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The Scriptorium

Who's Your Daddy?

You need to know who your father is.

The Gospel of John: John 8.31-47

Read and meditate on John 8.31-47.

It all comes down to this: Who’s your daddy?

31Then Jesus said to those Jews who believed
in Him, “If you abide in and receive
My Word, you are My followers, indeed.
32And you shall know the truth, and will be freed
by it.” 33They answered, “We are Abraham’s seed,
and we have never been in bondage! Freed?
From what? How can You say this?” 34He explained,
“I tell you, anyone who sins remains
a slave of sin. 35No slave abides within
the house forever, but a son dwells in
the house. 36So if the Son shall make you free,
you shall be free indeed. 37You claim to be
from Abraham descended, yet you seek
to kill Me, just because the words I speak
have no place in your soul. 38I speak what I
have with My Father seen, and do not lie;
you do whatever you have seen with your
own father.” 39They replied, “As we before
have said, our father’s name is Abraham.”
But Jesus said, “If you of Abraham
were children, you would do his works. 40But you
intend to kill Me, since I told the truth
which I have heard from God. But Abraham
did not do such as this.” 41They said to Him,
“We are not born of fornication! We
have but one Father – God!” 42To them then He
replied, “If God your Father were, then you
would love Me, for I came from Him to do
His work. I came not of Myself; but He
has sent Me to you. 43How then can it be
that you do not yet understand My word?
You listen to Me, but you have not heard
Me. 44For your father is the devil, and
you do what he desires. He does not stand
in truth, but is a murderer, and has
been from the start, because in him there was
no truth. He speaks, and when he does, he lies.
He is a liar. Liars all despise
the truth, and he is father of all lies.
45I tell the truth; you do not realize
this, nor believe in Me.46Which one of you
convicts Me of wrongdoing? If I do
no wrong, and tell the truth, why do you not
believe in Me? 47Whoever is from God
will hear God’s words. The reason you do not
is that you listen, but are not of God.”

- John 8.31-47

Reflect
1. In our passage, Jesus establishes a clear contrast between two kinds of people. Summarize that concept from vv. 31-47. Complete this prayer: Lord, let it always be clear of me that I am one who…

2.  It’s also clear from this passage that there is an important difference between believing in Jesus and believing His Word. How would you explain that difference? Help me to encourage all believers, Lord, to…

3.  The devil is the father of many people, and they are all trapped in the lie. But Jesus can give us the authority to become sons and daughters of God (Jn. 1.12), so that we have a new Father, live in freedom from sin, and know the truth that is in Christ Jesus. Why is this Good News? Thank You, Lord, for the Good News that has changed my life, so that…

4.  The message of life and light and freedom in Jesus Christ can be confrontational. What do we mean by this? Is there risk involved in this? Is the risk greater than the need to bring truth to those who are trapped in the lie? Explain. Lord, I know You have entrusted me with Your truth. Give me grace each day so that…

5.  We will either abide in Jesus, His Word, and the freedom from sin we have in Him; or we will abide in the lies of the devil – whatever we may trust in besides Jesus, and our best ideas about what’s good for us. Does this ever cease to be true? How can we make sure we’re on the side of God as Father, rather than the devil as our father? Bring together into one prayer the prayers you composed for questions 1-4.

Summary
“We must question how he says, to people who believe in him, ‘because I speak the truth, you do not believe in me.’ Consider whether it is possible to believe in someone in one particular aspect but not to believe in another aspect. For instance, one could believe that Jesus was crucified in Judea in the time of Pontius Pilate but not believe that he was born of the Virgin Mary. This one believes and disbelieves in the same person. Take, as another example, those who believe in the Jesus who performed the recorded wonders and signs in Judea but who do not believe in the Son of the one who made heaven and earth. These believe and disbelieve in the same one…It is likely that they believed in him on the basis of what was seen because of his marvelous deeds, but they did not believe in his deeper sayings.… You see this even in the present, that there are many people who marvel at Jesus whenever they consider the story about him but who no longer believe when a teaching that is deeper and greater than their capacity is disclosed to them, but instead suspect it to be false.’” Origen (f. 200-254 AD)

From what we’ve seen in this passage, what blessings accrue to those who know God as their Father?

Closing Prayer
Oh, sing to the LORD a new song!
For He has done marvelous things;
His right hand and His holy arm have gained Him the victory.
The LORDhas made known His salvation;
His righteousness He has revealed in the sight of the nations.
He has remembered His mercy and His faithfulness to the house of Israel;
All the ends of the earth have seen the salvation of our God.
Shout joyfully to the LORD, all the earth;
Break forth in song, rejoice, and sing praises.
Sing to the Lord with the harp,
With the harp and the sound of a psalm,
With trumpets and the sound of a horn;
Shout joyfully before the LORD, the King.
Let the sea roar, and all its fullness,
The world and those who dwell in it;
Let the rivers clap theirhands;
Let the hills be joyful together before the LORD,
For He is coming to judge the earth.
With righteousness He shall judge the world,
And the peoples with equity.

Psalm 98.1-9

Psalm 98.1-9 (Duke Street: Come, Let Us Sing unto the Lord)
Come, let us sing unto the Lord new songs of praise with one accord!
Wonderful things our God has done: Jesus has our salvation won!

Now is God’s saving mercy known; His glory to the world is shown.
Faithful and kind is God our Lord; earth has the Name of Jesus heard.

Raise to the Lord your loudest voice! Break forth and sing! Rejoice! Rejoice       
Praise, praise to You our God and King, with all our hearts and strength we bring!

Now let the whole creation ‘round burst into song with joyous sound!
Jesus will come to judge the earth; let all proclaim His matchless worth!

T. M. Moore

We are happy to offer each week’s Scriptorium studies in a free weekly PDF, suitable for personal or group use. You can download all the studies in our series on the Gospel of John by clicking here. Please prayerfully consider sharing with The Fellowship of Ailbe through your giving. You can contribute to The Fellowship by clicking the Contribute button at the website or by sending your gift to The Fellowship of Ailbe, 19 Tyler Drive, Essex Junction, VT 05452.

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Except as indicated, Scripture taken from the New King James Version. © Copyright 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved. All psalms for singing adapted from
The Ailbe Psalter. All quotations from Church Fathers from Ancient Christian Commentary Series IV a and b: John, edited by Joel C. Elowsky, General Editor Thomas C. Oden (Downers Grove: InterVarsity Press, 2006. Verse translation of John by T. M. Moore.

T.M. Moore

T. M. Moore is principal of The Fellowship of Ailbe, a spiritual fellowship in the Celtic Christian tradition. He and his wife, Susie, make their home in the Champlain Valley of Vermont.
Books by T. M. Moore

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