The Blindness of Bondage

The most enslaved people often think they're the most free. Today we'll examine how spiritual blindness keeps people in bondage while they boast of their freedom.

John 8:33-36 "They answered Him, 'We are Abraham's descendants and have never yet been enslaved to anyone; how is it that You say, "You will become free"?' Jesus answered them, 'Truly, truly, I say to you, everyone who commits sin is the slave of sin... So if the Son makes you free, you will be free indeed.'"

Jesus tells them they can be free. He really cares for people. He's telling them they don't have to live in slavish fear. And how do they respond? Like a pit viper: "We are Abraham's descendants and have never yet been enslaved to anyone."

On the surface, this feels delusional. They'd been slaves to the Egyptians for 400 years, the Assyrians, the Babylonians. And now the coin in their pocket had the face of Caesar on it. You cannot write the story of the Israelites without a massive section entitled "slavery." But in spite of all their national slavery, they prided themselves in their spiritual freedom: "We are the children of Abraham."

How does Jesus answer? "Truly, truly, I say to you, everyone who commits sin is the slave of sin." Jesus responds that their primary identification before God is not their Abrahamic seed but their sin. No one is saved because of their genetics.

In spite of all their religion, all their tradition, they were still slaves of sin. Before Christ, you were a slave. Romans 6 says you are a slave of the one you obey—either a slave of sin resulting in wrath (the wages of sin is death), or you are a slave of Jesus Christ. There is no spiritual Switzerland. There's no neutrality.

Here's what's beautiful: When you're saved, you become a slave of Jesus Christ, but Jesus says that's freedom. How can I be a slave of Jesus Christ and also walk in freedom? Isn't that a contradiction?

No. When you come to Jesus Christ as your Master, you realize He is a good, kind Master. He not only rescues and ransoms you—He adopts you as His child and says, "Come unto Me, I'll give you rest." What a different type of Master this is! He's not our boss—He's our Father.

Freedom for a Christian is not the ability to do whatever we want. It's the ability and power to do what God wants through the power of His Spirit. The more closely I walk in obedience to God, doing what I want to do—and what I want to do becomes what I ought to do because God's Word and Spirit are changing my heart—that feels like freedom.

Galatians 5:1: "It is for freedom that Christ has set us free."

If you're not a Christian: You need to examine yourself and turn to Christ. If in your heart there is no love for Jesus and no desire for holiness, you very well may not be a Christian. It doesn't matter what you said. It doesn't matter that you got baptized when you were nine. If there's no hunger for the things of God, if you got dragged here this morning because you have no affection for the people of God, you need to take inventory of your life.

If you're in Christ but lack assurance: This is one of the most crippling places to live. RC Sproul asked three questions that were helpful for me as a young guy battling assurance: Do you love the Lord Jesus Christ perfectly? No, of course not. Do you love the Lord Jesus Christ like you want to? No, of course not. Well, do you love the Lord Jesus Christ at all? If you can say yes, then you're a Christian—because the natural man cannot love the things of God.

How do you know if you love Him? Jesus says, "If you love Me, you will obey My commandments." What is obedience? It's love-fueled, gratitude-driven desire to be like the God who bought us with His blood.

And when you sin, when you stumble, you look to the cross. The only One who obeyed God perfectly died in your place. The only reason we can be free is because Christ Himself was bound and nailed to a cross.

Stay dialed in.