The Oldest Trick in the Book: Exposing How God’s People Fall for the Serpent’s Playbook

Chapter Seven: The Voice That Divides — Why Obedience, Not Predestination, Reveals the Heart

“He who is of God hears the words of God. For this cause you don’t hear, because you are not of God.” (John 8:47)

In the last chapter, we saw that hearing Jesus is not just about catching His words—it’s about hearing His words, loving the truth of those words, and responding in obedience. But what happens when people hear Jesus and still turn away? What if they claim to follow Him but only give His words lip service—agreeing outwardly while resisting the change His truth demands? That brings us to a deeper issue that many avoid because it exposes the heart’s true condition.

Back in the Garden, the relationship between God and Eve was tested when another voice entered the picture. The serpent didn’t forcefully attack Adam and Eve—he did it with words. He told a different story about God, about truth, about what would happen if they disobeyed. And instead of holding fast to God’s voice, they listened to the serpent.

This is the first great example of how hearing the wrong voice can change everything—even our loyalties—whether we mean to or not. Eve was deceived, but she still acted. Adam was not deceived (1 Timothy 2:14), but he still chose to go along. In both cases, the result was the same: rebellion and separation.

That same dynamic still plays out today. Many people think deception is just an unfortunate mistake. But in Scripture, deception is often the result of a deeper issue: a refusal to love the truth.

Paul wrote in 2 Thessalonians 2 that those who don’t receive a love for the truth will end up believing a lie. And not just any lie—a powerful one. A delusion. One that they are fully convinced is true. Why? Because they didn’t want the truth when it was offered.

Truth is confrontational. It doesn’t just inform—it exposes. And that’s what makes it so divisive. People don’t reject the truth because it’s unclear. They reject it because it conflicts with their desires, their loyalty to others (people or preconceived ideas), or their pride.

Jesus made this plain when He said, “The light has come into the world, and men loved the darkness rather than the light; for their works were evil.” (John 3:19) The issue isn’t intellectual—it’s moral. It manifests in either rejection or submission. People love darkness because they want to keep doing what they’re doing without being exposed.

And when that’s the case, truth becomes the enemy. The more clearly it’s spoken, the more offensive it becomes. That’s why religious leaders in Jesus’ day didn’t just ignore Him—they plotted to kill Him. His words cut too close to home.

It’s still that way today. Those who speak truth clearly and lovingly will often be accused of being harsh, divisive, or judgmental—not because what they say is false, but because it reveals what others want to keep hidden.

But the test of truth is never whether it’s popular—it’s whether it agrees with what God has already spoken.

In the end, truth divides because it reveals. It doesn’t just challenge ideas—it exposes allegiance. That’s why Jesus could say with absolute clarity, “Everyone who is of the truth hears my voice.” (John 18:37)

And that voice still calls out today. It doesn’t scream. It doesn’t demand. But it speaks, clearly and consistently. And the ones who truly belong to God—the ones who love truth—will hear it.

That’s the voice we must follow. The only one that leads to life.

“⁶⁷Jesus said therefore to the twelve, “You don’t also want to go away, do you?” ⁶⁸Simon Peter answered him, “Lord, to whom would we go? You have the words of eternal life.” (John 6:67-68)

Three-Prong Analysis of John 8:47

And now, for the more technical readers among us, let’s analyze John 8:47 grammatically, contextually, and in relation to other similar passages to confirm whether “of God” means being led by God rather than a predestined identity.

1. Grammatical Analysis The Greek phrase for “of God” in John 8:47 is ἐκ τοῦ Θεοῦ (ek tou Theou), where ἐκ (ek) means “out of” or “from,” usually pointing to source, origin, or association. The same phrase appears in John 8:44: “You are of your father, the devil” (ἐκ τοῦ πατρὸς τοῦ διαβόλου ἐστε).

But grammatically, ἐκ doesn’t always imply a fixed identity. It can also point to alignment or direction. For example:

• John 3:31 — “He who is of the earth is earthly…” uses ἐκ τῆς γῆς (ek tēs gēs) to show someone aligned with or acting from an earthly perspective.
• 1 John 4:6 — “We are of God…” (ἐκ τοῦ Θεοῦἐσμέν) points to association through listening to God’s truth, not automatic status.

So “of God” doesn’t have to mean “predestined by God.” It often refers to those who align themselves with Him by hearing and following His words.

2. Contextual Analysis (John 8) In John 8:43–47, Jesus explains that the Jewish leaders don’t hear Him because they’re not “of God.” But look at how He frames it:

• “Why don’t you understand my speech? Because you can’t hear my word.”
• This isn’t about inability due to fate—it’s about refusal. Just like in John 5:40: “You will not come to me…”

When Jesus says, “You are of your father the devil,” He ties it to their behavior: “You want to do the desires of your father.” It’s not a statement of eternal status but of current allegiance.

And when He says, “He who is of God hears the words of God,” He means the test is simple—do you listen or not? Just like John 10:27: “My sheep hear my voice… and follow me.”

