The Truth Will Set You Free

What or who is “the truth” who “will set you free” (John 8:32)?
It's Jesus, “the Son” (John 8:36 below) of God, who also declared, “I am... the truth” (John 14:6).

What is the condition for being set free by Jesus, the truth?
Be His “disciples” (John 8:31).

What qualifies people as Jesus’ disciples?
“If you abide in My word, you are My disciples indeed” (John 8:31). To know what to abide in, we need to know what Jesus said in the Bible, but reading and knowing what is written in the Bible is insufficient. To qualify as His disciples, we must “abide in” - i.e., obey - His words in the Bible.

What is the flip side of what Jesus said in John 8:31?
If you don't abide in - i.e., obey - Jesus' words in the Bible, you are not His disciple.

Do you obey Jesus' words in the Bible?
 

Is it true that they “have never been in bondage to anyone” as they claim in John 8:33?
They had been in bondage under the Egyptians for 400 years, the Assyrians when they were conquered in 722 BC, the Babylonians during the 7th and 6th centuries BC, and were under the Romans when they made the claim above.

Is that what Jesus points out in John 8:34?
No, He remains in the spiritual realm.

What does He mean by, “everyone practicing sin is a slave of sin” (John 8:34)?
Continuing to commit sin indicates being enslaved to sin.

What sin enslaves you?
 

What is the consequence of being enslaved to sin?
People enslaved to sin may be in the “house” of God for a while but will “not remain” (John 8:35) in it and eventually will end up outside of it.

What does that mean?
οικια (oikia), the original Greek word translated “house” (John 8:35), also means “household” or “family.” Anyone who ends up outside the household of God - the body of Christ - ends up in hell. 

How do we get free from sin so that we can abide in Jesus' word?
“If the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed” (John 8:36). Jesus isn’t someone we come to after we've freed ourselves from sin and cleaned up our act; we cannot clean ourselves enough to be righteous before the perfectly Holy God. We come to Him in our sinful state and surrender to Him, confess our sins directly to Him, believe that the blood He shed on the cross not only paid the death penalty due for our sins but also frees us from bondage to sin, and repent from sin as empowered by His Holy Spirit.

What if we don't repent - i.e., turn away - from sin?
Then you remain enslaved to sin, and will end up outside the household of God, and in hell. You must repent and turn away from your sin.

What about deacons, elders, pastors, seminary faculty and presidents who continue to commit (hidden) sin?
Nothing is hidden to Jesus, who said, “Unless you repent, you will all likewise perish” (Luke 13:3).