31  Children of Abraham, or Satan?  (John 8:37–47)

“I know that you are Abraham’s descendants; yet you seek to kill Me, because My word has no place in you. I speak the things which I have seen with My Father; therefore you also do the things which you heard from your father.” They answered and said to Him, “Abraham is our father.” Jesus said to them, “If you are Abraham’s children, do the deeds of Abraham. But as it is, you are seeking to kill Me, a man who has told you the truth, which I heard from God; this Abraham did not do. You are doing the deeds of your father.” They said to Him, “We were not born of fornication; we have one Father: God.” Jesus said to them, “If God were your Father, you would love Me, for I proceeded forth and have come from God, for I have not even come on My own initiative, but He sent Me. Why do you not understand what I am saying? It is because you cannot hear My word. You are of your father the devil, and you want to do the desires of your father. He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth because there is no truth in him. Whenever he speaks a lie, he speaks from his own nature, for he is a liar and the father of lies. But because I speak the truth, you do not believe Me. Which one of you convicts Me of sin? If I speak truth, why do you not believe Me? He who is of God hears the words of God; for this reason you do not hear them, because you are not of God.”(8:37–47)

In a world filled with trouble and turmoil, and with the inevitable reality of death and the afterlife, people long for security. They seek comfort, stability, a positive outlook for the future, a sense of purpose, and hope after death. Also, whether they are conscious of it or not, they yearn to ease the crushing burden of sin that dominates life. The Word of God gives ample instruction on the folly of seeking security in the wrong things. A general consideration of this matter will set the stage for our text and the true and only security.

Some look to wealth and possessions to provide security and eliminate anxiety. But “riches are not forever” (Prov. 27:24); thus Proverbs 23:4–5 counsels, “Do not weary yourself to gain wealth, cease from your consideration of it. When you set your eyes on it, it is gone. For wealth certainly makes itself wings like an eagle that flies toward the heavens.” In Matthew 6:19–21 Jesus said,

In Luke 12:15 He cautioned, “Beware, and be on your guard against every form of greed; for not even when one has an abundance does his life consist of his possessions.” Then in verses 16–21 the Lord told a parable illustrating the folly of those who try to find security in riches:

To Timothy Paul wrote, “Instruct those who are rich in this present world not to be conceited or to fix their hope on the uncertainty of riches, but on God, who richly supplies us with all things to enjoy” (1 Tim. 6:17). Since “riches do not profit in the day of wrath” (Prov. 11:4; cf. Ezek. 7:19; Zeph. 1:18), “he who trusts in his riches will fall” (Prov. 11:28; cf. James 1:11). And, of course, material wealth has no connection with, nor can it make any contribution to, eternity.

Others, who are equally shortsighted, look for security in personal power. Job asked, “Why do the wicked still live, continue on, also become very powerful?” (Job 21:7). But such power is fleeting, providing only a false hope of stability. As David noted: “I have seen the wicked in great power, and spreading himself like a native green tree. Yet he passed away, and behold, he was no more; indeed I sought him, but he could not be found” (Ps. 37:35–36 NKJV). The gruesome death of Herod Agrippa demonstrates just how vulnerable and insecure even the most powerful people can be:

Those who think they can quiet the angst of their hearts by finding security in their social standing and prestige will likewise be disappointed. The scribes and Pharisees “love[d] the place of honor at banquets and the chief seats in the synagogues” (Matt. 23:6) as well as “the respectful greetings in the market places” (Luke 11:43; cf. 20:46). They ignored Solomon’s wise counsel, “Do not claim honor in the presence of the king, and do not stand in the place of great men; for it is better that it be said to you, ‘Come up here,’ than for you to be placed lower in the presence of the prince, whom your eyes have seen” (Prov. 25:6–7; cf. Luke 14:7–11). Despite their impressive religious image, the Pharisees of Jesus’ day were in reality sons of hell (Matt. 23:15).

