Rev. Ronald C. Purkey,
Pastor
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The following Bible study outline was
prepared by Rev. Ronald C. Purkey for
the Adult Bible Class at Paul’s Chapel where
Rev. Purkey is the teacher.
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SCRIPTURE:
INTRODUCTION: Light dispels darkness.
Light penetrates. Light purifies. In the scripture before us, we see Jesus
dispelling spiritual darkness, discerning the thoughts and hearts of men, and
cleansing the souls of sinful men. The scripture is true: "Thy Word is a
lamp unto me feet, and a light unto my path."
Out of my
bondage, sorrow, and night,
Jesus, I come, Jesus, I come;
Into Thy freedom, gladness, and light,
Jesus, I come to Thee. —Sleeper
I. JESUS
EXPLAINS HIS AUTHORITY. (John 8:12, 21-30)
A. This
message begins and ends with "I am." (
The personal pronouns "I, me, and my" are
found about 80 times in this message. Jesus spoke these words in the
B. There are
two major conversations in
1.
The first was with the Pharisees. (
2.
The second was with a group of believing Jews. (
C. The
Pharisees claimed that Jesus was the only One who was making statements like:
"I am the light of the world."
(
1.
But Jesus pointed them to the Law. (
2.
These are two witnesses to Christ. (
There is an intimation in verse 19 that they knew
that the Lord claimed a virgin birth. The whole question regarding their eternal
destiny hinged upon their need to receive Jesus Christ as their personal
Saviour. (
D. As a
result of Jesus' testimony concerning Himself: (
1.
Many trusted in Christ. (
2.
Many hated Christ. (
II. JESUS, THE
TRUTH, WILL SET YOU
A. True
believers will continue to follow Jesus. (
Faithfulness
An elderly preacher was rebuked by one of his deacons one
Sunday morning before the service. "Pastor," said the man,
"something must be wrong with your preaching and your work. There's been
only one person added to the church in a whole year, and he's just a boy."
The minister listened, his eyes moistening and his thin hand trembling. "I
feel it all," he replied, "but God knows I've tried to do my
duty." On that day the minister's heart was heavy as he stood before his
flock. As he finished the message, he felt a strong inclination to resign.
After everyone else had left, that one boy came to him and asked, "Do you
think if I worked hard for an education, I could become a preacher--perhaps a
missionary?" Again tears welled up in the minister's eyes. "Ah, this
heals the ache I feel," he said. "Robert, I see the Divine hand now.
May God bless you, my boy. Yes, I think you will become a preacher." Many
years later an aged missionary returned to
B. True
believers will know the truth. (Jesus Christ, Himself, is the
"Truth.") (8:32)
At first the Jews in the crowd believed Jesus was
speaking about freedom from Rome. Jesus had to explain that they were slaves to
the power of sin, not the power of Rome. Every time they sinned they proved
that sin was their master.
C. True
believers will be made free from the bondage of sin by their faith in Jesus Christ.
(8:33-36)
Jesus taught that His kind of freedom can only be
experienced by totally surrendering one’s life to Christ and being obedient to
the truth of His teachings.
CONCLUSION: To know Christ is to know
true freedom. Most of the time, however, Christ's kind of freedom cannot be
prayed about once and then experienced forever after. Even the apostle Paul
struggled with the tendency to sin (Romans 7:14-25). We need to turn to God
continually and ask Him to help us experience true freedom in our Christian
lives.
THOUGHT TO REMEMBER: “To gain true freedom, give your life to Christ.”
A Christian friend shared several problems with me over the
phone. He was particularly concerned about his frustration and anger. But
talking seemed to help. The next day he e-mailed this message to me:
"After our talk, I read my Bible notes and found several pages that spoke
to me. But what helped me most was the realization that Christianity really is
the truth. I suppose that for a Christian this should be obvious. But for me it
was a fresh revelation that Jesus in fact is the Son of God and He loves
me." He added, "Just knowing the truth was very liberating. Suddenly,
all the frustration and anger left me."
Writer Os Guinness tells about a young, searching Christian who
exclaimed, "I always knew the Christian faith was true, but I never
realized it was this true!"
As these believers searched for greater understanding of the
gospel, they rediscovered what Jesus promised: "You shall know the truth,
and the truth shall make you free" (John 8:32).
Do you need a fresh realization of truth in your life? Then
spend time searching the Scriptures (the written truth), and earnestly seek
Jesus Christ (the living truth). Soon the old, familiar truth of Jesus and His
love will become refreshingly new to you and will make you free indeed. – Joanie
Yoder, Our Daily Bread
PASTOR RONALD PURKEY’S OFFICE
3123 Manitou Park Road --
Telephone:
E-Mail: Pastor Ronald Purkey
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