In John 8:32 Jesus said “the truth will set you free.” This is quoted everyone, most people that quote it probably don’t even know that it’s a Bible verse or that Jesus was the One who said it. The reality is that while this statement is true there is so much more that goes into it. John 8:31-32, together say “Then Jesus said to the Jews who believed in Him, ‘If you abide in My word, you are My disciples indeed. And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.” Jesus was talking to people who believed in Him, to people whom the Father had revealed Jesus’ identity as the Messiah the same way He had revealed it to Peter, Jesus was speaking to disciples. The word translated “abide, hold to, or continue” literally means “to stay, endure, tarry, to continue to be present, to be held, kept continually”. Jesus said “If you stay present, hold onto and remain held by My word, you are, without doubt, fear, worry or question, My disciples.” He continues by saying that as His disciples, we “shall know the truth”. Our knowledge of the truth comes from our relationship to Jesus. Truth isn’t simply knowledge learned or experiences gained, truth is a relationship formed in and built upon continuity. The abiding is the key to truth. Truth isn’t something we hear once and know, truth is established by constant use, determined endurance and chosen commitment. “If you abide in My word . . . you will know the truth”. Discipleship is building a relationship with Christ through committed, continual, constant devotion to His Word. That relationship is where knowledge of the truth is discovered and cultivated. It’s within this relationship with Christ that we discover His character, learn His heart and find rest for our souls and then are finally set free. This means that freedom isn’t something that happens in an instant, it’s not this “aha” moment in which we suddenly realize something that changes everything; freedom is built, it’s established, it’s worked on, worked in and worked through. In today’s text, we see Jesus leading Nicodemus toward freedom by beginning to reveal and establish truth. This morning we will begin to deal with a very necessary topic, what do we do when truth doesn’t just offend our senses, but begins to disrupt our lives and demand that we change our thinking? How do we respond when God begins to say things that are not just hard to understand but even painful to hear? Sometimes, on the way to setting us free, the truth must first make us uncomfortable, change our understanding and break our ways of doing things, sometimes the first thing the truth must free us from is us.