There are also those who narcissistically seek security in their physical appearance and looks, not realizing that “charm is deceitful and beauty is vain” (Prov. 31:30; cf. 11:22). Saul, for instance, was “a choice and handsome man, and there was not a more handsome person than he among the sons of Israel” (1 Sam. 9:2). Yet, as a king, he was an utter failure, ultimately committing suicide after being defeated in battle (1 Sam. 31:1–6). David’s son Absalom was also very striking. Second Samuel 14:25–26 records that

But in spite of his handsome appearance, Absalom too suffered a shameful death, caught helplessly in the branches of a tree by the very hair he so vainly prized (2 Sam. 18:9–14). As both Saul and Absalom illustrate, one’s physical appearance cannot provide lasting security, since “our outer man is decaying” (2 Cor. 4:16) and, more important, “God sees not as man sees, for man looks at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart” (1 Sam. 16:7).

If anyone could have put his heart to rest and found peace in earthly things it would have been Solomon. As Ecclesiastes records, he tried everything: human wisdom (1:12–18), hedonism (2:1–3, 10), achievements (2:4–11), entertainment (2:8a), sex (2:8b), work (2:18–23), and wealth (2:8; 4:8; 5:10). But, after experiencing it all, his conclusion was that such pursuits were nothing more than “vanity and striving after wind” (1:14). In the end, Solomon realized that security comes only from being rightly related to God: “The conclusion, when all has been heard, is: fear God and keep His commandments, because this applies to every person” (12:13).

As Solomon discovered, any attempt to ground one’s security and hope in temporal, earthly things rather than God is doomed to failure. Only through His salvation in Jesus Christ can true, eternal safety be found. Those who put their faith in the Savior have nothing to fear from “death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor any other created thing, [for nothing] will be able to separate [them] from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus [their] Lord” (Rom. 8:38–39).

Satan, of course, recognizes the innate human longing for security, and knows that only the gospel provides for it. Therefore he offers in its place the ultimate source of counterfeit hope: false religion. False religion is his deadly strategy (cf. 2 Cor. 4:3–4; 11:13–15), because it deceives people into thinking they are right with God when in reality they are not. That artificial sense of security lies to and numbs their consciences, blinding them to their desperate need for the truth of the gospel.

In this section, which continues the dialogue that began in verse 31, the Lord confronted the false security that the Jews looked for in their self-righteous legalism. As He did so, the Jewish leaders whom He addressed grew increasingly hostile toward Him. In fact, their hatred was so intense that they were already planning to murder Him (vv. 37, 40; 5:16–18; 7:1, 19, 25). But, instead of backing down or softening His message, the Lord became even more direct and forceful in His condemnation, to the point that He openly identified His enemies as children of the devil (v. 44; cf. vv. 38, 41).

Jesus demolished the Jews’ false security for eternal life with God by refuting each of the three claims on which they based it: their claim to be Abraham’s physical children, their claim to be Abraham’s spiritual children, and their claim to be God’s children.

THEIR CLAIM TO BE ABRAHAM’S PHYSICAL CHILDREN

“I know that you are Abraham’s descendants; yet you seek to kill Me, because My word has no place in you. I speak the things which I have seen with My Father; therefore you also do the things which you heard from your father.” (8:37–38)

Jesus acknowledged the validity of the Jews’ claim, made in verse 33, to be Abraham’s physical descendants (cf. Luke 13:16; 19:9; Acts 3:25; 7:2; 13:26; Rom. 11:1; 2 Cor. 11:22). He also knew that they based their security largely on that fact, believing that they were guaranteed entrance into God’s kingdom simply because they were Abraham’s offspring. The second-century Christian apologist Justin Martyr said to his Jewish opponent: “They [the Jewish teachers] beguile themselves and you, supposing that the everlasting kingdom will be assuredly given to those of the dispersion who are of Abraham after the flesh, although they be sinners, and faithless, and disobedient towards God” (Dialogue with Trypho, 140).

Ethnic descent from Abraham and physical circumcision count for nothing apart from the “circumcision … which is of the heart” (cf. Deut. 10:16; 30:6; Jer. 4:4; Col. 2:11); the cleansing of sin that is wrought “by the Spirit” in salvation. Apart from that all the promised blessings and advantages of the Jewish people, of which there are many (cf. Rom. 3:1–2; 9:4–5), ultimately mean nothing.

