I
AM
John 8:44 “Ye are of your father the
devil, and the lusts of your father ye will do. He
was a murderer from the beginning, and abode not in
the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he
speaketh a lie, he speaketh of his own: for he is a
liar, and the father of it.
45
And because I tell you the truth, ye believe me not.
46 Which of you convinceth me of
sin? And if I say the truth, why do ye not believe
me?
47 He that is of God heareth
God's words: ye therefore hear them not, because ye
are not of God.
48 Then answered
the Jews, and said unto him, Say we not well that
thou art a Samaritan, and hast a devil?
49 Jesus answered, I have not a devil; but I
honour my Father, and ye do dishonour me.
50 And I seek not mine own glory:
there is one that seeketh and judgeth.
51 Verily, verily, I say unto you, If a man
keep my saying, he shall never see death.
52 Then said the Jews unto him, Now
we know that thou hast a devil. Abraham is dead, and
the prophets; and thou sayest, If a man keep my
saying, he shall never taste of death.
53
Art thou greater than our father Abraham, which is
dead? and the prophets are dead: whom makest thou
thyself?
54 Jesus answered, If I
honour myself, my honour is nothing: it is my Father
that honoureth me; of whom ye say, that he is your
God:
55 Yet ye have not known
him; but I know him: and if I should say, I know him
not, I shall be a liar like unto you: but I know
him, and keep his saying.
56
Your father Abraham rejoiced to see my day: and he
saw it, and was glad.
57 Then
said the Jews unto him, Thou art not yet fifty years
old, and hast thou seen Abraham?
58
Jesus said unto them, Verily, verily, I say
unto you, Before Abraham was, I am.
59
Then took they up stones to cast at him: but Jesus
hid himself, and went out of the temple, going
through the midst of them, and so passed by.”
1. Ye Are of Your Father The Devil
2.
Hearing the words of God
3. Keeping the Sayings
of The LORD
4. Before Abraham
1. Ye Are Of Your Father The Devil
Verse forty-four: “Ye are of your father the devil, and the lusts of your father ye will do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and abode not in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaketh a lie, he speaketh of his own: for he is a liar, and the father of it.”
Now let me ask you this! Is this a loving and sweet thing to say to someone? This is Jesus Christ speaking to his detractors. Maybe, friend, you need to re-think this thing over a little bit. Maybe you have been sold a "bill of goods". This is a day of political correctness. We have lost our sight. We have lost our common sense. Jesus Christ called them as HE saw them. Is there anything wrong with this? You say, what about turning the other cheek?
[Matthew 5:39] “But I say unto you, That ye resist not evil: but whosoever shall smite thee on thy right cheek, turn to him the other also.”
You are mistakenly applying this. Calling something for what it is; and turning to the other cheek can be done in all the same operation. First Jesus Christ calls a SPADE a spade: “Ye are of your father the devil, and the lusts of your father ye will do”, and secondly HE turns the other cheek, and lets them nail HIM to the cross. If YOU have a problem here, it is because you misunderstood LOVE, JUSTICE AND THE TRUTH. You misunderstood The Scripture!
Turn to [Isaiah 42:3] and SEE Jesus Christ.
“A bruised reed shall he not break, and the smoking flax shall he not quench: he shall bring forth judgment unto truth.”
Jesus Christ did not RESIST their evil, but at the same time, He did bring forth judgment unto TRUTH. [Look at the amazing precision of the King James Bible.]
What we see here, where The SON of
GOD confronts these Jews, in no way conflicts with
the revealed attributes of God found in this BOOK.
The God shown in [1 John 4:16] is a GOD of LOVE, but
HE is also the GOD of WRATH, as shown in Revelation
chapter nineteen. HE the SAME GOD! Amen!
Jesus Christ knew the crowd there that day was the Devil’s crowd. They had all the marks of their father. You know what I mean. Children take on the characteristics of their parents. You have seen this.
a. They DO The Lusts
b. They Are The
Murderers
c. They Are The Liars
[Romans 1:29-31]
YOU … I … EVERYONE are “filled with all unrighteousness, fornication, wickedness, covetousness, maliciousness; full of envy, murder, debate, deceit, malignity; whisperers, Backbiters, haters of God, despiteful, proud, boasters, inventors of evil things, disobedient to parents, Without understanding, covenantbreakers, without natural affection, implacable, unmerciful.”
