something wrong deep in their souls. I see this often on the Internet between those that are supposed to be Christians. This tactic is not from God. Notice Jesus’ words – He who is of God hears God’s words. We must listen for God’s words. And we must practice Christ’s love when dealing with others.

Macleod points out, "The severity of the tone of Jesus, the inexorable demands of righteousness, the challenge of His teaching, the demanding nature of true discipleship combine to present the truth in such a way that their basic attitudes stand revealed. The presentation of that truth reveals the unstable foundations on which many based their faith."

49 Jesus answered, "I do not have a demon; but I honor My Father, and you dishonor Me.

50 "And I do not seek My own glory; there is One who seeks and judges.

51 "Most assuredly, I say to you, if anyone keeps My word he shall never see death."

7. (verse 51) What must we do to never see death? What do you think it means to keep God’s word?

It’s interesting that right in the middle of this exchange about whose voice is everyone listening to, Christ interjects this comment about not seeing death. It’s almost as if he is purposely re-focusing the discussion to what the Jews fear he is implying. The key to never seeing death is to keep God’s word. In other words, those that obey Christ’s words and accept him as their Savior will have eternal life. But it seems to me that in order to obey Christ’s words, we must study them and learn them so that they can be a part of our life.

52 Then the Jews said to Him, "Now we know that You have a demon! Abraham is dead, and the prophets; and You say, ‘If anyone keeps My word he shall never taste death.’

53 "Are You greater than our father Abraham, who is dead? And the prophets are dead. Whom do You make Yourself out to be?"

54 Jesus answered, "If I honor Myself, My honor is nothing. It is My Father who honors Me, of whom you say that He is your God.

55 "Yet you have not known Him, but I know Him. And if I say, ‘I do not know Him,’ I shall be a liar like you; but I do know Him and keep His word.

8. (verses 52-53) What did Jesus mean by "he shall never taste death"? What did the Jews think he meant by "he shall never taste death"? Why were they confused?

Once again the Jewish leaders confuse the physical with the spiritual. When Christ said they will never taste death in verse 52, he is talking about the spiritual death of eternal separation from God. The Jews cannot get their eyes off of the physical and on the spiritual. They want everything that Christ says make sense here and now. But much of what God tells us only makes sense when we apply it spiritually.

We see many Christians today doing the same thing. They think God is the great Wish Granter. He is here for the sole purpose of making people comfortable, keeping them from all sickness, and giving them all kinds of material possessions. This is not the God of the Bible. We are not promised ease or wealth or even health. We are promised persecution and suffering. But even through the greatest difficulties, we will receive a wealth of spiritual blessings from God as he teaches us how to trust him, how to believe his word, how to endure by faith, and how to be strengthened by God’s Spirit. We learn about love, and compassion for others, and we learn about mercy and forgiveness to others. We receive much greater riches than this world can offer. But many Americans place their focus on the wrong things.

56 "Your father Abraham rejoiced to see My day, and he saw it and was glad."

57 Then the Jews said to Him, "You are not yet fifty years old, and have You seen Abraham?"

9. (verses 56-57) How could Abraham have seen Christ? Can you think of a scripture from the Old Testament that Jesus might have been referring to?

Christ said Abraham rejoiced to see his day. Of course, it’s possible Abraham could see what was going on down on earth, but I think Jesus is referring to another event. It wasn’t the Mount of Transfiguration, because only Moses and Elijah were allowed to participate in that. So how could Abraham have seen Christ’s day?

In Genesis 18, three men came to visit Abraham. Later two of the men went on to Sodom to destroy the city and we know from Genesis 19 that these two men were angels. But the third man in Genesis 18 is called Yahweh by Abraham so he could not have been an angel. Many scholars think this appearance was a pre-incarnate appearance of Christ. Perhaps this was the event that Jesus was referring to.

58 Jesus said to them, "Most assuredly, I say to you, before Abraham was, I AM."

10. (verse 58) Why did Jesus use these words? What scripture is he quoting? What is he saying by quoting this scripture?

Jesus purposely used these words. In Exodus 3:14 God tells Moses, "And God said unto Moses, I AM THAT I AM: and he said, Thus shalt thou say unto the children of Israel, I AM hath sent me unto you." When Christ repeated these words, he was clearly identifying himself as the great I AM – Yahweh. Exodus 3:14 in the Greek Septuagint reads evgw. eivmi, ego eimi which is the identical wording as here in John 8:58. Christ is claiming that he is equal to the Father.

59 Then they took up stones to throw at Him; but Jesus hid Himself and went out of the temple, going through the midst of them, and so passed by.

11. (verse 59) Why did the Jews pick up stones?

The Jews understood that Jesus was claiming to be God. They took up stones to throw at him for this blasphemy. They didn’t like Christ claiming heavenly authority. There are many people today who are still throwing stones at Jesus. They don’t want to listen to his words or obey his commands. They try to say he really wasn’t all that he claimed to be. But they are just as much mis-guided as the Jewish leaders were 2000 years ago. They should have remembered Isaiah’s promise of the coming Messiah written hundreds of year before this in Isaiah 9:6, "For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace."

The son would be called "the mighty God" and "the everlasting Father." Because that’s what he was.

Footnotes:

This study on John 8:33-59 © 1998 by David Humpal. All Rights Reserved.

All scriptures unless otherwise noted are from the New King James Version © 1984, Thomas Nelson Publishers

Macleod: The New Bible Commentary pg. 882, 1954 edition, William B. Eerdman’s Publishing Company

Exodus 3:14 from the King James Version

Isaiah 9:6 from the King James Version