In Romans 9:6 Paul noted that “they are not all Israel who are descended from Israel.” No one was ever saved merely by having Abraham as an ancestor. It is only the believing remnant (comprised of those Jews who come to true faith in Jesus Christ) who will be saved, as Paul pointed out in verse 27: “Isaiah cries out concerning Israel, ‘Though the number of the sons of Israel be like the sand of the sea, it is the remnant that will be saved’” (cf. 11:5; Isa. 10:22). To the Galatians he wrote, “Even so Abraham believed God, and it was reckoned to him as righteousness. Therefore, be sure that it is those who are of faith who are sons of Abraham. … So then those who are of faith are blessed with Abraham, the believer” (Gal. 3:6–7, 9).

The actions of Jesus’ opponents, however, showed they were not among the believing remnant. “Your father Abraham rejoiced to see My day,” Jesus told them, “and he saw it and was glad” (v. 56; cf. Heb. 11:13). Abraham looked forward to the coming of the Messiah, who would be the ultimate fulfillment of God’s promises to him. Yet the Jews sought to kill Jesus—the very Messiah for whom Abraham had hoped. And unlike Abraham, who believed God’s word (Gen. 15:6), Jesus’ word had no place in them; they rejected His teaching (cf. vv. 31, 43, 45, 47; Matt. 13:19; 1 Cor. 2:14). The term choreo (has no place) can mean “to advance,” “to make progress,” or “to go forward.” Though they heard Jesus’ word they did not heed it, and hence it never bore fruit in them. It penetrated their hardened hearts no deeper than the seed that fell beside the road in the parable of the sower (Matt. 13:4, 19). In contrast, “the word of God … performs its work in [those] who believe” (1 Thess. 2:13).

The Lord continued by explaining the logical implication of their hard-heartedness: “I speak the things which I have seen with My Father; therefore you also do the things which you heard from your father.” Jesus spoke to them of heavenly realities, of the divine truth that He alone could reveal because He heard it from the Father (cf. v. 26; 3:11, 31–32, 34; 6:46; 12:49; 14:10, 24; 15:15; 17:8). But they rejected Jesus’ words and instead did the things which they heard from their father. In the same way that Jesus’ conduct proved His Father was God, the conduct of Jesus’ enemies proved that their father was not God—but was actually the devil (cf. v. 44).

Thus they did not truly know Him, nor did they understand the words that He spoke. And because they did not know Him, they did not know His Father either. As He had earlier told them, “You know neither Me nor My Father; if you knew Me, you would know My Father also” (8:19).

THEIR CLAIM TO BE ABRAHAM’S SPIRITUAL CHILDREN

They answered and said to Him, “Abraham is our father.” Jesus said to them, “If you are Abraham’s children, do the deeds of Abraham. But as it is, you are seeking to kill Me, a man who has told you the truth, which I heard from God; this Abraham did not do. You are doing the deeds of your father.” (8:39–41a)

The Jews’ reply, “Abraham is our father,” indicates that once again they failed to grasp the import of Jesus’ words. They bitterly insisted that they were also Abraham’s spiritual children; that is, that they were following his pattern of faith in God. Our Lord’s response indicates this because He calls for them to demonstrate the righteousness that marked Abraham. Jesus’ challenge, If you are Abraham’s children, do the deeds of Abraham, pointed out the vast discrepancy between their actions and those of their patriarch.

Abraham was a man of extraordinary faith. Genesis 15:6 records that he “believed in the Lord; and He reckoned it to him as righteousness.” The New Testament repeatedly emphasizes Abraham’s faith; in fact, Paul devotes an entire chapter (Rom. 4) to show that Abraham was saved by faith, and not by works (v. 2), circumcision (vv. 10–12), or the Law (vv. 13–16). To the Galatians he wrote,

The writer of Hebrews also praised Abraham’s faith, setting it forth as an example to be followed (Heb. 11:8–12, 17–19).

In contrast to Abraham, however, Jesus’ opponents were self-righteously trying to earn favor with God by their own good works. They did not follow Abraham’s example, since it is “those who are of faith [who] are blessed with Abraham, the believer” (Gal. 3:9). Salvation is not based on legalistic effort, religious affiliation, or ethnic background (cf. Phil. 3:1–7). Rather, it comes solely through faith in Jesus Christ. He alone is “the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father but through [Him]” (John 14:6); “there is salvation in no one else; for there is no other name under heaven that has been given among men by which we must be saved” (Acts 4:12); and, “there is one God, and one mediator also between God and men, the man Christ Jesus” (1 Tim. 2:5).