We come into the world members of that crowd; [There is no end to comment].
2. Hearing The Words Of God
Verse forty-seven: “He that is of God heareth God's words: ye therefore hear them not, because ye are not of God.”
Who are you tuned to? [You are tuned to hear someone.] Here is another question. I am getting personal. What is the nearest thing to your heart? Think about it. These are the all-so-important questions you need to ask yourself. I will sum it up this way. Can you HEAR God’s words?
If you cannot hear God’s words, it is NOT
because you have wax in your ears. You have a
different problem. Jesus is not talking here about
your ability [or discernment] to hear the natural
sounds [hearing by your EARS] but rather
HE is
talking about your ability [or discernment] to hear
the spiritual sounds. What are these spiritual
sounds? They involve HEARING in your heart the words
of God. In [1 Corinthians 2:14] the Spirit of God
gives it this way: “But the natural man receiveth
not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are
foolishness unto him: neither can he know them,
because they are spiritually discerned.”
If you can hear God’s words, then it is because you have been “quickened” or “born again” [spiritually made alive, and now, enabled to hear [discern] and judge [discriminate] ALL THINGS.
“But he that is spiritual judgeth all things, yet he himself is judged of no man.” [1 Corinthians 2:15]
A believer will be TUNED, by the HOLY GHOST, to hear the still small voice that no one else can hear. The world has a HUGE mistaken notion of where God’s voice is. God’s voice with which He speaks to the believer [the true Christian] is not in a great, strong wind, nor is it in an earthquake, and it is not in a fire. Scripture with scripture: [1 Kings 19:11-12]
“And he said, Go forth, and stand
upon the mount before the Lord. And, behold, the
Lord passed by, and a great and strong wind rent the
mountains, and brake in pieces the rocks before the
Lord; but the Lord was not in the wind: and after
the wind an earthquake; but the Lord was not in the
earthquake: And after the earthquake a fire; but the
Lord was not in the fire: and after the fire a still
small voice.”
Amen!
3. Keeping The Sayings Of The LORD
Verse fifty-one: “Verily, verily, I say unto you, If a man keep my saying, he shall never see death.”
What is a saying? A “saying” is built with words. This “saying” here points to the words of God. The words of God are SCRIPTURE, and we are told to search the scriptures for the purpose of keeping the sayings which TESTIFY of the SON of GOD. [John 5:39]
“Search the scriptures; for in
them ye think ye have eternal life: and they are
they which testify of me.”
The man, woman,
or child who keeps the sayings of the LORD are the
ones who love HIM. [John 14:21]
“He that hath my commandments, and keepeth them, he it is that loveth me: and he that loveth me shall be loved of my Father, and I will love him, and will manifest myself to him.”
This is where the rubber meets the road. If you believe the sayings [FAITH] you will end up doing them as a natural result: saved by GRACE through FAITH, and the FRUIT will follow. The locomotive is FAITH and the passenger cars that follow are the proof [Fruit].
4. Before Abraham
Verse fifty-eight: “Jesus said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Before Abraham was, I am.”
Now hear this! Nothing infuriates more a child of the Devil than to hear: “Before Abraham was, I am.”
Why is this? Here is the answer. Ready?
It is because the children’s father [who is THE DEVIL] will explode with the shot of vehement anger of a madman at THE FACT that the SON of GOD [Jesus Christ] is “I AM”.
Then, it shouldn’t surprise you that his children will react the same way. The old rebel in us hates AUTHORITY. Now, an apple does not fall too far from its tree.
You do believe we are the children of wrath, don’t you? Do you believe what the Book says about you?
Turn to [Ephesians 2:3] Here is the indictment: “Among whom also we all had our conversation in times past in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind; and were by nature the children of wrath, even as others.” Amen!
Now, turn in the Old Black BOOK to [Exodus 3:14], and see for yourself.
“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.”
Are you satisfied now?
The “I AM” here in John eight is the same “I AM” in Exodus.
HE is the SAME GOD … Amen! Amen! Amen!