This is it! John 8.31-32

So Jesus said to the Jews who had believed Him, “If you continue in my word, you really are my disciples. You will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.”

This is it – these verses outline what it means to be a follower of Jesus Christ.  Believe … be immersed in God’s Word … and walk in the freedom of truth.  Let us look at the three elements one at a time. 

Believing in Jesus is more – more than knowing about him, more than mental acceptance of a set of beliefs, or possession of good theology.  Believing is not simply knowing about Jesus, it is knowing Jesus.  James acknowledged that ‘even the demons believe, and shudder’ …  The Greek word for belief is “pisteo” which means to trust; you and I are called to more than just possess a set of facts about Jesus, we are called to act as though we trust him.  When I truly trust in Jesus, my acknowledgment of him moves from my head to my heart, and changes my actions as well.  To believe in Jesus is to trust him in relationship and reflect it in the way I live—in my behavior.

Followers of Jesus are invited to continue or remain in his Word—to learn from the Bible how we should live, to learn from the teachings of Jesus what ‘right living’ and ‘right loving’ look like!  To continue in the Word is to know the truth, embrace it and obey it.

Truth is freeing.  Believing + embodying God’s Word = freedom for living.  I take such comfort in the knowledge that I believe in the one true God and walk with Jesus Christ, and will not be given to the world’s deceptions or philosophies.  It frees me up to really live!  And then knowing and walking in God’s truths set me free to become who I am meant to become in Jesus Christ.  Trusting Jesus and walking in his ways sets me free from sin and destructive behavior, and from manmade rules and regulations that seek to control and regulate.  In Jesus, I know freedom.

Dear Jesus, I want to continue in your Word and be your disciple.  I want to know the truth and walk in truth, because you alone are truth, and in your truth, I am free!

Christine

 PastorWoman.com