Had they truly been Abraham’s children, Jesus’ opponents would have done the same kind of deeds that Abraham did. God’s testimony concerning him was that “Abraham obeyed Me and kept My charge, My commandments, My statutes and My laws” (Gen. 26:5; cf. 22:18). But Jesus’ opponents were seeking to kill Him (cf. v. 37), a man who told them the truth, which He heard from God. Such murderous intentions were far removed from Abraham’s obedience. Their disobedience and rejection of God the Son proved conclusively that they were not Abraham’s spiritual children since, needless to say, this Abraham did not do.

The contrast between Jesus’ opponents and Abraham was sharply drawn: Abraham was not a murderer, yet they sought to murder Jesus; Abraham obeyed and loved the truth, while they vehemently rejected it; Abraham welcomed God (Gen. 18:1ff.), but they rejected Him (Heb. 1:1–2). No wonder Jesus said to them again, “You are doing the deeds of your father.” The clear implication, as in verse 38, was that their father was neither Abraham nor God, but Satan (v. 44).

THEIR CLAIM TO BE GOD’S CHILDREN

They said to Him, “We were not born of fornication; we have one Father: God.” Jesus said to them, “If God were your Father, you would love Me, for I proceeded forth and have come from God, for I have not even come on My own initiative, but He sent Me. Why do you not understand what I am saying? It is because you cannot hear My word. You are of your father the devil, and you want to do the desires of your father. He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth because there is no truth in him. Whenever he speaks a lie, he speaks from his own nature, for he is a liar and the father of lies. But because I speak the truth, you do not believe Me. Which one of you convicts Me of sin? If I speak truth, why do you not believe Me? He who is of God hears the words of God; for this reason you do not hear them, because you are not of God.” (8:41b–47)

Infuriated by Jesus’ continued insistence that they were not Abraham’s spiritual children, the Jews lashed out at Him with a vicious insult. Their mocking statement, “We were not born of fornication,” was undoubtedly a disparaging reference to the controversy surrounding Jesus’ birth. In other words, they were implying that His birth, unlike theirs, was illegitimate (cf. v. 48).

The Jewish leaders went on to insist, “We have one Father: God.” No doubt they had in mind such Old Testament passages as Exodus 4:22: “Thus says the Lord, ‘Israel is My son, My firstborn’” and Jeremiah 31:9: “I am a father to Israel, and Ephraim is My firstborn” (cf. 3:19; Deut. 32:6; 1 Chron. 29:10). It was true that God was the Father of all Israel in a national sense. But, spiritually speaking, He was the Father only of those who had truly come to saving faith (cf. the discussion of v. 37 above).

Perhaps at this point Jesus’ opponents began to grasp what He was implying and would soon say—that they were children of Satan (vv. 38, 41). In response, they maintained that their religion was pure, untainted by idolatrous false religion. Hence they could not be Satan’s children, because he was the spiritual father of the heathen. Thus, they asserted with confidence, they must be children of God.

But their proud boast was palpably false; as Jesus said to them, “If God were your Father (and the implication is that He was not), you would love Me, for I proceeded forth and have come from God, for I have not even come on My own initiative, but He sent Me.” Those who profess love for God yet reject the One who proceeded forth and came from Him cannot be true children of God. By refusing to embrace Jesus, the Jewish leaders completely undermined their claim that God was their Father. As Jesus had said to them earlier, “He who does not honor the Son does not honor the Father who sent Him” (5:23); later He would warn them, “He who hates Me hates My Father also” (15:23). True children of God are inherently characterized by a love for His Son.

The Lord then asked the rhetorical question, “Why do you not understand what I am saying?” The obvious answer, as Jesus went on to point out, was because they could not hear His word. As noted earlier in the exposition of verse 38, their inability to hear and understand Him proved that they were not God’s children. Instead, it demonstrated that they were truly of their father the devil. What He had implied in verses 38 and 41 Jesus now bluntly stated: physically, his opponents were children of Abraham, but spiritually and morally they were children of Satan (cf. Matt. 13:38; Acts 13:10; 1 John 3:12). It was therefore not surprising that they wanted to do the evil desires of their father. In the same way that physical children naturally take after their earthly fathers, these individuals bore a spiritual resemblance to Satan himself. As the familiar adage puts it, “Like father, like son.”

