Your father the devil

You are of your father the devil, and the desires of your father you want to do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaks a lie, he speaks from his own resources, for he is a liar and the father of it. – John 8.44

The one group that Jesus was constantly going after was the artificial religionists of His day. The Jewish leaders He was talking to were just such characters. They thought they could find salvation in their Jewishness even though they were arrogant, hateful, and proud. They were totally opposed to this new young upstart who seemingly wanted to upset their apple cart with His teachings and ideas.

The time had come for Jesus to draw a clear line in the sand between those who hold to the truth and those who believe a lie. ‘You are of your father, the devil’ He said. This must have hit them like a tonne of brick because they assumed their religion was making the Father happy and yet Jesus called them children of the devil! ‘You want to do the things that the devil desired’ Jesus continued, ‘there is no truth in him, he is a liar and the father of lies.’

Jesus drew a clear distinction here – people either follow the truth or they follow a lie. He had already proclaimed that He brought the message of truth and that these guys were following the father of lies.

The first thing that has to happen is to accept the fact that there is such a thing as truth. That very idea is no longer even accepted today. Truth is whatever one wants it to be and everyone has their own truth. Unless one accepts that 'true truth' exists there is no chance of the next step.

The next step is to accept the truth of Christ over the lies of the devil. This is, of course, another act of faith. It is so easy to accept the lies of immorality and materialism and such because they are so appealing to the here and now that it can block everything else out.

Putting faith in and trust in the truth is tougher. It is a matter God working in a person’s heart. It requires looking beyond the here and now to what happens in eternity. It requires, well, faith.

Nearly 35 years ago I chose to take a step of faith and accept Jesus’ statements about truth. It has changed my life both for now and for eternity. All I can do is speak for myself and say that I am grateful that Jesus has provided THE way, THE truth, and THE life.