Have You Been Crushed By The Truth?
"...and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.” They answered him, “We are offspring of Abraham and have never been enslaved to anyone. How is it that you say, ‘You will become free’?” — John 8:32-33
So a little backstory for you. The people of God had been slaves or under foreign control for most of their heritage. This included foreign powers like Egypt (twice), Assyria, Babylon, Persia, Macedonia, Syria, then here, during their time, Rome. God's people were rarely completely free of political control.
However, most Jews viewed their spiritual heritage through the lens of Abraham. Their connection to Abraham and the promises given by God took precedence over all political powers. This is why they got hooked by Jesus's phrase, "set you free." They believed they were presently free because political freedom was not the test of their freedom. Generational connection to Abraham was their means of freedom, evidenced by the act of circumcision. And that's why circumcision was so important to them.
So let's pause here for a second. I want to back up.
Jesus has put himself in harm's way teaching on the Temple grounds even though he knows religious authorities are seeking to kill him. He confronts them on the Temple grounds. Then he persuades many Jews to believe that he is the Christ. Once they do, he then pushes hard on them about their belief. So he tells them what "real" belief looks like. And now he pushes even harder by attacking the assumptions they had made for generations on the topics of freedom and slavery. Jesus tells them that they are presently enslaved and don't even realize it because they have made a lot of spiritual assumptions about their spiritual condition.
No one preaches like this. No one. I don't know any pastor, me included, who speaks, teaches, and preaches this way. Jesus is coming hard after these people. He is testing the legitimacy of their belief in him. He is pushing them deep into the rabbit hole and exposing generational assumptions, incorrect theories about the Messiah, challenging religious leaders, attacking theological heresy, and calling them sinners all at the same time. No one preaches like this.
And that is what is so incredible about Jesus. His words and teachings crush mankind. But once they do and you believe. Truly believe. The same words that crushed you will bring you clarity, giving way to freedom and knowing the One who sets men free.
Is not my word like fire, declares the Lord, and like a hammer that breaks the rock in pieces? — Jeremiah 23:29
ASK THIS: Has the Word of God crushed you?
DO THIS: If you have not been crushed by the truth, you will never know the truth.
PRAY THIS: God, may your Word crush my soul and show me your freedom.
PLAY THIS: Broken Vessels.
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Read through the Bible daily with Vince Miller.
Thank you brother Vince for continuing to be use by the Spirit to open our eyes even more to the Truth.
Maranatha… any day is a good day Lord Jesus!
Not a fully comparable experience, but it does help me understand how to live out my faith better: military boot camp. The main purpose of boot camp is to stop the “I” mentality, break down the person and build up the UNIT. The more the recruits focus on the “I” mentality, the more they are punished for it. The more the recruits focus on the unit mentality, the more they are rewarded, even causing punishments to end sooner. (Yes, I am speaking from personal experience brothers.) When we are focused on ourselves, we miss EVERYTHING about Jesus and His mission because He didn’t come JUST TO SAVE ONE PERSON, but to pay the ransom (slave price) for many. Our individual journey and growth in the faith is important, but we need to remember that His mission STARTS with one person at a time, then grows, as soon as the one person is ready, into multiple people. Jesus called us to make disciples, who are supposed to make more disciples, and spread the Word.
Blessed are the poor in Spirit. I think this is why it starts at this point. We must be crushed by the truth then be restored.
Very powerful words of wisdom today. His Word is FIRE!
Yes it has in many ways and I am so grateful for the crushing am a better off because of the crushing. To God be the glory.