Two evil desires in particular characterize Satan: murder and lying. He was, Jesus said, a murderer from the beginning. The reference is to the fall, when Satan’s temptation of Adam and Eve brought about their spiritual death and that of the entire human race (Gen. 2:17; Rom. 5:12; 1 Cor. 15:21–22). The reference may also encompass the first murder in human history, that of Abel by Cain (Gen. 4:1–8). Ever since the fall, Satan’s hatred for mankind has driven him to prowl “around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour” (1 Peter 5:8). He cares nothing for even the most evil men, those most devoted to his service. They are merely pawns whom he attempts to use in his war against God. Their attempt to murder Him proved who Jesus’ enemies’ true spiritual father was.

Satan is not only a murderer, but also a liar. He does not stand in the truth because there is no truth in him. Whenever he speaks a lie, he speaks from his own nature, for he is a liar and the father of lies. His convincing lie to Eve, “You surely will not die!” (Gen. 3:4; cf. 2 Cor. 11:3), led to the spiritual ruin of the human race. To this day he continues to deceive people (2 Cor. 4:4), cleverly “disguis[ing] himself as an angel of light” (2 Cor. 11:14; cf. Rev. 12:9; 20:2–3, 10). By rejecting the truth incarnate (1:17; 14:6; Eph. 4:21), the Jewish leaders unarguably marked themselves as children of Satan. “Because I speak the truth,” Jesus declared, “you do not believe Me.” As children of the father of lies they were unable and unwilling to receive the truth.

These unbelieving Jews were not, of course, the only members of Satan’s spiritual family; in his first epistle John wrote that any “one who practices sin is of the devil” (1 John 3:8). And unless the Lord opens his or her heart to respond to the truth (John 6:44; Acts 16:14; 2 Cor. 3:14–16), no unbeliever will listen to it. Instead, “wanting to have their ears tickled, they will accumulate for themselves teachers in accordance to their own desires, and will turn away their ears from the truth and will turn aside to myths” (2 Tim. 4:3–4). Having been duped by Satan’s schemes (2 Cor. 2:11; 4:4; Eph. 6:11), and having participated in his work, all unrepentant sinners will share in their father’s condemnation (1 Tim. 3:6).

As the Lord concluded this section, He challenged His opponents with two more rhetorical questions. The first, “Which one of you convicts Me of sin?” is a bold affirmation of what theologians refer to as Christ’s impeccability; that is, His utter holiness and separation from sin. Second Corinthians 5:21 says that He “knew no sin”; Hebrews 4:15 that He “has been tempted in all things as we are, yet without sin”; Hebrews 7:26 describes Him as “holy, innocent, undefiled, separated from sinners”; and 1 Peter 2:22 affirms that He “committed no sin.” Only the perfectly holy One, in intimate communion with the Father, could dare to issue such a challenge. Though His enemies wrongly believed Him to be guilty of sin, they could not prove Him guilty of anything. At His trial before Annas Jesus issued a similar challenge: “If I have spoken wrongly, testify of the wrong; but if rightly, why do you strike Me?” (18:23). There, as here, the challenge went unanswered.

The Lord’s second rhetorical question pressed the point relentlessly: “If I speak truth, why do you not believe Me?” If He was not guilty of sin, He must have been speaking the truth. What grounds, therefore, did they have for rejecting Him?

When His stunned opponents offered no reply, Jesus answered His own question: “He who is of God hears the words of God; for this reason you do not hear them, because you are not of God.” The syllogism is clear; the Lord’s logic irrefutable: He who is of God hears the words of God; they did not hear them; therefore they were not of God.

Like John the Baptist before Him (Luke 3:8), Jesus demolished the false hope of security that the Jews sought in being Abraham’s descendants. Though they claimed to be children of Abraham (both in lineage and in faith), Jesus made it clear to them that, spiritually speaking, they were actually children of Satan. Unless they repented, they were doomed to share the Devil’s punishment in hell. The same is also true today for all who base their hope on anything other than the person and work of Jesus Christ.