"You shall know the truth, and the truth
shall make you free." That saying is
well known throughout the world even among those who know very little about its
origin. People apply that saying to all
kinds of issues -- history, science, politics, etc. Their meaning is that truth in any area has a
liberating effect on the mind and frees its owner from ignorance so that he may
make informed choices about his conduct, his words, and his beliefs.
All of that may be true, but when Jesus
Christ spoke this saying in John 8:31-32, He had a very specific meaning. He said to some Jews who had believed Him, "If
you continue in My word, then you are truly disciples of Mine; and you will
know the truth, and the truth will make you free." These words puzzled the Jews, for they did
not consider themselves to be in bondage in any way. Therefore, Jesus explained to them in John
8:36, "Truly, truly, I say to you, everyone who commits sin is the slave of
sin." The freedom of which Jesus spoke
was in relation to sin. He had not
promised freedom from civil or political oppression or from physical
restraint. Instead, He had promised that
if they would abide in His word, then they would obtain knowledge of specific
truth that would make them free of sin's slavery.
The
truth that Jesus promised through His word is His blessed gospel. The apostle Paul summarized this good news in
1Corinthians 15:1-4:
Now I make known to
you, brethren, the gospel which I preached to you, which also you received, in
which also you stand, by which also you are saved, if you hold fast the word
which I preached to you, unless you believed in vain. For I delivered to you as of first importance
what I also received, that Christ died for our sins according to the
Scriptures, and that He was buried, and that He was raised on the third day
according to the Scriptures...
These historical facts comprise the
gospel by which we are saved if we hold fast to the truth of these words. If we do not hold fast to this truth, then we
believe in vain. This is exactly what
Jesus was indicating to those Jews who believed in Him in John 8:31-32. Indeed, the gospel is the truth that sets
free believers in Christ who continue in His word.
From these two passages of Scripture
(John 8:31-32; 1Cor. 15:1-4), it is apparent that freedom from sin is available
to us conditionally. Christ has already
fulfilled His part of the conditions, which is that He "died for our sins
according to the Scriptures." For our
part, it is evident that we must first believe in Him, yet mere mental assent
is not enough by itself. Jesus told the
believing Jews that they had to continue in His word, and Paul likewise said
that Christians must hold fast the word of the gospel or else believe in vain. What exactly does this mean?
The conditions by which the gospel sets
us free from sin are stated clearly are beautifully in Romans 6:1-23. This passage first shows how the historical
facts of the gospel (Christ's death, burial, and resurrection) are recreated in
a believer's baptism (vv. 3-11). Just as
Christ died in the flesh on the cross, a believer in Christ must die in spirit to
sin. Specifically, verses 6 and 7 say
that "we would no longer be slaves to sin; for he who has died is freed from
sin." Just as Christ was buried in the
tomb, so also believers in Him are buried in the water of baptism (lit.
immersion). Likewise, just as Christ was
raised from the dead to live again, so also believers in Him rise up from
baptism to walk in newness of life that is free from sin.
To be even more specific about the
meaning of freedom from sin, Romans 6 explains the matter in terms of
obedience. Verse 12 says, "Therefore do
not let sin reign in your mortal body so that you obey its lusts." Verse 16 explains, "Do you not know that when
you present yourselves to someone as slaves for obedience, you are slaves of
the one whom you obey, either of sin resulting in death, or of obedience
resulting in righteousness?" By these
verses, we can understand that slavery to sin is a matter of one choosing to
obey the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eye, and the pride of life (1John
2:16) and committing acts of sin that give sin mastery over him. Jesus sets us free from this slavery by
giving us an alternative to obey, which is His gospel. Verses 17 and 18 declare, "But thanks be to
God that though you were slaves of sin, you became obedient from the heart to
that form of teaching to which you were committed, and having been freed from
sin, you became slaves of righteousness."
Thus, we have two choices, which are slavery to sin or slavery to
righteousness. The outcome of sin's
slavery is death (v. 21), and the outcome of righteousness's slavery is eternal
life (v. 22).
Which do you choose? Is it slavery to sin with the outcome of
death? Or is it freedom from sin,
slavery to righteousness, and the outcome of eternal life. "For the wages of sin is death, but the free
gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord" (Rom. 6:23). If you choose freedom from sin, then you must
not allow sin to reign in your mortal body.
This does not mean that you will be flawless (1John 1:8-2:2), but it
does mean that sin will no longer be a habitual practice in your life (1John
3:9). This is possible only through
Jesus Christ, the Son of God. "So if the
Son makes you free, you will be free indeed" (John 8:36).