3. Comparison with Other Passages

• Romans 8:14 — “As many as are led by the Spirit of God, these are children of God.”
• John 1:12 — “To those who received Him… He gave the right to become children of God.”
• 1 John 3:10 — “Whoever doesn’t do righteousness is not of God.”
• Matthew 23:37 — “How often I would have gathered your children… but you would not.”

All of these reinforce the same pattern: being “of God” means being led by Him—not fixed destiny.

Summary: “Not of God” Means “Not Led by God”

1. Grammatically: “of God” shows alignment or direction.
2. Contextually: Jesus highlights refusal to hear, not exclusion by God.
3. Biblically: Spiritual identity is tied to hearing, believing, and obeying.

So John 8:47 doesn’t teach that some people are born destined for destruction. It shows that people reveal their allegiance by who they listen to and follow—God or the adversary.

Jesus’ Words in John 8: A Direct Parallel to the Fall

In John 8, Jesus is speaking to religious leaders who claimed to follow God. But their rejection of Jesus revealed their true allegiance.

• “He who is of God hears the words of God…” (John 8:47)
• “You are of your father, the devil…” (John 8:44)

Like Eve in the Garden, they rejected God’s voice in favor of the serpent’s lie. Jesus told them plainly in John 5:37–40 that they didn’t have God’s word living in them because they rejected the one God sent.

Comparison Table: Genesis 3 and John 8

 

The Pattern:

1. God speaks truth.
2. The adversary twists or challenges it.
3. People choose which voice to follow.

That same pattern still happens today.

Jesus Teaches That His Sheep Hear His Voice

Jesus explains that His true followers will know and respond to His voice. In John 10:27:

• “My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me.”

Comparison Table: Genesis and John 10

The Garden (Genesis 3)	Jesus’ Teaching (John 10:27)
Adam and Eve heard God’s voice but ignored it	True followers hear and follow Jesus’ voice
Eve trusted her own reasoning	Disciples trust the Shepherd’s voice
Ignoring God’s voice led to death	Following Jesus leads to eternal life

 

This is the same test described in John 8:47. Hearing and following proves identity.

The Pharisees Reject God’s Word Just Like Eve Did

Jesus warned that people would hear but not truly listen—not because they couldn’t, but because they chose not to:

“This people’s heart has grown callous…” (Matthew 13:14–15)

Jesus said, “Take heed therefore how you hear.” (Luke 8:18)

Refusing to hear opens the door to deception. It happened in Eden. It happened in John 8. It still happens now.

Romans 6:16–17 Confirms the Pattern

Now that we’ve seen how hearing determines allegiance, Paul confirms this in Romans 6:

“Don’t you know that to whom you present yourselves as servants to obedience, his servants you are whom you obey; whether of sin to death or of obedience to righteousness?” (Romans 6:16)

Comparison Table: Hearing and Following — From the Garden to the Good Shepherd

Genesis 3	John 8	Romans 6
Eve obeyed the serpent	The Pharisees rejected Jesus	Paul: we obey sin unto death
Chose false enlightenment	Trusted tradition over truth	Righteousness comes by choosing obedience
Their choice changed their spiritual identity	Rejection revealed allegiance	Who we choose to obey determines who we serve

 

This table graphically shows us how the test described in John 8:47 is confirmed in other passages of Scripture. The consistent message is that hearing and following prove allegiance. These two passages—Genesis 3 and John 10—complete the circle. They reinforce how Scripture, from beginning to end, consistently identifies spiritual identity not by religious claims or ancestry, but by whose voice we follow and obey. They show that the foundation of a true relationship with God has always been the same: hearing His voice, trusting His word, and obeying it. Whether in the Garden or the Gospels, those who genuinely belong to God are known by how they respond to His voice. And of course, the reverse is also true.

Final Conclusion: The Ultimate Choice

“But thanks be to God, that, whereas you were bondservants of sin, you became obedient from the heart to that form of teaching whereunto you were delivered.” (Romans 6:17)

Just as people become “of the devil” by following deception, they become “of God” by obeying the truth.

John 8, Genesis 3, and Romans 6 form a unified picture:

• Being “of God” means hearing, believing, and obeying.
• Being “of the devil” means rejecting God’s word and following a lie.

Romans 6:16–17, John 8:43–47, and Genesis 3:1–6 together form one of the clearest affirmations of this theme:

• Obedience reveals spiritual identity.
• Hearing determines allegiance.
• Truth is the dividing line between life and death.

And that brings us to one of the serpent’s oldest and most effective tricks: using God’s own words in a way that leads people away from God. If hearing and obeying God’s voice is the true test of identity, then it should be no surprise that the adversary’s strategy is to twist and obscure that voice—especially through Scriptures that seem ambiguous or out of context. The next chapter will take a closer look at some of the most commonly misunderstood passages in the Bible—verses that many have stumbled over, not because God wasn’t speaking clearly—for example, in Jesus’s parables—but because they refused to hear what He was saying.

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