Set free to be the person God wants you to be

So Jesus said, “When you have lifted up the Son of Man on the cross, then you will understand that I am he. I do nothing on my own but say only what the Father taught me. And the one who sent me is with me—he has not deserted me. For I always do what pleases him.” Then many who heard him say these things believed in him. Jesus said to the people who believed in him, “You are truly my disciples if you remain faithful to my teachings. And you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.” “But we are descendants of Abraham,” they said. “We have never been slaves to anyone. What do you mean, ‘You will be set free’?” Jesus replied, “I tell you the truth, everyone who sins is a slave of sin. A slave is not a permanent member of the family, but a son is part of the family forever. So if the Son sets you free, you are truly free. John 8:28-36

Jesus, from the text, was explaining to those that did not believe Him the purpose of His coming. He told them that He will be hanged on the cross. All these things that He will be doing and accomplishing were not supposed to be new revelation to them since these were already prophesied from the Old Testament. That is why He said; “I do nothing on my own but say only what the Father taught me” (v. 28), implying that what He set out to do where already told from the Scriptures. Then He challenged them to believe Him. The test of belief in God is to “remain faithful in His teachings” (v. 31). The reason why He emphasized on applying God’s word to one’s life was because some of those hearing Him were familiar with the teachings of the Old Testament but they are not applying God’s word in their lives. If they really believe the Word of God, they could have recognized what Jesus was saying. John pointed out from the beginning of the gospel that Jesus is the Word and the fulfillment of what was written in the Scriptures. “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God” (John 1:1, NIV). Then he said, “The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us” (John 1:14, NIV). There are those that believed what Jesus taught that day. The test of belief in God is the willingness to live one’s life according to His teachings. Just like what Jesus promised, once you know Him and surrendered your life to Him, “you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.” Your life will be guided by the truth of His word. The true test of faith and belief in God is how you apply His word to your life. Once you did this, you will realize that you are indeed free to be the person God wants you to be. You become a child of God and a part of His family forever (John 8:35). Open your life to Christ and ask Him to be your Lord and Savior. Once you did this, let His presence and the truth of His word guide you daily.” Clothe yourself with the presence of the Lord Jesus Christ so you will not indulge in in your evil desires” (Romans 13:14).

Blessings.