A Spirit of Bondage
A Sermon on John 3:8
Originally preached March 27, 1966
Scripture
8The wind bloweth where it listeth, and thou hearest the sound thereof, but canst not tell whence it cometh, and whither it goeth: so is every one that is born of the Spirit.
Sermon Description
What is it that puts all people in bondage? In this sermon from John 3:8 titled “A Spirit of Bondage,” Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones says that all are under the law of God because they are sinners, and no one can ever do anything to save themselves. How then can sinners be saved? The answer is found in the new birth. This is a supernatural and mysterious work wherein God gives fallen sinners a new nature. This is what Jesus told Nicodemus: “you must be born again.” Just as no one brings about a natural birth, so they also do not bring about a supernatural birth. This new life frees the Christian from the spirit of fear and bondage because they are no longer under the law and condemnation of God. Those who trust in God can have full assurance that Jesus loves them and has died to save them. They can go through life knowing that they have been forgiven of all sin and are now at peace with God. This assurance is not something reserved for only the most mature Christians, but every believer can come to a true and full knowledge that they have been adopted into the family of God.
Sermon Breakdown
- The sermon begins by emphasizing the importance of being born again according to John 3:8. Dr. Lloyd-Jones stresses that being born again is a miracle and the work of God.
- Dr. Lloyd-Jones then highlights the difference between being religious and being a Christian. He says being religious focuses on external things like buildings, vestments and ceremonies while being a Christian is about having a personal relationship with God. 3.Dr. Lloyd-Jones warns about the danger of reducing faith to mere religion and ceremony. He says the Christian faith is about knowing God personally through Jesus Christ.
- Dr. Lloyd-Jones then begins discussing the characteristics of someone who is born again. The first characteristic is having communion with the Holy Trinity - knowing God the Father, Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit.
- Dr. Lloyd-Jones focuses on knowing the Holy Spirit. He says the work of the Holy Spirit in believers is sanctification - delivering us from sin and producing the fruit of the Spirit. The other work of the Holy Spirit is giving assurance of salvation.
- Dr. Lloyd-Jones says that while you can be a Christian without assurance, having assurance is one of the greatest proofs of being born again. He contrasts assurance and self-satisfaction. Self-satisfaction comes from one's own efforts while assurance comes from faith in what God has done through Jesus Christ.
- Dr. Lloyd-Jones says assurance shows itself through being delivered from a spirit of bondage and fear. The born again person has peace with God through faith in Jesus Christ.
- The born again person also has the spirit of adoption, crying "Abba, Father!" They approach God as a loving Father, not just as a lawgiver.
- Dr. Lloyd-Jones says the devil can counterfeit many things but he can never give someone the spirit of adoption or make them cry "Abba, Father!"
The Book of John
Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones
Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones (1899-1981) was a Welsh evangelical minister who preached and taught in the Reformed tradition. His principal ministry was at Westminster Chapel, in central London, from 1939-1968, where he delivered multi-year expositions on books of the bible such as Romans, Ephesians and the Gospel of John. In addition to the MLJ Trust’s collection of 1,600 of these sermons in audio format, most of these great sermon series are available in book form (including a 14 volume collection of the Romans sermons), as are other series such as "Spiritual Depression", "Studies in the Sermon on the Mount" and "Great Biblical Doctrines". He is considered by many evangelical leaders today to be an authority on biblical truth and the sufficiency of Scripture.