John 8:31-32 To the Jews who had believed him, Jesus said, “If you hold to my teaching, you are really my disciples. Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.”

It has long been striking to me that Jesus said this, and the things following, to the Jews who had believed in Him. This wasn’t an invitation to believe, it was laying down the ground rules for being a disciple. What He is making very clear here is that mental assent to the fact that Jesus is the Christ, the Savior, doesn’t make you a disciple, and it doesn’t set you free from sin. We need to pay close attention to what He says here: “If you abide in my word.” That’s a conditional statement, so it requires an active response on our part. Many Christians only open a Bible during church services, if then. That’s not abiding in the Word! Abiding in the Word means taking it in regularly, not just reading it or listening to it but mulling it over and thinking about all the implications, allowing it to work down into our minds and hearts until it becomes part of us. Jesus says that if we will do that, then we are really His disciples. Then and only then will we really know the truth and be set free, not just from the penalty for sin, which Jesus took care of on the cross, but from the present power of sin in our lives and in the world around us. That is a desirable outcome indeed, and certainly worth taking time to pursue.

As a pastor, it is my heartfelt desire to bring each of the believers to this point, but the obstacles are many. The pace of modern society convinces most people they don’t have time for real devotions every morning. The world’s value system convinces them that if they fail to watch those late-night TV shows they are really missing out, so they are too short of sleep to focus properly even if they do manage to get up in time to read the Bible and pray. I have the luxury of a flexible time schedule which makes it relatively easy for me at this point, but my “devotional addiction” has certainly required that I get to bed much earlier than the average person these days. People look at my schedule, and the fact that I’m a “professional Christian,” and assume my devotional life just comes with the package, never imagining that God desires just as much intimacy with them as He does with me. I need to help them understand what is holding them back from the true discipleship that I feel most of the believers here really desire. It seems that people are more shocked at how early I go to bed than they are at how early I get up! I need to help them acquire and maintain Kingdom priorities for their time, so that they may avoid the traps of the devil and walk in the liberty God has prepared for them.

Father, thank You for this Word. Thank You for steeping me in the Bible from childhood, and for opening it up to me morning by morning. I ask for wisdom and anointing to bring many with me on this journey of discipleship, so that as Your free people we may be Your agents indeed, so that Your kingdom may come as Your will is done, in our lives and in society around us, for Your glory. Thank You. Hallelujah!